The Connaught unveils The Connaught Cigar Merchants
We didn’t need another reason to hang out at The Connaught – Hélène Darroze, that bar, Jean-Georges, The Grill – but we’ve got one.
The Mayfair hotel has recently unveiled The Connaught Cigar Merchants. A semi-secret intimate room – access is via the Red Room bar – the Cigar Merchants will be home to one of London’s finest cigar collections and a selection of exemplary spirits. Under the guidance of Head of Cigars Adam Lajca (and where was that job on careers day?), guests and customers can shop for, or, indeed, sit down and enjoy, a cigar.
Once you’ve found the door – relax, it’s not quite as secret as we’re making it sound – inside you’ll find a crafted humidor spanning the length of one wall, while opposite individual lockers will house a collection of spirits. Somewhere in between is the marble altar on which Adam and the team will prepare the cigars. There are seven tan leather and walnut club chairs (each with fold down shelf hidden in the arm, for resting drinks). There’s a Swiss extraction system which silently and constantly cleans the air, while Lalique ashtrays and glassware and French crafted lighters complete the vibe.
As for the collection… Lajca has curated a collection of over 170 Cuban cigars spanning regular production to extremely rare and vintage varieties – and he and the team will be on hand to help you find something perfect to enjoy, or what to buy for your personal collection. Spirits include a 42-year-old blend of single malts – in a limited release of 200 bottles – to mark the opening of the Cigar Merchants and, but of course, a Cigar Armagnac, a blend from 1966, in collaboration with Marc Darroze of esteemed Darroze Armagnac.
The Connaught Cigar Merchants opening times are 4pm – 1am Monday to Saturday and 2pm – 10pm on Sunday.
Neil Davey
Neil Davey is a freelance writer specialising in things you can do sitting down, but mostly eating, drinking, travelling and interviewing the odd famous person. The author of The Bluffer's Guide To Chocolate, Neil also writes for The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, Metro, Delicious Magazine, Sainsbury's Magazine, Escapism, Foodism and Hello!. Thanks to a karaoke machine in Montana, he once told a billionaire that he loved his sweet little pussycat nose and sang I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For with a Hollywood star, in the space of 15 minutes. He now generally stays away from karaoke machines in Montana.