A couple of Reviews I have been meaning to get in

[ChanceSchmerr]

Here's a couple of reviews of cigars I received as gifts from a good friend......

BOLIVAR BELICOSOS FINOS

Box Date -2007

Location - Kirkland, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. Smoked this on July 15th, ahead of travelling to Portugal. Took a walk along the lake with this cigar.

Look/Feel - A silky wrapper, without much bumpiness. Pre light aroma of toasted tobacco. Firm but not overpacked.

Prelight draw - good draw, spicy tobacco taste!

First puffs - An entertaining taste! This cigar opens with some nice spicy punches, but a sweet note lingers on the palate. I think i'm in for a treat!

First Third - The burn was as sharp as the initial flavour. Pepper notes abound, but the sweetness morphs into a creamy overtone that really complements the cigar's taste. I enjoyed the heck out of this cigar as I strolled along the lake - every puff is pure pleasure!

Middle Third - The pepper has yet to really assert itself. It's there, but it kindly lets the cream notes to finish off each puff, and it works to perfection. Some sweetness is noticable in the cream, but it is intermittent. Interestingly, I can taste a bit of sour fruits, the kind of taste i'd expect from a Punch cigar....but it never lasts long enough to really put my finger on it. Solid construction as the draw remains great.

Final Third - The pepper has had enough, and now comes to the fore with gusto. The cream has receded away, and the sweetness comes out only every few puffs - but this is still a good cigar, and I couldn't be happier with it! The burn is sharp and even right to the end

Overall Thoughts - I've never had much luck with Bolivars - really the only one I've enjoyed has been the Canada RE Simones, same as a lot of others on FOH from the sounds of it. That said - this cigar, if this is an example of one at it's finest - has made me at least a partial convert. It was an excellent smoke, balanced and rich. A joy to smoke! I will be keeping my eye out for a cracker box of these from Czar!

Final score - 92

HOYO DU MAIRE

Box Date - 1999

Location - my Driveway, smoked it during a small birthday get-together with friends.

Look/Feel - this is the tiniest Habanos I've ever smoked! the wrapper is a deep colorado, a little rough to the touch. Aroma of aged sweet tobacco.

Pre-light draw - Effortless.......maybe a little TOO effortless!

First couple of puffs - Astonished at the amount of SMOKE this little cigar is producing - massive clouds of it! The taste is of mild honey and smooth tobacco. No harshness present.

First Third - The smoke continues to billow out with every puff. I smoke this as slow as I can, so as not to overheat it, and I'm rewarded with a continued mild sweetness. The clean tobacco overtone remains - certainly not a complex smoke, but not unpleasant either.

Middle third - It went out once, after I was talking without a puff for around 3 minutes. This was a sign of things to come....The taste meanwhile slowly meanders towards mainly tobacco flavours, as the sweetness packs its bags and leaves. The aged tobacco is now at the forefront, and the smoothness it employs is more than enough to keep me entertained. The burn has been even.

Final Third - A frustrating finale....the little bugger keeps going out, even with less than a minute between puffs! I relight a number of times, but eventually have to give up, as the taste has gone from smooth aged tobacco to just burnt leaves. A real shame - I can't figure out why it's going out so much!

Overall Impressions - Perhaps I smoked it TOO slow at the end...I dunno. In any case, for the majority of the smoke, I enjoyed what it brought to the table. Not overly so - it didn't "wow" me....but there are far worse ways to spend 20 minutes. It left me wondering what flavours it had earlier in it's life - perhaps worth searching out a more recent example. In any case - Not a bad smoke at all....but not one I'd rush out to buy a box of.....

Final score - 86

[Dbone]

Thanks for sharing your experience with these two smokes. I can relate on the BBF, lovely sweet spice. Great review, thanks for the pics.

[dicko]

the BBF is my least favourite bolivar I have tried so far, for me it lacked the sweet earthy charcter i love in bolivars. but I only tried two and i also don't like belicoso shaped cigars. I'm glad you enjoyed yours though!!

I must admit i have necver tried any of the hoyos except for the epicure 1 & 2, an unacceptable situation i know!

thanks for the reviews