A Communal Cigar Sanctuary In The Pacific Northwest

[JohnS]

A Communal Cigar Sanctuary In The Pacific Northwest

Casey Heaton of Silver Lake, Washington, redefines what a “cigar room” can be with an awe-inspiring smoking haven that he shares with local cigar lovers

Feb 10, 2026 - By Garrett Rutledge 

Photos/Casey Heaton

The area surrounding Mount St. Helens in Washington, like that of Mount Vesuvius in Pompeii, is largely associated with volcanic destruction. But this pocket of the Pacific Northwest has so much more to offer. Natural beauty abounds on a magnificent scale, and just at the base of this still-active volcano is a serene, unincorporated town known as Silver Lake, Washington. Within this small community, one resident has taken his love for cigars to new heights. Just next to his home, Casey Heaton has built a grand, worldly cigar room that’s so remarkable, he feels compelled to share it with his cigar-loving neighbors. 

It doesn’t take long to get a sense of Heaton’s character. Down-to-Earth, genuine, passionate, are a few descriptors that quickly come to mind. The 55-year-old owns a landscaping business and his expertise is certainly on display with his beautiful home in Silver Lake. Heaton’s property is roughly 10 acres, with a small vineyard in the front yard, a pool, an outdoor kitchen area and an elaborate garden that overlooks the lake. The space flows together via large, 10-feet-wide concrete walkways. But it wasn’t until a few years ago that the property got an upgrade that any aficionado would envy.

Eccentric decor, compiled by Heaton and his wife during their worldly travels, give each space life.

After years of toughing it out in the great outdoors, Heaton grew tired of battling the conditions every time he wanted to have a cigar. As is usually the case with cigar rooms, the initial aim was far more modest than the final result. He opted for a small smoking shack, built five years ago just next to his house. It was a cozy space outfitted with a bar and couches, but it didn’t last long. “We soon outgrew that,” says Heaton. Between his immense collection of cigars and whisky, and his cigar-loving buddies that would come over for a smoke, the small room just didn’t offer enough space. An upgrade was needed, and an upgrade was surely delivered. The new space, in all its grandeur, took a year to build, wrapping up in 2023. 

The laid-back Tequila Room, spearheaded by Heaton's wife, sits just next to the masculine cigar and whisky lounge.

Heaton’s new cigar room is far more than just a room. It’s more like a compound. At roughly 4,000 square feet (including covered outdoor space) it’s as big as some public cigar lounges. The building is separate from the house, located off the front left corner of his home, just a short walk away. The entire space is best understood as three separate, yet connected areas: the Tequila room, the cigar and whisky room and a large gathering area. Heaton says he and his wife, Heather, like to entertain and that they built this space with that notion in mind.

Heaton's cigar collection is vast, but he tends to stray away from favorites, opting for variety and matching smokes with the context.

Each area exists on its own, but open doorways through the middle allow the rooms to seamlessly flow together. The Tequila room, if you’re facing the front of the building, is located on the far left side. This space is the most modest of the three, both in size and furnishings, but it has a natural charm. The walls have a subdued, burnt orange finish, which meshes nicely with the predominantly Mexican and Southwest decor. Tequila lovers would find a welcome refuge in this room, with many bottles lining the shelves of cabinets that sit on one side of the wall. Heaton gives credit to his wife, a Tequila lover, for creating this space. The homey feel of this alcove, however, is immediately juxtaposed by the lavish air of its neighbor, the cigar and whisky room. 

Cigar memorabilia abounds, including a rare Daniel Marshall White House humidor, sitting atop one of the cabinet humidors.

Unsurprisingly, this is the area where Heaton and his visitors tend to congregate most often. It’s sandwiched between the Tequila room and the large gathering area and has a masculine tone, with steel blue walls, leather chairs and couches and an air of sophistication that fits with the cigar and whisky theme. Heaton essentially split this area into two sides: the cigar side and the whisky side. Each section houses massive inventories of their respective categories.

The cigar side features rows of tall cabinet humidors, each packed full of cigars. Heaton struggls to put a number on his cigar inventory, but his collection is vast and includes many hard-to-get smokes. Plenty of OpusX boxes line the shelves, joined by the Padrón 50th and Fuente y Padrón collections, plus Cuban Cohibas and Quai D’Orsays, Liga Privadas, Rocky Patels, La Aroma de Cubas, Diamond Crowns and Olivas. “Can I tell you I have one particular favorite? Probably not,” says Heaton. “It’s kind of like a Scotch or a whisky—it depends on your mood.”

Heaton says that when he was in Japan, he and his wife bought 40 bottles of Japanese whisky to bring home. Seeing his collection, that might be an understatement.

The extensive selection is just one of many examples that make this personal cigar room feel like a public lounge. Heaton even has columns of cigar lockers and a custom ventilation system inside the hangout. But his motivation wasn’t grandiosity, rather a passion for the heritage and craftsmanship of cigars. “It’s as much as collecting a piece of art and history as anything else,” he says. “I kind of refuse to go to somebody’s cigar shop and not buy something.” 

Despite being a cigar smoker for the last 25 years, Heaton’s collection-building with cigars is more of a recent infatuation. Not the same for his love of whisky. Heaton has long been an avid spirits collector, which is immediately clear when you turn to the whisky side.

Heaton typically picks his cigar first, then he tries to figure which whisky will pair best with it. He is, however, keen not to get too lost in this process, which is quite easy to do in his spot

The walls, from top to bottom, are jam-packed with whisky bottles, with little room for new additions. It’s a vast assortment, and it’s not even contain his entire collection. Heaton estimates he owns between 2,000 to 2,500 bottles of whisky, of all varieties. Heaton says he has bottles scattered all over his property. “Some people collect art,” he says. “I’m collecting art, it’s just you can drink or smoke it.” For Heaton, he’s fascinated by the artistic expression of cigars and whisky, by the vision their makers had when creating the products and the flavor profile they wished to present. That passion follows him everywhere he goes, and he says he doesn’t travel anywhere without purchasing at least one bottle. 

Thankfully, he’s managed to get his wife onboard with his interests, despite not being a cigar smoker herself. “My wife is very supportive of my hobby but sometimes she tells me I need to slow down,” Heaton says chuckling, before adding “then she goes out and buys me something, and I’m like well that’s a mixed signal.” And, as with any good partnership, there was a compromise. The former, smaller, original cigar room? He gave Heather the reigns. “She reinvented it to be her she-shack,” says Heaton. “She said ‘if we’re building you a cigar room, then I get this.’” 

Each space has its own identity and sovereignty, yet it all naturally flows together.

The third and final space is the biggest of them all, again evocative of a public lounge. It has a full wraparound bar, multiple table settings, a piano, lounge chairs, a couch and a ceiling that’s 22 feet high at its tallest point. It’s not hard to imagine a group of 30 people, maybe more, comfortably hanging out in this space. And if that wasn’t enough, Heaton even has a covered outdoor space surrounding the building, with chairs, tables, couches and a firepit.

The space is so grand Heaton feels compelled to share. He even had people using his spot while he was in Las Vegas this past November, attending Cigar Aficionado's Big Smoke.

The scale of the building is certainly striking, especially for a personal cigar room. But the meticulously-curated decor inside provides a welcoming and alluring vibe that allows the grand space to still feel approachable. Every room offers a cultural experience. Eccentric pieces of art, instruments, striking antiques, taxidermy mounts and worldly relics demand attention. The vibrant milieu is the result of a kind of hobby for Heaton and his wife. “My wife and I, we call it tchotchke shopping,” he says. “We buy something from everywhere we travel and visit, and we connect it to the room.” He says they are passionate world travelers and lovers of history. Wherever they go, they like to bring a piece of that place back with them. 

Heaton has dubbed his spot “Heaton’s Lakeside Estate,” which seems a fitting moniker.

Whether it’s art, whisky, travel or cigars, these fascinations blend together for Heaton. The common denominator is the sense of community that they both foster and demand.  

“Cigars are about bringing people together,” says Heaton. “There’s this deep, rich culture and history that just brings socialization with it.” He personally visits the cigar room about four to five times a week, but he’s not shy about letting others utilize the space either. “I have times when I’m out back by the pool with the grandkids and I have a whole other group up in the cigar room hanging out,” says Heaton. He often gets calls from cigar buddies seeing if he’s open to a smoke. But if he’s not home, his genuine, communal nature shines through and he tells them to go use his space anyways. They’re free to grab cigars, so long as they reimburse him for the retail price. It's an honors system, one that’s not uncommon among cigar smokers, and Heaton wouldn’t have it any other way. “I guess you can say we're just a couple of old souls who still think a handshake is as good as a written contract,” he says.

Heaton, seen pictured here second from the left, is part of an ever-growing cigar group that commonly meets at his spot.

Heaton is part of a cigar group that meets when he’s in town as well, usually once every month. Their story is one that’s been repeated among cigar circles many times over. It started as a group of five cigar lovers, and now, he says there’s nearly 50 on the email list. Heaton’s place is, of course, one of their common meeting grounds, though they rotate locations. For Heaton, the group offers another way to connect and to utilize his all-for-one cigar spot. But he and his wife will also open the space up to the larger community, often free of charge, from local school district holiday parties to weddings, fundraisers and even book signings. Ultimately, that was part of the grand vision. “This place turned out to be a great gathering spot for friends and family,” says Heaton. “It was built to be used. It has no purpose if it’s not being used.”

Source: https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/a-communal-cigar-sanctuary-in-the-pacific-northwest

[StoagieSnape]

Saw this featured recently on Cigarmanor's page. This is quite the sanctuary. A veritable Cigarpound! How many bottles of Fortaleza does one need? 

[Gemini_Man]

This is the most impressive homestead lounge I've ever seen. Beautiful!

[JohnS]

It is quite amazing, really. Truly it is. Well done to him! (Casey Heaton, that is, of course!)