Tobacco leaf | Buttercream frosting | Vanilla | Brown sugar | Charred oak | Leather | Faint cinnamon stick | Cigar box | Dab of honey | Rich

Baking spices | Cinnamon sugar powder | Charred oax | Gentle rye spice | Light leather | Sweet vanilla | Faint Bing cherry | Pink peppercorn | Nutmeg 

Cinnamon spice | Gentle rye spice | Aged charred oak | Aged leather | White peppercorn | Dash of lemongrass | Slightly dry

Still Austin returns with a follow-up to their 2024 inaugural Tanager Cigar Blend Whiskey. The company’s Tanager releases represent their take on cigar whiskey. Unlike many other companies, Still Austin does not use any finishing barrels to achieve their vision. The goal of this whiskey, like most other cigar whiskeys, is to be able to stand up to and cut through a cigar, allowing those sipping it to enjoy both at the same time. 

Their most premium whiskey to date, topping last year’s release by $1, the Austin, Texas based distillery created Tanager Cigar Blend whiskey using a Petites Eaux blending technique. The company states that this technique refers to master blender, Nancy Fraley, and master distiller, John Schrepel, “combined Still Austin’s finest six-year-old bourbons with pure Texas water and aged it at 50 proof for at least one year before adding it to the base whiskey for final proofing. This ancient blending technique, known as Petites Eaux (French for “small waters”), has been used for centuries in the Cognac and Armagnac regions of France.” The company goes on to state that the name Tanager was chosen “ because of the Summer Tanager bird that has been featured as a background element on all of our previous flagship release artwork.”

For being an unfinished bourbon, the sip the whiskey delivers is quite impressive. A combination of scents delivers an aroma that draws you in, thanks to sweet and earthy scents expertly playing off each other. The midpoint brings about bakery-inspired sweetness thanks to cinnamon sugar power, sweet vanilla, and Bing cherry. Baking spices and various light spices provide a nice counterbalance to even things out. Ending on a pleasing bed of various spices, earthy notes, and a unique dash of lemongrass, Tanager Cigar Blend Whiskey once again surprises, considering it’s not a barrel finished whiskey. 

While Still Austin may be newer to Cigar Blend Whiskey, Nancy Fraley is not, as she is also the blender and originator of Joseph Magnus Cigar Blend Bourbon. Fraley’s experience in this area shows, as this year’s Tanager Cigar Blend Whiskey is rich and full of flavor. The combination of using the Petites Eaux blending technique, along with aging in Texas, results in a 6 year old bourbon that is well worth the price of admission. While there’s no right or wrong take on what a cigar blend whiskey should taste like, there certainly is an expectation that the resulting whiskey will pair well with a cigar. This year’s Tanager Cigar Blend Whiskey is up for that challenge, and more importantly, the resulting sip delights all on its own.