Cigar & Rum Pairing
On April 20 of 2023, Habanos SA launched simultaneously in three markets their second Regional Edition of the Exclusivo Cono Sur (South Cone Exclusive). The launch was done through Puro Tabaco SA in Buenos Aires (Argentina), by Comercial Cigar Chile LTDA at the Casa Del Habano in Las Condes, Santiago (Chile) and by Zincro in Montevideo (Uruguay).
The Regional Editions started back in 2005, they are produced for specific markets and are available for purchase for no more than 2 years, as decided by Habanos SA.
The requirements for the Regional Editions are very specific in some respects: a limited productionthe cigar format should not already be part of the selected brandit should not be sold outside the specified market during the first year and the selected brand should not be among the classic brands from Habanos SA (such as, Cohiba, Romeo y Julieta and Partagas, among others).
For this occasion they selected the Juan López brand, one of the oldest brands in Habanos SA, created by a Spaniard by the same name in 1870. These cigars have loyal followers, they are completely handmade using long filler, using leaves from the Vuelta Abajo region of Cuba and with a medium to high body. We are talking about the highest possible standards from Habanos SA.
The Factory Name (Vitola de Galera) for this Exclusivo Cono Sur is an Edmundo (52 x 5 1/3). This format was made famous by the classic Montecristo that was launched in 2004 and it quickly earned loyal followers. It was later released in a Tubo in 2008.
Due to its success (and I count myself among its devoted followers), the format was ideal for this exclusive release. Now that I’m about to smoke it, I will find out how well it is made and if the intensity is similar to that of the Juan López brand.
For this special occasion, I had to find a great rum for the pairing, thinking about approximately 50 minutes of smoking time. It was the perfect time to bring out the Ron Varadero 15 Year Old, Gran Reserva de Cuba, one of the oldest rum brands in Cuba, dating back to 1844. This brand and Santiago de Cuba are my two favorite brands from Cuba.
As you already know by now, I also have a predilection for Rum Old Fashioned but, since the cocktail goes through different phases during the pairing, as does the cigar. There are several ways to make an Old Fashioned. For this exercise, I chose to use brown sugar as a base, with a few drops of Orange Bitters (I used the Bitter Truth brand). If you don’t have Orange Bitters at home, you can substitute with regular Bitters, just make sure to add only a couple of drops. I then added the ice cubes to fill the glass and finished with a piece of orange peel, squeezing it first to release the oils inside the glass.
I used a straight guillotine to cut the cigar and then lit it up using a couple of cedar sticks, can’t get more classic than this!
The draw was an amazing 10 out of 10: this was a very well-made cigar, the initial strength was medium and the cocktail was slightly sweet. As I paired the two, I perceived hints of coffee, aromatic tanned leather and notes of orange (from the peel and the bitters), which made me feel like I was walking on clouds during the first third of the cigar.
The cigar is burning exceedingly well. If I had to give it a score for its draw and how it burns, it would be among the highest. I -however- am not into scores, instead I focus on the moment and how well it meets my expectations.
During the second third, the cigar shows a more robust face, closer to what connoisseurs expect from a Juan López. The cocktail, meanwhile, starts to feature subtle hints of sweetness, intermingled with light touches of vanilla and coffee. This is happening as a result of the melting of the ice, combined with the sweetness from the sugar at the bottom of the glass. This change in the cocktail is a welcomed experience during the pairing, since it represents the ideal conditions we could hope for, executed seamlessly.
The best thing about this cigar format, for those of us who love Robustos, is that it gives us a similar experience but for a longer period of time, ideal if you have reserved the time and even better if you have a well-prepared cocktail by your side.
To sum up, one of the most memorable pairings thus far. I think the cigar is nearing the ideal time to be smoked, a great balance between intensity and aging time. I humbly recommend to all readers to try to replicate this pairing, do everything possible to secure one of these Exclusivo Cono Sur cigars before they disappear, it will be a memorable experience.
Cheers!
Philip Ili Barake
#GRCigarPairing
