Barrell Bourbon Cigar Blend: The Ultimate Award-Winning Bourbon for Cigar Lovers – Arriving Soon at Blackpool Cigars
If you love the ritual of a premium cigar paired with a complex, full-bodied spirit, Barrell Craft Spirits has created something truly special. Their first-ever Cigar Blend Bourbon is a limited-release expression engineered for slow sipping alongside bold tobacco. Exciting news for our customers: this highly anticipated bottle is expected to hit the shelves at Blackpool Cigars (blackpoolcigars.com / Bourbon Blackpool Whiskey & Cigar Bar) within the next few weeks. Stock will be limited, so keep an eye on our site or pop into the store for updates.
What Makes Barrell Bourbon Cigar Blend Special?
Barrell Bourbon Cigar Blend is a blend of straight bourbon whiskeys aged 7.5 to 18 years, sourced from undisclosed distilleries in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana. After blending, it receives a multi-cask finish in Madeira, Armagnac, rum, and Hungarian oak casks. This innovative finishing process layers sweetness, spice, fruit, and structure into the whiskey, creating a refined yet expressive pour that stands up beautifully to the intensity of a great cigar. Key specs:
- Proof: 111.2 (cask strength)
- ABV: 55.6%
- Bottle size: 700 ml
- 700ml bottle and 30ml Samples available soon
This release has already earned serious recognition in the spirits world:
- Wine Enthusiast: 98 points
- San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2026: Double Gold
- LA Spirits Awards 2026: Platinum + Best Unique Barrel Finish
- ASCOT Awards 2026: Double Platinum
Detailed Tasting Notes (Sampling is our favourite work task!)Appearance: Deep maple syrup / copper hues.Nose: Crusty sourdough bread leads, followed by toffee, pipe tobacco, and dusty cedar. Oxidized wine influences bring walnuts, dry autumn leaves, rancio leather, and a touch of miso. With time, sweet pastries (sticky buns, éclairs, sweet potato pie) emerge alongside pear, persimmon, and grape soda. Palate: Big, rich, and chewy mouthfeel full of oils and tannins. Warm cola with cinnamon spice, burnt cornbread, pistachio ice cream, and intense vanilla perfume. Armagnac contributes dried cherries and dates; Hungarian oak adds pu’er tea and fernet-like earthiness. Underneath sit dried mushroom and soy sauce notes. Overall impression: dark, sweet, brandy-inflected bourbon evoking Boston cream pie and grape soda.Finish: Long and complex — sweet vermouth character with pungent clove, juniper berry, and cocoa powder. A mineral backbone of slate and salt lingers, joined by rosehips, cinchona bark, black truffle, and incense. Beautiful tobacco and leather echoes remain.With a splash of water: Opens beautifully to butterscotch hard candy, brighter fruits (Mirabelle plum, honeydew), and clearer molasses/café au lait notes from the rum influence.The profile is plush, energetic, and highly layered — sweetness balanced by spice and earth.
Why It Pairs So Well with CigarsThe multi-cask finish gives this bourbon the depth and structure to match (and enhance) premium cigar flavors. Pipe tobacco, leather, cedar, baking spices, and dark fruit in the whiskey echo and amplify the smoke, while molasses sweetness and cola spices balance pepper or bitterness. It’s equally compelling neat or with a drop of water, making it ideal for long, relaxed sessions.
5 Outstanding Cigar Pairings from Our Current In-Stock RangeHere are five excellent matches from the premium cigars we currently carry at Blackpool Cigars. These full-bodied options feature complementary notes of earth, leather, spice, chocolate, coffee, and sweetness:
- Davidoff (robust lines such as Nicaragua or Winston Churchill series) — From our approved Davidoff selection. Creamy, spicy, and nutty profiles that harmonize beautifully with the bourbon’s vanilla, cola, and warm spice.
- Gurkha (full-bodied or chunky vitolas from our Gurkha collection) — Bold and intense with leather, earth, and pepper that amplify the tobacco and leather notes in the whiskey. Perfect for the cask-strength power.
-
Montecristo (Cuban, from our English Market Selection / EMS Cuban stock) — Classic Cuban earth, cedar, and subtle sweetness that mirrors the cedar chest, pastry, and rancio elements.
- Padron 1964 Anniversary (or similar from our New World premium / award-winning collection) — Benchmark pairing cigar with complex earth, leather, spice, and natural sweetness that locks in perfectly with the dark fruit and molasses.
- My Father (The Judge) — Full-bodied powerhouses loaded with coffee, dark chocolate, and peppery spice — an outstanding counterpoint to the bourbon’s brandy-inflected sweetness and warm spices.