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Saturday, January 28, 2012

Curivari Seleccion Privada Maduro and Meantime Coffee Porter: Pairing


The Porter

Meantime Coffee Porter
Meantime Brewing Co.
London, England
11.2 oz bottle
6% abv
$4.99 a bottle

Malt beverage fermented with ground coffee and lactose

This is a great looking bottle and that builds my expectation.

Appearance: almost black body with a cola like edge.  One finger tan head that disappeared before my eyes. 

Aroma: coffee mocha nose

Flavors: what else? Coffee.  And, a tasty coffee taste at that.  Roasted nut shell.  A little thin after that.  But, I like the coffee flavor.

Mouthfeel: low carbonation, a thin watery feel,

My Strength Rating: 4.5 – low on the medium side, the thin mouthfeel plays a big role.

To the Point: for 5 bucks a bottle I expect more out of my porter.  Get it around 2 bucks a bottle it’s not bad.  There are better porters out there for less money. 


The Cigar

Curivari Seleccion Privada Maduro?

The web site doesn’t have any information on this stick.  It looks like a maduro and my tobacconists said it’s a maduro and she had no further info either.

The size is 5.5 x 54

I smoked one the other day and enjoyed it and I think it should pair with this coffee porter.  Let’s see how it reviews.

Off the Light: a little maduro sweet note along with a medium roast coffee note.  As the smoke continues the medium-dark roast coffee note is the main profile and this should match well with this porter that I have selected.  There are some firm toasted grains that remind me of pumpernickel-rye bread.  I’ll have to give it a 5.5/6. 

One thing about these Curivari cigars is that they have a firm ash and they don’t ash all over you.  This one has a firm gray ash. 

The Pairing: the coffee flavors are a mingling here. It seems a little one dimensional here.  Good thing the porter has a nice watery edge to add a little refreshing feel to the palate.  

Second Half: this cigar seems simple in its coffee and roasted grains profile but, there is something that I like about it in its simplicity.  The roasted notes seem to be a little fuller than the first half.  I’ll have to give this stick a 6/6.5 on my strength scale at this point with a couple of inches to go. 

The Pairing: pretty much the same.  It is one dimensional and easy to get bored with.  This cigar needs a better porter to make it interesting. 

My Strength Rating (cigar): 6 – medium-full overall due to the roasted notes. 

To the Point (cigar): a decent smoke.  The roasted coffee note is tasty but, seems too one dimensional during this pairing. 

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