Scotch on the Rocky

I was fortunate to have Mike Glynn (owner of Rocky's Cigars) ask me do a scotch and cigar review for his new blog. I picked the scotch and Mike picked the cigar. I chose Balvenie single malt scotch and Mike suggested that I combine that with Rocky Patel's Decade 10th Anniversary cigar. I was pleased with his suggestion because I am a big fan of Rocky Patel cigars and have not tried the Decade yet.

I decided to sample the scotch and the cigar individually then together to get a better feel for their individual flavors and then how they might compliment each other. This is what I found:

The Scotch

Belvenie Doublewood
12 year old Single Malt
43% alc/vol

This Speyside Distillery is located in Dufftown, Banffshire Scotland.

Color:
It has a light Amber that comes from the Sherry Oak Casks and the its age but is perhaps hot as dark as a Macallan.

Body:
Medium body that typically comes with a 12 year scotch whiskey.

Nose:
Distinct smell of honey.

Palate:
A bit syrupy with a combination of oak and sherry.

Finish:
A very nice warm finish that carries its flavors nicely.


The Cigar

Rocky Patel's Decade 10th Anniversary Cigar - Purchase Cigar

Color:
Has a nice walnut brown color that comes from the sungrown Equadorian Sumatra wrapper.

Pre-lit Aroma & Taste:
Rich earthy with nice spicy taste.

Draw:
The draw was perfect which I am always amazed from a box pressed cigar.

Flavor & Taste:
This cigar has a very pleasant spicy, peppery taste. I am not a big fan of that taste but as always Rocky Patel does it just right. The flavors last through the whole cigar and make for a wonderful smoke.


Scotch & Cigar Together

This is probably the first time I have taken the time and attention to tasting a scotch and cigar together. What I found is that this cigar actually made the scotch flavor more pronounced. In particular the oak and sherry flavors started to really present themselves and made the smoke and the scotch a very enjoyable experience.