Oliva V belicoso *revisted*

[Don Fernando]

I reviewed this 5x54 Oliva series V belicoso about three years ago but my flavor preferences and review writing skills have changed a lot in the past three years, so it was time to revisit the cigar. When it comes to the regular Oliva lines, I prefer the Oliva series V with the Jalapo ligero and the high priming habano sun grown wrapper.



The dark and oily wrapper makes the cigar look awesome. I don't see any real veins. The construction feels good and I smell a mild barnyard. The predraw is fine, I taste tobacco with some raisin and a little bit of pepper.



I taste a peppery earth flavor, full and strong with a lot of green pepper. After a quarter of an inch I also taste some wood on the background but everything is overpowered by the mentioned green pepper. After half an inch I still taste a lot of pepper with some wood and sweetness, the structure of the flavors is dry.



After an inch the pepper loses some strength, which is a good thing. It is still a strong flavor but not as overpowering as before. I taste a bit more sweetness and some dry wood. After a third I taste nuts, wood, some herbs and the pepper. Halfway I taste some sweet carrot with herbs and just a small amount of pepper. Soon after that I get more herbs and more sweetness, although the pepper gains some strength again.



This cigar had a smoke time of an hour and twenty minutes. The draw was good and the burn was great. I got a lot of thick smoke. The pepper and salt colored ash is firm. This cigar is full flavored and full bodied.



Would I buy this cigar again? Yes!

Appearance: 9 / 10
Construction: 8 / 10
Draw: 7 / 10
Burn: 8 / 10
Smoke & ash: 8 / 10
Aroma first part: 8 / 10
Aroma second part: 8 / 10
Aroma third part: 7 / 10