What Cigars Did Red Auerbach Smoke?
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Cigars are usually associated with legendary people and elite personalities. Whether it’s politicians, celebrities, or the founding fathers, everyone looks so much more sophisticated with a big old cigar in their hands.
It is safe to say that a cigar is a premium and elite version of a cigarette. It can create a barrier amongst smokers. People often use this information to categorize people into two groups: ‘smokers’ and ‘elite smokers.’
That’s because of the quality and care that goes into rolling cigars and cigars’ monetary value, which is way more than that of a cigarette. Cigars qualify as a luxury rather than a habit or need. Unlike cigarettes, you don’t have to inhale the smoke. Many legendary icons are known for their love of cigars, and one of these icons is Arnold “Red” Auerbach.
What Cigars Did Red Auerbach Smoke
Who Was Red Auerbach?
Red Auerbach was an NBA coach from 1949 to 1966. He spent most of his time coaching the Boston Celtics. During his years as a coach, Auerbach led his teams to great victories. The Boston Celtics won nine out of ten NBA championships, eight of which were executive. That is a massive feat for a coach in any sports field. But Arnold did not stop at that. Besides being an outstanding coach that led groomed his team for a winning steak, Arnold also broke all stereotypes against people of color.
He ended prejudice in sports when he enlisted the first African -American player Chuck Cooper into the team. Auerbach was also the first coach ever to put a squad of all African-American players in a game. If nothing, this powerfully speaks about his confidence and boldness.
Given his solid and bold personality, it wasn’t tough to associate Auerbach with all things premium, sturdy and classy.
That is how he became one of the well-known smokers in the world. Cigars only added to his powerful personality. Auerbach is known for his ‘victory cigar.’ He’d smoke it every time the game was favoring his team and would end with their victory. To establish his teams’ success even before the match had ended, Auerbach chose Hoyo de Monterrey cigars.
Red Auerbach’s Favorite Cigars
Hoyo de Monterrey is a strong brand of Cuban cigars that give off a strong scent that infuriated other coaches and other NBA officials. Hoyo de Monterrey is another long-dating brand of cigars that came around in the 19th century. The smell of the cigars coupled with the smoke put off a lot of people. It was not the best. With the rich taste and smell, the Cuban cigars became the subject of much hatred and annoyance once Red started doing his ‘victory cigar.’
The number of people affected by this ritual was large. Even Red’s players found this habit annoying. Several people even complained about Red lighting up his cigars wherever he pleased, without considering the people around him.
But to a man like Auerbach, the cigars meant it was time for him to relax. He had seen through the game, and his team had already won. He did not need more anticipation or enthusiasm. He just wanted to lay back and light up his favorite Hoyo de Monterrey sticks and smoke to his heart’s content.
However, those weren’t the only stogies he smoked.
Bottom Line
Red was known to smoke many brands of cigars. He shifted from pipes to cigars provided by King Edwards, a cigar manufacturer of the time. Besides, Auerbach also accepted cigars from his fans and would gladly light them up. He was not too picky when it came to cigars. However, his preference remained the Hoyo de Monterrey.
Dan Stevenson
I have been smoking cigars for 30 years and counting, I started at 18 years old with mild Cubans and worked my way up to medium and now bold. I own 4 humidors, that I try to keep stocked at all times.
