How to Pair Cigars With Coffee

Whether you fancy a pick-me-up in the morning, are looking for a non-alcoholic alternative, or just really love a good, strong cup of coffee, we take a look at why coffee and cigars are the next pairing experience you should try!

Why Do Coffee and Cigars Pair So Well Together?

There is a golden zone, between the Tropic of Cancer, and the Tropic of Capricorn. This magical strip of the world encompasses such areas as South America, Africa and Southern Asia. This whole strip also doubles up as the ‘bean belt’; where the prime conditions for coffee bean growth can be discovered. With its rich soil and tropical climes, this also happens to be the very same area in which our beloved tobacco plants grow. Cuban coffee and Cuban cigars are both renowned for being at the peak quality of their product types, and it’s no coincidence that they come from the same place, with the perfect conditions for both to thrive.

Coffee and cigars work well together, offering up a unique pairing, as the flavours from each tend to both overlap and compliment each other. Of course the flavours will be dependent on where the plants grow, but for the most part, both will contain earthy tones, a hint of spice and a faint acidic quality. As such, combining a cigar and a quality cup of coffee will provide a fantastically balanced range of flavours, which help to enhance one another.

How Do You Pair Coffee and Cigars?

The simplest way to pair your stogie with a cup of coffee is to consider similarities between tastes. If your cigar is mild and sweet, for example, it is best to pick a light roast coffee, so that the flavours do not overwhelm each other. A medium cigar with nutty, or lightly spiced, flavours will suit a medium roast nutty coffee, or even something cocoa-based, like a mocha. Stronger cigars, such as those sporting a Maduro wrapper, are likely to be more spicy or leathery in flavour, which will work well with a strong, full-bodied roast, bringing out the acidic undertones of both.

What Do the Different Kinds of Coffee Taste Like?

Once you have decided what strength and flavour you would like to pair, the next step is to work out what type of coffee fits that profile. As most of the differences in flavour come from the soil types, or different growing conditions, where the coffee is grown has a major impact when it comes to taste.

Cuban

The most popular of the Cuban coffee blends is Cubita coffee, which provides strong earthy tones, with tasty hints of caramel and smokiness. Alternatively, there is the Santiago blend, which is incredibly smooth with a sweet, buttery flavour.

Kenyan

Delicate and gentle notes come from these coffee beans, giving off a subtle fruity flavour.

Puerto Rican

A strong and powerful blend with a deliciously smooth, chocolatey flavour.

Columbian

A perfectly balanced taste, this medium roast comes with mild hints of acid, cream, fruit and spice.

Coffee and Cigar Pairings

Like with all pairing combinations, when trying to match cigars with coffee, similarities in taste must be considered. Balance is the key to a good pairing, as you do not want to overpower one flavour with another. Therefore, a light roast coffee should be paired with a milder, sweeter cigar, and a dark roast coffee would match better with a full-bodied, stronger cigar. With such a vast range of coffee and cigars available, pairing is limitless, so we’ve picked out a few you can try. 

Flat White and Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill 

A medium-bodied smoke with an extremely smooth draw, the Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill is an excellent pairing for the smoothness of a flat white. The cigar presents an earthiness that distinguishes itself from the milky flavours of the coffee, but the fruity and vanilla notes that shine through work perfectly with this drink. 

Black Coffee and Partagas Lusitanias 

This pairing is perfect, as the medium to full-bodied nature of the Partagas Lusitanias is an ideal match for the strength of black coffee. Starting with floral, sweet notes, the cigar will let the flavours of the coffee shine through, and will balance out any bitterness of the coffee. The cigar then develops to impart notes of leather and cedar, creating a powerful pairing. 

Latte and Montecristo No 3

A medium-bodied smoke, the Montecristo No. 3 is the perfect pairing for a rich and creamy coffee, like a latte. The cigar itself offers notes of mocha coffee, so this hint of sweetness works well with the milky coffee. 

Espresso and Davidoff Winston Churchill The Late Hour Robusto

A coffee such as espresso needs an equally sophisticated and strong cigar to match. The Late Hour Robusto from Davidoff offers a full-bodied smoke packed with strong flavours and aromas that make it well suited to the strength of an espresso. The cigar features spicy and sweet notes, with a hint of chocolate and caramel, which helps to break through the rich, bold flavours of the coffee. 

What is your favourite beverage to sip with a stogie? Let us know via our social media channels!