How to smoke a cannagar (cannabis cigar)

The cannabis smokables market is evolving to meet the expectations of a refined and widened audience. Rising professionals and high net-worth individuals are turning to the luxury cannagar as a way to enjoy the status, relaxation, and high times they’ve earned. 

The luxury cannagar serves as a highly complementary companion smokable to premium-quality cigars. Now, with the cannagar, non-tobacco smokers can join the cigar party and enjoy the lifestyle and ambiance familiar to traditional cigar enthusiasts. Cigar smokers also appreciate cannagars for their smooth draw, rich smoke, and fresh taste, taking their passion for luxury to the next level with ease.

But what if you’re new to the cannagar scene? What is cannagar smoking etiquette, and how do you smoke a cannabis cigar properly?

Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered with some tips to make you look like a cigar-smoking aficionado and help you get the most out of your cannagar experience and investment.

 

Have the right gear.

First things first. You don’t serve top-shelf liquor in a red SOLO® cup, do you? Here are a few things you’ll need to protect the integrity of your cannagar, create the best possible smoking experience, and impress your friends.

Each 6-inch High Kings of Tara “Shillelagh” cannagar comes ready to smoke right from the tube. The burning end of the cannagar (the foot) comes open ended with the tightly packed flower exposed like in a cigarette. Each cannagar has a natural corn husk tip (the head) that touches the smoker's lips when smoking.

1. Cigar torch lighter – A cigar lighter is one of the most important accessories required to light your cannagar properly. A good butane-fueled flame torch lighter will produce an even (not shaky) flame that can toast the many leaf layers of a cannagar. An evenly lit cannagar creates a better smoking experience, and a good quality torch lighter will prevent charring or damage. High Kings of Tara provides high-end torches in all of its humidors. 

 2. Cigar ashtray – A luxury cannagar will burn evenly with minimal grit and extinguish itself. Still, you’ll want to keep a cool-looking ashtray nearby. Seriously though, search online for “cool cigar ashtrays,” and you’ll be amazed at what’s out there. If smoking with friends, choose one with multiple cigar rests.

3. Cannabis cigar humidor – To preserve the terpenes, potency, flavor, freshness, and moisture of your cannagars, it’s best to store them in the High Kings custom cannagar humidor that will maintain a perfectly controlled and consistent level of humidity for freshness.

 

Unwrap your cannagar.

Each High Kings of Tara cannagar comes wrapped in cellophane to preserve the moisture and texture. Carefully unwrap your cannagar, being mindful not to tear the outer leaf wrap.

 

Savor the moment.

Smoking a High Kings of Tara Shillelagh cannagar is a complete sensory experience with total mind and body involvement but focused primarily on the eyes, fingertips, nose, mouth, and lungs.

The sensory experience begins with the sight and feel of the unwrapped Shillelagh. The vivid, verdant foliate green natural leaf wrap is filled with lush, tightly packed hemp flowers to present a firm, sturdy six-inch smokable stick. Apply a bit of pinch pressure by rolling it between your finger and thumb. It will feel soft to the touch but solid with a slight give, perfect for sustaining a fine draw and burn. 

Run the Shillelagh under your nose to savor the rich aroma of the scented flower, a bouquet of natural terpene smells like pine forest and lilac meadow with traces of lavender, orange, black pepper, eucalyptus, lemon, pineapple, and much more mixed in.

Our tightly rolled Shillelaghs provide generous airflow to ensure the smoothest smoke from start to when you finish one to five hours later.

 

Light your cannagar. 

This part can be a bit intimidating for newcomers, but with a little practice, you’ll master the cannagar and be well on your way to smoking like a connoisseur. 

The smoking experience itself begins with properly holding the cannagar. The most effective and efficient holding technique is to pinch it between your smoking hand’s thumb and forefinger. This allows you to keep complete control over the cannagar, reducing the possibility of it slipping and falling. Use your other fingers (pinky, ring and middle) to support the cannagar’s end, especially if it’s still long.

Next comes the butane torch lighter, which provides good flame control and won’t damage the Shillelagh's flavor profile. Good butane burns clean. It won’t clog the jets in your torch lighter, and it won’t interfere with the taste of your cannagar.

When lighting your cannagar, don’t allow the torch lighter flame to touch the exposed flower at the cannagar's business end (called the "foot" in the cigar world).

While holding the flame below the foot without touching it, rotate the cigar a few times until the foot is evenly warmed. This will warm up your cannabis flower and make it easier to light. Fire up your cannabis flower with just the tip of the flame to get the foot burning evenly.

Once the cannagar is lit, pinch the filter end and hold it to your lips, using the "kissing" technique to take a toke. Enjoyment of the cannagar’s true flavor on your tongue begins here.

One feature unavailable in cigars but standard issue in each High Kings cannagar is a natural corn husk filter at the tip of the cannagar that touches the smoker's lips and through which you take a drag. The filter – which has an unnoticeable, neutral taste – traps smoke particles and prevents lip moisture, saliva, and spit from making the cannagar tip soggy. It also helps avoid tar and resin buildup in the lungs and helps minimize any risk of  burning yourself while smoking.

Begin puffing on the filter end as you slowly rotate the lit cannagar with your fingertips. It may take a few rotations and drags to get it fully lit, so don’t stop. You’ll know the cannagar is properly lit when you see a glow around the outer rim of the "cherry" ember and the smoke draws easily.

 

Experience your cannagar to the fullest. 

The cannagar experience centers around the puff – short, quick draws and blows – pulling smoke into your mouth and wafting it out through your nostrils to carry lightly and smoothly into the air. In the High Kings cannagar, the pull is consistent, and the puff is magical in the way it acts upon your mind.

Unlike cigar smoke, cannagar smoke is intended to be inhaled.

You want to enjoy your cannagar's CBD and THC content to the fullest, so puff away ... inhale the smoke for only a few seconds, then exhale. You want to avoid coughing or having a burning throat, which can mean tar and resin irritated your lungs, or you inhaled too much smoke.

Instead, start with polite puffs and gentle exhales. The surface area of the lungs enables your body to absorb significant amounts of the intoxicating THC molecule.

One popular system of drawing smoke from the cannagar is the “1-2-3 method” which involves taking three puffs. The first two are short and steady while the third is longer and somewhat more substantial. When done correctly, this approach will allow the oils in the foot of the cannagar to heat up more rapidly and permeate the rest of the smoke.

Generally speaking, one or two puffs per minute is a desirable pace. Gently draw the cannagar smoke into your palate before taking it into the lungs (something cigar smokers never do). The trick is to master the cigar smoker's act of drawing and expelling – not just inhaling and exhaling.

Be mindful to exhale slowly through the nostrils. "Retrohaling" is the act of bringing the smoke into your mouth and lungs before releasing it through your nose. 

Sensory neurons in the nose detect odor molecules in the smoke and relay signals to the olfactory bulb, a structure in the forebrain where initial odor processing occurs. This is how the THC molecule interacts directly with the brain.

While obviously being responsible for your sense of smell, your nose also plays a great part in your sense of taste. The olfactory sensors influence how you taste the cannagar and its many flavors, bringing aroma into the equation. Clearly, the nose knows.

Then there’s the way THC interacts indirectly with the brain. Immediately upon ingestion, the molecule quickly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream, and the blood carries the chemical to the brain and other organs throughout the body. THC binds to cannabinoid pathways in the brain and central nervous system, triggering a chain of biological events resulting in the “high” users feel when experiencing THC-laden smokables like our High Kings cannagars.

The Shillelagh high comes on slowly and as background to the act and art of smoking, consuming, and enjoying the High Kings cannagar itself. There's a ritual and rhythm associated with adapting cigar smoking habits to cannagar consumption, e.g., adjusting pulls, dealing with ash buildup, etc.

 

Be patient with ash buildup.

Regarding ash buildup, there's no need to repeatedly tap or flick your cannagar ash. Our handmade cannagars are crafted from long-filler hemp flower, which holds a far longer and sturdier ash than, for example, a cigarette, where the ash flakes and falls off. Fiddling with your cannagar's ash with too much force can break off the ember, requiring a relight, so be observant. Watch the ash and wait until it is no more than an inch in long, or until you see a crack develop, before tapping the cannagar into your ashtray.

To extinguish the cannagar when you're done smoking, set it aside in the ashtray. Without you puffing on it, the cannagar will quickly extinguish itself. Before you set it down, gently draw on the unlit cannagar once more to remove any residue smoke that would go stale. Clean off any remaining ash, return the cannagar to its tube, and store it in a humidor.

The point of life is not only to live it but to relish it and feel great while enjoying it!

 

Find the luxury cannagar that’s right for you.

At High Kings of Tara, we strive to provide the highest quality cannagars and the knowledge you need to make the most out of your cannagar purchase. Explore our ultra-premium cannabis cigars infused with your choice of CBD or Delta-8 THC.

If you’re looking for something new that will invigorate your senses and leave you feeling sensational, we encourage you to “Be part of our reign™.” 

  

Click here to “smoke like royalty” or learn more about our full line of Ultra-Premium Cannagars and Cannagar Humidors.