CigarsLover Magazine I 2023

CIGARS
Japan & Cameroon
Japanese blended whiskies
and new cigars with Cameroon wrapper.
by Simone Poggi
After exploring the most classic and traditional
variations of Caribbean whisky and tobacco, the
time has come (finally) to feel more fashionable
and wink at the trends of the moment, which certainly
make the prices of the products we love so much
higher, but which also give rise to an exponential growth
of products of a specific type, with a certain advantage
from the neophyte who can easily procure such products
without having to rely on online auctions or push the small
trusted store owner mad. So here we are talking about
the highly sought-after Japanese blended whiskies and
the new wave of cigars dressed in Cameroon wrappers.
In this analysis we will not set ourselves the goal of telling
the story of these products or deepening the reasons that
led these artifacts to be so sought after by consumers.
Our goal is instead to combine the two products and evaluate
how well (and if) they marry together. The aromatic
profile and structure of Japanese blended products is varied,
but common traits can be identified: fruity, delicate
and soft structure is very frequently predominant, often
yellow and ripe fruit, which is flanked by a very intense creaminess,
given by the wheat component. The spiciness is
composed and never too invasive, sometimes more complex
than average, especially if the product has enjoyed an
aging in Mizunara Japanese oak barrels. Peated releases
are rather rare, often limited to single malts, which for the
moment we elect to exclude from the analysis. The alcohol
content is affected by current fashions, abandoning the
minimum 40% to place itself stably in the 43%-46% range,
with peaks over 50% quite rare. Although many of
these products are born for Highball drinking, the
current trend is to offer them neat, which rewards
with undisputed high drinkability.
Many aficionados have loved, since the first
smokes, cigars dressed with wrappers from Cameroon
such as the Arturo Fuente Don Carlos,
soft and aromatic cigars, with a complex
sweetness and a unique, sophisticated
spiciness, without overpowering
the experience with a very full body.
Often the products with this wrapper
were associated with fillers consisting
mainly of Dominican tobacco,
also soft and warm, avoiding adding
the strength and exuberant character
of tobaccos originating from other
countries; the strategy was perhaps
to allow the wrapper to express itself
at its best and not to lose its unique
character. A first successful pairing
with this type of cigar is the one
between Don Carlos (maybe a Robusto)
and Akashi Meisei, a creamy and
fruity blend that allows the cigar to
stand out with its complex spicy notes,
refining the sweet part with notes
of fruit without being too intrusive. Arturo
Fuente's proposal has also evol-
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#4-2022 CigarsLover Magazine