Cigar City Madura 6Pk

Cigar City Maduro Brown Ale 6-Pack is a Northern English-style brown ale from Tampa, Florida, brewed at 5.5% ABV and sold in a six-pack of 12 oz cans. This expression earned a Gold Medal at the Great American Beer Festival, validating its place among the finest American brown ales in production. Brewed with chocolate malt and flaked oats, Maduro takes its name from the dark, oily tobacco wrapper leaf — a fitting nod to Tampa's deep cigar-making heritage.

Quick Facts: ABV: 5.5%  |  IBU: 25  |  Origin: Tampa, Florida, USA  |  Style: Brown Ale  |  Brewery: Cigar City Brewing

Production & Heritage

Cigar City Brewing operates out of Tampa, Florida, a city historically synonymous with the cigar trade. Maduro's malt bill centers on chocolate malt and a generous proportion of flaked oats — an American twist on the traditional Northern English brown ale template. The oats serve a structural role beyond simple grain character: they impart a silky, full body that meshes the roasted, toasted, and chocolate malt components into a cohesive, layered profile. At 25 IBUs, hop bitterness stays firmly in the background, allowing the malt complexity to drive the beer from start to finish.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Toffee leads the nose, followed by chocolate macaroon sweetness and a faint undercurrent of roasted grain. As the beer warms, dried fruit and a subtle tobacco-like earthiness emerge.

Taste: The entry is semi-sweet chocolate and brown sugar, with almond and caramel developing across the mid-palate. Deeper flavors of oatmeal, cola, and roasted coffee appear as the malt profile unfolds, supported by hints of root beer barrel candy and nutshell bitterness that add dimension without harshness.

Finish: Dry and surprisingly clean for a beer this malt-forward, with lingering notes of coffee grounds and a whisper of sweet tobacco. The oat-driven body keeps the mouthfeel smooth right through the close.

How to Drink Maduro

Maduro is best served at cellar temperature, around 50–55°F, in a tulip glass or English pint to let its malt aromatics open up fully. While this is fundamentally a drinking beer rather than a cocktail ingredient, it works in several beer-forward mixed drinks. A Brown Ale Float pairs Maduro's chocolate and toffee notes with vanilla ice cream for a rich dessert serve. A Beer-a-Misu cocktail — brown ale shaken with coffee liqueur and cream — plays off the roasted, espresso-like backbone. And a simple Boilermaker alongside a pour of bourbon amplifies the caramel and toasted grain notes shared by both.

Best For

• Cool-weather evening sessions when lighter styles feel out of season
• Introducing craft beer drinkers to malt-forward styles beyond pale ales and IPAs
• Pairing with a backyard barbecue or smoked meats
• Building a mixed six-pack gift for a brown ale or porter enthusiast

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Maduro taste like? Maduro delivers semi-sweet chocolate, toffee, brown sugar, and almond flavors wrapped in a silky oat-driven body, finishing dry with coffee grounds and subtle tobacco character.

How does Maduro compare to Firestone Walker Velvet Merlin? Velvet Merlin is an oatmeal stout that tends darker and more roast-forward, while Maduro is a brown ale with a lighter body and more emphasis on toffee and chocolate sweetness over char. Both use oats to build mouthfeel, but Maduro sits at a more sessionable 5.5% ABV.

Is Maduro good for beginners? Yes — its 5.5% ABV, low 25 IBU bitterness, and approachable chocolate-and-toffee sweetness make it an excellent entry point for drinkers exploring darker beer styles for the first time.

Where is Maduro made? Maduro is brewed by Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, Florida. The brewery draws its identity from Tampa's historic Ybor City cigar district, and Maduro's name references the dark maduro tobacco wrapper leaf.

What foods pair well with Maduro? Smoked brisket or pulled pork complements the roasted malt and toffee notes. Dark chocolate desserts echo the beer's cocoa character. Sharp cheddar or aged Gouda stands up to the malt richness. Pecan pie mirrors the nutty, caramel undertones. Mole-sauced dishes share Maduro's layered chocolate-and-spice complexity.

What sizes does Maduro come in? Maduro is commonly available in six-packs of 12 oz cans and is also found on draft at select locations.

Is Maduro worth the price? Maduro positions as a flagship craft brown ale at a standard six-pack price point, and its GABF Gold Medal pedigree delivers strong value relative to other award-winning craft offerings in the category.

Why Maduro?

A Great American Beer Festival Gold Medal is not awarded lightly, and Maduro earned that recognition by doing something genuinely uncommon — building a brown ale with enough malt depth and textural complexity to hold the attention of seasoned craft drinkers while remaining approachable at 5.5% ABV. The flaked oats in the malt bill are the key differentiator, creating a silky body that binds chocolate, toffee, and roasted grain into a unified whole rather than a series of disconnected flavors. In a market crowded with hop-driven styles, Maduro stands as one of the strongest arguments for what malt-forward brewing can achieve when executed with precision.