Bolivar Libertadores RE \'06 (Edicion Regional Review #6)

[Mike33]

This is the last of the '06 RE in this series that I will review. There is one other RE still out there that I haven't been able to get my hands on, and that is the Punch Superfinos from Italy. This has been fun for me to do and I want to thank BobbyRitz for generously gifting 5 of these to me. Also thanks to rob300c for setting me up with the Punch SR. Hopefully I will get the chance to review all the '07 RE once they hit the market ;-)

The Libertadores is a large ass smoke. 6.5 by 54....essentially a Bolivar Sublime. Very nice wrapper and great construction. I clip the cap and test the draw; perfect. Very nice pepper notes on the dry puff. I light the cigar and take deep puffs to get this behemoth to smolder. Very thick and textured smoke to it. Not overly harsh right away, but the is a little bite to it that does not come from the spice. Lots of wood and earth to this cigar in the first inch or so. Light notes of pepper also; very peculiar earthy flavor hits me about the inch and a half mark. I liken it to dry leaves, but with a creamy undertone. Confused? Yea, me too. Lol!

The cigar is medium bodied throughout with a long finish. I don't know if I said it before, but to me, a cigar with a long finish gets extra points even if its not "all there" in terms of flavor. The flavor is essentially the same with some nutty and coffee notes here and there. Not overly complex at this point, but a good smoke nonetheless. The Boli has a lovely aroma to it that is unique in my experience. Very floral and pronounced. As the cigar reaches around half-way, it gets away from it's earthiness and becomes a little more mild and sweet. Not a whole lot in the way of bitterness at this point, just too "green."

Still not a whole lot of complexity noted in the cigar. Somewhat sweet like before, but getting more spice as the smoke gets down to the last couple of inches. Very long finish towards the end and the burn and draw remain great. I did have to re-light it about halfway as it almost went out, but besides that. the burn as been good. I smoke it down to the last inch or so before letting it go out. I did not detect any bitterness in the end, but it was obvious the cigar is too young.

Overall: 89 with good prospects for the future. I think this cigar is fairly good right now, not very complex however. It is certainly more enjoyable than the Colosales imo. I also think that it will age very well. Not sure how much these went for, but a good investment if around a $15 smoke.

Concerning the '06 REs, I think HSA has done very well with their offerings. There are some cigars that are fantastic right now: PL Lonsdale, RA Estupendos, JL Obus. And the Punch SR and Bolivar Libertadores will be fantastic smokes down the road. The only one I am dissapointed in is the Bolivar Colosales. Granted, these are all imo and I only smoked one cigar of each. Price/value wise.....the RA and PL are the best buys imo. Thanks again to both Robs for hooking me up with these smokes!

[El Presidente]

Excellent review on an excellent series of reviews. I took particular note of your "Long Finish" description.

How do you define a "Long Finish" on a cigar. The reason I ask is that I have clients who smoke only "Cohiba Rousto" because it leaves little aftertaste.

My definition of a long finish is one where the flavours of the cigar linger on the palate.

[TR]

I'd like to try one of those.......:-)

[stever]

Great review. I found this '06 Regional to be one of the more immediately smokeable.

[Mike33]

» Excellent review on an excellent series of reviews. I took particular note

» of your "Long Finish" description.

»

» How do you define a "Long Finish" on a cigar. The reason I ask is that I

» have clients who smoke only "Cohiba Rousto" because it leaves little

» aftertaste.

»

» My definition of a long finish is one where the flavours of the cigar

» linger on the palate.

Exactly....the longer the flavors linger, the better. And I'm not talking about that any bitterness or that morning after taste, I'm talking about how long after you take a puff do the flavors stay with you.

Funny about the Cohiba, it has a fairly long finish imo. Actually, almost all Cohibas do to me :-)

[tigger]

» Funny about the Cohiba, it has a fairly long finish imo.

In mine as well.

Nice review(s) Mike!

[Mr.T]

Great review and picutres! I had to hold myself back from buying some in Paris over the summer. Luckily, my wife was with me so it was not a problem..."you can't possibly smoke something that big!!"

Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the regular line Bolis? I guess my question would be, I'm not sure how much HSA messes around with the blends when it comes to the REs vs. blends from the regular line up.

Also is that a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in the background

...hmmmm...yummy!!!:-)

I've got to stop reading these reviews at work.

[Mike33]

» Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the

» regular line Bolis?

Not to me. It was very similar to other bolivars I have had in the past....however, the sweetness associated with it is unusual. The general earthiness and woodiness were very noticeable.

» Also is that a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in the background

Yes! and man was it good.....:-D

[Stalebread]

» Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the

» regular line Bolis? I guess my question would be, I'm not sure how much HSA messes around with the blends when it comes to the REs vs. blends from the regular line up.

Then my follow-up question would be:

How does the Libertador compare with the Bolivar Colosales, released in Germany the same year? The only outward difference I can see is that the Libertador is a 54 RG while the Colosales is a mere 50. (I'm pretty sure I have the ring gauges right.)

[Mike33]

» » Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the

» » regular line Bolis? I guess my question would be, I'm not sure how much

» HSA messes around with the blends when it comes to the REs vs. blends from

» the regular line up.

»

» Then my follow-up question would be:

» How does the Libertador compare with the Bolivar Colosales, released in

» Germany the same year? The only outward difference I can see is that the

» Libertador is a 54 RG while the Colosales is a mere 50. (I'm pretty sure I

» have the ring gauges right.)

Here is my review of the Colosales:

[link=http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/board_entry.php?id=53961#p53961]Link[/link]

The Colosales was very bland and tasted nothing like any other Bolivar I have had. It may have been off, in a sick period, whatever, just didn't do it for me. I know there are several people who love the Colosales right now.....so, take it with a grain of salt.

[Colt45]

Thanks for the review - it looks like a monster of a cigar!

[greenpimp]

Thanks for the review. I've got one of those I'm saving.

[Claudius]

» » Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the

» » regular line Bolis?

»

» Not to me. It was very similar to other bolivars I have had in the

» past....however, the sweetness associated with it is unusual. The general

» earthiness and woodiness were very noticeable.

I find the Libertadores have something more than the usual Bolivar profile. They have a slight grassiness and those bean flavo(u)rs, some coffee that I associate with Cohiba. I find that they resemble a Cohiba profile in the first third and then turn into a Bolivar profile. It's the ER I like best together with the Estupendos. The colosales is a mild and flat roll in comparison.

[Ginseng]

» » » Do you feel the Libertadores has a different flavor profile from the

» » » regular line Bolis? I guess my question would be, I'm not sure how

» much

» » HSA messes around with the blends when it comes to the REs vs. blends

» from

» » the regular line up.

» »

» » Then my follow-up question would be:

» » How does the Libertador compare with the Bolivar Colosales, released in

» » Germany the same year? The only outward difference I can see is that

» the

» » Libertador is a 54 RG while the Colosales is a mere 50. (I'm pretty sure

» I

» » have the ring gauges right.)

»

» Here is my review of the Colosales:

»

» [link=http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/board_entry.php?id=53961#p53961]Link[/link]

»

» The Colosales was very bland and tasted nothing like any other Bolivar I

» have had. It may have been off, in a sick period, whatever, just didn't

» do it for me. I know there are several people who love the Colosales

» right now.....so, take it with a grain of salt.

Yep,

I'm one of those guys who's been smoking and enjoying the Colosales. I've found it to have a sweet, mild flavor, and a sort of cookie-ness. Without a doubt one of the more mellow and uncharacteristic Bolivars I've smoked but enjoyable in its own right.

Very nice review, Mike!

Wilkey