The Joya Red is a classy cigar that deserves an equally stylish beverage.
So, I decided to go with the J.P. Wiser’s Red Letter.
It’s a fabulous Canadian Whisky, perfected by Wiser’s Master Blender, Dr. Don Livermore. Livermore is a master at the science of whisky-wood interactions.
Red Letter had a particular importance to him because “it’s a tribute to the distillery founder – J.P. Wiser.
J.P. Wiser’s Red Letter is an award-winning Canadian whisky that is aged for a minimum of 10 years in American bourbon barrels and then further mellowed by finishing in virgin white oak casks, which produces well-integrated and complex flavours”.
On the nose, J.P. Wiser’s Red Letter Canadian Whisky has an abundance of cinnamon, sweet spice, orange, caramel and demerrara brown sugar.
With the air filling with white bread & roasted nuts aromas from the Joya Red Cigar, the nose from the Wiser’s Red Letter a distinct Madagascar vanilla and an appealing lemon / citrus hit.
The Joya Red Cigar smoke is working with the robust sweet spiciness from the whisky … that’s always a welcome bonus when it comes to whisky tasting and cigar pairing.
For its part, J.P. Wiser’s Red Letter is staying consistent in flavour & aroma delivery.
That’s a sign of endurance from any alcoholic beverage.
Taste is 80% smell, so I’m always pleased when the beverage has aromas that rise above other influences.
Towards the end of the dram, molasses come through, with a bit of a sipping chocolate at the sides of the mouth.
I recommend really swishing the whisky around in your mouth and you’ll discover a ginger-like freshness, as though the spirit is acting as a palate cleanser, resetting the tastebuds for the next volumes of palate pleasing cigar smoke
Wiser’s Red Letter Whisky’s complexity is extraordinary.
It has just the right amount of fruit aroma notes & palate-pleasing sweetness to soften both the tannins from the oak used to mature it and work with the lighter volume alcohol level of 45%.
JP Wiser’s Red Letter stayed maintained a cigar compatibility right from beginning to the end of both the smoke and the whisky.
It’s a winner, worth adding to your Whisky Wall, for sure!