Cigar lovers roll up for Net gossip

Great news for the world’s cigar smokers, in which august band the Diary is proud to be included.

We already subscribe to the essential read for cigar smokers everywhere, Cigar Aficionado, which claims a paid circulation of 400,000 worldwide. CA, not to be confused with Cigars Anonymous, the therapy group for those unfortunate addicts of rolled tobacco leaves, has now given puffers the opportunity to access all the latest info on cigars through that old smokers friend, the Internet on http://www.cigaraficionado.com.

The founder of Cigar Aficionado is none other than Marvin Shanken, who made global headlines when he purchased John F Kennedy’s humidor at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis auction last spring, narrowly beating the Diary’s own exorbitant bid.

Shanken says the Internet service will allow users to “join chat forums with other cigar lovers”, though the Diary predicts this will descend into bickering of the “mine’s bigger than yours” variety.

Best of all, according to Shanken, is that smokers will be able to “access cigar news as it breaks”. You must be choking, Marvin.