Boli Fuerte Delmonico - A Herfin Bigdog Review

[Herfin Bigdog]

I picked up 15 of these making 3 trips on three days, during the 06-12JUL, In-Store Only offering. I had been looking forward to trying this cigar since it became available.

I had a free evening on Monday, so I decided to give it a try. A rare occurrence for me during the week. The SO took the kids out for the afternoon and they didn't get home until 8:30 that evening. Usually, my smoking happens during the weekend. I grabbed the Delmonico, my beverage (a small sifter of Whiskers Australian Tawny Port), and the book I've been reading and headed for the front porch.

The 6.12x50, BF Delmonico supposedly has a medium-brown, EMS wrapper, but it appeared to be darker than medium...closer to a maduro. It was somewhat oily in appearance, and it had a slight give when applying the squeeze test. It had a few harder spots, but they did not cause any problems.

ARGH! I clipped too much cap and almost took off the whole thing. But no unraveling wrapper, a good sign. I took a pre-light draw, ahhhh…a nice, comfortable draw, but nothing particularly special about it as far as flavor goes. I guess it was an earthy draw. But I'm not good at describing subtle qualities.

I toasted the foot, took a toke, and then began roasting the foot above the flame. I took a few initial puffs to get it going, and set it down for a minute or two. This cigar is described as "...a bold, robust smoke with heavy flavors of earth and spice. Created in the famed Villazon factory under the stewardship of master cigar maker Estelo Padron, this is a rich blend of the finest hearty tobaccos in the world today, and proves to be his strongest blend to date. This full-bodied cigar is intoxicating with its decadent flavors, heady aroma, and intense finish..."

Honestly, I'm not sure what I was expecting from a “full-bodied” cigar, but certainly more than what I got while smoking the cigar. I really enjoyed it. It was flavorful, somewhat intense, more so than my normal smoke but very pleasing. The ash had the color of the ash you typically see in a wood-burning fireplace. The ash held on like a champ. It reached 1&1/4 - 1&1/2 inches in length, and I didn’t want to tempt fate so I tapped it into the ashtray.

After about an hour and a half, I put down the ¾ inch nub in the ashtray. I didn’t have to relight once. I did apply the torch a few times to the sides to even out the burn, but it was relatively maintenance free. There was a great volume of smoke with each draw. Very flavorful and pleasing smoke I might add. Upon walking towards the front door, I stumbled a bit. Hmmm, it was potent, but in a subtle way. I couldn’t tell how potent until I began walking.

I have trouble describing the strength and body of a cigar, but Steve Saka once described a BF by saying "Excellent balance of strength to flavor - full enough to delight me, but smooth enough to let me just relax and enjoy." That’s about how I would have described it. If this is what a “full-bodied” cigar made from “a rich blend of the finest hearty tobaccos” is supposed to taste like, I’ll take 10 boxes please!

I’m glad I’ve got 14 left. I just might have to buy a box now that I know what to expect. WOW!!! By the way, the Whiskers Tawny and the Delmonico complimented each other very nicely.

Bryan