An After-Dinner Pairing: Angel’s Envy & Perdomo Reserve Maduro

The run of pleasant weather offered another opportunity for an after-dinner smoke and sip on the screened porch. I reached into the humidor for an aged Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro Epicure, one remaining from a purchase about two and a half years ago. After that extended rest, I expected the cigar’s flavors to have melded beautifully.

The Epicure vitola is a 6 × 54 box-pressed cigar featuring a six-year-old Cuban-seed Nicaraguan Maduro wrapper that spent an additional 14 months aging in bourbon barrels. The binder and filler are also said to be 6-year-aged Cuban-seed Nicaraguan tobaccos. Remembering the espresso and nutty sweetness I’d enjoyed from this cigar in the past, I searched for a bourbon with a similarly dessert-like profile.

I selected an old favorite, Angel's Envy Bourbon Port Wine Barrel Finish. One of the first examples of secondary barrel finishing in American whiskey, Angel's Envy helped popularize the concept. The bourbon undergoes a standard four to six years of aging in new charred oak before spending an additional six months in Portuguese ruby port wine barrels. Although bottled at a modest 86.6 proof, the added layer of dark-fruit richness never obscures the bourbon’s familiar caramel, vanilla, and oak character.

The bourbon barrel aging of the wrapper leaf for the Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro adds a layer of sweetness, softening the darker notes typical of the Maduro wrapper. That added sweetness, combined with the dark fruit and vanilla of the whiskey, created an indulgent pairing for this evening's repast.

The Perdomo cigar kicks off with espresso and cocoa notes. Alongside Angel’s Envy’s vanilla and caramel sweetness, the pairing felt decadent from the first draw. As the cigar developed, the molasses and dark chocolate notes became more pronounced. The bourbon’s candied fruit gently softens the cigar’s peppery edge. As the pairing continues and the fruit, chocolate, and coffee notes intertwine, my thoughts drifted to crème brûlée and tiramisu.

The cigar picks up more of a roasted character toward the finish. Rich tobacco and dark chocolate move to the forefront. The rich fruit sweetness from the Angel’s Envy lingers alongside those flavors, bringing to mind dark chocolate-covered coffee beans and cherries.

Secondary barrel finishing has become increasingly popular in recent years, helped in no small part by the growing number of “cigar blend” whiskies. Whether bourbon- or Scotch-based, I can rarely resist these releases when I spot them on store shelves. As I savored this after-dinner pairing this evening, it struck me that Angel’s Envy is particularly well suited to cigar pairing, even though it wasn’t conceived or marketed with that purpose in mind.

“Dessert-like” may be an overused description in bourbon, cigar, beer, and cocktail reviews — even here in these Musings. In the case of Angel’s Envy Bourbon Port Wine Barrel Finish paired with the Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro, however, the description seems entirely appropriate.

Cheers!