Cuban by birth and Galician by adoption, Ariel Álvarez inaugurates the interview section of this blog to tell us something of what he has learned after 20 years behind the counter of his tobacconist shop.
Ariel Álvarez Machado was born in Havana 52 years ago, but this Cuban by birth has become a Galician by adoption after more than two decades living in A Coruña (Spain). There he is, in charge of the tobacconist shop Cava Viñales (Calle Capitán Juan Varela, 6), a job he has shared with his wife Belén since 2003. “I love my job, especially the part of advising and guiding customers, particularly the younger ones. In the end, when we get into the walking humidor and recommend, that’s the real sale; what we do outside is just supplying”, he explains when we ask him about his job.
All that experience makes him clear about the profile of each customer: “The consumer of cigarillos is usually someone who has taken the step towards this product category from cigarettes. There are also Habano aficionados who, for reasons of time, economy or similarities with the taste of large cigars, stick to Cuban mini cigars”. He says that in his tobacconist shop the average age of cigarillo consumers is around 30 years old, since normally older people either switch to cigars or simply give up. Although there are also aficionados who combine the two and give them out depending on the occasion.
About Cuban mini cigars and the comparison with other origins he has no doubts either: “The key is in the raw material. In the end, in all cases we are talking about mechanised cigars, but the raw material of Cuban mini cigars makes the difference”. In his tobacconist shop you can find a good part of the Cuban mini cigar portfolio: Cohiba, Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, Partagás, Punch and Guantanamera, in their different formats. And among them, the best sellers are Cohiba and Punch, “although this can change, it goes with the times,” he explains.
If we focus on his facet as a smoker, the answer changes: “My favourite is Montecristo Short, because of its thicker gauge among other Cuban cigarillos and its presentation, with cellophane and a band”. As for the time he chooses to light them, since he combines them with cigars, he talks about those moments when he doesn’t have much time: “I do it, for example, with my morning coffee. This is common among cigarillo smokers: the one with coffee and the one after lunch are the two most usual ones, and then they normally light up another four or five during the day”.
The typical question about which Cuban mini cigars he usually recommends to his clients is answered with the logics: “It depends”. “It depends on the client, the moment they want to enjoy it, their situation… For example, if they have never smoked before, we can look for something milder, although we will have to know their tastes. That is the moment of the sale and the advice I was talking about before. And if they are not convinced by a brand, they can ask the tobacconists for advice, and we are sure to find one that suits their tastes. What Ariel also advises is the accessory that every cigarillo smoker needs by his side: a good lighter. “In the end, unlike cigarettes, cigarillos can extinguish quite easily, so having a good lighter is important”.
Before saying goodbye, we ask Ariel for a song to enjoy a Cuban mini cigar with. “I don’t have a specific song, but I would certainly choose Cuban music, which takes me back to my origins. Blessed origins, Ariel!
