The Wine
Clos de los Siete
Clos de los Siete Winery
Mendoza, Argentina
By Michel Rolland
14.6% abv
$35.00 at A Matter of Taste Restaurant
Blend: 56% Malbec, 21% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, 2% Petit Verdot
I had a glass and a half at the restaurant and brought the rest home to sit back to do a review and then smoke a fine stogie with it.
Appearance: deep dark garnet, this is pretty close to black with a purple edge.
Aroma: very dense dark currant note, smoky, it smells like the dark chocolate with berries in it, earthy – mineral soil like
Flavors: heavy soil earthy tone, dark berry concentrate, 90+% dark chocolate that covers the palate, bold and intense.
Mouthfeel: thick and very dry on the palate, tart, earthy, the dry finish reminds me of 95% dark chocolate, leathery texture, lingering aftertaste
You can feel this wine just clinging to your teeth and gums.
My Strength Rating: 8.5 – this full bodied blend is hearty. It deserves a big steak. I think I’ll make plans for that one day.
The Cigar
La Flor Dominicana DL 700
Double Ligero
A very good web site to visit
Wrapper: Dark Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Size: 6.5 x 60
$10.00 Smoky’s in Northville, Michigan
Their web site warns you to eat before smoking this cigar.
I have never had this cigar before so, I do not know what I am getting into here. This cigar just looked good and oily and strong. That is what this wine needs for a good pairing.
This Sun Grown wrapper has a beautiful sheen to the tobacco leaf. It looks rugged yet rich. The vein is the tobacco leaf and the color is just like art work or one expensive leather sofa.
Off the Light: Oh yes, this is a double ligeros. Rich soil earthy tone with a bit of spice and I can tell this is just the beginning. Of course I just lit the cigar. No just the beginning of the spice.
As the smoke continues the texture is leathery and the body weight on the full-medium side. I am thinking 7.5 or 8 on my strength scale and I am just a half an inch into this baby. I’ll bet it gets fuller from here!
The spice seems to be in play more on the finish and aftertaste. A medium coarse black peppercorn like quality. The rich soil continues and there is a strong dark roast coffee note.
Now, I could not pass the smoke through the sinuses so, is this cigar going to be that strong of is it that I tried to inhale the dipping bread that I had before dinner.
Mid-Point: strong dark roast coffee, rich mineral soil, hardwood, and spice. The cigar has a strong mouthfeel with a leathery texture and a lingering aftertaste. The black pepper seems to build on the aftertaste. I’ll go to 8.5 on my strength scale.
The Pairing: I just introduced the wine as I entered the mid-point of the cigar. Wow, this cigar makes this wine seem … medium bodied. This is a full bodied wine and this cigar is controlling this wine. This is like two heavy weights in battle.
The earthy tones match up well. The dark berries and dark chocolate of the wine pair up well with the dark roasted coffee and hardwood notes of the cigar. This is a full bodied experience.
Down the Stretch: Just when I thought the cigar was starting to mellow on the last few puffs … Wham … the spice kicked in. The smoke is now an earthy coffee profile with some robust roasted notes and charred hardwood. The body weight is heavy. Let me call it a 9 on my strength scale.
The Pairing: I needed a few sips of the wine to control the heavy smoke of the cigar. This is a strong earthy pairing. I recommend a glass, no gallon, of water to go along with this pairing.
I had some burning issues where I had to continually correct the burn of the cigar. Since this cigar has such an oily wrapper I recommend dry boxing the cigar a day or two before smoking.
I have not done a cigar review in a month. What a cigar to choose to get back in the swing of things.
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