Appendices A–D
Keep a reference
at the table.
A wrapper index, a pairing matrix, one reusable tasting sequence, and a compact vocabulary. Useful enough to consult; small enough not to interrupt the cigar.
Appendix A
Wrapper identities
Record family, declared origin or lineage, growing region, texture, behavior, and the question a pairing might answer. These are directions, never guarantees.
Appendix B
Portable pairing matrix
Start with body. Find one bridge. Use contrast as an accent. Then follow the exchange instead of congratulating the theory.
| Function | Read through | Ask |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | Richness, body, cream, malt, or sweetness. | Does the partner remain present beside the smoke? |
| Lift | Acidity, carbonation, citrus, herbs, temperature, or dilution. | Do the aromas become clearer? |
| Bridge | One sensation connecting two different materials. | What carries from the sip into the next draw? |
| Chiaroscuro | Controlled contrast: crisp and rich, dry and round. | Does the contrast preserve both partners? |
| Integration | The way texture, aroma, and finish settle together. | Do the two partners feel coherent? |
| Transformation | A new impression arising in the exchange. | What appeared only after combining them? |
| Correction | A small change in water, dilution, pace, or sequence. | What changed, and did it help? |
Appendix C
One tasting journal
Read the cigar. Read the partner. Predict. Taste the progression. Correct. Record what remains.
Begin with cigar, wrapper, binder and filler when known, format, purchase, place, time, last meal, and expectation. Give food and beverages their own lines. Leave actual room to write.
- Place & expectation
- Aroma
- Texture
- Body
- Nicotine strength
- Retrohale
- Opening
- Middle
- Final portion & finish
- The partner alone
- The interaction
- Correction
- Your verdict
- Next-day memory
Filled example · the useful level of detail
Context: Ampang, near 11 p.m.; a light meal several hours earlier. Cigar: Warped The Devil’s Hands, 5 × 48. Partner: Bundaberg Sarsaparilla.
Interaction: Sip first, then puff. Molasses extended sweetness into the dry tobacco; ginger joined the cigar’s spice; carbonation reset the palate. As the bottle warmed, the cleansing effect weakened and liquorice became louder.
Memory: A clean, toasty, uncomplicated hour. The order of sip and smoke mattered more than the prestige of either product.
Appendix D
A shared vocabulary
- Aromatic lift
- The sense that aromas become brighter, clearer, or easier to distinguish.
- Body
- The perceived weight and texture of smoke in the mouth.
- Strength
- The physical impact associated with nicotine, kept separate from flavor intensity.
- Intensity
- How forcefully flavors and aromas present themselves.
- Finish
- What persists after smoke or sip leaves the mouth.
- Retrohale
- Directing a small amount of smoke from the mouth through the nose; a seasoning tool, not a contest.
- Integration
- A coherent relationship between components without requiring them to become identical.
- Dilution curve
- The way a drink changes as ice, temperature, and time alter its structure.
- Aromatic bridge
- A shared family—toast, cocoa, spice, flowers—carrying one partner into the other.
- The third thing
- An impression that emerges in the pairing and was not apparent in either partner alone.