A Cigar Stop in Belgrade at the Libertador Lounge

            Overshadowed by the beaches of Croatia, the Julian Alps of Slovenia, Serbia has long evaded the throngs of tourists associated with the nation’s neighbouring countries. Neither East nor West, situated beyond the jurisdiction of the European Union, the nation’s historical allegiances have made it a particularly unique place for cigar aficionados. As it stands, Serbia remains the only place in Europe untouched by strict anti-tobacco legislation.
            The nation’s socialist past as part of the non-aligned movement provided the country with an enviable diplomatic relationship with Cuba and Castro that manifested itself through inter-cultural exchange and through cigars. Thirty years since the dissolution of Yugoslavia, Serbia’s cigar community has weathered the insecurity of the 90’s and is bigger than ever. Upon a recent visit to Belgrade I had the chance to speak to Nino Dojcinovic, founder and manager of the newly established Libertador lounge. Since the official launch in May 2018, it is the newest addition to the burgeoning cigar community.             Following Belgrade Cigar week I met up with Nino at his locale. The lounge is located on the trendy Strahinjica Bana Street, connecting the bohemian quarter to the city’s ancient fortress of Kalamegdan. The space is a work of art in its own right, elegant, sleek and contemporary.
            Upon entering, you’re confronted with an exquisitely marbled bar. A towering selection of fine liquor from cognac, whiskey, to the local rakija, dominates as the main centerpiece of the salon. It is clear that with his range of wines, alcohols and spirits, Nino leaves the potential for cigar pairings effectively endless. Next to the walk-in humidor is a large modernist piece, referencing the confluence of streets in the surrounding historic Dorcol neighborhood, speaking to the site specificity of this newly founded institution.

            Art deco influences such as the emblazoned wallpaper design and light fixtures act as homage to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia’s interwar period; the moment in history when Cuban cigars first garnered popularity in the region. Other touches such as the grandiose portrait of Nino’s father, place the origin story for Libertador, front and center.
            As Nino explains, the idea of the store germinated as a passion for cigars passed down from father to son.

Nino Dojcinovic (Nino):
            “Upon studying hospitality and tourism in Switzerland, I’ve had the chance to work all around the world before returning here. Coming back to Serbia it became clear to me that I wanted to establish myself here. The idea was to connect my skill-set with a passion for cigars that I inherited from my father, an avid collector for the last 30 or so years. It became clear that opening a cigar lounge was the best way to connect my hospitality background with a mission to introduce and educate as many people to our passion as possible”.

Danilo Bulatovic (Danilo): As a relatively new addition to the local cigar community, how would describe Libertador’s mission for the future?

Nino:
            The goal is to place ourselves as the leaders of the tobacco industry generally, so that clients can purchase not only Cubans but also New World cigars. So the goal in the next 5 years is to educate as much people as possible regarding the tobacco itself, everything new that comes to the market we give a chance. We give it to our members, clients, and industry people so everyone can try everything. At present we host 2 tastings per month pairing mostly with wines and spirits. In fact earlier today we were pairing El Viejo Continente Maduro Lanceros with Chivas 15 and 18.

            We also host a cigar school every 3 months, a sort of cigars 101 open to clients, club members, and the hospitality sector, which helps us to establish strong partnerships with restaurants and industry representatives. My very close friend and personal mentor Zdravko Brkic, is the guy that is basically responsible for the cigar scene in Serbia for the past 30 years. He used to manage La casa del Habano, and played a big part in the launching of the city’s annual cigar festival.

Danilo: Yes, you hosted the Belgrade smoking weekend this past September?

Nino: This was the 4^th annual Belgrade cigar weekend, the 2^nd one that the store participated in, and one that was notable as it was the first time we had New World cigars available at the festival. To me it is like the culmination of our activity, this year was the first time we showcased New World cigars alongside Cubans. The first day we featured non-Cubans, and left the Cubans for the main gala dinner. Libertador is open for the entire duration of festival for downtime between events, while La Casa hosts the brunch event, the main event is the gala dinner held this year at the Hyatt Regency Belgrade.

Danilo: There seems to be a very strong collaborative spirit in the cigar community here, it seems that everyone is equally passionate about developing the domestic market here.

Nino: Absolutely, but in developing the market we can’t compare ourselves to the UK where you had continuous cigar distribution for the past 227 years, and giants such as James J Fox and Hunters & Frankau operating. Serbia has only 13 years of continuous distribution, so whatever people used to do 200 years ago there, we’re only doing now.

Danilo: The decor at Libertador appears to refer to a cigar history exclusive to the region.

Nino: We also chose to symbolically open the store on the 25^th of May 2018, the birthday of Marshal Tito. He is a cigar icon parallel to his contemporaries, Churchill, the King of Spain, Kennedy. Just like these leaders he had his own iconic cigar… custom rolled panatela extras from the El Laguito factory. 

       We had this great connection with Cuba as Yugoslavia, so it’s come down to the cigar community to rebuild this bond. Marhsal Tito had the most attended state funeral, we should not be ashamed of our history rather we should embrace it. In the region we’re doing just that. For instance In Croatia they named their 2008 Adriatico regional from Vegas Robaina, the “Marshal”.

Danilo: Looking back have you noticed a change in the cigar community since Libertador opened its doors?

Nino: The cigar community always existed here, even during the 90’s but perhaps it was more insular before. Judging from growing attendance at the Belgrade smoking weekend, the community is a lot larger. Serbia’s first regional release the Sancho Panza Eslavo, a magnificent cigar, put us on the map once more. When I had a meeting with Julieta groups’ Sales director, the results are that sales are going up both at Casa and at Libertador. So we hope to continue this collaborative effort in further expanding the cigar market here in Serbia.

Have any of you been to this Lounge, or the Belgrade Cigar Week?  Share your comments below.

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Photo Credits.  All photos used in this article were taken from the official Facebook page of the Libertador Lounge.