Drink pairing recommendations (non-alcoholic)

[Riverstyx]

Unfortunately, I'm forced to take a month away from drinking.  I'm looking for non-alcoholic drink pairings with my cigars.  

I've tried water, Gatorade, Coke, LaCroix water...nothing enhances the cigar like a good whiskey or beer does (for me at least).  Suggestions?

[yaqui]

I've had a Dr. Pepper with a stogie or two...

[Islandboy]

When I want something non-alcoholic, my go-to is San Pelligrino water with a few lime wedges. If I want something a bit nuttier tasting, I also like unsweetened Japanese green tea over ice.

[Akela3rd]

I don't drink booze at all and haven't for a long time. Black coffee works with a lot of cigars, complimenting any chocolate/cocoa/coffee notes. It also goes with anything that's got that bakery/bread thing going on. I either have a coffee or tonic water with lime - nice sharp fizz works for me. 

[Troels]

thou i appriciate a beer, tea is my go to beverage

[Riverstyx]

5 minutes ago, Troels said:

thou i appriciate a beer, tea is my go to beverage

Just regular iced tea or do you have any specific kinds you like? 

[HShep]

I don't drink anymore, but I smoke plenty of cigars.

Ginger Beer is my favorite.  Bundaberg's is great.  We have a pretty good sized garden and I'll drop a couple of basil or mint leaves in it to add some more spice.  Bruce Cost ginger ale is also really good. If you're in the American south, Cheerwine is good, but sweet, as are other sodas.  Coffee and cuban coffee are also really good.  Any kind of soda or sparkling water should do the trick as well.  Finally, if it's hot, fresh lemonade with fresh mint (limonada con menta) is wonderful with a full-bodied cigar.  It's even better blended.

Edit to add-  I suspect a strong black iced tea with a handful of fresh mint would also work really well.

[Troels]

11 minutes ago, Riverstyx said:

Just regular iced tea or do you have any specific kinds you like? 

Warm tea that is; various black teas, green teas, pu erh or even herbal tea like mint tea can be nice at times 

as for black teas darjeeling, keemun and lapsang souchong is good options - the latter being smoked tea it works best for a fuller cigar

[Riverstyx]

I'm thinking I need to go the tea route.  Sodas and flavored waters are too sweet without the darkness I want, and I usually smoke at night so don't want to have the significant caffeine intake from coffee.

 

Thanks for all of the responses.  

[ElJavi76]

I go tall iced espresso in the summer. I also go with a nice cup of Colombian organic coffee... Black. I don't want sugar or dairy messing with my pallette. Black coffee is a pretty good reset between puffs. 

When I'm feeling brave... Tall coffee and then drop an espresso on top of that. I have a Nespresso machine for those. Go as dark and intense as possible. I think I drank more coffee this summer with my stix than actual booze. 

Cheers guys

[cigcars]

    * My life long favorite is iced herb tea sweetened with honey.  If beer is the "end all / be all" for you then go to one of your nearest health food store outlets and go to their specialty bottled drink sections. In my drinking years when I finally weened off there as a brand of non - alcoholic beer I think it was called "Freeport" or such. It was really, really excellent as far as flavor and so on.  Plus I'm sure there are other brands of non-alcoholic beers out there too. Maybe one or some of those will suffice. Hope that's some help.

[Riverstyx]

17 minutes ago, cigcars said:

    * My life long favorite is iced herb tea sweetened with honey.  If beer is the "end all / be all" for you then go to one of your nearest health food store outlets and go to their specialty bottled drink sections. In my drinking years when I finally weened off there as a brand of non - alcoholic beer I think it was called "Freeport" or such. It was really, really excellent as far as flavor and so on.  Plus I'm sure there are other brands of non-alcoholic beers out there too. Maybe one or some of those will suffice. Hope that's some help.

Thanks.  Whiskey is probably the "end all/be all" but even when I am drinking, I drink it so fast I have to move on to beer if I want to wake up in the morning.  Unfortunately, I don't think O'doul's sells a scotch.  I'll try this out.  

[Akela3rd]

And on a similar note there's good decaff coffee out there too. We've got a Nespresso machine and their various (3 or 4 now) decaffs are all good IMHO.

 

Thunder & Lightening '75-'15

 

 

 

 

[earthson]

Water, by a long shot. I've found that anything else only inhibits the full tobacco experience with all of the nuances present. The only time I've found a drink helps a cigar is when the cigar itself is somewhat flat, limpid or young; those cases warrant a dry rum or coffee/milk, 50/50.

[TNT009]

Cappuccino..

[Guest Nekhyludov]

Enjoy your time on the wagon! If you're anything like me, you'll lose a few pounds and enjoy better sleep.

I found this thread really helpful for non-alcoholic cigar pairings.

 

[irratebass]

My fav non alcoholic pairings are.......are you ready?

Apple juice
Grape juice

True Story, try it.

*I'm very good looking, and great with rice.*

[mrmessy]

Everything I would drink has been mentioned except cream soda. Great pairing with an hdm epi 2 for me.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

[cardinalfan85]

I like root beer sometimes. 

[ChrisMG]

Sparking water or black coffee/espresso for me. Ginger Ale also pairs well.

[Raskol]

Mainly nespresso coffee. Sometimes with ginger beer or tonic when I get bored with coffee.

[jerrybrowne]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Aussiegoldsmith]

I haven’t had a drink in 11 years. My pairing is an Earl Gray tea with milk and raw sugar!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[wabashcr]

I usually just drink water, but I do find a carbonated soda, ginger ale, Dr Pepper, root beer, cream soda, etc., can help either enhance the flavors, or at least cleanse the palate.  I like a good cup of decaf with a morning cigar, and a cup of tea in the cooler weather.  

[zepp69]

Coffee or cappi. Good old water does the trick as well IMO.