Cigar & Rum Pairing
Super Bowl Pairing
We recently watched the conference playoff games and we finally have the teams that will face each other during Super Bowl LVI. The playoffs were very intense: none of the outcomes were clear from the beginning and we had to wait until the last minutes to see who the winners were. As cigar enthusiasts, we must highlight the victory cigar that Joe Burrow smoked two years ago as he celebrated his collegiate win. Fast forward to today, as he reaches the first Super Bowl of his professional career and it shouldn’t be a surprise that he celebrated again with a cigar his AFC championship.
This pairing honors victory cigars. Inspired by the NFL conference playoffs, we will be matching two Venezuelan rums against each other: Santa Teresa 1796 and Ron Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva. Both of these rums should be relatively easy to find, which helps a lot.
Venezuelan Rums
Since most of our readers are enjoying the cold weather now present in the Northern hemisphere, the pairing is being done with both rums neat, without ice. Being outside on a terrace or patio, in this climate, is done best with rum neat.
I wanted a cigar that would act as a good bridge between the two rums, so I selected a Montecristo N°2 (Pirámide, 52 by 156mm) from Cuba. I’ve never had any draw issues with this cigar, not only because of the brand but also because the format helps a lot too. I’ve had this cigar in my humidor for many years, so the typical strength of the cigar decreases over time and should become more “rounded”. Let’s see if this is the case.
Montecristo N2 cigar
The first step was to analyze each rum individually. I wanted to identify the subtle differences in sweetness and in finish. In the case of the Diplomático, it has a good start and then it opens swiftly with sweet caramel and strong toffee notes, finishing with a well-defined vanilla touch. On the other hand, the Santa Teresa’s sweetness is more alongside caramel, but well toasted, accompanied by old wood, as if it had been aged in multiple-use barrels. The blend of different rums makes it distinctive enough and the finish is very agreeable.
The cigar lit up marvelously, the draw was excellent, with the aromas and intensity level I had expected: smoother, well-rounded, very enjoyable. All these factors were taken into account when selecting the two rums. The pairing favored more the Santa Teresa 1796 rum, due to the rum’s finish. Perhaps the first third was a bit easier and friendlier with Diplomático, but at the end Santa Teresa had what it took to match the cigar all the way. And just as with the NFL playoffs, we started with an uncertain beginning, but at the end the better rum took the conference title.I hope you can enjoy recreating this pairing. We’ll soon be watching Super Bowl LVI and having our own victory cigar at the end!
Cheers!
Philip Ili Barake
#GRCigarPairing
