Sip on One of these Great Drinks With Your Cigar

When lighting up your favourite cigar, it’s important that you have the right drink to go with it, as the wrong drink can ruin your smoke and overpower those delicious tasting notes found in your cigar.

A full bodied, strong cigar will overpower a light drink, such as a light pale ale, but then a beer compliments a mild cigar perfectly. It’s about finding the right balance between your drinks and your cigars.

We have given you five drinks to get you started with below, with each of them perfectly complimenting any cigar you pull out of your humidor:

• There are many variations and types of coffee drinks, so whether it’s a flat white, Americano or even a fashionable iced coffee, it makes no difference really, all coffee goes well with a cigar. Just try and match the strength of your bean with the strength of your cigar. Mild cigars pair perfectly with milder coffees, while bolder, stronger coffees are better with more intense cigars. Add cream or full-fat milk to your brew to bring out the creamier notes, and add sugar if you’re smoking sweeter cigars.

• I know it’s very cliché, but they just go well together. Cognac is the traditional drink to have with cigars as both were usually taken after dinner, so they became linked. Aim for a cognac that has been aged for at least 4 years or has the ‘VSOP’ notification on the label and pair with mild and medium bodied cigars to get the full flavour profiles.

• Of course, rum was going to be on the list, geographically it comes from the same region of the world as cigars. The same people who make the cigars have also made rum and for this reason, the two go hand in hand. You need to stay away from cheap rum as it brings out the rough and harsh notes of your cigar. A high-quality rum, however, will perfectly compliment your smoke.

• Port is a classic partner to a great cigar due to the sweetness, strength and wood barrel ageing process that gives the drink its woody taste profile. Full bodied cigars go great with a port as the drink’s flavour tannins compliment a spicy tasting cigar.

• Bourbons and single malt Scotches have the complexity and flavour profiles to stand up to the flavours of your favourite stogie. The smoky and peaty notes of a fine single malt match perfectly with a good cigar. Bourbons are traditionally bottled at a higher proof level, which gives them a core of strong flavours which perfectly balance medium- and full-bodied cigars.

That’s 5 drinks that you need to try out with your next cigar, in the meantime visit Havana House online for a fantastic range of cigars as well as accessories such as humidors, ashtrays and cigar lighters – such as a xikar lighter-, delivered straight to your door with the click of a button.

Image: amigocosmo under Creative Commons.