Angostura 1919?

[MarkVT]

I just sent a bottle of Angostura 1919 to a cigar smoking buddy of mine, and I'd like to give him a few pairing suggestions. Unfortunately I'm a lot more familiar with rum than cigars and don't know enough to put together a decent pairing. Any advice?

[Edward Hamilton]

Welcome to the forums. I'm confident some of the cigar smoking rum drinkers on this forum will be able to help you.

[Lew Barrett]

This will be a good cigar rum, and interesting to pair because it has leather and tobacco in the mix already, as well as being on the sweet side, a good thing for cigars imo. I think 1919 is a bit less formidable and up front that 1824, so it should pair with a medium bodied cigar, not too strong a smoke if you want to keep the rum flavors running as well as the cigar. I haven't paired 1919 with cigars myself, but it makes sense. My experience is that a strong cigar will wipe out the underlying taste of the rum unless the spirit has a lot of character. 1919 certainly has character, but it's a bit more delicate than Angostura's other premium blends.

So, for a cigar: go here:

Torp is all over this, but I'd add that only research and experimentation will out your friend's favorite. A nice fresh bottle should give him plenty of opportunity for that!

Cigar pairing thread (http://www.ministryofrum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1476)

[Hank Koestner]

Welcome, Mark!
Lew is right on. The three or four times I tried 1919 with a full bodied cigar, much of the rum nuances were lost. Good idea to go with medium body. Maybe something with a little spice or pepper, should work well with the sweetness and vanilla notes in the 1919. Possibly a Don Pepin Blue Label. As soon as I get more Blues, I will try this one myself.
Possibly a 601 Black Label with the Conneticut wrapper, although some would tend to see this cigar on the mild to medium side.

[Lew Barrett]

I've got a DP Blue!;) Will give it a try this weekend!