2019-2020 BBF

[mwaller]

Curious to hear your opinion of recent BBF.  I've had several boxes from 2015-2017, and I've found them to be a bit burnt and bitter tasting.  Recent BPC have been superb - smooth and rich from the get-go.  Are recent BBF anything like this?

[havanaclub]

My 17 ETP box has been crap too. Looking for a 19-20 box as well. Interested to see what people say.


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[JoeyBones777]

I've only had 1 example from 2019 but it was creamy leather, earth and stout. One of the best BBF I've had. I'm looking to get a box of 19's or 20's myself.

[NSXCIGAR]

General consensus has been very positive on 18-20 BBF. I personally am not impressed with them (and haven't been for the better part of a decade) but I'm in the minority.

 

[CountingStogies]

13 minutes ago, NSXCIGAR said:

General consensus has been very positive on 18-20 BBF. I personally am not impressed with them (and haven't been for the better part of a decade) but I'm in the minority.

 

That's concerning to hear. I've been waiting for a PSP box of BBF to come back around for my next purchase. Can you add any info as to why you haven't been impressed for a long while with them? I have only had a couple of BBFs spread out over the years so I do not have a measuring board for them. 

[JohnS]

2 hours ago, JoeyBones777 said:

I've only had 1 example from 2019 but it was creamy leather, earth and stout. One of the best BBF I've had. I'm looking to get a box of 19's or 20's myself.

You might only have had one, but this sums up their consistency in terms of flavour, for me. Bolivar is a marca I struggle with normally but 2019-20 BBF has been outstanding for me across a number of box codes (MSU Abr 2018, LMB Feb 2019, MSU May 2019).

[Rhinoww]

I had a few fivers and six packs from our host. I have enjoyed the 18 and 19 enough to pick up four boxes from our host over the past 8 months, my last purchase was in mid June. All have looked and smelled great, all but the nearly finished first box have been put aside for now. 
 

And one code that made me laugh SOR DIC 19, so you might get that as well. 
 

I have shared my open box w a few of my cigar buddies all of whom smoke CC. They all either really enjoyed the smoke or raved and bought a box. 

But what do they say, past performance is no guarantee of future success
 

[SmokyFontaine]

I've got a 2018 box, and I love the profile. Had a few more relights than I'd prefer, and in large part I could tell bunching was a little inconsistent (underfilled), but flavortown was a hit. As someone who smokes a lot of NC's too, I see it as a bit of a crossover stick. Fuller bodied, dark leather, and drop dead sexy to look at. 

[NSXCIGAR]

1 hour ago, CalStogie said:

That's concerning to hear. I've been waiting for a PSP box of BBF to come back around for my next purchase. Can you add any info as to why you haven't been impressed for a long while with them? I have only had a couple of BBFs spread out over the years so I do not have a measuring board for them. 

If you've generally liked BBF since 09 you should be fine. Again, I am in the vast minority. I just find them muddled and one sided. I like the earth and raisin of the old Boli which you can very occasionally still find in the BCJ. The BBF is just kind of like a wall of Guinness/Leather to me, and I also wouldn't call the favors "rich" in the traditional sense. It's an odd bird to me. I find RASS to be a similar experience. Muddled, one-sided. 

To me, BBF is about the same as it's always been since 09. 07-08 were the last ones I enjoyed and I didn't think they were really that spectacular even then.

But again, I stress--I'm in the minority on this one as I am with the RASS.

[CountingStogies]

Thank you for the details @NSXCIGAR I appreciate it. I never had any old Bolivars (I think 2011 era is the first I tried) and I didn't mind it. Funny you mention Guinness, I would agree, and I didn't find it unpleasant. Since I only sporadically had any Boli's over the years (I don't think I was blown away by any of them but I enjoyed it each time) I figured I might as well get a PSP box and have that be my standard. 

I really prefer to judge a cigar after I have a proper box versus me smoking the occasional single over the years. I get to spend time with them and see how (or if in some cases) they progress. 

[patrickamory]

On 8/3/2020 at 2:27 PM, JoeyBones777 said:

I've only had 1 example from 2019 but it was creamy leather, earth and stout. 

ENE 21 is smoking like this too!

[SCgarman]

On 8/3/2020 at 6:22 PM, NSXCIGAR said:

If you've generally liked BBF since 09 you should be fine. Again, I am in the vast minority. I just find them muddled and one sided. I like the earth and raisin of the old Boli which you can very occasionally still find in the BCJ. The BBF is just kind of like a wall of Guinness/Leather to me, and I also wouldn't call the favors "rich" in the traditional sense. It's an odd bird to me. I find RASS to be a similar experience. Muddled, one-sided. 

To me, BBF is about the same as it's always been since 09. 07-08 were the last ones I enjoyed and I didn't think they were really that spectacular even then.

But again, I stress--I'm in the minority on this one as I am with the RASS.

How do you compare the BBF to the BRC? Any similarity? Or a different animal?

[El Presidente]

3 minutes ago, NYgarman said:

How do you compare the BBF to the BRC? Any similarity? Or a different animal?

Different animals. 

BRC brings a big hit of cocoa powder to the party and it is two shades lighter in body. 

[SCgarman]

2 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Different animals. 

BRC brings a big hit of cocoa powder to the party and it is two shades lighter in body. 

I have burned through boxes of BRC since the TEB08 codes. But never pulled the trigger on the BBF. Also enjoy the BPC.

[El Presidente]

21 minutes ago, NYgarman said:

I have burned through boxes of BRC since the TEB08 codes. But never pulled the trigger on the BBF. Also enjoy the BPC.

In the main, the BBF strips away any real aspect of sweetness that you receive in the BRC and the BPC.

In another thread on matching, I paired the BBF with Pedro Ximinez. The reason they work so well is that they are polar flavour opposites. 

[NSXCIGAR]

4 hours ago, NYgarman said:

How do you compare the BBF to the BRC? Any similarity? Or a different animal?

As Rob notes, totally different animals. 

I don't think it would be out of line to say that it would be easy for someone to smoke both and think they were two different brands. 

Personally I think the BRC is the outlier in the lineup. BPC, BCJ and BT2/3 are much more aligned with the BBF than the BRC is, although the Libertadores to my taste might be a bit closer to the BRC. 

3 hours ago, Lord Verulam said:

I second muddled …a bit dirty tasting with flashes of something sweet but mostly earth dirty leather

Pretty standard fare for the BBF in my experience.

Interestingly, I find the BBF and RyJ Beli to be very similar. I think Rob's acknowledged the similarities in them as well. Not surprisingly, I don't like either of them.

[El Presidente]

I love the "I get it" I "dont get it " polls 

remarkably consistent!  65-70% of people will generally like a cigar. Around 35% won't. It really doesn;t matter what the cigar is. 

Palates differ. Smoking psychology as well. So it should be!

 

 

 

[moneyneversleeps]

I have a box of BBF UMR Nov 20.  I haven't sampled yet.  Trying to wait 60 days  

[Juliano88]

I have a JUL 20 box and they're smoking beautifully. Very sweet and really no kick to them. A lot of Citrus, lemon grass and almost like a peach cream note to them.