Sanity and Smoking Bans
When you think of London, you think of Sir Winston Churchill, and when you think of Churchill you think of cigars. Few images in this world are as memorable as the sight of the British statesman with a cigar clamped in his bulldog jaws. Fine cigars were always a part of this great man's long life, in good times and in bad. Churchill smoked cigars during his darkest days, puffing away from his underground headquarters in London while marshaling the defense of Great Britain against the rockets and military forces of Nazi . The Prime Minister even once fashioned a special adjustment to his oxygen mask to allow him a cigar while flying in an unpressurized cabin.
Churchill is the very essence of London, and Britain's capital city has long been among the world's finest cities to buy and savor cigars. London is home to some of the world's greatest cigar merchants, and cigar after cigar has been smoked in that great city for centuries.
All of that rich cigar history was put at risk in 2008 when a draconian smoking ban went into effect, banning cigars from virtually all indoor spaces in London. This is a move we have witnessed in city after city—New York, Los Angeles, Paris and so many more. But those in the British cigar industry refused to surrender their right to enjoy fine cigars. They created a new way to enjoy cigars, outdoor rooms with all the comforts of indoors—heat, a covering to shield the occupants from the frequent rain London is famous for, and top-tier service. They were dubbed COSAs—comfortable outdoor smoking areas. And comfortable they were. A cigar lover could enter one of these spots—most of them in London's luxurious hotels—and relax in comfort while smoking a cigar and savoring a libation.
In this issue we celebrate the many smoking areas of London, and provide you with a comprehensive guide to enjoying cigars in this great city. It may be second only to Havana among cities with fine places to smoke, and with superb cigars from which to choose. You can visit and not even know there is a smoking ban.
Finally—a progressive and intelligent way to deal with a smoking ban. It's something we wish could happen in more cities around the United States and around the globe.
