Pairing Cigars & Alcohol – Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999
Cigars and alcohol. Two luxury products that go hand in hand, and sometimes even meet on business level. Aging tobacco in whisky, rum, or cognac barrels is a practice several brands do to achieve extra flavour to the wrapper for certain lines. The famous bourbon brand Maker’s Mark has their own cigar, sold in tubes with the signature wax coating. Drew Estate works with Pappy van Winkle and used to make Kahlua cigars. Mombacho has the Diplomatico series. General Cigars works with Sazerac, which resulted in Fireball cigars, Weller by Cohiba and collaborations with Buffalo Trace. And there is the Diesel Whisky Row, a collaboration with Rabbit Hole Distilleries. Fratello Cigars also sells craft beer. Most famous are probably the Cuban collaboration between Martell Cognac and Cohiba. Dominique London, the European retailer with more than 20 shops in the UK, Belgium, Switzerland and the Canary Islands takes it one step further. They bought a distillery in Wales and produce whisky, gin, rum, vodka and liquors. They were kind enough to sponsor Cigar Inspector with samples so we can write about pairings.
Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999
Stalla Dhu is an independent bottler. They purchase barrels from famous distilleries and bottle them. The first- and second-generation members of the family carefully select whiskies that show promise and then age them in their own casks before bottling. Often the name of the original distillery is mentioned, and in this case its Ben Nevis, a 200-year-old distillery and since 1989 owned by the Japanese Nika Whisky Distillery. This Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 Cask Strength is limited to 240 bottles, of which I had bottle 117. As the name says, the spirit was distilled on the 13th of May, 1999 and bottled in 2017. For 18 years it had been aging in a hogshead cask with the number Z99/209. The ABV is high with its 56.2%
Recently was at a whisky tasting where I was shocked by the difference in glass. In Glencairn glass the whisky was like liquid chocolate, in a highball glass, the same whisky was almost undrinkable, flat and not palatable. So, I am trying this whisky in both glasses, neat and diluted with some water or ice, then as an old fashioned, and as a Highball to see what to pair the whisky with.
Glencairn
The Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 is golden in colour, slightly oily but thin and thus easy to swirl. The aroma is strong with lots of sweetness such as raisin and maple syrup combined with some spices like white pepper. You can smell that this is a strong spirit as the ethanol is clearly present in the nose. When tasting the whisky you get hit by a lot of sweetness from dried fruits with a leathery undertone before the 56.2% ABV hits you in the face. This spirit is complicated, it lures you in with the sweetness and then punches you out with the strength, and somehow that’s very intriguing. A few drops of water do help to mellow out the alcohol burn and make the flavours more balanced. The lingering aftertaste reminds me of extra dark chocolate. Due to the sweetness, I would pair this with something woody or nutty but also something with a little body to withstand the high ABV. Maybe a Behike if you have any, or if you prefer something non-Cuban like I do, a San Cristobal/Paradiso Revelation
Highball
on the nose the Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 is strong, yet not as strong as in the Glencairn glass. There is more spice in the aroma but also the raisin and maple syrup sweetness. The flavour seems more intense, with dried fruit and dark chocolate from the start and less of a burn. The leather flavour in the aftertaste is stronger. This is exactly the reason why I try whisky in two different glasses as the nuances are different. I even taste some red pepper while drinking from a highball glass. In this type of glass the Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 is less complicated but has more character. There is less of a burn, the ABV makes sure that is still a burn though but it’s a smoother drink this way. I would still suggest the same cigars as I did while sipping this magnificent whisky from a Glencairn glass though.
Old Fashioned
Now the addition of some sugar, Angostura bitters and an orange peel make a huge difference. The aroma is suddenly very sweet with orange and raisins. It almost smells like preserved apricots from Turkey, a snack that I like to munch on while working. The aroma is medium in strength. The cocktail itself is quite simple, it’s sweet at the right level with a nice dose of white pepper. It is all balanced and even though there is no bite, the Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 Old Fashioned shows character. The mouthfeel is warm and this cocktail will do well with most cigars, as long as there is some strength and the cigar isn’t focusing on the sweeter part of the flavour wheel.
and now for the Old-Fashioned recipe:
1 sugar cube
3 dashes of bitters
2 oz or 60 ml of Stalla Dhu Ben Nevin 1999 Cask Strength
orange peel
Put the sugar cube in a highball glass, add the dashes of bitters and a splash of water. Muddle the sugar cube. Add ice and the whisky. Stir for 10 seconds, then add an orange peel.
Whisky Sour
Spirit, citrus and sugar—the original big three—combine to form the classic sour, one of the oldest types of cocktails. The category includes the Whiskey Sour, which has sated thirsty drinkers for more than one and a half centuries. It’s unknown exactly when the cocktail was conceived (or who was the architect), but its history stretches back to the Lincoln administration, and the first printed recipe appeared circa 1862 in the famed “Jerry Thomas Bartenders Guide.” The Whiskey Sour is traditionally made with whiskey, lemon juice, sugar and egg white, an ingredient that tames the tart flavour and creates a richer, smoother texture.
This cocktail has hardly any aroma, just a little bit of the whisky smell. And the first sip says enough, the Stalla Dhu Ben Nevis 1999 and lemon aren’t friends, the flavours clash. The sweetness of the spirit and the freshness of the lemon should work well in theory, but in real life they don’t. The egg white makes the drink creamy. The first thing you taste is a nice sweetness, after which a sour flavor comes on with a peppery aftertaste. It’s the white pepper I tasted in the Glencairn glass too. It’s a fiery cocktail without a burn. A medium bodied cigar with strong flavours to stand up against the lemon would do, something like a Rocky Patel Decade, Partagas, Casa Magna or La Galera.
And now for the whisky sour recipe
2 ounces or 60ml of Stall Dhu Ben Nevis 1999
¾ ounce of 22½ ml of lemon juice, freshly squeezed
½ ounce or 15ml of simple syrup
egg white
Garnish: Angostura bitters Add the whisky, lemon juice, simple syrup and an egg white in a shaker and dry shake without ice for about 30 seconds. Add ice and shake again. Strain into a highball or coupe glass. Garnish with 3 drops of Angostura bitters.
