You can really pack a pipe anyway that works for you. We'll focus on the most common method and then discuss a couple of related topics.

You can bite off the end of your cigar like in old movies, you can pull the pigtail on some cigars, or you can use a tool.

A good cigar will be well made and easy to draw.

You'll often read about a cigar having particular notes. The real topic is cigar flavor.