I have never had a flavour infused cigar, I have always avoided them based on the advice I have received in the last couple of years, however the idea of infused cigars that drew on types of “Coffee” was too much to resist, especially as they are by Oliva and I am a big fan of their cigars. A kind BOTL offered to source some for me and I now have some of these interesting sticks resting in the Humidor.
Bit of a “job lot” here, a selection of NC singles. The great thing about a job lot of singles is you get to try cigars you have not had before, and if you like them, buy more, if you dont , well you have not wasted a fortune!
Its always an occasion when you get an entire box of cigars delivered, there is something about opening that wooden box, peeling back the paper to see the cigars nestling inside, and then the smell….. wonderful….
I was luck enough as part of a group order to get my hands on a box of Oliva Churchills for a really good price, I liked these when I reviewed them, they are a nice medium strength cigar, and will be perfect for those long summer evenings paired with an iced coffee….
I always have to have some Serie V in the humidor, so just did a little re-stocking
Next on the list of cigars I brought back was a box of Oliva Serie V Melanio. As you may know from my reviews I really love the Serie V range, and although I have not published a review yet, when I had one earlier in the year the Melanio really hit the spot, so a box of 10 came home with me.
I just love the box, the packing inside is very good to look at and seems to protect the cigars really well…
Yet again another Oliva cigar review, I am a little worried that if I keep smoking and reviewing Oliva cigars then there will not be much variety in my reviews. However Oliva cigars constantly hit the spot for me, so here we are again with another Oliva review.
Appearance 9.0/10
My picture taking skills seem to be getting better, which is lucky as you can now appreciate just how good looking this cigar is. The cigar is a wonderful dark chocolate in colour, the slight box press gives a very nice shape to the cigar, the band is a work of art its very detailed and the printing is excellent.
Construction & Draw 9.0/10
As with most Oliva cigars the construction is excellent, the wrapper is a little toothy, but it had a nice oily sheen, and had only a few very small veins. There were no soft or hard spots on the cigar, and it was well packed with tobacco. Cap construction was pretty much perfect, and I got a very clean cut from my Palio cutter. Even before I cut the cigar there was a musty chocolate smell to the stick, the pre light draw tasted pretty much the same.
The draw on this cigar was a little tight to begin with, this might be due to the box press, but once I was about half an inch in the draw opened up. The burn line on the cigar was pretty good for the entire length, it did have a couple of wobbles, but these did correct themselves pretty quickly, and did not require any intervention.
Flavour 9.0/10
The cigar kicks off with white pepper and spice, which is similar to the Serie V but not quite so intense, there are also strong notes of cocoa and chocolate. As the cigar progressed I also detected a hint of coffee and about half way a detectable note of vanilla, the pepper backed of a little but was always present, helping to highlight the different flavours.
For me this was a very smooth and rich cigar, it was medium to medium full in strength throughout, when I reached the last third there was a hint of nut, and the spice picked up a little, but the cigar still remained very “smooth and creamy” overall.
Value 8.5/10
As a single these retail at around 9 USD, I think that at this price this cigar offers good value for money. I would have given this cigar a higher score, but I think that although it sits between the Serie V and the recent Serie V Melanio in price, it does not offer as good value for money as the basic Serie V.
Summary 8.5/10
Another Oliva cigar that hit the spot, to me this tasted very similar to the Serie V which I love, but it was a little less intense, had less pepper and spice, but was still nice and rich, which made it a slightly more relaxing cigar. This cigar could have been a 9 or 9.5 if it was a little cheaper, and did not have a slightly wobbly burn.
For me this cigar makes an almost perfect “every day” Oliva cigar (if a little expensive), as it has all the qualities I like in the Oliva brand, but is a little smoother, I may well be getting some more of these, as I can see myself reaching for them regularly.
Two Oliva cigar reviews in a row, anyone would think that I like Oliva cigars, oh wait I do ! I have not seen this cigar for sale in the UK, this stick was gifted to me by my very generous American friend, along with the items in my last post.
This is a connecticut wrapper which is a departure from the rest of the Oliva cigars I have smoked, and as such I am expecting this to be quite a mild stick.
Appearance 9.5/10
As always with Oliva cigars the construction is near perfect, you can see from the picture how good this cigar looks. The wrapper is a lovely light to medium brown, with very few veins, the band is simple yet effective. All in all a very classy looking cigar.
Construction & Draw 9.5/10
The construction of this cigar matches its looks, the wrapper is near perfect, no marks or blemishes, the cap construction is perfect. I thought this cigar was going to get a 10 for construction but there was one soft spot about 2/3 of the way down the stick, whilst it was only a little softer, and quite small, it just stops this being a 10/10 cigar for construction and draw.
As expected I got a very clean cut, and the draw was pretty much spot on, sometimes I find long and medium gauge cigars like Churchills or Double Corona’s can have a slightly tight draw due to their length/gauge, but this was near perfect. The burn line on this cigar was absolutely perfect.
Flavour 8.0/10
This is a light to medium strength cigar, the pre-light draw had some pepper and spice, with a note of cocoa. The initial inch reflected the pre-light draw with some pepper and spice, after this the cigar settled and I detected hints of vanilla, a slight sweetness, and a nutty note.
I would describe the general flavour profile as creamy and smooth, in the last third of the cigar the nutty note became more pronounced, as did the vanilla, the pepper and spice also returned as I got close to the nub. Whilst this cigar did have some flavour transitions, this is not the most complex cigar in the world, it is not packed with lots of different flavours, but the ones it has are very pleasant.
Value 9.0/10
Around 6 USD this cigar represents excellent value for money. Getting a good Churchill cigar for this price is impressive, getting a really good Churchill cigar, that is fantastically constructed, with a perfect draw and burn, and a very good flavour profile is quite an achievement, and thats why it gets 9.0/10.
Summary 9.0/10
I really liked this cigar, the conneticut wrapper makes a nice change from the Habano Sun Grown wrappers on most of the other Oliva cigars I have enjoyed, and from time to time a more gentle light to medium cigar hits the spot.
This cigar ticks all the boxes, great price, great construction and draw, the only thing for me that stops this being a 10 is the flavour profile is a little static. All in all a cracking cigar and one I would have in my humidor again.
I am a big fan of Oliva cigars, with the Serie V Belicoso being one of my all time favourite sticks, so I was really looking forward to this cigar. Its been in my humidor for a while and was purchased in the UK, so I will rate its value in terms of the UK market.
Appearance 9.5/10
Oliva seem to have the knack of producing great looking cigars, as with the Serie V Belicoso this cigar just looks great. There are very few veins, and those it does have are very small, the wrapper is a lovely mid to dark brown color and nice and oily, the band is simple yet sophisticated. Overall this cigar is great to hold due to its size and length, and lovely to look at.
Construction & Draw 7.0/10
This construction of this cigar is truly excellent, the wrapper is beautiful, there are no soft spots and the stick is packed with tobacco. The cap construction is almost perfect, and my Palio cuter gave me a razor sharp cut line on the cap. Draw was pretty much spot on, with just enough resistance, the burn line was razor sharp and straight.
So why only a score of 7.0 for construction, well around 2/3 of the way through this cigar no matter what I did it kept going out. Normally you can re-light a cigar a few times, but as it was almost impossible to keep the cigar burning the flavours started to get bitter, so I let the stick die.
Flavor 8.0/10
The cigar kicked off with quite a bit of spice, about 1/2 an inch in it settled down and I could then detect some vanilla and sweet tones. The flavour profile changed again around half way through, when a note of leather was added, and then around 2/3 of the way through the spice reappeared and there was an additional note of leather.
Value 8.0/10
In the UK this cigar retails at around 16 GBP, in the USA these can be had for around 7 USD (around 5 GBP) which just shows you how much tax we pay in this country. Still I am reviewing this at the GBP price. The look, construction, burn and flavour profile, in UK terms justifies the asking price, as you get around 1.5 to 2 hours pleasure from this stick.
Summary 8.0/10
I was really expecting this stick to be a great smoke, and to be fair the first 2/3 of this stick were a great smoke. What I was not expecting from an Oliva cigar, especially one where the construction looks so perfect, was to experience issues keeping the stick burning.
I have to say that this did tarnish my view of this cigar somewhat, but I have tried to be fair in my overall score, so I have dropped a point and a half, if I had experienced no issues then I would say this would be a 9.0. I may well try one again in the future, and if has no burn issues I will increase my score…
Tonight its a little cold so I have reached for a small quick smoke, I picked these up a while back with the hope that being from Oliva they would be a nice little stick for winter evenings.
Appearance 8.0/10
This is a good looking little cigar, as you can see from the picture it has a dark wrapper with small veins, is slightly mottled, and has a nice oily sheen. There are no visible seams, and as with all Oliva cigars the band is very good looking.
Construction & Draw 7.0/10
The cigar is well packed with tobacco, there were not hard or soft spot, and the cap construction was very good. Sometimes the draw on small ring gauge cigars (this is a 38 ring gauge cigar) can be a little tight, and unfortunately this is the case with this cigar. The draw say quite tight for the first third of the cigar, only opening up around half way. The burn line was very good, and required no touch ups.
Flavour 7.5/10
The pre-light draw has a musty flavour, and there is a very small hint of spice. This is a medium strength cigar, and the flavour profile consists of some cocoa, an earthy/musty note that continued throughout the cigar, and the final third had a little more spice and a nutty note.
Value 8.5/10
At 18.99 GBP for a tin of 5 these cigars work out around 3.80 GBP each, as such I think that they represent very good value for money. Once you get over the tight draw they are a pretty good stick ,and far better than anything else I have tried at this price.
Summary 7.5/10
These are a very nice little cigar for when you have 25-30 minutes spare and you want a decent cigar. The construction is pretty good, only the tight draw lets them down, I would say that these are a better cigar than the Cohiba Cubs or other minis, as they are a lot more like smoking a bigger ring gauge cigar.
I think these are very good little sticks for when the weather turns and it gets a lot colder. I would suggest that you look to pick up a tin and see for yourself.
I have been reading around to see if there are some other non Cuban cigars that I should have a look at, especially if they are Torpedo or Belicoso profile, as to me these seem to have the best draw.
A number of reviews on-line drew me to the Oliva Serie V Belicoso, and as this cigar has just made number 18 in the top 25 cigars of 2012 according to Cigar Aficiando then it looks like the reviews were correct.
Read on to see what I thought of this Cigar…
Appearance 9.5/10
The first thing that strikes you about this cigar is how pretty it is. There are almost no veins, and those it does have are very small, the wrapper is a lovely mid brown color and nice and oily, the band is probably one of the best I have seen. Overall this cigar is great to hold, and lovely to look at.
Construction & Draw 9.0/10
As mentioned earlier the construction of this cigar is fantastic, it feels great between your fingers. You really have to study this stick up close to appreciate just how well constructed it is, I am pretty sure I have not seen a more expertly constructed cigar. When I toasted the foot of this stick I was greeted with a fantastic aroma, and I found the draw on this cigar to be absolutely perfect.
Flavor 9.5/10
This is I believe supposed to be a medium to full cigar, I would suggest that this is a full flavour cigar, as it did kick me a little towards the end. I had expected this to be a 45 – 60 minute smoke, but in the end it took around 70 minutes to finish this stick, I think if I had tried to smoke it quicker it would have kicked me harder.
The flavours in this cigar are divine, yes it has that peppery kick that you would expect, but its quite subtle and adds a cleanness to the overall flavour. What was striking is the clarity of the other flavours, I could really pick up chocolate with a touch of liquorice in the first third, chocolate and leather in the second, and in the last third I picked up a smooth vanilla tone.
Value 9.5/10
I wish that cigars in the UK were closer to their US prices, as this would make this stick around 5 GBP which would be an obscene bargain (and as I did purchase this at US prices it was a bargain for me!). However in the UK this stick is still only around 10 GBP, to me in the context of UK cigar prices this still makes this cigar exceptional value for money. All those flavours, the construction, and 70 minutes of smoking bliss for 10 GBP, what more could you ask!
Summary 10/10
I could not work out if I should give this a 9.5 or a 10, but having thought about it I think this is a solid 10. This stick ticked all the boxes and gave me so much more than I was expecting. I really did spend 70 perfect minutes in this cigars company, the fact that this only cost 10 GBP, just made it all the more special.
Bottom line I loved this cigar, I cant wait to get some more in my humidor, I would like to get a box of 25 but I dont have room in my humidor. Although for this cigar I am tempted to get a second humidor, its that good!
UK Cigarnewbie 