The 8 Best Cigar Blend Whiskeys For Beginners

Cigar blend whiskeys are those that are meant to pair perfectly with a good cigar, which generally means you want to see some depth and intensity to complement the smoke. You don't have to be a smoker to enjoy these whiskeys; they suit anyone who enjoys robust, earthy flavors. This makes beginner cigar blend bottles something of an oxymoron, as these flavors aren't the gentlest on the palate, especially compared to more approachable beginner bottles. But you don't need years of tasting experience to like these bottles, as they are all well crafted and can be enjoyed by anyone who loves whiskey.

What I wanted to ensure was that all these whiskies were reasonably available and not too expensive. The result is eight bottles that are chosen from my own vast experience with whiskey, and give you as approachable an introduction as you can get to cigar blends. They all have rich flavors that will appeal to anyone who enjoys smoke, whether literally from a cigar or from the tasting notes in a bottle. For those wishing to start exploring cigar blends, this is the perfect list for you.

With Barrell being one of the best bourbon brands around, there's little surprise it has been able to produce an excellent cigar blend whiskey. As with a few bottles here, its deep range of flavors has been influenced by its unique finishing process. Here, that comes from a mix of Madeira, Armagnac, rum, and Hungarian oak casks. It creates a bold and full-bodied whiskey that showcases a range of red fruits along with a syrupy sweetness, which makes it feel like a decadent pour. This is not surprising considering it's a blend of well-aged bourbon, ranging from 7½ to 18 years old.

Cinnamon and toasted oak help to give structure to the whiskey, with a rich caramel helping to keep the more earthy notes in check. Towards the end of the tasting experience, you may well find further notes such as tobacco and dark chocolate. Those flavors also form a part of a long and lingering finish. That finish is a little dry and warm, with further spices of pepper and clove coming to the fore. The cask strength ensures its intensity is relentless, and for beginners, a little water may be needed to temper the alcohol heat. In the $80 to $90 range, it's not super expensive compared to other cigar blends and reflects its depth and complexity. If that's above your budget, there are a few more affordable bottles here.

The Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve is not one of those more affordable bottles. At around $180, this is a bottle to choose if you really want to treat yourself. This is a single malt Scotch, meaning it doesn't have the high level of sweetness of bourbon, but you'll still get a lovely creamy vanilla here, alongside the darker notes you'd expect from a cigar blend. The whiskey is initially matured in ex-bourbon barrels before additional maturation in cabernet sauvignon wine and Matusalem Oloroso sherry casks.  It helps to create a more refined whiskey than many others, with a lovely combination of fruit, warming spices, and sweet oak. Despite its elegance, it still has more than enough depth to hold its own alongside cigar smoke.

As with The Dalmore 12-year bottle, there are plenty of rich, fruity flavors that are accompanied by more dessert-like notes. Those fruits can have a tropical twist, as you may find notes of banana and orange zest. You'll also get more of the expected sherry-influenced fruit, along with cinnamon and dark chocolate. It may be the most expensive bottle here, but I'd also say it's probably the most approachable. The modest proof of 88 also means you won't be blown away by high alcohol heat. If you prefer Scotch to bourbon, cigar blends don't get better than this.

Old Elk Cigar Cut Punch Cut is an excellent whiskey that comes from its distillery in Colorado. The make-up of this whiskey is quite complex, as it's a blend of four whiskeys, each matured in different casks. Those four different finishes are Armagnac, Sauternes, Tawny Port, and Oloroso Sherry. Two of the four whiskeys are wheat whiskeys, while the other two are high-malt bourbons. Furthermore, all of the whiskeys are between six and eight years old and have been finished for between four months and a year. Thankfully, the result of this complex marriage is a brilliant whiskey that both stands beautifully on its own and pairs beautifully with a cigar.

As you may expect, there is a rich array of fruits on the palate, and it's one of those whiskeys where each taster will find something unique to them. It's unsurprisingly rich with a warming spice and a lingering oak-driven finish. As you take further sips, you'll start to notice its biscuit, nut, and chocolate flavors that further showcase its depth, and why it will usually set you back over $130. Even though there's a lot going on and it has a proof near 110, it remains remarkably drinkable, so you don't need to be an expert to enjoy it.

Here we have the second and final Scotch on this list. Tomintoul Cigar Malt is a curious whiskey, as the regular Tomintoul 10-year bottle is a tame Speyside single malt and not one I'd recommend. This bottle is still approachable but has many more qualities that allow it to perfectly complement the earthy and smoky flavors of a cigar. The maturation process involves a combination of peated and unpeated single malts, each either fully matured or finished in Oloroso sherry casks. As with a lot of Speyside Scotch, that helps to bring forward plenty of sweet fruit notes. This sweetness contrasts with a gentle peat smoke that is sure to appeal to those who enjoy a good cigar.

This bottle isn't as powerful as others here and generally provides more of a pleasant contrast to the bitterness and intensity of a cigar rather than magnifying it. A creamy toffee and malt flavor gives it a beautiful sweetness, but that is brought together with chocolate, black pepper, and charred oak. For beginners, Tomintoul's gentler house style makes this an appealing option. It brilliantly showcases how a whiskey can complement a cigar without relying on bold spice. If you enjoy mellow Speyside character with added richness, Tomintoul Cigar Malt is worth exploring at around $130.

Now we jump straight back into a whiskey that has a complex maturation process. This First Cut Cigar Blend incorporates whiskey matured in nine different types of casks. This includes the ones you might expect, such as Cognac and sherry, but there are a few intriguing inclusions. The most unique of them are Islay casks, with this Scottish island being known for its heavily peated and smoky Scotch. That choice of barrel is perhaps less surprising when you learn this whiskey, like many from Scotland, is single malt, being made exclusively from malted barley. Rather than relying on the corn-driven sweetness of bourbon, it brings a combination of toasted grain, fruit, and oak to the glass.

Along with this, you're likely to encounter dried fruit, chocolate, and warming spice, with oak and a subtle hint of smoke adding structure and a lingering finish. These characteristics can complement a cigar's earthy, roasted flavors while providing an alternative to traditional Scotch or bourbon. First Cut Cigar Blend is worth considering if you want to broaden your tasting experience. However, availability can be more limited than for mainstream whiskey brands, but prices are affordable at around $60. It'll also give you an insight into distilleries from Virginia, allowing any beginner to rapidly build up their whiskey knowledge.

Penelope has created a cigar series, with this being the second iteration. The first chapter was also impressive if you can find it, with the sequel building on many of those qualities. Priced in the $80 to $90 range, it's another whiskey that has a delectably deep and diverse range of flavors. It has plenty of heat, helped by a high rye content. That helps to bring out a range of baking spices. These pair well with the other robust flavors here: toasted oak, chocolate, and tobacco.

This is balanced by plenty of classic bourbon sweetness, especially in the form of caramel and vanilla, with a deep brown sugar helping to give these sweet notes a darker edge. It isn't as fruity as other cigar blends, but that may be more to your taste. It still has that intensity to complement a cigar, but without oak or the high proof dominating the sip. With a wide range of whiskeys, Penelope Bourbon is not scared of a little experimentation. With this cigar blend, it's an approach that has worked to create one of the best bottles for beginners. 

Bourbon goes very well with a cigar, as do the best XO Cognacs. Wheel Horse Cigar Blend reminds me of those types of cognacs as it has more of a fruit-forward influence than any other bottle in this list. It's perhaps not surprising then to learn this bourbon has been finished in ex-cognac casks, along with port, sherry, and Armagnac barrels. It's a rich blend of influences that are all present in the bottle. There is a mix of berries and dried fruit, which gently reveal themselves on repeated sips.

There is still plenty of that bourbon sweetness, but that is contrasted alongside its oak and rye spice. Pepper comes in towards the end of the tasting experience and is joined by a touch of leather and tobacco. Bottled at 101 proof, these flavors have enough intensity without ever overwhelming the palate. For those who have found a few bottles on this list to be above your budget, you'll also appreciate the price tag here, which usually sits around the $40 mark. That affordability, along with the beautiful range of sweet, fruity notes, perhaps makes it the most beginner-friendly cigar blend in the whole list.

Most of the whiskeys here lean into introducing dark fruit flavors by finishing the spirit in casks such as sherry or Cognac. Buzzard's Roost takes a different approach by trying to develop as much of an oak influence as it can. It helps to create a whiskey with a charred flavor that even fans of the best peated Scotch would appreciate. Available as a limited release on its website for $85, it undergoes a secondary maturation in custom-toasted and charred oak barrels to develop additional depth and complexity.

The result is a full-bodied pour that emphasizes spice, dark sweetness, and smoky oak rather than relying entirely on traditional bourbon caramel and vanilla notes. It still has those sweeter notes, but they don't take center stage. There are some tempting earthy flavors such as tobacco, leather, clove, cinnamon, and subtle smoke. It's a strong roster of tasting notes, and they are powerfully delivered with a proof of 105. The pronounced oak and spice may take some getting used to, but beginners can add a few drops of water if necessary. Buzzard's Roost has a distinctive take on cigar blend bourbon and is well worth seeking out.

To select the best cigar blend whiskeys, I drew on my extensive experience tasting and evaluating whiskey to choose eight that serve as the best introduction to this category. These spirits are often robust and bold, but each of these whiskeys is well crafted and would allow a beginner to quickly appreciate them and understand why they were designed to pair perfectly with a cigar.

I also wanted to choose whiskeys that were reasonably affordable and not too hard to find, while still understanding that cigar blends do tend to have a higher price tag than other types of whiskey. The final selection covers a range of styles, and hopefully this will allow you to find the perfect bottle to start your journey through cigar blend whiskey.