Ashton VSG Enchantment and Gulden Draak Vintage 2009: Pairing

The Ale

Gulden Draak 2009

Vintage Ale 2009

7.5% abv

750ml bottle

$13.99 a bottle

Br.Van Steenberge

Belgium

Appearance: rich caramel with a slight reddish tint.  Big bubbly tan head.

Flavors:after the fizz explosion that hits the mouth, there is a rich malt sweetness of caramel, toasted grain, and a hoppy spice and  bitter note.   

Mouthfeel: tons of carbonation, Champagne effervescent like, cola like feel, semi-dry texture that lingers on the palate. 

It is not like the regular Gulden Draak.  See my posting on Nov. 22, 2010.  It does have a few of the tasting notes but, missing some of the others.  It also looks different.  The 2009 vintage is not as rich tasting and lacks that creamy feel of the regular. 

My Strength Rating: 6

The Cigar

Ashton VSG Enchantment

Wrapper: Virgin Sun Grown Ecuador from the Oliva family

Binder and Fillers: Dominican Republic 4 to 5 year old tobaccos from Carlos Fuente Jr. grown exclusively for Ashton. 

Size: 4.38 x 60 Perfecto

Source: Ashtoncigar.com

$15.99 in Michigan

Off the Light: oh yes, VSG spiciness hits me on the first puff.  The spice reminds me of a coarse black pepper with its citrus bitter bite and a fine grind black pepper the kind that makes you sneeze.  And I did sneeze a few times. The texture is dry. 

This is one spicy pairing.  The cigar is really bringing out the spiciness in this ale but, the high level of carbonation is there to help replenish the palate.

Mid-Point: This is why we love our VSG’s … the VSG spice.  Bold spiciness and dry earthiness is the main profile. 

The ales effervescence helps to control the bold strength of the cigar.

Down the Stretch: this cigar is pretty consistent throughout with the VSG spice profile.  It is not a very complex smoke with its spice and earthy quality.  But, VSG fans buy this for one reason and that is the spicy profile. 

To the Point: for the price I would rather smoke the Spellbound or Wizard.  But, if time is the issue this is an hour plus smoke where the other two will last 2 hours. 

My Strength Rating: 7.5 during this pairing

I don’t think I would pair these two together.  The cigar seems to magnify the spice and bitter notes of the ale. It was hard to pick up any of the malty notes during this pairing.  I would like to pair it with the regular Gulden Draak.