A great deal of people think nothing beats whiskey as a pairing to a cigar, but many a beer lover will hotly contest this assertion, claiming that a beer can make the ideal companion to a fine cigar. Hell, there’s even numerous whiskey barrel-aged beers out there that do the trick perfectly.

With today’s limitless micro, major or import varieties of beers to draw from, there’s bound to be a few choice brews that you’ll find work perfectly in concert with your cigar. Though there’s truly no wrong answer, we find that beers that are darker in color seem to offer a greater compliment to a cigar, as their bolder body can better stand up to the strength of a cigar; offering more nuances and character than their lighter colored counterparts.

Of course, sometimes you might want the beer to back off and serve as a clean contrast to let the cigar shine through all on it’s own. In this case, keep those Miller High Life’s-a-comin’. There’s many cigar smokers out there who love sipping an IPA with their stogie. It’s a lighter colored beer, and works well. Otherwise, try pouring yourself a dark amber or maybe a nice stout and watch the two get along swimmingly.