The federal state, which has existed since 1952, is characterized by the Upper Rhine Plain, the Black Forest, the Swabian Mountains and the foothills of the Alps, but is one of the economically strongest and most competitive regions in Germany and Europe. For as the advertising slogan for the federal state already read in 1999: “We can do everything. Except speak High German.”
One should, of course, highlight the state capital Stuttgart. It is the sixth largest city in Germany, with more than 620,000 inhabitants. It is characterized not only by the resident Mercedes-Benz and Porsche factories, other major industries and numerous family businesses, but also by surrounding vineyards and numerous parks that run through the city center like a green belt. Also worth mentioning is the famous Cannstatter Folk Festival in Wasen, Baden-Württemberg’s Oktoberfest and the second largest folk festival in the world. The city also boasts Königstraße, a popular shopping street and promenade, the zoological-botanical garden Wilhelma, the State Gallery and the baroque palace in the middle of the city center, as well as many cultural institutions.
Karlsruhe is called the “residence of the law” because of the Federal Court of Justice, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Constitutional Court, which are located there. But there are also numerous industrial companies, mainly in information and communication technology, as well as many cultural establishments. Karlsruhe, which is nicknamed the “fan city” because of its ground plan that is reminiscent of a fan, exemplifies the economic strength and outstanding position of the “Ländle” in Germany.
The history of Baden-Baden, the spa and small town in the Upper Rhine Plain on the western edge of the Black Forest with not even 60,000 inhabitants but about 1.1 million overnight stays in 2019 (according to the tourist information office), goes back to the Romans in the first century AD, who already appreciated the thermal springs. The casino attracted aristocrats and wealthy citizens in the 19th century, and so the city continued to develop into a sophisticated spa town. This also led to the establishment of several luxury hotels and Germany’s largest opera house. In July 2021, Baden-Baden was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as one of the most important spa towns in Europe. It isn’t surprising, then, that several local opportunities for cultivated cigar smoking also arose.
Also very worth mentioning: In addition to the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Bünde, Baden-Württemberg and Hockenheim in particular also have a cigar history. French influence made itself felt during industrialization in the 19th century – French soldiers brought cigars with them, and smoking became fashionable. The search for cheap labor to produce cigars was found in Hockenheim, and so the first cigar factory was built there in 1860. Cigars were produced here until 1979. Today, the Tobacco Museum, opened in 1984, bears witness to this economically important era. From 2020 until the end of 2022, cigars were produced in Massenbachhausen, near Heilbronn, in the old craft tradition – with tobacco grown and processed in the Black Forest. Since the beginning of 2023, the Herr Lehmann cigar manufactory in Lahr in the Black Forest has taken over this work and the associated range.
Between all these institutions, historical and cultural sites, industrial enterprises and estates, as well as along the Castle Road running parallel to the Neckar with its numerous castles and palaces, bars and hotels have also established themselves alongside specialist tobacco shops. These offer passionados a retreat to cultivate their passion and enjoy a cigar or two in good and pleasant company or in peace with a drop of the corresponding drink. Unfortunately, however, you often encounter cigarette smokers or full ashtrays there.
In Baden-Württemberg, smoking is permitted in accordingly marked rooms with an area of less than 75 square meters for patrons that offers no food or only food consisting of cold dishes, in bars, hotels and restaurants (see Cigar Journal 3/2020) as well as in adjoining rooms of discos without dance floors.
Smoking Lounge in Restaurant Barrios
Q5 4
68161 Mannheim
T: +49 621 178 13 56
Opening hours:
Thursday–Saturday 5pm-1am
Outdoor area
Located in the heart of downtown Mannheim, Barrios is a Latin American-Caribbean hybrid of café-bar/cocktail lounge/restaurant geared towards a younger crowd. Adjacent to the courtyard, there is a separate bar with Cuban-rustic décor, which offers more specialized drinks to accompany the smoking experience. Table reservations are requested.
Rauch & Torf
Rheingoldstraße 15
68199 Mannheim
T: +49 151 41 25 69 06
Opening hours:
Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 10am-6.30pm
Wednesday & Saturday 10am-2pm
In the Neckarau district, not only the chimneys of the coal-fired power plant smoke, but also the guests of the “smallest lounge in Mannheim,” according to owner Thorsten Knapp. In “divine assistance” – the lounge is located directly in a rear courtyard next to St. James Church – nothing stands in the way of cigar enjoyment in the lovingly furnished room, which is bursting with all kinds of whiskeys along with gin and several humidors. And although it only has room to seat five, it is known to accommodate standing room for up to 15 people at tastings. Visitors from outside the region are greeted joyfully, accepted into the always existing guest group, and are well advised on cigars and suitable drinks.
Fellas
Carl-Benz-Straße 3
68723 Schwetzingen
T: +49 172 74 64 302
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 11am-1am
Friday 11am-3am
Saturday 10am-3am
Sunday 10am-1am
Located in a large building complex with hotel and restaurants in the industrial area of Schwetzingen-Oftersheim, this lounge with a somewhat inconspicuous entrance impresses with a large space with dark Chesterfield and leather seating, a long, well-stocked bar, discreet lighting, plenty of parking spaces in front of the entrance, an obligatory TV on the wall, and regular tastings (organized in conjunction with Rauch & Torf Mannheim). It’s a good place to escape from the daily grind.
Tabaco Museum Hockenheim
Untere Mühlstraße 4
68766 Hockenheim
T: +49 6205 21 24 60
Opening hours:
Tuesday and Thursday and also every second Saturday per month 3pm-5pm
Smokers’ Lounge in Hotel Europäischer Hof Heidelberg
Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 1
69117 Heidelberg
T: +49 6221 51 50
www.europaeischerhof.com/smokers-lounge/
Opening hours: daily, non-stop
It’s always worth a trip to Heidelberg’s old town, and this stylishly elegant 5-star superior grand hotel at the foot of the Königstuhl (a private hotel since 1865) offers, past the staircase to the left, a small but fine smokers’ lounge at the end of the long Europa Bar area. It seats up to eight people on Chesterfield chairs and the wall humidor offers the appropriate tobacco products. Serving international and corresponding drinks from the bar, the very attentive and good staff members not only ensure a pleasant end to the day, but also interesting rounds of conversation. The creamy full-bodied La Ley Robusto was perfectly matched by the balanced sweetness, acidity and spiciness of the freshly prepared whiskey sour.
Pino’s Bar in 959 Heidelberg
Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 2
69117 Heidelberg
T: +49 6221 67 42 959
www.959heidelberg.com/pinos-bar/
Opening hours:
Thursday–Saturday 6pm-1am
Friday & Saturday 6pm-2am
Once cigar passionados have enjoyed an excellent meal from the kitchen of 959 Heidelberg, known for its modern interpretation of classic dishes, in the very pleasant ambience (which includes dancing light installations on the ceiling and a rotating bar shelf that holds around 400 bottles of spirits) of the restaurant, opened over two years ago, they can move next door to Pino’s Bar. Here there are large green-and-blue seating groups for about 40 people and bar stools at the round bar. Cigars can be selected from the bulging wall humidor from among about 80 different blends from the Cuban selection or from Davidoff, Paradiso, Balmoral, NUB, and some others. Drinks can then be ordered or recommended from other drinks corresponding with the cigar of choice from the attentive and friendly staff. Afterwards, one can simply indulge or get involved in interesting conversations in an illustrious group; enjoy the interior design of dark blue and green and black tones in the discreet lighting and an approx. 20-square-meter wine rack; or the view of the hustle and bustle outside at the entrance to the city center and the Theodor Heuss Bridge. The smooth and creamy La Preferida – launched in 2017 by Didier Houvenaghel at InterTabac – was perfectly matched by the sweet and acidic play of a whiskey sour.
A visit to the restaurant and bar is highly recommended.
Davidoff Lounge in Steigenberger Hotel Graf Zeppelin Stuttgart
Arnulf-Klett-Platz 7
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 20 480
www.steigenberger.com/hotels/alle-hotels/deutschland/stuttgart/steigenberger-graf-zeppelin/restaurants-bars
Opening hours:
Sunday–Thursday 9am-10pm
Friday & Saturday 9am-11pm
In the noble and time-honored 5-star hotel opposite Stuttgart’s main train station, train-traveling cigar passionados will find a small oasis in Stuttgart’s lively city center: the finely furnished and spacious lounge to the right of reception, accommodating about 40 people in comfortable seating groups and with a view of the rush-hour traffic outside. The Zeppelin Bar provides good and attentive service with international, classic and liquid delights; the cabinet humidor offers the appropriate smoking accompaniment in the form of Cubans and Davidoffs.
Rocky Patel Lounge at Dürninger
Lange Straße 9
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 29 07 01
Opening hours:
Monday–Friday 10am-6pm
Saturday 10am-4pm
In a side street and only about 100 meters from Königstraße, one of the longest continuous pedestrian zones in Europe, you’ll find the only European Rocky Patel Lounge in the Dürninger tobacco and liquor store. Despite somewhat limited space, with only five leather armchairs in a confined area, you can taste a Rocky Patel cigar after receiving good, expert advice, but of course also any other cigar from the large walk-in humidor.
Smokers’ Lounge in Ruben’s
Geißstraße 13
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 55 32 305
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Thursday 4pm-1am
Friday 4pm-3am
Saturday 2pm-3am
Located in the noisy and highly frequented nightlife district of Stuttgart’s old town, between Schloßplatz and Österreichischer Platz, is this bar, which tends to be patronized by the queer community. There’s also the dimly lit smokers’ bar on the second floor, which can be reached via a spiral staircase. A large selection of drinks and typical bistro food, friendly service, and space at the bar or tables for about 50 people invite you to linger.
Marshall Matt
Eberhardstraße 6A
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 284 68 78
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 11am-1am
Friday & Saturday 11am-3am
Sunday 12pm-1am
Outdoor area
With excellent opening hours and a somewhat older crowd, this downtown, self-titled smokers’ pub at the beginning of the pub district feels like a large dining hall, with books on the wall shelves that completely surround the room and are mounted above the long bench. It’s a bit noisy here, as the room holds about 100 people, who can make themselves comfortable at one of the 20 tables, 10 bar stools, or on the long bench. But the generous space, very attentive staff, a selection of 20 different gin and tonics, 32 different whiskies, and 15 different bourbons, along with a further wide range of beverages, immediately create a feeling of enjoyment. The Plasencia Reserva Original Robusto went perfectly with the slightly bitter Cluss cellar beer served.
Smoking Lounge in Restaurant MALO
Eichstraße 7
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 24 85 25 10
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Thursday 12pm-12am
Friday & Saturday 12pm-1:30am
Sunday 4pm-11pm
Located in a side street of the market square in downtown Stuttgart, the stylish MALO sees itself as the “new urban city retreat” and as an oasis of calm with an impressive ambience. After an extensive, very tasty and reasonably priced regional meal, surrounded by real plants, cigar passionados can move from the large restaurant area to the generously designed smokers’ lounge, separated from the restaurant by a glass door, with an interior in shades of green. Inside, you can take a seat at large seating areas or at high tables to start the night, have the attentive waiters bring you a drink selected from the comprehensive drinks menu, and then delve into a conversation or indulge in a cigar while watching the hustle and bustle of the party crowd.
The restaurant-lounge recommendation of the tour.
Balino Lounge
Kronenstraße 22
70173 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 160 105 25
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 10am-10pm
Friday 10am-2am
Saturday 2pm-2am
This small, somewhat inconspicuous cocktail bar is located at the back of the building complex that houses Hotel Steigenberger Graf Zeppelin and the Zeppelin-Carré. The extensive beverage menu, a seating capacity for about 30 people and the musical sprinkling let you quickly forget the hustle and bustle of Königstraße, which is only a few minutes’ walk away, or serve well as a starter for another evening’s entertainment – but a party of lingering guests can also be created right on the spot. Note that you may only enjoy the cigars from the small cabinet humidor.
Jigger & Spoon
Gymnasiumstraße 33
70174 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 21 95 22 60
Opening hours:
Sunday–Wednesday 5pm-3am
Thursday–Saturday 5pm-4am
This bar is in the northeastern part of the city center, between the Liederhalle Culture and Congress Center and the famous Königstraße shopping mile. It is located in the second basement level of an office building, reached by an elevator – the capacity of which is precisely calculated by the doorman. The entire bar is divided into lattice-construction-like small rooms, and the smoking lounge is additionally separated by a glass wall and Old English wood paneling. The lounge has room for about 25 people, who can sit in green leatherette armchairs and seating or at high tables. Due to the very good and extensive beverage offering, Black music and house music sound system, extremely friendly and attentive staff and green light accents in an otherwise rather dark room, this bar is popular as a start to the night, not only with party goers. Cigar passionados will also find a small selection of Davidoff cigars in the cabinet humidor here but will have to share its space with e-cigarette and cigarette smokers.
My nightlife tip in Stuttgart.
Bar
Augustenstraße 81
70178 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 48 98 83 44
Opening hours:
Wednesday–Thursday 8pm-1am
Friday-Sunday 8pm-2am
Outdoor area
Just before the Schwab Tunnel on the southern edge of the Stuttgart basin, orange light installations show cigar smokers the way to the basement of a 1980s concrete block of an apartment building. The atmosphere of this gem of a cocktail and beer bar, which has existed for more than 21 years, is reminiscent of a party cellar; various magical furnishings still tell of old times. The smoking area on the left after the entrance seats eight people on lounge chairs and couches. The extremely friendly and attentive bartenders provide the somewhat older crowd with all kinds of liquid delights from the extensive beverage selection, which includes, among other things, over 150 single malt whiskies, “lovingly selected,” according to the operator’s own statements, and more than 60 fine rums.
The enjoyable nostalgia recommendation of the tour.
Jack’s Living Room
Kernerplatz 9
70182 Stuttgart
T: +49 1521 6945582
www.instagram.com/jackslivingroom_stuttgart/
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Thursday 6pm-1:00am
Friday & Saturday 6pm-3am
Outdoor area
This is what a living room should look like: more than 250 different whisky bottles lining the wall shelves, a small bar, comfortable seating for about 20 friends on armchairs, couches or on bar stools at the bar, a piano for spontaneous musical interludes by guests, the smoke of a cigar brought along or selected from the small, well-stocked humidor cabinet, a beverage menu consisting of whisky, rum, regional beers and cocktails, rock ’n’ roll and American folk music. A wonderful way to live.
The lounge, which has existed since February 2019, resides somewhat hidden in the building complex of the Le Méridien Hotel on the B14 state road, was formerly its beer bar, and is just a short walk from Stuttgart’s main train station. New guests are always welcome, given a friendly reception and invited into a conversation, or welcomed to a chat by Jack. A visit to Jack’s Living Room is simply fun and enjoyable. The spicy, medium-bodied Buffalo Ten harmonized perfectly with the creamy Guinness and a smoky, peaty Laphroaig 10.
BIX Jazz Club and Lounge
Leonhardsplatz 28
70182 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 23 84 09 97
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Saturday 7pm-1am
Stuttgart also has something to offer cigar-smoking jazz lovers. This event location, which is also located right on the B14 highway and is now over 15 years old, houses a smokers’ bar on the second floor, where you can listen to the beautiful musical arts in style and comfort in one of the spacious seating areas while enjoying the cigar you have brought with you or selected from a wall humidor, and a good range of corresponding drinks. Listed on their website are the numerous lounge tastings and the music program that changes daily.
Tabacum / La Casa del Habano Stuttgart
Vorsteigstraße 1
70193 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 29 52 28
www.tabacum.de
Opening hours:
Monday–Friday 9am-7pm
Saturday 9am-4pm
This lovingly run specialist store with its small, labyrinthine sales rooms, two walk-in climate-controlled rooms, a large assortment of cigars along with the typical Casa del Habano program, high-quality cigar accessories and magazines is located on the edge of the valley basin on a hill near the city center in a business and residential area. The associated lounge, decorated in red and brown tones, offers space for eight people in leather chairs at bistro tables as a small oasis of calm in hectic Stuttgart. To go with my Flor de Selva 20 Aniversario Toro and espresso and water, a friendly and attentive staff member offered me an exclusive chocolate praline, which was very delicious in its play of aromas. Tabacum is always worth a visit.
Cigar Lounge in Holiday Inn Stuttgart-Weilimdorf
Mittlerer Pfad 25–27
70499 Stuttgart
T: +49 711 98 88 80
www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/de/de/stuttgart/strgc/hoteldetail
Opening hours: daily, non-stop
This hotel is located right at the Weilimdorfpark S-Bahn stop, at the end of a dead-end street in a Stuttgart office district. Unfortunately a bit outdated, the hotel has a lovingly furnished and decorated cigar lounge to the right of the entrance of the round hotel lobby, before reception; but it’s unfortunately also frequented by many cigarette smokers. It offers seating for about eight people at a high table or in a seating group, framed by a large window front with a view of the surrounding office buildings and a glossy, blue-tiled wall. Beverage-wise, the lounge is supplied by the Scirocco bar located at the end of the lobby. Unfortunately, the cabinet humidor was empty when I visited.
Havanna Lounge in Park Hotel Stuttgart Messe Airport
Filderbahnstraße 2
70771 Leinfelden-Echterdingen
T: +49 711 633 440
www.parkhotel-stuttgart.de/de/gastronomie/havanna-lounge
Opening hours: daily, non-stop
Since 2011, business travelers, seminar or congress participants have arrived at this 4-star hotel in Stuttgart’s Echterdingen district, 432 meters above sea level, only one train stop from the trade fair and airport. Havana Lounge is located to the right of the entrance opposite the reception desk, and here, depending on the time of day, you will be served drinks corresponding to your cigar by the friendly service of the hotel bar or restaurant. The quiet room seats about 10 people on a Chesterfield couch or in eight deep, leather armchairs. The interior is decorated in beautiful and subtle brown tones; the library-look wallpaper and the small mock fireplace convey coziness. A small oasis of well-being after a stressful business or trade fair day.
MelRose Bar
Untere Torgasse 7
71063 Sindelfingen
T: +49 151 50 98 64 75
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Sunday from 5pm
Located on the edge of the downtown pub district, this small, cute and dimly lit bar seats about 30 people at a large seating area, high-top tables or the bar. The somewhat younger crowd is offered a standard range of drinks.
Chaplins Bar Habanos Lounge
Schlossstraße 17
71634 Ludwigsburg
T: +49 7141 92 92 11
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Thursday 7pm-2am
Friday & Saturday 7pm-4am
Opposite the gardens known as the “Blühendes Barock” and situated directly on the B27 main road, this extremely charming cocktail bar is housed in a 300-year-old vaulted cellar. A small staircase to the left of the bar leads to the smoking area, which seats about 30 people and where a cozy smoke can be enjoyed with a cigar selected from the well-stocked cabinet humidor or one of your own that you have brought along. In addition to the normal beverage menu, the friendly staff offers guests other corresponding drinks, including various whiskies and gins or interesting-sounding and delicious cocktails. This is where the smokers of Ludwigsburg meet in the evenings and spend pleasant hours. I enjoyed a slightly smoky and refreshing Four French and a Scotsman with the spicy and robust Hyena from the American Black Label Trading Company.
The cocktail-creation recommendation of the tour.
BrennBar in Gerber Park
Kanalstraße 47
73066 Uhingen
T: +49 7161 94 69 70
www.gerber-park.de/gastronomie/brennbar/
Opening hours:
Thursday 6pm-1am
Friday & Saturday 6pm-2am
Outdoor area
In Uhingen, a small town mentioned in ecclesiastical registers from as early as 1275, located just outside Göppingen directly on the B10 highway and on the Fils River, this large family-run premises (formerly a curtain weaving mill and used for leather processing) features a hotel with an event hall, a restaurant, and a beer brewery, as well as a bar with a large and elongated smoking area behind the bar. This is furnished in French-country house style, and the color scheme of the interior of warm yellows and browns gives it an extremely homey feel. Cigar passionados can sit at a large table with a bench or in one of the three seating areas and enjoy their smokes with a drink from the extensive menu, which includes several gins and whiskies. A small wall humidor supplies tobacco products, should you not have your own. An Oliva V Torpedo went very well with the in-house, slightly fruity Gerber Bräu Hefeweizen, thanks to its smoke volume and full-bodied flavor.
Smokers’ Lounge in Lamm Hebsack Hotel & Restaurant
Winterbacherstraße 1–3
73630 Remshalden
T: +49 7181 450 61
Opening hours: daily 6pm-9:30pm
Outdoor area
Right on the main road through Remshalden, known nationwide for the Ahoj sherbert powder produced here, is this unmissable building complex, which consists of a large traditional restaurant and hotel with conference rooms, and conveys lived Swabian coziness with its spacious guest lounges, a large sun terrace, and a historic vaulted wine cellar. Cigar passionados will find a former party room in the basement next to the wine cellar, which has been converted into a smoking lounge where a cigar can be enjoyed to the sounds of CD jukeboxes. The room seats about 12 people on a large seating area, at a high table or on giant champagne-cork seat stools. The staff from the restaurant upstairs supplies beverages that are customary for a restaurant.
Prediger Bar
Schellengasse 16
74072 Heilbronn
T: +49 7131 124 54 62
Opening hours:
Thursday 8pm-1:30am
Friday & Saturday 8pm-3:30am
This bar, somewhat inconspicuous from the outside, unfolds the quaint charm of a corner bar, once you’ve overcome the bouncer. It’s located in a side street to the theater in Heilbronn’s city center. According to its own website, the preacher saw that his creation was good and proclaimed the eleventh commandment: “Thou shalt not have another bar next to mine.” In typical décor with wooden furniture along the bar and high tables, various cocktails and drinks from the copious drinks menu can be enjoyed with a wide variety of background music, from house to rock, accompanied by a fine cigar, brought along or selected from the cabinet humidor’s small assortment.
Augusto Lounge at Klenk Zigarrenkultur
Rappenauer Straße 7
74206 Bad Wimpfen
T: +49 7063 977 00
Opening hours:
Monday–Friday 9am-6pm
Saturday 9am-3pm
Large rooftop terrace
Bad Wimpfen, the pretty spa town in the Kraichgau region, is home to a three-story paradise on the edge of the Old Town, which is characterized by half-timbered houses and situated high above the Neckar River on a main street that runs through the town. This paradise is dedicated entirely to indulgence: Klenk Zigarrenkultur (see also Cigar Journal 3/2022). You’ll find a selection of cigars, marked by the endowed titles of Habanos Specialist and Davidoff Premium Depot, in the large and walk-in humidor that functions as a shop window facing the street, as well as all kinds of matching spirits and drinks. In the small Augusto Lounge, decorated in dark brown tones, there is seating for about 16 people, partly at the bar, at a high table or in a large seating area with comfortable Chesterfield furniture. Some of the other rooms can be rented for all kinds of occasions. To accompany the creamy, rich AVO Unexpected Regional North Edition, I enjoyed a creamy, nougaty, caramel-like Bumbu The Original rum, which reminded me olfactorily of my childhood with Werther’s Echte candies.
Smokers’ Lounge in Wald & Schlosshotel Friedrichsruhe
Kärcherstraße 11
74639 Zweiflingen-Friedrichsruhe
T: +49 7941 60 870
www.schlosshotel-friedrichsruhe.de
Opening hours:
Sunday–Thursday 2pm-midnight
Friday & Saturday 2pm-1am
Not far from the A6 highway and near various Limes monuments, this luxurious 5-star superior private hotel with several restaurants, a spa area, and a large and spacious smoking lounge, somewhat hidden from the reception desk, is decorated in red and brown tones. In addition to the house brand, you’ll find a small additional selection of cigars in two glass display cases that function as humidors. The lounge seats eight people in comfortable leather furniture – the view sweeps over the adjacent castle grounds. The adjoining bar provides guests with good service and an international range of corresponding drinks.
Knapp’s Laden
Marktstraße 5
74722 Buchen
T: +49 6281 83 43
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 8.30am-1pm and 2pm-6pm
Friday 8.30am-6pm
Saturday 8am-1pm
In the small and tranquil Odenwald town of Buchen, Evelyn Knapp runs her small, family-run specialist store for spirits, tobacco products and magazines, among other things, with a lot of love and heart and soul at one end of the pedestrian zone. It has two adjoining lounge rooms where people can smoke and taste as they please. In addition to some Cuban, Dominican and Nicaraguan delicacies, the humidor offers many blends from the Villiger selection. The choice of spirits is overwhelming even at first glance. The smokers’ lounge on the second floor seats about 15 people at a long table or in comfortable armchairs, respectively. Evelyn is always available for a chat and also offers all kinds of interesting tastings in and out of the house. However, it’s advisable to announce your visit by phone – then nothing will stand in the way of your enjoyment. To accompany the medium-bodied La Ley, I enjoyed one of the house’s own very interesting creations: an amber-colored Blecker rum. Try it!
An unexpected insider tip in the rural and tranquil Odenwald.
Geistmanns Genuss Lounge
Schwanengasse 11
74821 Mosbach
T: +49 6261 93 777 88
Opening hours:
Wednesday–Friday 2pm-7pm
Saturday 10am-4pm
If you find the somewhat very hidden specialist store on the southern edge of the Odenwald in the traffic-reduced center of the small but neat timber-framework town of Mosbach, a small paradise for connoisseurs opens up. Hans-Peter Geistmann, who grew up in the world of pleasure, hospitably supplies you with cigars from the well-stocked walk-in humidor, which includes Laura Chavin or Carlos André as well as other brands, and corresponding drinks ranging from coffee to spirits such as whiskey or rum. Visitors can sit on Chesterfield furniture or chairs. Geistmann, the “old warhorse from the scene,” as he is affectionately called by a cigar importer, always has an anecdote or two to tell from his years in the tobacco and coffee industry. The lounge is always worth a trip and a visit, also to the numerous organized tastings with well-known greats of the cigar world, because, as it says so well on the website, “Friends of Genuss [pleasure] are also our friends.” It should also be mentioned that cigarette smokers must smoke outside the door.
Harkai’s Cigar Lounge of Kühnemund
Dillsteiner Straße 8
75173 Pforzheim
T: +49 7231 29 89 208
Opening hours:
Monday–Friday 7am-6pm
Saturday 7am-2pm
In the middle of downtown Pforzheim near the shopping streets and not far from the little river Enz, cigar passionados, if they haven’t been deterred by the politics, culture and tabloids magazine offering, will find a small, walk-in, acclimatized room with a large selection of cigars in the back of the newsdealer and tobacco store taken over from the company Kühnemund by Silke Harkai in 1999. A spiral staircase in the warehouse leads to the lounge on the upper floor. This has space for about 25 people; the furniture and wall design are in various shades of gray – industry-typical advertising posters serve as splashes of color. However, you must take your drinks and cigars with you directly from downstairs. The many tastings offered are also worth mentioning here.
Cigar Seed Pforzheim
Bleichstraße 84/2
75173 Pforzheim
T: +49 7231 56 81 786
Opening hours:
Monday–Saturday 12pm-10pm
This lounge is located on the outskirts of the city center in a residential and industrial area and is run in a friendly, competent manner by manager Michel Sprick. It belongs to the company Cuban Seed Cigar Co., which has existed since 1941 and specializes in aging its own cigars, with headquarters in Los Angeles. The large selection of cigars is currently still offered exclusively for Germany here in the lounge (as of the time of writing). On Thursdays and Fridays, an After-Work Smoke, among other events, takes place from 6pm, where, through pre-booking by phone, you can always meet an illustrious round of like-minded people sitting in one of the 10 tanned Chesterfield armchairs.
Evermann Cigar Lounge in Sixteen
Max-Planck-Straße 11
75334 Straubenhardt
T: +49 7243 35 48 50
Opening hours:
Wednesday & Thursday 5pm-10pm
Friday & Saturday 5pm-1am
Sunday 12pm-9pm
Only two years old, this stylish restaurant with a bar and adjoining small smoking lounge accommodating about 10 people is a little surprise. It is located 15 kilometers southwest of Pforzheim in a hilly, rural landscape at an altitude of over 400 meters at the transition between the northern Black Forest and Kraichgau. It’s somewhat hidden between an industrial and a new-development area. The lounge is separated by glass walls designed with waterfall features, is supplied by friendly staff from the bar, and offers all cigar passionados a small selection of Davidoff cigars from the table humidor. If you smoke a cigar that you’ve brought with you, there is an official cutting fee.
Carlos Cocktail Bar
Markgrafenstraße 32
76133 Karlsruhe
T: +49 721 46 71 94 60
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 6:10pm-2am
Friday & Saturday 6.10pm-3am
Sunday 6.10pm-12:10am
Outdoor area
Located in a quiet inner-city side street of the Ettlinger Tor subway station and shopping center, this bar, which has been around for more than 10 years and is furnished in a stylish, spartan style in dark brown tones, attracts customers with an extensive menu of classic drinks and specials that go perfectly with a cigar. A friendly and attentive bartender awaits cigar passionados, as well as seating for about 50 people at the bar, at high tables and in groups of chairs. There is also a large non-smoking area in the back of the bar. I enjoyed a medium-bodied but robust Villa Casdagli cigar with the Laphroaig Sour, a peaty, refreshing fruity-sweet acidic match.
The bar recommendation in Karlsruhe.
uBu
Karlstraße 6
76133 Karlsruhe
T: +49 721 66 97 56 30
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 5pm-1am
Friday 5pm-3am
Saturday 6pm-3am
This rustic pub in old-pub style with discreet red light illumination can be found on the northwestern side of the inner-city pedestrian zone, between the Europaplatz/Karlstraße subway station and the castle, directly behind the Prinz-Max-Palais, which has existed since the end of the 19th century. It has space for about 40 people at the bar, at high tables and in small seating groups. The drinks selection is also rather typical for pubs.
Smoking Lounge of the Royal Cocktail Bar
Reinhold-Frank-Straße 46A
76133 Karlsruhe
T: +49 7211 833 65 00
Opening hours:
Thursday–Saturday 5pm-10pm
Outdoor area
The spacious and bright Royal Cocktail Bar is in the Hotel Royal building, a new type of online check-in hotel without reception. Located on the right, the bar has a large smoking area at the back that has space for about 15 people on red leatherette furniture. After a friendly welcome, you can order a drink from a typical international range from the bartender to go with your cigar. It is advisable to pre-book by telephone before visiting the bar and lounge.
Guts & Glory
Hirschhof 5
76133 Karlsruhe
T: +49 721 90 99 00 45
Opening hours:
Wednesday, Thursday & Sunday 7pm-1am
Friday & Saturday 7pm-3am
Outdoor area
Quite hidden in the nightlife district of Karlsruhe is this stylish cocktail bar; to the side is a large smoking area with black interior, small light accents, and two eco-friendly fireplaces. The hip party crowd, unfortunately also cigarette smokers, can find space here at three high tables or a U-shaped seating group for a total of about 25 people. The extremely friendly and good service provides you with interesting liquid house creations from the bar in addition to the standard menu. I enjoyed to the full-bodied West Tampa Black a very tasty “Island Bull,” a kind of Negroni with dried banana slices. But all the other drinks sound very worth trying!
Winter Garden of the KofferRaum Cocktail Bar
Hirschstraße 17
76133 Karlsruhe
T: +49 721 18 05 48 03
Opening hours:
Monday–Saturday 7pm to last call
In this bar, a somewhat younger crowd will find a long winter garden converted into a smokers’ lounge at the back. The friendly staff provides visitors with drinks selected from an ample menu and the bar’s good inhouse creations of the bartenders, who work perfectly. In the lounge, along the house wall, opposite the long window front, there is seating for about 10 people on small, two- or three-seater benches that are separated by plant pots.
Cigar Lounge in Zigarrenhaus Friedrich
Vorholzstraße 25a
76137 Karlsruhe
T: +49 173 345 90 32
Opening hours:
Tuesday–Friday 11am-8pm
Saturday 12pm-10pm
Outdoor area
Rather inconspicuously located in the second courtyard of a block of houses in a quiet downtown location, this large and well-organized specialty store offers a diverse assortment of cigars (including boutique brands) in a walk-in humidor and a small lounge with seating for about 15 people on different, comfortable leather chairs. The friendly young owner is very knowledgeable and also has good connections, offers expert advice and is always available for a chat. Also worth mentioning are the various events and tastings.
Cigar Lounge in Hotel Santo’s Cocktail Bar
Karlstraße 67–69
76137 Karlsruhe
T: +49 721 38 370
Opening hours:
Monday–Thursday 6pm to last call (1am)
Friday–Sunday 6pm to last call (2am)
Located on the second floor of the hotel, directly above reception, this classic, somewhat noisy cocktail bar has a small cigar lounge on the left, which seats about 25 people on a bench by the window and on side stools. This lounge, decorated in dark hues with lighting accents, offers friendly and attentive service along with a large beverage selection with seasonal offerings and in-house creations from the small but bulging humidor cabinet filled with all kinds of formats from the Laura Chavin, Fuente, Perdomo, Flor de Copan, Griffin’s and Carlos André selections for every taste. Unfortunately, many cigarette smokers typical of such bars come and go through the automatic sliding door, causing quite a lot of unrest.
Green Horse Bar in Hotel Erbprinz
Rheinstraße 1
76275 Ettlingen
T: +49 7243 32 20
www.erbprinz.de/de/feine-genuesse/green-horse-bar
Opening hours:
daily 5pm-1am
Located at the transition from the Rhine plain to the northern Black Forest, at the gates of Karlsruhe at the Erbprinz train stop in the middle of downtown Ettlingen, this 5-star spa hotel has an Old English-style bar and certified Davidoff lounge (!) where smoking is allowed. After a lavish visit to the beauty spa or fine culinary delights in the restaurant across the street, you can end the evening here – with equestrian paintings under the ceiling and guarded by porcelain figurines of French soldiers displayed in glass cases – sipping international liquid delicacies with a cigar you’ve brought with you or selected from a Davidoff-filled cabinet humidor. The darkly decorated bar seats about 40 people on green leather furniture and bar stools. With an aromatic Old Fashioned, prepared by the extremely friendly bar manager, I enjoyed a Buffalo Ten Maduro from the Dominican Tabacalera El Artista.
Cigar Lounge in Brenners Park-Hotel & Spa Baden-Baden
Schillerstraße 4/6
76530 Baden-Baden
T: +49 7221 9000
www.oetkercollection.com/de/hotels/brenners-park-hotel-spa/restaurants-bars/cigar-lounge/
Opening hours: daily 9:30am-11pm
For over 150 years, this historic 5-star grand hotel has resided on the small river Oos that runs through the city along Lichtentaler Allee. To the right of the hotel lobby, halfway down the corridor, is the cigar lounge, a place of rest and relaxation in the style of a small library with seating for about 20 people and a good selection from the wall humidor, which is well stocked with Dominican and Cuban cigars; you can also bring your own. Drinks are served by the friendly staff from the Oleander Bar – named after a famous racehorse stallion bred in Germany in the early 20th century. I enjoyed a somewhat strong whiskey sour with a new Maestranza line cigar by Meerapfel.
The hotel lounge recommendation in Baden-Baden.
Roomers Bar in Roomers Hotel
Lange Straße 100
76530 Baden-Baden
T: +49 7221 90 19 30
www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/fkbak-roomers-baden-baden-autograph-collection/overview/
Opening hours:
Monday–Saturday 6am-4am
Sunday 6pm-2am
Walk-in-humidor
The only design hotel in Baden-Baden, which has existed since October 2016, houses this stylish and loud bar (on the left in front of the hotel lobby restaurant) as a starting point for a trendy, cigar- and cigarette-smoking party crowd. With house and Black music, hotel-typical drink prices, and good service from several bartenders, it’s easy to enjoy a cigar on one of the barstools at the approximately 40-meter-long [approx. 130-foot-long] rectangular bar, which is lit by sparse overhead lighting, or in one of the four groups of seats, each of which seats about 10 people. I enjoyed an Old Fashioned to go with a Furia by Didier Houvenaghel.
Baden-Baden’s party bar recommendation.
Smokers’ Bar in Restaurant Filios
Augustaplatz 8
76530 Baden-Baden
T: +49 7221 185 80 01
Opening hours:
Wednesday–Monday 6pm-1am
If, after an excellent Greek-Mediterranean lunch or dinner from the fine and creatively interpreted cuisine, you’d like to enjoy a good cigar with a corresponding drink selected from an international beverage menu, I recommend the large in-house bar located at the entrance area on the left. The interior, the surrounding seating groups and the bar with stools themselves are in dark brown tones. Cigars are offered from the small table humidor from the range of Partagás and Romeo y Julieta, Davidoff, and Flor de Copan.
Cigar Lounge in Heliopark Hotel zum Hirsch
Hirschstraße 1
76530 Baden-Baden
T: +49 7221 93 90
www.heliopark-hirsch.de/kulinarik/cigar-lounge/
Opening hours: daily 11am to last call
This lounge on the second floor of the hotel, which is a bit hidden at the beginning of the pedestrian zone, accommodates about 20 people and is supplied with drinks from a standard menu from the lobby bar. It has light yellow tones on the walls and brown-checkered seating furniture. Here, despite the odd cigarette smoker, cigar passionados will find peace to escape the outside world with a good smoke.
Habanos Lounge in Atlantic Parkhotel
Goetheplatz 3
76530 Baden-Baden
T: +49 7221 36 10
www.atlantic-parkhotel.de/de/restaurant-pianobar/kaminzimmer-mit-pianobar
Opening hours:
Sunday–Thursday 10am-11:30pm
Friday & Saturday 10am-midnight
This lounge, furnished in the style of an old grand hotel, has a friendly and private atmosphere. It can be reached from the reception desk via a long corridor, accommodates about 30 people, and invites you to linger and enjoy the peace and quiet with cigars, drinks from the international program, and occasional piano music.
Zigarrenlounge Würzburg
Domerschulstraße 7
97070 Würzburg
T: +49 931 35 90 22 37
www.zigarrenlounge-wuerzburg.de
Opening hours:
Monday–Friday 1pm-7pm
Saturday 10am-3pm
Since cigar passionados in Tauberfranken or Mainfranken are somewhat pitied because of the legislation and non-existent options, I’m allowed a look across the nearby state border into Bavarian Lower Franconia. Because this is where Cigar Lounge Würzburg resides, lovingly run by Hartmut Leicht. It offers space for 12 people on comfortable armchairs, where you are welcome to enjoy a smoke selected from the small humidor. This is always stocked with over 200 cigars; the complete Laura Chavin selection should be highlighted, but there are also more unusual blends, such as those from Kleinlagel and Kohlhase & Kopp. The store is also a Davidoff 3-Star Depot partner. Also worth mentioning is the house brand in a Salomones format, blended by Hartmut Leicht especially for the lounge’s 10th anniversary and produced via Don Stefano. Because, says Hartmut Leicht, “A good lounge needs to have its own cigar!” In addition, he also offers various tastings away from home. Unfortunately, though, it must be mentioned that Bavaria has a very restrictive non-smoker protection legislation: serving food and drinks is not permitted, nor is anything brought in allowed to be consumed.
Info on the legislation:
https://sozialministerium.baden-wuerttemberg.de/de/gesundheit-pflege/gesundheitsfoerderung-und-praevention/nichtraucherschutz/
Photos: Volker Schäffner
