Villa Casdagli Pigasus Cigar Pairing

In December we reviewed the Daughters of the Wind, Pony express. I will stick to my rating that it is one of the best cigars to light up. After enjoying a few more Casdagli cigars, the brand remains top-class. Casdagli produces elegant rich, exceptional cigars. If you want to experiment in April, this pairing is for you. Today we light up the Villa Casdagli Pigasus and uncork a bottle of Carmenere red wine from Chile.

I fell in love with the Villa Casdagli Toro last year. The blend is a combination of rich cured tobacco with mild to mellow flavours offering a slow-burning cigar to enjoy over a few hours.

These are very smooth and elegant cigars in the Toro size with a medium-strength flavour and body profile out of this world. After the Villa Casdagli Toro, became one of my go-to cigars, it was time to light up a different vitola in the range.

The world of Casdagli Cigars.

In the words of Jeremy Casdagli:

"Casdagli Cigars’ philosophy matches the Brand's tagline.

"We produce cigars to deliver luxury, elegance, and tradition. Our ambition is to offer cigars that enliven and feed the smoker’s imagination of life’s glory, grandeur, and dignity. This we do by anchoring our brand to the rich Casdagli family trading history."

The statement is true. Every Casdagli embodies a rich family history. A romantic family story of wealth and struggles with a love for luxury and the finer pleasures.

Villa Casdagli Pigasus Description

Each blend contains a different amount of filler leaves, so they will vary from size to size. Pigasus and Robusto have an extra 5 year aged Peruvian Filler.

The Pigasus cigars use original moulds that Jeremy Casdagli used for the Cottontail.

Back in 2012, Jeremy met Don Olman at the Vegas Santiago factory up in the hills of Puriscal, Costa Rica.

“This was where I was first introduced to the Peruvian tobacco which as many know soon became my favorite tobacco when it comes to the blending process,”

• Jeremy Casdagli

In 2018, when on a visit to the factory, now called Tabacos de Costa Rica, Jeremy became aware of Don Olman’s “mejorado” (improvement) process. Most of Don Olman's imported tobacco goes through a further fermentation process for up to 4 months in the “pilon”. Although it is an expensive curing method, tobacco that, goes through this process is richer.

The Casdagli Line blends consist of “mejorado” tobaccos from Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Peru. These complex cigars have a rich body, a perfect celebration of the beautiful and exotic Villa Casdagli in Cairo.

The Villa Casdagli Pigasus features twisted tobacco laid flat. Interestingly, the feature lasts. The twisted shape of the tobacco lasts in the middle of the ash.

PIGASUS54-58 X 5''

CIGAR DESCRIPTION

The distinguishing shape replicates the original Flying Pig vitola that goes far back into the history of Casdagli Cigars. It was one of the first shapes created for Bespoke Cigars (Casdagli Cigars predecessor) in 1990s Cuba.

The two Peruvian tobaccos, which make up ca 50% of the filler, go through a "mejorado" improvement process. This is the second fermentation in a "pilon" for a further 2-4 months to further enrich the tobacco flavours.

Gauge: 54

CIGAR DETAILS

Body: Full

Flavour: Full

Strength: Medium to Full

CIGAR COMPOSITION

Wrapper: Ecuador

Binder: Ecuador

Filler: 2x Peru, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua

TASTING NOTES

Maple syrup, oak, white and black pepper, brown sugar, honey.

PACKAGING

Packaged in a traditional plain wood slide-top box of 12 cigars with individual cellophane. The box seal has a decorative "dollar" band. All packages include a 69% RH 10g Boveda humidification pack.

BLENDED FOR CASDAGLI CIGARS

A cigar blended especially for Casdagli Cigars at Tabacos de Costa Rica in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Wine

This pairing is a bit different. From South Africa, we travel 9,177 km to the Cachapoal Valley.

Located 85 km south of Santiago in Chile, the Cachapoal Valley is a wine-growing area in Cachapoal in the O`Higgins Region of central Chile. The valley lies to the north of the Rapel Valley. It lies between the heights of Paine to the north and Pelequén to the south. And between the Andes to the east and the smaller coastal range to the west.

The valley takes its name from the Cachapoal River that flows through Rapel Valley along the Claro and Cortaderal Rivers. All these watercourses flow into Lake Rapel.

The climate of the valley is temperate and consistent Mediterranean. It is an area sheltered by the coastal range from the cooling influences of the Pacific Ocean.

Most of Cachapoal's wineries and vineyards lie toward the east of the region, in the foothills of the Andes, away from the warmer valley floor. The area is ideal for Cabernet Sauvignon vines. Closer to the coast, the ocean breezes flow through the coastal range, and there are more Carménère vines.

And that is the varietal we will pair with the Casdagli Pigasus Cigar in this smoke.

Carmenere Red Grape Varietal

Carménère is a wine grape variety originally planted in the Médoc region of Bordeaux, France, to use for blending purposes similar to Petit Verdot.

It is a member of the Cabernet family of grapes. The name "Carménère" originates from the French word for crimson (carmin), which refers to the crimson colour of the autumn leaves before leaf-fall.

Along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot, Carménère is one of the original six red grapes of Bordeaux.

Now rarely found in France, the world's largest area planted with this variety is in Chile. Chile grows more than 8,800 hectares cultivated in the Central Valley.

The often-overlooked sixth red grape of Bordeaux. Carmenère found it's the ideal spot in Chile becoming one of the country's flagship red grape varietals.

Chile produces the vast majority of Carménère wines available today. The winemakers in Chile support experimentation with Carménère's as a potential blending grape, especially with Cabernet Sauvignon.

Chateau Los boldos, Chile

Los Boldos occupies a 250-ha site in one of Chile’s finest viticultural areas, the Cachapoal Andes. Cachapoal valley. Los Boldos started a vast reform and investment in 2008. The quality and nobility of the terroir are now shining through the wines. Some of the Chateau's vineyards originated in the forties and fifties.

Alluvial soils, manual harvest and its single vineyard concept allow Los Boldos to craft pure and fresh expressions.

They produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Carmenere, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.

Winemaker: Stephane Geneste

Carmenere Wines in Chile

A late-ripening variety, Carménère needs high amounts of sunshine and a warm summer to reach its full potential. The grape produces fine, deep-coloured red wines, with the attractive meaty plumpness of Merlot and the gentle herby, cedary notes of Cabernet Sauvignon.

In pre-phylloxera 19th Century Bordeaux, enterprising Chilean winemakers took cuttings from the region's vineyards. But, a high proportion of what they believed to be Merlot, turned out to be Carménère.

The long-established varieties' popularity dropped considerably. This unconscious mistake of the Chilean winemakers probably saved Carménère from extinction.

It is now Chile's flagship grape.

The leaves of Merlot and Carménère vines are so alike that the error was not uncovered until 1994 with DNA research in Montpellier.

Chile has capitalized on its status as the saviour of the grape variety. Today Chile incorporated the vine's memorable story into its efficient wine marketing.

Carmenere is an easy food pairing wine. The Carmenere varietal matches well with smoked, grilled, or roasted meats, chicken, pork, lamb, beef, and veal. Due to its character, the wines match well with some spicy dishes and matured, hard cheeses.

Vintage: 2017

Grape Composition: 100% Carménère

Alcohol 13,5 % vol.

Appelation: Cachapoal Andes

Tasting notes:

Colour: Intense and deep red.

Aroma: Aromas of ripe red and black fruits, with notes of black pepper and chocolate.

Palate: Fruity, well structured, with round and powerful tannins and a persistent ending.

Carmenere pairs well with beef, pork and game, pasta with a spicy sauce and charcuterie such as salami or raw ham.

Serve at 15-18 °C I 59-64 oF.

Cellar keeping:

Up to five years in a fresh, ventilated and dry place.

Villa Casdagli Pigasus Cigar

Dry Aroma

The cigar has a closed foot. Perfect construction with a shiny red glowy wrapper.

Tumeric and light spices

Cured tobacco and meaty flavours

Subtle hints of dried fruits and figs

Dry Draw

Firm, tight but smooth

Nutty

Fruity

Dried peaches

The cigar has a nutty scent and taste with hints of dried fruit aromas.

First Puff

All I can say, If you haven't tried a Casdagli, you are missing out.

The cigar releases hints of sweetness, dried fruits, nutty caramel, coffee and cocoa.

The draw is firm but smooth, with loads of blended flavours in each puff. It is a complex cigar. The cigar flavours also depend on your pairing. The cigar will smoke differently with coffee or tea.

The Los Boldos Carmener wine

Aroma

The wine has notes of Dry and ripe fruits. The aroma gives scents of strawberries and cherries.

Swirling the Carmenere in your glass reveals a deep dark ruby colour.

Taste

Cherries

Mulberries

Melted cocoa

Firm tannins with a smooth finish

Villa Casdagli Pigasus Cigar & Los Boldos Carmenere Pairing

Nutty flavours mixed with dried fruits.

The wine has sweet jammy characteristics resembling the flavours of strawberries and mulberries.

The cigar is bold but creamy smooth. The fruit-forward Carmenere offers subtle sweetness to pair with the exceptional blended Casdagli pigasus cigar.

It's a soft wine from the Chilean Cachapoal Valley that adds the right amount of fruit and tannins to enjoy the short punchy Pigasus Casdagli cigar.

Final Pairing Notes

As the cigar slow burns, it releases flavours of creamy roasted nuts complemented by the dry sweet mulberry Carmenere tastes. I love the size and the way the cigar smokes, it's the perfect Autumn or Winter cigar to enjoy outside.

The pairing is silky smooth.

It's a small cigar with a slow burn that lasts. I did not smoke fast. It's a wonderful cigar to puff slow while savouring every sip of the Chilean ruby red Carmenere.

How would I describe the pairing in a few final words?

Adequate hints of dry tannins mixed with perfect sweetness in the wine while the roasted nutty full flavoured Casdagli Pigasus flavours flow into the swirling wine with roasted, nutty, cured and creamy smoky flavours.

Would I light this cigar again?

Yes, absolutely. I would buy a box to light at least one a month if you have the discipline to leave these beauties to mature even more.

Click the link below to light up a Villa Casdagli Pigasus Cigar.

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