Man O War by AJ Fernandez (C&DMar24)

[eaglebear29]

Here's a great dog walker smoke

Very simply, gets the job done and cheap, great for what it is.

The whole smoke was very linear from First 3rd to Final 3rd, and would be very bland if not for the drink here, just a very full bodied dark smoke with the typical darker side of the Nicaraguan tobacco profile w/ hints of cedar sweetness. 

Matcha Latte 

The raw honey in the Matcha really brings out the Nicaraguan sweetness. With the grassy and creamy earthiness of the matcha, to counter balance the really dark, full blend of the Nicaraguan tobacco flavor, that can also be described as earthy. It pairs like yin and yang, both earthy, 1 creamy, 1 dark.

Matcha saved the day turning this 85/100 into a 90/100, and remember its only a 90/100 in the dog walker regard, in normal stick points it would be  a 87/100.  

It turns this decent cigar into a great one! Really recommend a honey'd matcha latte with any mediocre cigar and especially your small format CC's. We can always pair a good coffee in all its various formats with a NW or CC and to me that is great, but I truly love matcha's, maybe because its just different, and that's what was first so alluring about cigars to me. Not everyone was smoking CCs or NWs, its like its own club of people smoking works of art. I like doing things not many are doing, breaking away from the crowd. Give a Matcha a go and if honey and milk arent your thing, try a straight one, the Grassiness pairs well with a twangy grassy noted CC, add honey and cream, even better, as many CC's fit that profile.

My Top 10 favorite drink pairings so far

1) Matcha Latte, or Straight hot, but not boiled Matcha (great with Grassy twany CCs and NWs as well my main go to)

2) Creamy Rootbeer Zevia (Great with Creamy NW and CCs) 

3) Cream soda Zevia (This one ive found Like the creamy Rootbeer, the Creaminess can pair with just about all)

4) Cola Zevia (Only had with my favorite NW Maduros and its great)

5) Cherry Cola Zevia (I want to try a RyJ for the first time with this drink good with some of my favorite Liga Privadas especially the Nasty Fritas since that NW by itself I get Cherry Cola notes)

6) Water (sometimes for the same reasons as a bubbly and/or just to stay hydrated, its fun sometimes to add an orange LMNT electrolyte packet)

7) Plain sparkling water (when I really want to put the microscope on the cigar and only taste it)

😎 All kinds of different flavored bubblies or sparkling waters (if I'm getting parched but don't want to change the flavor much)

9) Green tea bags (I sometimes like the little caffeine with kick with heavier cigars)

10) Coffee (in all variations depending on the cigar, I like it but I use it as a tool more for fishing and have just had too much over the years landing it   at the bottom of my pairings, I have to be really pooped around the house, I try to keep it at a minimum so it works at a maximum out on the water.