Bolivar Armonia (ER China 2008) - Halfwheel review

[JohnS]

Halfwheel may have diminished their number of Habanos cigar reviews in 2023 (and understandably so, given the current situation of things), but the first week of January traditionally sees them bring out a review on a special release that is unique and more interesting than the average cigar review. The first one, this week, on the Bolivar Armonia, a Chinese Regional Edition from 2008, which I personally mistake with the special release 2011 Bolivar Distinguidos (brought out in those infamous ceramic jars) has just been published. The review notes that the 2017 5th Avenue Regional Edition Bolivar Tesoro had the same Salomones dimensions (i.e. 57 ring gauge x 184 mm or 7¼ inches length), but it had its differences too. (The image below is courtesy of Cuban Cigar Website.)

 

 

BOLÍVAR ARMONÍA (ER CHINA 2008)

When visitors stop by halfwheel’s office, the cigar box that most likely gets asked about is the Bolívar Armonía.

It’s part of Habanos S.A.’s Edición Regional series, a collection of hundreds of different releases split between various Cuban cigar lines. The basic premise is that Habanos S.A. allows distributors to commission an exclusive, limited edition cigar for a country or region. For Edición Regional releases, the cigars use a vitola that is currently active in the Habanos S.A. portfolio, but not made for a brand, though there have been times when discontinued cigars have been used for Edición Regional releases. There are other rules, such as which brands can be used—Cohiba, Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta and others cannot—and distributors are now restricted to just one release per year, though the cigars oftentimes do not ship in the year that they are commissioned for. The Edición Regional series launched in 2005 and the Armonía was released when there were fewer rules around the then-less established Edición Regional program.

With a few exceptions, the cigars share one similar attribute: a red secondary band is added that says Edición Regional and then the name of the country, region or distributor the cigar was made for. Beyond that, the packaging can vary wildly. There have been 10-count boxes, 25-count boxes, 50-count boxes and even jars. However, one Edición Regional box stands out as the most unique: the Bolívar Armonía.

For those unfamiliar with Chinese culture, the number eight—pronounced ba—is considered lucky because it sounds close to fa, a word used to describe prosperity. In 2008, Infifon HK Ltd.—the distributor of Cuban cigars in mainland China—commissioned the Bolívar Armonia, a 7 1/4 x 57 salomón vitola.

Read more: https://halfwheel.com/bolivar-armonia-er-china-2008-2/433112/

Profile at Cuban Cigar Website: https://www.cubancigarwebsite.com/cigar/bolivar/edicion-regional-china

Contemporaneous FoH forum links of the Bolivar Armonia : 

 

Last Year's Early-2023 Special Edition Release Halfwheel Reviews: 

La Escepcion Selectos Finos Edicion Regional ITALIA (2011)

Hoyo de Monterrey Double Coronas Gran Reserva Cosecha 2013

[Glass Half Full]

Thanks for this helpful reminder John.  Halfwheel's "Holy Grail" cigar reviews are a fun part of the month of January!  Always some amazing ones (and a few duds) to learn from.  Much appreciated, 

[JohnS]

Thank you @Glass Half Full. Although, almost immediately after posting this topic, the guys at Halfwheel indicated that the 'Holy Grail Week tradition' may be coming to an end. I think the feasibility of continuing with reviews for Cuban cigars in the same way they did in the past is not the same, hence the reason, I would say.

https://halfwheel.com/truth-in-24-programming-notes/433095/

[Glass Half Full]

8 hours ago, JohnS said:

Thank you @Glass Half Full. Although, almost immediately after posting this topic, the guys at Halfwheel indicated that the 'Holy Grail Week tradition' may be coming to an end. I think the feasibility of continuing with reviews for Cuban cigars in the same way they did in the past is not the same, hence the reason, I would say.

https://halfwheel.com/truth-in-24-programming-notes/433095/

Yes.  I saw that earlier today after enjoying your post.  ...Maybe the Moderators of FOH should continue the tradition?!?