What to drink while smoking

[jaiden]

My favorite is Soda. Some might say this will make the cigar bitter, but I don't think so.😁

I see many people enjoy drinking whiskey while smoking cigars. Doesn't alcohol reduce the sensitivity of the tongue, thus diminishing the flavor of the cigar?🤔

What's your favorite drink when smoking a cigar?😀

[chasy]

Sparkling water! Of coffee / espresso if in the morning.

[Garand]

Coconut Water, hot cacao, still Water, Cocktails in the Summer, sometimes in the last third a rum. 
 

[BrightonCorgi]

San Pellegrino is a safe choice.

[Lucas Buck]

Typically nothing for the first half or so. Favorites when I do start sipping are scotch, dry red wines and ports or black coffee or tea. If the cigar is really taking me for a ride I stick to sparkling water or nothing at all. 

[Chibearsv]

Black Coffee in the morning, unsweetened Black Tea after dinner. Fresca, or Arnold Palmer in the afternoon.

Water anytime and is my most common beverage.

 

[CuriousObserver]

I pair lots like everyone else has mentioned. It's Lent currently, and alcohol was the sacrifice so I have found sparkling water the best pairing. But, normally, I prefer a Gin martini with light to medium cigars and a bourbon with medium plus to full.

The one caveat I'll add to the bourbon is that full proof/barrel strength is usually far too much for a cigar. It will totally blow out your pallet where the cigar is concerned!

[Nohiba]

+1 for coffee being the drink of choice with a cigar anytime before 3pm. I like getting nerdy with different single origin beans and seeing which types par best with different marcas. Had a chito community Ecuadorian light roast espresso that was divine with a Connie 1 recently; like shortbread with raisins. Espresso martini with a Punch 8-9-8 also paired amazingly. 

[BrightonCorgi]

If you want booze, a big Chardonnay like Meursault goes well with cigars. Madeira and Champagne also well suited.

[JDoughty]

High quality complex black coffee, no dairy to clog the palate, and/or sparkling water. Very occasionally bourbon or rum, even a smoky Scotch like Laphroaig to pair at the end of an evening with a Liga or a Padron. Really prefer to go nonalcoholic for the most part, but if the pairing seems good I might try it. High end teas from Hugo Tea or Spirit Tea are also fantastic cigar pairings, but proper gaiwan brewing takes a lot of attention away from the cigar so I'll do it grandpa style in a thermos. Which gets expensive for the teas I like. Worth it though. Hugo Tea's Gao Wen is an absolutely perfect Cuban or Honduran cigar pairing.

[LaoFan]

Depends on the cigar. And my mood. And the time.

Daytime cigar: coffee, sparkling water, or a beer.

Dinner & Post..

啤红洋白都行

[jaiden]

14 minutes ago, LaoFan said:

Depends on the cigar. And my mood. And the time.

Daytime cigar: coffee, sparkling water, or a beer.

Dinner & Post..

啤红洋白都行

For me, 白酒is definitely the worst companion to cigars. Its strong flavor is just too overpowering.🫣

[JDoughty]

3 hours ago, jaiden said:

For me, 白酒is definitely the worst companion to cigars. Its strong flavor is just too overpowering.🫣

Baiju or shochu varies in quality. There are only a very few I would consider pairing. Taruzake works much better but good luck finding any. 

[Montezüma]

On 3/28/2026 at 12:22 AM, BrightonCorgi said:

San Pellegrino is a safe choice.

Unpopular opinion: Perrier beats San Pellegrino.

[MadridPuros]

龙舌兰酒 For me. 

[ElLoboLoco]

I think Oolong tea works great for me. Keeps the palate refreshed and clean. Coffee is a close second. Root beer and ginger is nice depending on the flavor profile of the cigar. Champagne, Cognac and rum is good too. Although, I am going Teetotaler. It’s very difficult when my current friend group revolves around drinking. It’s going to be a struggle. It’s time for me to quit however.

 

[chasy]

4 hours ago, Montezüma said:

Unpopular opinion: Perrier beats San Pellegrino

Topo Chico beats Perrier… 😉

[Chibearsv]

3 hours ago, ElLoboLoco said:

It’s going to be a struggle. It’s time for me to quit however.

When it’s time, it’s time. One day at a time, everyday without a let down. A challenge, but not as challenging as explaining the decision again and again with friends and family. 17 years without a drink for me and I get questioned still. You’ve got a lot of new brothers here. 

[ElLoboLoco]

Thanks Scott, means a lot.

[alloy]

Coke Zero Sugar for me.

[BigGuns]

Tequila. 

[JDoughty]

I'm at the USCC finals currently (US Coffee Championships) and tasting a truly incredible range of competition coffees and teas. There was a fantastic tea seminar yesterday to learn to discern degrees of oxidation and short to very long fermentation, starting with sencha and ending with a vintage shou pu'erh. Outstanding. If your main experience with coffee and tea involves Starbucks and Chinese restaurants, you are missing out on a vibrant and incredibly wide ranging world of flavor and nuance. Coffee and tea are every bit as complex as wine and as worthy of serious consideration in flavor pairing. The stunners of the show for me were a Gesha varietal from Driftaway with notes of bright orange and sweet chocolate candy and a lightly oxidized and aged Gao Wen from Hugo Tea with an incredible lingering finish of roasted chestnut. Both will be cigar pairings for me. Truly fine coffee and tea do things for a cigar that IMO alcohol mostly doesn't, with a few rare exceptions. They complement and underscore without getting in the way at all, which is the hardest hurdle for spirits and red wine to overcome in a cigar pairing in my opinion. The flavor notes in quality coffee and tea 100% underscore, extend and play beautifully underneath or just beside cigar flavor notes. They are fully present but they do not overwhelm or interfere. Highly recommend experimenting if you haven't. 

[JDoughty]

3 hours ago, chasy said:

Topo Chico beats Perrier… 😉

Food Lion house brand seltzer beats them all. Intense carbonation and well balanced neutral flavor that clears the palate and serves as a fine base if you wish to add anything. 

3 hours ago, ElLoboLoco said:

I think Oolong tea works great for me. Keeps the palate refreshed and clean. Coffee is a close second. Root beer and ginger is nice depending on the flavor profile of the cigar. Champagne, Cognac and rum is good too. Although, I am going Teetotaler. It’s very difficult when my current friend group revolves around drinking. It’s going to be a struggle. It’s time for me to quit however.

Good choices on all fronts! While I do sip quality wine and spirits on occasion, I'm a lot more hardcore into coffee and tea. IMO both are better pairings with a cigar than almost any liquor and I much prefer them. Quality oolong is a great cigar pairing. Dancong is worth trying for sure, even if the English translation of the name is unappealing. 😆 If you love stronger cigars, hit up some good pu'erh or even Lapsang Souchong if you like zero subtlety. Hmu if you like, I have a pretty ridiculous tea library and it's fun to share. I don't miss booze with my cigars one bit if I have a fine coffee and tea selection that I think will generally do a better job anyway. 

[BG318]

Espresso or coffee. Water always. Some sodas if you like.

Average quality darker rum - to be a foil for the cigar, not trying to be the star.

I have read orange juice a lot on FOH, not for me (OJ that is) but you should try if you like it.

[BrightonCorgi]

4 hours ago, Montezüma said:

Unpopular opinion: Perrier beats San Pellegrino

I'll take either equally.