THE BRITISH LION ROARED TWICE ON A WEEKEND THAT UNITED CSWC PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

expertcigar
8 hours ago
3 min read

The last weekend of July saw the culmination of the CSWC-UK season with two epic events.

The Great British Open was held on the terrace at the stunning members only, private 'Caledonian Club' on Saturday 25th July. As guests assembled for canapés and bubbles, the King of the United Kingdom looked on.

The next day, the UK National Qualifier took place at 'City of London Cigars' in the City of London, who most generously opened their beautiful lounge for our exclusive use.

CSWC UK organiser, Sarah Saunders, who is also the CSWC Head International Judge , welcomed everyone to the Caledonian Club, including CSWC President, Marko Bilic, who came straight from the airport after the long USA tour.

Both Saturday and Sunday events brought CSWC past, present and future together in two exciting competitions with thrilling finishes. Both events saw the return of much loved and missed faces from CSWC, including Toby Brocklehurst, Julia Gurry, Philip Rudd, James Robinson and the genial Steve Robertson aka @ldncigarsmoker. Illustrating that you're always part of the CSWC family, even if life distracts you for a year or two!

We also saw the return and strong performances of people who had competed well in 2025, such as Evgeny Kheyman, Rosalie Barber and 'the Spice Boys' - Paresh Patel, Vinny Bulsara, Ash Amin and the now 5 times UK Champion, Etan 'The British Lion', Patel. Huge congratulations go to Etan, remarkable not just for his slow smoking skills, but also for his humble and focused approach to the competition.

It wasn't only CSWC past and present that gathered over the weekend.

New exciting competitors such as Djemal Moustafa, Bex Dafydd, and the power couple George & Charlotte Stansfield certainly made their mark.

New trainee UK Judge Cip Popescu gained valuable experience supporting our UK judge couple David Taylor & Mariana Cuencas and special guest USA judge Michael McMeekan.

Both competitions were exhilarating!

Both finished with dramatic gladiatorial head-to-head tunnelling attempts !

No words or pictures here can do justice describing the thrill of these battles: you will have to ask Marko or Sarah to tell the tale!

At both competitions, the British Lion, Etan,

roared victorious, but at the UK Final his impressive 02:13:57 time. This gave the victor of each hard-fought tunneling battle a deserved opportunity to compete at the Grand Final in Dubrovnik -

Evgeny at the GB Open and George in the UK Final. George's epic tunnelling competition with James Robinson, which saw James tunnel right through his cigar over 12 minutes, was an absolute highlight of the weekend, and George's face said it all....Firece competition ending with lasting CSWC Friendship .

A huge thank you goes to all the spectators over the weekend, and the generous Global and UK sponsors who supported the weekend. Especially the team at City of London Cigars who looked after us so incredibly generously for the UK Final. Also the team at the Caledonian Club for ensuring the judges were kept hydrated on such a hot day. Thank you also to Alfonso Scherzi and Tor Imports Ltd. who are the UK distributors of the official Oliva Mareva competition cigar, for your support and ensuring we received cigars in perfect condition. .

A special thank you to Judge Mariana Cuencas for coordinating a beautiful evening at The Peninsula hotel in Belgravia for Marco and a few.

Head Cigar sommelier Luca Galioto showed us around the humidor and we smoked the house blend in the exquisite cigar lounge high above London's Hyde Park corner with a view of the famous skyline.

Particular thanks goes to; Cuervo Y Sobrenos for giving the UK Final Winner the elegant and sumptuous "Asturias Pequenos Segundos" watch. Bosquet bespoke leather gold embossed cigar cases presented to the winners by Bosquet owner Emmanuel Lesur, Hulecos digital humidity gauge presented to the winner by Hulecos Director Christophe Bechard.

S T Dupont and Stone Marketing (UK) for the fabulous cigar accessories, including a beautiful jet flame lighter and double blade cutter. Coates and Seeley and Mariana Cuencas for the sparkling wine. Dalmore for the delicious whisky tastings on both days. Women's International Cigar Club for canapés, chocolates, prizes and cigars.