Ice Red Martini

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                                       Ice Red Martini

For this pairing I thought of creating a new, simple cocktail, ideal for sunny days, but I also wanted the cocktail to clearly showcase the rum’s character.  So I started testing different combinations until I arrived at the final version, which I share with you below:

  • 2 oz. Ron Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva
  • 1 oz. Red Ice Wine

Usually the red Ice Wines are sweet and are easy to pair with desserts or can be consumed neat as a digestif.  Many vineyards are now offering Ice Wines in their portfolios, but many of them are simpler versions of the true Ice Wine, which relies on the presence and action of the botrytis fungus to obtain the peculiar taste.  For this pairing I selected a Malbec Ice Wine, from a local vineyard, a very affordable bottle since I was planning to use it exclusively as an ingredient in the cocktail.

Try to find a Martini glass, most people have at least on at home.  Determine its capacity and, based on it, you can double (or not) the recipe.  In my case, I had a small (3 ounces) glass, which is ideal for this type of cocktail, since it is important for the temperature of the drink to remain the same throughout the pairing. 

The preparation is very simple, if you don’t have a cocktail shaker you can use a large glass instead.  Add about 3 large ice cubes and then add the ingredients in a 2:1 proportion (two parts rum to 1 part Red Ice Wine). Stir ingredients and strain into the glass.

The cigar I selected is a Robusto 450 from Hoyo de Monterrey (from Honduras, not from Cuba).  An initial visual inspection it is a Robusto with a Connecticut wrapper that is not very Maduro, with filler from Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Honduras.  Keep in mind that the Cuban brand by the same name usually has a softer, milder body: it is sold in many different formats and is very sought after by smokers familiar with the brand.  In this case, based on my experience, I know we’ll have a slightly stronger body, which will be perfect for the cocktail we created for the pairing.

Upon lighting up the cigar, the difference between the Honduran and the Cuban versions is immediately apparent: the intensity of this Honduran cigar is between medium and high, even from the first third.  This high intensity is exactly what we need for the pairing, since the cocktail has wine tannins and a strong rum component.

What makes this cocktail very attractive is the simplicity of its ingredients and preparation.  You can make it drier if you use a lighter/younger rum, in which case more of the apparent sweetness will come from the wine.

This is another easy pairing, but attractive and unique based on ingredients that don’t come together often enough.  This cocktail is ideal for the cigar I chose, but should work well with other, similar cigars if you can’t find this particular one.

Cheers!

Philip Ili Barake

#GRCigarPairing