Rum And Cigars - A Match Made In Heaven

[El Presidente]

A nice (light) article on Rum and Cigars. 

Many moons ago I asked Don Alejandro Robaina as to why Cigars and Rum were such a great combination. 

Paraphrasing he said "It is because they come from the same soil. Tobacco, sugarcane"  

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/matt-chambers/rum-cigars-a-match-made-i_b_15826618.html

[mwaller]

I always found cognac to be a better pairing with a cigar.  The flavor profiles are complementary, and the strong acidity helps refresh the palate. Many rums are overly sweet or punctuated by tropical fruit flavors that seem to clash with the darker flavors of most cigars.  Havana Club 7 is an exception, and does pair quite well.  Just my thoughts. 

[mwaller]

These days, my drink pairing of choice is usually Diet Dr.Pepper, so perhaps I should butt out of this conversation...

[Smallclub]

47 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Paraphrasing he said "It is because they come from the same soil. Tobacco, sugarcane"  
 

We can add coffee to the equation.

[stogieluver]

My daily routine:  light up a CC, and mix a Cuba Libre.  Great combo. 

[MPfit]

Nice aged rum is always great with cigars and can often help bring out some sweetness. Havana 7 is delicious although more astringent that many I've had. Oddly enough, I like Barcardi 8 anos VERY much with cigars. That and any aged El Dorado. 

I find the complexities in red wines are more parallel to cigars but that doesn't mean I enjoy pairing them as much. 

 

[Ken Gargett]

2 hours ago, El Presidente said:

A nice (light) article on Rum and Cigars. 

Many moons ago I asked Don Alejandro Robaina as to why Cigars and Rum were such a great combination. 

Paraphrasing he said "It is because they come from the same soil. Tobacco, sugarcane"  

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/matt-chambers/rum-cigars-a-match-made-i_b_15826618.html

the soil connection thing is a nice thought but is complete nonsense. think of everything else that grows in those soils that does not match. also, both products have considerable human interference/involvement before they reach consumers. both may, in their own way, reflect "soil/terroir" to a degree but both have been 'altered' and they are unrelated.

also, soils change considerably in very short distances (think burgundy - these regions may not be as diverse as that but you can bet extensive differences throughout) and there are many other influences - the micro-climate. aspect, rainfall, wind, drainage and so on. these affect the crop been grown.

further, we are not, or rarely, talking "single farm cigars", but leaves coming from all over the place. even more so with rum - appleton, which has a big estate of some 4000 hectares (acres?) in Jamaica is one of the very few top producers of rum to source from a single site. and even then, there would be huge variations across that site. almost every other producer gets cane from a variety of sources and hence a variety of soils/micro-climates etc.

[1LegLance]

Port, either from Portugal or Oz there are some great tawny ports that go really well with a cigar. I like the sweetness and of course the history of it all helps.

That said my boys and I are currently really liking a bottle of Santiago de Cuba 11 yr Rum we brought back. Really smooth stuff neat.

[El Presidente]

10 minutes ago, Ken Gargett said:

the soil connection thing is a nice thought but is complete nonsense.

Killjoy

No fish today either? 

[godpheonix]

i personally been enjoying some fine single malts, rum and Port. if i'm to be honest, i'm graviting towards the Port more then the other two. why? no idea! just seems to go better together.

[Ken Gargett]

4 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Killjoy

No fish today either? 

didn't try. too many deadlines.

[CigarsRLife]

3 hours ago, mwaller said:

I always found cognac to be a better pairing with a cigar.  The flavor profiles are complementary, and the strong acidity helps refresh the palate. Many rums are overly sweet or punctuated by tropical fruit flavors that seem to clash with the darker flavors of most cigars.  Havana Club 7 is an exception, and does pair quite well.  Just my thoughts. 

Im in the same boat as you, I find most Rum far too sweet to pair with a cigar, but recently at my local B&M someone mentioned Barbancourt 8 year... amazing. It is not sweet and in fact almost a cross between a rye and a rum, spicy with a subtle sweetness. I pair this over many of my high end sipping rums generally. I do however enjoy my Martell Cordon Bleu with more full bodied Cubans and NC. 

[Duxnutz]

El Dorado and Diplomatico redefined what rum was to me. A recent discovery, I paired Zaya 12 against El Dorado 21 and found the Zaya at least tied, if not narrowly beat out the rum 3x the cost. 

[OZCUBAN]

For me personally I have always thought Rum pairs with cigars better than anything else.

don't get me wrong I love my Scotch .but for me there has always been a special kind of Synergy between the two ,not sure if it's the sweetness of the Rum or the caramel aspects one can get with certain brands.

And with winter on the way Rum comes into its own 

[Smokin Joe]

6 hours ago, mwaller said:

 Havana Club 7 is an exception, and does pair quite well.  Just my thoughts. 

My thoughts too. I enjoy a red or a whisky with a smoke but really I'd take a Havana Club 7 every day.

[Duxnutz]

1 hour ago, Foulhook said:

Agreed, diplomatico is my everyday rum with a cigar. I don't know why but it pairs best with a CC. El dorado 12 and 21 are a second choice for me. The el dorado is more expensive but the diplomatico is just a better match almost 99% of the time. El dorado 15 is not as good as the older and younger imo. 

I am am not a fan of Zaya as it seems way to vanilla for me. Zacapa 23 would be before zaya for me. 

Havana 7 imo is not a great sipping rum. Majestro is the better choice if it must be Cuban. 

 

I agree, while still good the 15 yr seems slightly missing something that the others have. 

I've never really enjoyed Havana Club with a cigar, the finish is way too short. I've heard it's meant to be that way (palate cleanse). Seleccion de maestros though again being the exception as I love that stuff and if I hadn't stockpiled booze at US prices I'd be drinking that as it's around $25-40 cheaper than El Dorado/Dip locally. 

Any Aussies had any of the boutique versions of bundy? 

[polarbear]

1 hour ago, Duxnutz said:

I agree, while still good the 15 yr seems slightly missing something that the others have. 

I've never really enjoyed Havana Club with a cigar, the finish is way too short. I've heard it's meant to be that way (palate cleanse). Seleccion de maestros though again being the exception as I love that stuff and if I hadn't stockpiled booze at US prices I'd be drinking that as it's around $25-40 cheaper than El Dorado/Dip locally. 

Any Aussies had any of the boutique versions of bundy? 

One or two

Most of them aren't worth the money when compared with their international counterparts in the same price range

[99call]

I often find rum far too sweet to be paired with cigars, But Clement rums are wonderfully balanced. Instead or being overpowering with sugar, they're really buttery and opulent.  Well worth a go.

[Smallclub]

On 04/07/2017 at 10:00 AM, 99call said:

I often find rum far too sweet to be paired with cigars, But Clement rums are wonderfully balanced. Instead or being overpowering with sugar, they're really buttery and opulent.  Well worth a go.

Of course, simply because Clement is a Rhum Agricole (made from cane juice). All the Rhum Agricoles made in Martinique and Guadeloupe are much more complex and less sweet than the rums made from molasses listed in this thread (Zacapa, Zaya, Diplomatico, etc), Havana Club being the exception.

[99call]

2 minutes ago, Smallclub said:

Of course, simply because Clement is a Rhum Agricole (made from cane juice). All the Rhum Agricoles made in Martinique and Guadeloupe are much more complex and less sweet than the rums made from molasses listed in this thread (Zacapa, Zaia, Diplomatico, etc), Havana Club being the exception.

Thanks for this. I didn't have any idea that there were different methods of production within catagory the golden rums.  This makes a great deal of sense. I definitely wasn't comparing levels of sweetness between dark and golden rums, that would be pretty random

 

 

[CaptainQuintero]

12 hours ago, Smallclub said:

We can add coffee to the equation.

Chocolate too perhaps? I see similarities between them all when you start getting into the 'hobby realm' and also with flavour depths. Eg Bolivar, 90% dark chocolate, Navy rum, expresso or possibly QdO, white chocolate, Havana Club 3, latte 

[GrouchoMarx]

14 hours ago, El Presidente said:

Paraphrasing he said "It is because they come from the same soil. Tobacco, sugarcane"  

Well, I don't know if its the soil, but they sure do go together!

'When I was at head office (Havana) last Dec. I tried my first Vigia - I found it almost overpowering until the waitress recommended a specific rum to have with it. 

In a word - sublime. I'm hooked on Vigias and good rum - and kicking my own arse for not getting the name of what she brought me! LOL

[earthson]

Barbancourt 8 year. One of the few alcoholic (hic!) beverages I've found pairs well with cigars. Prefer it to the 15 year, as well. Dry and smooth.

[Kbb]

If wanting to try a range of rum I would suggest:

Zacapa 23 or Diplomatico Exclusiva - Something on the sweet side

Zaya or Angustora 1919 - Vanilla

Mount Gay XO - Dry fruit, closer to scotch than most rums

El Dorado 15 - Unique, some describe a "gunpowder" taste with a bit of oak

Pussers - Wooden still (style of production), unique flavor

Pyrat - sweet orange syrup

Rhum Clement, Neisson or other official agricole rum - (different style of production, special certification), grassy and unique to the style

Foursquare - Spiced, cleaner flavor for a spiced rum

Hamilton Jamacian Pot Still Black - very unique funky flavor, a component for mixing

Cruzan Blackstrap -  maple, different production style, used as a "floater" rum for some cocktails

 

The above list is not a favorites or "I prefer" list.  It is set up to give people who lump all rum into the same category an opportunity to try different styles and profiles.  There are so many other unique rums out there, but this should hopefully give people some of the more commonly available options that will not break the bank.

 

 

 

[83Nation]

I have more bottles of high end rum than I like to admit.

Just curious because I'm always on the lookout for new (at least to me!) high end rums and I have trouble finding unique items, but what labels/years are your favorites to pair??


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