Bolivar Short Bolivar - RE Asia Pacific
Friday, November 20th, 2009
The Short Bolivar is one of the latest additions into the long list of regional edition cigars from Bolivar. It was released in 2008 for Pacific Cigar in the Asia & Pacific region. The Short Bolivar is a Petit Edmundo, measuring 4.3″ by 52 ring gauge. 7,400 SLB cabinets of 25 cigars were released last year, making the Short Bolivar the widest available Asia Pacific regional ever!
My first experience with this cigar was a hit a miss. I smoked it in one of our herfs and it failed to grab my attention. However, taking in consideration it had only arrived from a long trip. I gave the second one a chance to climatize in the wet and cold Irish winter for a few weeks before reviewing it.
Appearance 12/15
The Short Bolivar has a brown smooth and very oily wrapper, with minimal veins, and it is covered in brown “freckles”, known as sunspots. The cigar is has a medium bunch without any soft or hard spots. The triple cap is applied perfectly and strong aromas of cedar, cocoa and earth are present in the foot of the cigar.
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Flavour & Body 21/25
The cigar kicks off with good complexity and a medium body . On the first third it shows the typical well balanced flavors of a bolivar; rich wood and earth with sweet undertones and a long finish. From the second third it gets more spicy and bold and becomes very hot and sharp towards the end and is put to rest earlier than you would expect.
Smoke and Burn 22/25
The Short Bolivar burns exceptionally well and evenly from start to finish. The ash dark grey in color and solid. It holds on the cigar almost until it reaches 2 inches. The draw is good, leaning towards the looser side, without being too loose. The cigar produces ample thick white smoke, with good texture.
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Overall Imression 31/35
The short bolivar is one of these cigars that you cannot really figure out why they were made so small. It started very well and it was very enjoyable, until it reached the middle of the second third. Then it changed dramatically, becoming more bold and sharp. The last third is the least enjoyable with the cigar being too hot. With a total smoking time of around 70 minutes, the cigar was really enjoyable only for the first 30 to 40 minutes. From a vitola of this size, you would expect the “sweet spot” to be longer than this, something that the short bolivar has failed to deliver. However, there is some aging potential in the cigar and it could be at its best with 4-5 years aging.
TOTAL 86/100
tagged under: 2008 Regional Edicion.Asia Pacific.Bolivar.Exclusivo Asia Pacifico.Pacific Cigar.Petit Robusto.Regional Edition.Short BolivarThis post was written by:
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Any idea where I could get these Yiorgos, tried Foxs and they sent me up to Cigar Emporium but he only had 1 left and was holding it for a customer
Your best bet would be the Asian & Australian vendors with websites. I’ll email you more info
Cheers for that info Yiorgos.
Was in Foxs today and saw a nice Punch UK regional that I might try on Friday evening after watching Berta roll a piramid for me.
Got me wondering though, has there ever been an Irish regional produced ?
I know there’s a minimum order of 600 boxes and we’re not a big enough cigar market but if it was a good shape then i’m sure lots of others abroad would want to buy them !
Hi Radar,
Isn’t the Grafton reserva specially blended for the Irish Market? I see that you are looking forward to having a piramid rolled for you - the grafton reserva has a piramid in its range. It’s a decent smoke and can be bought in the Decent Cigar Emporium for about 19 euro, great value imo
@ Radar
You are thinking of the Punch Serie D’Oro No.1, last years regional for the UK. Lovely smoke, make sure you have eaten well before smoking it! However, I would opt for the fresh pyramid…
There has been thoughts and talks of the possibility of an Irish regional. For the moment all we can do is wait and say we will be buying 10 cabinets each when they come out!
@Michael
The Grafton Reserva (afaik) is a personalized brand for the Emporium, it is Nicaraguan and indeed the closest there is at the moment to a cigar rolled especially for the Irish market!
I need to add that even though there has never been an Irish regional edition, there has been “Fox selection” cigars, that were rolled especially for JJ Foxes, for the London and Dublin shops.
Back in the pre-revolution era, before the cigar factories were controlled by the government, you could deal with them on an one-to-one basis and get your own personal selection.
If you check on the “Gallery” section, you will find a post with a lot of pictures on them.