Grenadine Old Fashioned Paired With BLTC La Madonna Negra

More warm weather, means more cocktails and cigars on the deck. As I was perusing the virtual stack of drink recipes I've gathered over time, I came across one for a Grenadine Old Fashioned that sounded interesting.

The recipe calls for 2 ounce of wheated bourbon, 1/4 ounce of grenadine, and bitters. I selected a Wyoming Whiskey Bourbon for the drinks. Stirred over ice and served on a single rock, I garnished with a Luxardo cherry. The 88 proof bourbon was somewhat muted by the sharpness of the grenadine, but still it was a flavorful drink. The Grenadine Old Fashioned isn't as sweet as my normal recipe, but I found it to be a very refreshing drink. Worthy of a second round at least. A platter of sharp Irish cheeses also added to the enjoyment. 

Sometimes I sip a drinking immediately know what cigars I want to smoke. This time I quickly settled on the Black Label Trading Company La Madonna Negra, in the 5 1/4 x 50 Robusto vitola. A dark chocolate colored Connecticut broadleaf wrapper covers an Ecuadorian habano binder and fillers from Nicaragua and Pennsylvania. I recall the smoke having a robust, flavorfully sharp profile that I felt would go well with the sweetly bitter drink.

The cigar has been resting in my humidor for about eight months. Some of the initially smoked sticks had tight draws that required some work to maintain a full smoke output. Not so with this one. The cigar smoked wonderfully and made a delightful pairing for the cocktail.

As noted, the slightly aged cigar burned well and produced a medium to full flavored smoke. The flavor presents a blend of dark chocolate, espresso, and dark cherries. There is some pepper and cedar sitting in the background to add even more interest. 

I quite enjoyed the combination of the drink and cigar flavors. I'm looking forward to trying the cocktail with some different cigars, and of course, the remaining La Madonna Negra cigars I still have on hand.

Cheers!