尽管传统文化观念较强，洛杉矶仍然有大把地点可以供公众享用雪茄。并且分布广泛、形式各异。在比利佛山庄（Beverly Hills）有一家古巴人经营的酒吧，在韩国城（Koreatown）有一家现场音乐的舞蹈场地。还有几家雪茄店的室内外座位都比较多。还有一家新开业的雪茄休息室定位成一个允许抽雪茄的共享工作室。甚至还有一家最低消费仅为50美元的豪华酒店的雪茄俱乐部，但是座位较少，更多是强化雪茄普及教育。这就是大陆雪茄俱乐部（Continental Cigar Club）。

大陆雪茄俱乐部是火种盒烟草连锁店（Tinder Box tobacco shop）联合创始人的孙子帕特里克·波特 (Patrick Potter)的创意，他热衷于雪茄事业，享受这个工作带来的乐趣。这个雪茄俱乐部位于西洛杉矶的塞普尔韦达 (Sepulveda)，和其他三个商店共用一个停车场，还配了一名停车服务员，这可是洛杉矶才有的福利。

谈到俱乐部的风格，波特说你可以感受到“一种东海岸的氛围”，很容易让人想起美国东北部很多城市中的任何一个社交俱乐部。会所里布置了28把非常舒适的座位，前厅有八个座位可供公众使用。有一面墙装饰了很多相框，上面有当地立法和执法部门人员的照片，证明了波特和他们的交情。雪茄纪念品和海报把房间装饰的非常完美。

前厅有一个较小的雪茄保湿柜，存放着富恩特的巨著X（Fuente OpusX ）以及超级稀有的每支售价35美元的多米尼加之花的安德烈斯公牛（Andalusian Bull ）。波特的自有品牌Hoy Vivo是EPC雪茄公司代工的，有一款金字塔造型的，售价是32美元一支，波特说这是他自己亲自卷制的，一次大概卷制20支。

柜台后面的雪茄房比较大，在里面你可以发现波特自有品牌的其他产品线，牛奶&蜂蜜（Milk & Honey），每支售价13美元，有三款不同调配的尼加拉瓜烟叶。波特通过旗下的贸易公司定制了七款不同的雪茄，放在大陆雪茄俱乐部销售。

这里还有塔图阿赫（ Tatuaje），考德威尔（Caldwell），罗马工艺（RomaCraft）、大卫杜夫、帕德龙、蒙特，还有一些纳特·谢尔曼（ Nat Sherman）的存品，还有老爹雪茄、奥利瓦、巴尔莫勒尔（Balmoral）、CAO、多米尼加之花等品牌。波特说每个档次的雪茄都有一些备货。比较稀罕的是富恩特的巨著X天使的分享（Angel’s Share）罗布图，每支售价55美元，还有每支售价65美元的帕德龙80周年。

波特要求店里的员工接受雪茄方面的培训，学会辨别和雪茄相关的不同口味和香气，有助于培训雪茄爱好者。大陆雪茄俱乐部还有烟叶卷制方面的培训，每月还会举办一次早餐聚会，介绍门店来的新品雪茄。

2022年开始，俱乐部的会员费为每个人1980美元，会员享有每周7天24小时随时入店消费的权利。每个人都有进入雪茄俱乐部休息区的钥匙，可以获得一个储物柜的使用权，这样的储物柜一共有58个，每个储物柜可以放下四到六个雪茄盒。

休息区有一张餐桌，你可以自带食物过来用餐，有一个装软饮料的小冰箱，一个单杯浓缩咖啡机，墙上有三台大电视。休息区播放着拉丁音乐。大陆雪茄俱乐部还提供每个月135美元的单月赛事会员资格，你可以在体育赛事季选择去雪茄俱乐部看球。如果你有会员资格，在俱乐部消费可以打折。

波特是约翰·威克（John Wick）系列电影的忠实粉丝，电影里为刺客们提供休息的中立酒店的名字就叫大陆酒店。大陆雪茄俱乐部也效仿电影里的大陆酒店一样，波特给12位来自洛杉矶不同酒店的礼宾员每人10枚硬币，他们可以将硬币送给未来可能称为俱乐部会员的客人。硬币持有者可以在俱乐部获得一支免费的雪茄，可以享用雪茄俱乐部的休息区。

波特希望可以扩张大陆雪茄俱乐部的开店数量，七年内在美国开到40家。然后走向国际。他从他祖父经营火种盒烟草店的经验中学到很多关于多门店经营和特许经营的模式。

大陆雪茄俱乐部

塞普尔韦达大道1716号105座

洛杉矶，CA90025

每周开放七天，早11点到晚11点

电话：(424) 317-0905

官网：http://www.thecontinentalcigarclub.com/

附参考原文：

espite conventional wisdom, greater Los Angeles has many places where a member of the public can enjoy a cigar. The diversity is considerable. There’s a Cuban-owned bar in Beverly Hills, a live-music and dance venue in Koreatown and several tobacco stores with abundant indoor and outdoor seating. A newer lounge is intended as a shared workspace that allows smoking. There’s even, not surprisingly, a luxury hotel cigar and whiskey haunt where the minimum spend is $50. And now, there’s a cigar club and store, with limited public seating, that emphasizes cigar education. Welcome to the Continental Cigar Club.

Continental is the brainchild of Patrick Potter, the grandson of the co-founder of the Tinder Box tobacco shop, who is as evangelical about the joys of cigars as anyone you’re likely to meet. The club, on Sepulveda in West Los Angeles, shares a parking lot with three other businesses and has a parking attendant, a bonus in LA. The style of the club, which Potter says “has an East Coast vibe,” reminds one of social clubs in any of a number of urban northeastern cities. There are 28 very comfortable seats inside the private club, and about eight available for the public in the front room. Plaques from law enforcement agencies adorn a wall, a testament to Potter’s consulting involvement and support with some of them. Cigar memorabilia and posters round out the decor.

A smaller cabinet humidor in front holds the highest-end offerings, such as Fuente Fuente OpusX sizes and the ultra-rare La Flor Dominicana  Andalusian Bull ($35). Potter’s own Hoy Vivo brand, made with Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, is $32 for a Pyramid Plus. Potter said that he rolls these himself, about 20 at a time.

The humidor room behind the counter is large, with more than 600 facings. Inside you’ll find another of Potter’s lines, the Milk & Honey ($13), available in three different blends of Nicaraguan tobaccos. Potter has a total of seven different proprietary cigars made by his Tabac Trading Company for sale at Continental.  Tatuaje is well represented here. Also available are cigars by Caldwell, RomaCraft, Davidoff, Padrón, Montecristo, some of the last Nat Shermans, My Father, Oliva, Balmoral, CAO and more La Flor Dominicanas. Potter says there’s something for every budget. Among the more rare finds are the Fuente Fuente OpusX Angel’s Share Robusto ($55) and the Padrón 80th ($65).

Potter requires his staff to get training in matters of tobacco. Inside, there are round wheels charting different tastes and aromas related to cigars that help educate smokers. Continental also offers classes on blending, and every month there’s a breakfast that introduces a new brand or something the humidor doesn’t have.

Membership will cost $1,980 beginning in 2022. Members will have 24/7 access, each getting a fob to enter the lounge, and one of the 58 lockers, each of which can hold four to six boxes. There’s a table for dining (you’ll need to bring in your own food) a small refrigerator for soft drinks, a single-serve espresso machine, and three large televisions on the wall. Latin music plays in the lounge. Continental also offers a $135 a month sports membership that lets you visit the lounge when games are on. Discounts on products bought in the store come with the memberships.

Potter is a big fan of the John Wick movie franchise. Continental is the name of the neutral hotel in the films where assassins can relax. Continental Cigar Club also uses a coin, like in the movies, as currency. Potter has given out 10 coins each, he says, to 12 different LA hotel concierges so that they can pass them along to guests who might later become club members. The coin entitles the bearer to a free house cigar and a visit to the private lounge.

Potter is dedicating his efforts to expanding the Continental Cigar Club, looking to open 40 in the United States in seven years. Then he wants to go international. He says he learned the multi-unit and franchising models from his grandfather’s experience with Tinder Box.

Above all, Potter preaches cigars and civility. And a love of cigars. Both are available at the Continental Cigar Club.

Continental Cigar Club

1716 S. Sepulveda Blvd. #105

Los Angeles, CA 90025

Hours: Open 7 days a week to the general public, 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM 

Phone: (424) 317-0905

http://www.thecontinentalcigarclub.com/