I don’t smoke anything, so idk of this is an apt comparison or not. But it’s what I’ve gathered from people I know who smoke cigars.
I think a lot of it’s more about the luxury or indulgence of it, rather than the nicotine kick. As well as being a social activity. Kinda like how absinthe bars are a thing, and the people who are into absinthe generally aren’t trying to get shitfaced with it, like your typical shot-taker at a bar might be.
I remember my dad used to smoke wooden pipes from time to time, instead of his normal stinky ass Menthol cigs. He’d use loose pipe tobacco, of course, and it actually smelled completely different from a cigarette. Actually had a sweet and woody smell to it that’s kinda alright, at least from my perspective being near it and not smoking. Meanwhile the smell of dad’s cigarettes always made me want to gag, from the time I was a toddler.
I know they say raw pipe tobacco’s better for you than cigarettes, due to all the additives in the latter. While I’m skeptical that it’s still not doing at least some damage to your body, pipe tobacco seems to be less addictive. At least it was for my dad. I remember after learning to drive and finally buying my first car with my own money, he kept trying to smoke in the thing while I drove him places. And I was just like, “Oh hell naw. This is MY car that I pay for with MY money. Please do not stink it up like you did to yours.” And at one point with enough grumbling on his end, I tried to make a deal with him. He could smoke in my car, as long as he used a pipe and not the fucking menthols. I even bought him a really nice new wooden pipe for Christmas, in order for him to do so. But he still never took me up on the offer, because at that point he didn’t feel like smoking a pipe instead. It didn’t satisfy his nicotine fix, or help him deal with the pain of badly declining health quite like his menthols did.