Buzzard's Roost Cigar Rye Whiskey

The barrels were smoked with Kentucky tobacco leaves.

Plenty of "cigar" whiskeys earn the name by pairing well with one, including Buzzard's Roost's own Cigar Blend. This one gets it from the barrel. Buzzard's Roost takes a four-year-old Indiana rye and finishes it in new American oak barrels that were cold-smoked with aged tobacco leaves grown in Kentucky. Cold smoking runs the smoke through without heat, so the wood takes on the aroma without being cooked.

The rye is 95% rye and 5% malted barley, which is about as rye-heavy as a mash gets. Malted barley is barley that's been sprouted and dried so its starch converts to sugar during fermentation. The barrels are toasted and given a light Char #1, and the whiskey is bottled at 105 proof without chill filtering.

Buzzard's Roost says the result has "the delicate sweet and smoky aromas of a fine cigar." Co-founder Judy Hollis Jones calls it one of the company's most elegant bottles: "I love the combination of cherry and orange flavors balanced with dried herbs." It was the brand's first cigar whiskey. The first batch was three barrels. Cigar Blend came later.

Buzzard's Roost sourced the rye and did the tobacco-barrel finish itself. The bottle and batch are written in by hand on the label. Pour it neat, next to a cigar if you have one.

Tasting Notes

• Nose: sweet smoke, "the delicate sweet and smoky aromas of a fine cigar"
• Palate: cherry and orange
• Balance: dried herbs

Bottle Specifications

• Category: Straight rye whiskey
• Age: No age statement (the producer says four-year-old rye before the tobacco barrel)
• Mash bill: 95% rye, 5% malted barley
• Second barrel: New American oak, cold-smoked with aged Kentucky tobacco leaves, Char #1
• Proof / ABV: 105 proof / 52.5%
• Producer: Buzzard's Roost, Louisville, Kentucky (sourced Indiana rye)
• Bottle size: 750ml

Poured by Whiskey-of-the-Month Club Explorer members in October 2026.

FAQ

Is there tobacco in the whiskey?
No tobacco goes into the bottle. The tobacco leaves are used to smoke the empty barrels before the rye goes in, so what reaches the whiskey is the smoke the wood absorbed.

Is this the same as Buzzard's Roost Cigar Blend?
No. Cigar Blend is a bourbon in toasted barrels with no tobacco involved. Cigar Rye is a straight rye in tobacco-smoked barrels.

Why do some reviews disagree on its age and proof?
Buzzard's Roost says four-year-old rye at 105 proof, and the label reads 52.5% / 105. One reviewer's spec table lists 3 years and 108 proof, which its own bottle photo contradicts.