Okay so I after receiving some bad news that put me in a pretty messed up mood. I came home to my wife and two year old daughter, who always makes me feel better. My daughter greets me as her hero every day; even when life has beaten me down it does wonders for my spirits.
So after having a couple of Mojitos with my wife. I decided to take one for the team and smoke my first Oliva Serie V Maduro. Here’s the rundown:
Pre-Light:
The cigar was firm throughout no soft spots at all. The wrapper was a medium brown with few variations in color and very small veins. The draw was free with very little resistance. On the cold taste I could pick up a kind of light cocoa taste with a slight hint of spice.
First Third:
I used a soft flame lighter and the cigar lit very easily. That cocoa and spice hit me right away … I literally rocked back into my seat it caught me so off guard. Just a few draws into the cigar I could tell it was going to be a strong one. I got plenty of smoke out of each draw. There was a bit of a floral taste starting to take over from the cocoa around an inch in. Which reminded me on the Rocky Patel Decade, but those elements were better balanced in the V maduro. The burn line was very thin and the ash a firm light grey. The retro-hale was at first spicy and then on the very next retro- hale (back to back) it was completely smooth no spice … Weird.
Second Third:
I had a great looking 2 ½ inch ash going … So I thought I would take a picture. With that thought the ash dropped right on my jacket. The strength of the cigar seemed to be leveling out a somewhat. I could taste a little ligero now … I could not in the first third. There was a consistent cocoa, herbal taste now with an undertone of cedar and spice. The retro- hale was producing more spice than before. The resting smoke though aromatic will burn the noses of innocent bystanders that get too close. The burn line wavered at times but it never got too bad. At two inches the ash dropped on me again. Let that serve as a warning for those of you that smoke indoors.
Final Third:
The cigar got smoother as time went on. Though it was still strong it was noticeably less than in the beginning of the cigar. I pair the cigar with Flor De Cana 4 Year Rum on the rocks with a bit of lime. The drink is not a very bold one and it does a great job at cleansing my palate after a few puffs on the cigar. The cocoa flavors faded to the background leaving a more cedar and spice. Then in the very next puff the cocoa was back to join the spice … This cigar shifts gears with no warning.
Overall:
I enjoyed this cigar. It is defiantly one not to be attempted on an empty stomach or first thing in the morning. Though the flavors are not terribly complex, the cigar does have a lot of transitions in it. This made for a very interesting smoke. I was supposed to post this last night but after Mojitos, more Rum and the cigar my focus was a bit off. I paid $9.32 for mine and got three. I try to stay under the $6.50 range. But this was a one I couldn’t pass up the chance to try. I can promise you the remaining two will not be smoked in 2008. I would recommend everyone try the Oliva V Maduro at least once. Oliva hits it out of the park once again.
I bought a box of 10 of these because the regular “V” is so great. The first one I had was wonderful: flavorful, good-burning, and very strong. The had my second one Tuesday and was very disappointed. It had a very difficult draw from the beginning and nothing I did seemed to loosen it up. This caused a tar buildup as I got into the second half of the stick and by the end of the second third, the flavor had gone to crap, so I let it go. The whole experience was bad with the heavy puffing to make the thing draw, the harshness of the smoke, and the tarry taste. Here’s hoping it’s the only bum smoke in the box!
Happy thanksgiving!
I’ve been lurking around for quite a while now, I always look forward to each days post! Great site guys
good review… but I was hoping for something new this week. Isn’t this a repeat of a few weeks ago?
ps… the user review last week was also a repeat…
sorry to be a downer, but you ask for comments 🙂
Jamie,
Thank for your input. The comment you made on the original article was written by myself and included picture and video. This is a review which was pulled from the fan forums. As far as I know this is the only time it has been posted.
I got a message last week about the repeat review, by that time it had been up for some time and didn’t make sense to pull down. I’ve looked through the guest review posts and I don’t see this showing up twice. If I am mistaken I would appreciate a link to the original review by Marcian.
More on your other comment. We do not instruct the forum regulars to only reviews cigars which have not been covered on the front page and feel that it is good to have more than one opinion on a given cigar. We select a review from the pool and publish it here on the front page. We like to spread the writing around a bit and not place reviews by the same author on the front page back to back, unless we can’t help it.
In this case I selected a review that I enjoyed reading and presented it to the readers of Stogie Review for enjoyment. Pictures are not a requirement, some may have them while others may not, That is the beauty of a guest review, you never know what the final result may or may not include. We have had reviews like this, which have only been text, we have had reviews with photos, and we have even had guest reviews with video.
Again, thank you for your input. I’ll be sure to put up a review with plenty of pictures for next weeks guest review. I’ll do my best to make sure it is a cigar that we have not covered in the past
-Walt
Your right Walt, this isn’t a “repeat” perse but really just comenting on the repeat of the cigar. I had seen your review.
I know you do the best you can, it just struck me funny that last there was a repeated post, and this week a repeated cigar. I like hearing others views on sticks, but I’m used to (particularly here) to seeing the comments being where that is done.
I’m not really what you would call a regular, but I do check in everynow and then and It just caught my attention is all, and was concerned.
Thanks for clarifying Walt!
and apologies to Marcian…I meant no offense.
Nicely done Marcian!
I had a similar experience as dmJones with the sap buildup… but a quick clip fixes a lot of things.
I like these, but not so much as to go combing the earth for them. I think they need some time to age, and then… they could be a classic smoke. I just re-visited the Liga and I liked it much much better. So I’ll be letting the remainder of my box sit for a few months then hit it up again.
again nice job Marcian!