JR Cigars & Fragrances (Clayton)
#4 North Central Ave.Clayton, MO 63105
(314) 727-5667
JR Cigars is one of the "old standbys" of the cigar trade. There are two JR Cigars stores in the St. Louis area: the Clayton store and the Downtown store, both operated by Wally J. Pankowski.
As with the Downtown store, the whole place in Clayton is humidified so the cigars are on open shelves. This works well at JR's Clayton store for several reasons. First, and perhaps foremost, the entry into the store is through double doors, creating an air lock. This helps keep the humidity from leaking outside. Second, their humidifier is an absolute monster that blows a visible plume of moisture out into the shop. When I met Wally there recently, he told me that sometimes during cold weather a white cloud will form just above the customer's heads, and some of the taller ones have to duck under it! This all makes the entire store into a humidor that seems to work perfectly!
This store is also a veritable cigar supermarket; jam-packed with over 200 brands of cigars on open, floor-to-ceiling shelves, including many hard to find brands (La Gloria Cubana's, for instance, in stock all the time). I spent about an hour here just browsing, and I'm sure that I missed a lot. I found many of my favorites available in quantity at reasonable prices.
JR's in Clayton is my kind of cigar store. JR's is very unpretentious, with no "snob appeal" at all. There's no leather covered armchairs or espresso, just a lot of good cigars. If it's fru-fru you want, go elsewhere.
Scott Martin - April, 1997
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