There is no single best S.T. Dupont. There is only the one that suits the way you actually smoke, and the surest way to end up with the wrong lighter is to begin with the one that looks best in the case. Almost everyone does this. The lacquer catches the eye, the gold catches the light, and the question of what the lighter will be asked to do — where, how often, in what weather — gets answered afterwards, if at all. The better order is the reverse. Decide on the flame first. The finish is the easy part, and it will still be waiting when you get to it.
Start with how you smoke
A cigar lighter has one job, and the conditions under which it does that job vary more than most buyers expect. Consider honestly where most of your cigars are lit. A study or a lounge, with the windows closed and no hurry, is one set of conditions. A terrace, a golf course, a dock or a winter doorstep is another. Most people smoke in both settings at different times, but almost everyone has a dominant one, and it is that dominant setting that should decide the flame.
It is also worth being honest about temperament. Some smokers enjoy the lighting of a cigar as a ceremony in its own right and are happy to take a minute over it. Others want the cigar lit properly and quickly so that the evening can proceed. Neither is wrong, but they call for different tools.
The soft flame
A soft flame is the traditional choice and the one most closely associated with the maison. It is gentle, it flatters a fine cigar, and on the classic pieces it comes with the house's signature: lift the cap and it releases with the clear, bell-bright cling that collectors recognise before they see the lighter itself.
Its virtues are all of a piece. The heat is moderate, so the foot of the cigar is toasted rather than scorched, and there is less risk of an acrid start. It rewards an unhurried lighting — turning the cigar slowly, drawing gently, letting the ember establish itself evenly — and it does this best indoors, at home, where there is no wind to contend with. If most of your cigars are lit in a chair rather than on a path, and if the lighting is part of the pleasure rather than a preliminary to it, a soft flame is very likely the right answer.
The jet flame
A jet, or torch, flame is a different instrument. It is faster, it is hotter, and it stands up to wind in a way a soft flame cannot. Outdoors, in a breeze, a soft flame will bend, flicker and struggle to hold on the foot of a cigar. A jet flame simply lights it.
That makes it the more practical companion for anyone who smokes outside with any regularity, travels, or values speed over ritual. It also handles larger ring gauges more readily, because the concentrated heat toasts a wide foot evenly in less time. The trade-off is the need for a little more care: the flame is intense enough to char a wrapper if held too close or too long, so the technique is to keep the flame back from the foot and let the heat do the work rather than the flame itself.
Some models offer both
The choice need not be absolute. Some S.T. Dupont models offer both a soft flame and a jet flame in a single lighter, which lets one piece cover both occasions — the unhurried evening at home and the windy afternoon outside. For a smoker whose habits genuinely divide between the two, this is often the sensible answer, and it avoids the temptation to buy a second lighter later to fill the gap.
If your habits fall clearly on one side, however, there is a case for choosing a single-flame piece and letting it do that one thing without compromise. A lighter built around one kind of flame is a simpler object, and simplicity is part of what makes these pieces last.
Then think about size and presence
Once the flame is settled, the next question is how much lighter you want to carry. Here the maison's range divides broadly along a line of presence.
The Ligne 2 is the fuller, more substantial piece — the heritage reference, with the famous ring and a definite weight in the hand. It reads as the classic choice and suits a smoker who wants a sense of occasion each time the cap is lifted. The Slim 7 answers a different wish: a slimmer, lighter profile that slips into a jacket without leaving a trace, keeping the finish and the quality but trading presence for ease of carry. If the Ligne 2 is for the table, the Slim 7 is for the move. At the other end, Le Grand Dupont pushes scale and presence further, with a taller flame and a more imposing case; it asks to be noticed, and is the choice for a smoker who wants a flagship.
Many collectors end up with more than one of these over time, but a first purchase should match the pocket it will most often live in. A piece that is fractionally too large for the way you dress will be left at home, however beautiful it is.
Finally, the finish
Only now does the finish come into play, and it is a decision about character rather than performance. Every S.T. Dupont finish sits on the same serviceable architecture; a lacquered piece and a palladium piece are the same lighter underneath, and both can be refuelled, adjusted and serviced for decades. The choice is about how the object should look and feel in your pocket and how it will age with your habits.
- Brushed palladium is the finish of restraint. It is cool and quietly modern, and it forgives the small marks of daily carry more readily than any other option. For a lighter that will be used constantly and carried everywhere, it is the pragmatic choice.
- Gold brings warmth. It is the traditional luxury finish, it sits well against leather and dark wood, and it suits a piece that will be used with a little more ceremony.
- Natural Chinese lacquer offers depth. Laid down by hand in many thin coats and polished between each, it has a shine that seems to go into the material rather than sit on it. It is the most demanding finish to produce and the most rewarding to own, and it asks in return only for a soft cloth and a lined pocket.
- Guilloché, the fine engraved patterning cut into the metal, adds texture and catches light in regular lines. Because it is cut rather than printed, it wears gracefully.
A few questions to ask yourself
Before deciding, it may help to run through a short list. Where are most of my cigars lit, and is there wind there? Do I enjoy the lighting itself, or do I want it done? Which pocket will this live in, and how heavy a piece will I carry every day without leaving it behind? Will I treat the surface gently, or is it going to share a pocket with keys? The answers, taken in that order, point to a flame, then a size, then a finish. The lighter that emerges from the sequence will be the right one, whatever it happens to look like.
Buying from an authorized reseller
El Laguito Cigars carries S.T. Dupont as an authorized reseller. Every piece arrives new, with the maison's warranty and after-sales service behind it, which matters for a lighter designed to be maintained rather than replaced. If you are unsure between two models, we would rather you handled both before deciding — in Mississauga, or by describing your habits to us and letting us suggest a shortlist. A lighter is carried for decades; an extra conversation before choosing it is time well spent.