The International Cigar Sommelier Institute (ICSI) is a Switzerland-based institution dedicated to establishing professional standards in the evaluation, service, and understanding of premium cigars. Built on Swiss principles of precision and rigor, ICSI introduces a structured, scientific framework to an industry historically shaped by informal knowledge and tradition.

Quality Assurance Charter

ICSI is built upon a structured quality framework aligned with internationally recognized certification principles, including ISO/IEC 17024. This framework defines clear domains of competence across sensory analysis, combustion dynamics, humidity optimization, and client advisory, ensuring that certification reflects real-world professional capability.

The Institute applies a rigorous methodology combining job-task analysis, competence mapping, and multi-layered assessment systems integrating theoretical knowledge, sensory evaluation, and applied reasoning. Each certification outcome is measurable, auditable, and directly linked to industry practice.

To ensure long-term credibility, ICSI maintains continuous validation mechanisms including expert review, industry consultation, and performance-based feedback loops. Certification schemes are systematically reviewed and refined in line with evolving cigar production techniques, storage technologies, and luxury service standards.

ICSI operates under a quality management approach designed for transparency, consistency, and traceability, with a formal ISO-aligned certification pathway currently in development.

Founder

Anthony Azar is emerging as an authority in the science and appreciation of premium cigars. His work sits at the intersection of craftsmanship, science, and modern luxury. Redefining how cigars are understood, evaluated, and experienced. Educated at Imperial College London, where he earned Master’s degrees in Thermodynamics & Combustion Science and Business Administration, Anthony brings a rare depth of technical and strategic expertise to the cigar world. Over a distinguished 25-year executive career, he has led global initiatives in advanced training systems, operational excellence and digital transformation. His lifelong passion for cigars, spanning more than three decades, led to the creation of the Cigar Peak-Flavor System, a proprietary scientific framework designed to unlock optimal flavour expression through thermodynamic balance. Now embedded in a suite of digital applications, this system offers a new standard for performance and consistency across all cigar blends. Through his institute, Anthony curates a refined educational experience for discerning aficionados and professionals, elevating cigar appreciation into a discipline of precision, insight, and mastery.

ICSI is part of CreateDeliverCapture Sàrl, a Geneva-based technical consultancy.