Cigar-Coffee Pairing: Leccia Black, Milton Made Sumatra Mandheling

One of my favorite things to do when time allows is pair my favorite cigars with my favorite coffees to see how they change the flavor profiles. Sometimes the pairing will change the flavor nuance of the cigar, sometimes the coffee and sometimes both.

When I'm reviewing cigars, diet Pepsi is my drink of choice. By using the same beverage for most cigars the flavor shifts remain constant. For this pairing I picked one of my favorite cigars, the Sam Leccia Black and favorite coffees Milton Made Sumatra Mandheling.

From the first draw and sip this pairing caught me a bit by surprise. The Sumatra Mandheling when sipped alone had nice mocha flavor notes throughout, but when paired with the Black, it brought out very noticeable notes of toast from the coffee, while at the same time changing the flavor profile of the Black a touch.

Over the past few months I have smoked several of the Blacks and it seems one thing is constant, the flavor from the dark fire leaf increases as the cigar burns. However when paired with the Sumatra Mandheling, the toasted flavors were bolder much earlier into the burn.

Overall this was a very rewarding pairing, since it enhanced the flavor from the cigars, and changed the profile of the coffee. I am looking forward to more experimentation in the future and will post the results here.