Cigar Weekly

Ringo · 01-13-2006, 07:35 AM

My first Oliva cigar, not only my first Master Blend.

Setting - Outdoors. 4:30 PM, Northern Colorado. Temperature 35 degrees but I was very comfortable with a jacket.

Drink - Coca-Cola

Reading Material - The S.M.A.R.T Guide To Digital Recording, Software, and Plug-Ins

The Cigar - An Oliva Master Blends robusto. Natural wrapper. I am not sure what edition of the MB this one was but I think that it is the newest. It said 375,000 made on the label. It also had a neat Oliva symbol that was somehow imprinted on the cigar wrapper itself, above the label. This is the first time that I have ever seen this.

Construction - Flawless. Perfect. Evenly weighted and distributed with no hard or soft spots or any visible aberrations whatsoever. Well filled and rolled. I could squeeze the cigar about as hard as I liked with no cracking, crackling, or seemingly any detriment to the cigar at all. Virtually indestructible.

Appearance - The wrapper was smooth and about as perfect as a wrapper can be. The label is attractive and as noted it had a second "label" somehow imprinted on the wrapper itself that added to the nice look of the cigar.

Light - No problems to report.

Burn - Perfect. Dead straight the whole way to the nub. No touchups were required. Ash held until flicked off - and even then it wanted to stay on.

Draw - Just right.

Flavor - Extremely smooth. Perhaps the smoothest cigar that I have ever smoked. I went all the way to the nub with this one and it never developed even the slightest harshness. This is an expertly blended cigar and it shows. This is certainly not a strong cigar, or even a medium bodied one. This is a mild cigar. However, it does not suffer from a lack of character. Some cigars described as "mild" are actually just without character or flavor. This cigar had a nice flavor that just happened to be mild. Those of us (like me) who have been smoking super full bodied cigars lately might be surprised at how much they can enjoy a mild cigar if they have one of these. This would also be a good cigar to give to a Macanudo smoking friend as a next step up to the "big boys."

Aroma - Matched flavor.

Conclusion - The Oliva Master Blends Robusto is a perfectly crafted mild cigar that never goes anywhere near harshness. "Harsh" and "bitter" are two words that are not even in this cigar's vocabulary. If you are looking for a nice mild cigar, I seriously doubt that there is a better one on the planet. I do not see how it could get any better as I could not find a single fault with this one. Take the cigar for what it is and do not try to compare it with your Tatuajes or strong Cubans - this is a horse of a different color. I will definitely get a few more of these to keep around for when I want a nice mild cigar.

Score - 93/100

01-13-2006, 07:35 AM	#1
Ringo Club Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania Posts: 1,895	Oliva Master Blend Robusto My first Oliva cigar, not only my first Master Blend. Setting - Outdoors. 4:30 PM, Northern Colorado. Temperature 35 degrees but I was very comfortable with a jacket. Drink - Coca-Cola Reading Material - The S.M.A.R.T Guide To Digital Recording, Software, and Plug-Ins The Cigar - An Oliva Master Blends robusto. Natural wrapper. I am not sure what edition of the MB this one was but I think that it is the newest. It said 375,000 made on the label. It also had a neat Oliva symbol that was somehow imprinted on the cigar wrapper itself, above the label. This is the first time that I have ever seen this. Construction - Flawless. Perfect. Evenly weighted and distributed with no hard or soft spots or any visible aberrations whatsoever. Well filled and rolled. I could squeeze the cigar about as hard as I liked with no cracking, crackling, or seemingly any detriment to the cigar at all. Virtually indestructible. Appearance - The wrapper was smooth and about as perfect as a wrapper can be. The label is attractive and as noted it had a second "label" somehow imprinted on the wrapper itself that added to the nice look of the cigar. Light - No problems to report. Burn - Perfect. Dead straight the whole way to the nub. No touchups were required. Ash held until flicked off - and even then it wanted to stay on. Draw - Just right. Flavor - Extremely smooth. Perhaps the smoothest cigar that I have ever smoked. I went all the way to the nub with this one and it never developed even the slightest harshness. This is an expertly blended cigar and it shows. This is certainly not a strong cigar, or even a medium bodied one. This is a mild cigar. However, it does not suffer from a lack of character. Some cigars described as "mild" are actually just without character or flavor. This cigar had a nice flavor that just happened to be mild. Those of us (like me) who have been smoking super full bodied cigars lately might be surprised at how much they can enjoy a mild cigar if they have one of these. This would also be a good cigar to give to a Macanudo smoking friend as a next step up to the "big boys." Aroma - Matched flavor. Conclusion - The Oliva Master Blends Robusto is a perfectly crafted mild cigar that never goes anywhere near harshness. "Harsh" and "bitter" are two words that are not even in this cigar's vocabulary. If you are looking for a nice mild cigar, I seriously doubt that there is a better one on the planet. I do not see how it could get any better as I could not find a single fault with this one. Take the cigar for what it is and do not try to compare it with your Tatuajes or strong Cubans - this is a horse of a different color. I will definitely get a few more of these to keep around for when I want a nice mild cigar. Score - 93/100 __________________ Kark: "Oddvar, maybe you want to go next." Oddvar: "I'm thinking, what's the worst thing that can happen to me if I don't do the attestup? I mean, what's worse than being crushed?"