Oliva Serie G Churchill

January 23rd, 2022: Delicious, smooth, rich cigar with a remarkable long finish and creeping increase of strength in the final third. 

Appearance and Construction: This is a very well made cigar with a mottled light brown wrapper. According to Neptune the cigar is box pressed, 7 x 50 and mild. Mine was not box pressed and anything but mild. The box contains the inscription, "Aged Cameroon". According to Neptune, the wrapper is from the Cameroon. The binder and the filler are Nicaraguan. 

My cigars were a bit squishy upon arrival. I opened the lid of the box and let them dry out. But I couldn't resist trying one. 

First Puff: The first few puffs were spicy and full bodied, foretelling a cigar. Spiciness abated after a few minutes to reveal the dominant profile of the cigar.

Draw and Burn: Draw was a bit resistant until the final third, but manageable. Burn was razor sharp, despite the cigar being squishy.

Flavour and Complexity: Flavour was rich and complex, very much the Nicaraguan puro flavour. I'm not sure if I'd be able to identify the Cameroon wrapper in a blind tasting. Indeed, I would find it difficult to distinguish the O from G. 

Body: Body started medium in the first third and gradually built up to a powerful full body at the end.

Strength: Quite manageable during the first two thirds, but when I awoke at 1am, after dreaming of having to finish painting a house before getting to the airport in two hours, I knew that the final third of this cigar had provided quite a kick of strength at the end.  

Finish and Aftertaste: The finish on this cigar was remarkable: very long, full bodied and lingering, very rich, very smooth with only a hint of bitterness.

Aroma: Aroma was rich and complex. 

Ash: Ash was light. I didn't trust it for more than 15 minutes per ashing and once I got a tummy-full, despite my caution.

Balance and Consistency: Excellent balance and consistently tasty. Strength might have been a bit much at the end. But I didn't really notice it (until I awoke from a dream). On reflection it might have been wise to leave a longer nub.

Time smoke: 95 minutes

Overall: This was a wonderfully balanced, rich, complex cigar with an excellent aroma, perfect burn and a very fine, long finish. Very satisfying. 

At the one hour mark: note the razor sharp burn.

February 23rd, 2022: A substantial cigar which began mild to medium and ended full bodied with a bit of strength in the second half. Flavour had a little bitterness, not unpleasant, but suggested that perhaps a little ageing might add complexity. The second half of the cigar was particularly satisfying as strength increased to 'quite strong but not overwhelming'. No vivid dreams. Aroma was deep and rich. Burn was perfect, draw a bit resistant but quite acceptable. This cigar smoked much faster than the first dip into the box. 80 minutes. Quite satisfying and good to the nub.

Perfect burn. Good to the nub.

February 23rd, 2022. Light in the hand and lightly packed. The pre-light aroma was sweet like dried apple. The Cameroon flavour had a distinct woody, spicy aspect. The cigar was a straight medium throughout. There was no great increase in strength or body. Burn required a couple of touch ups but the cigar was easy to draw and good to the nub. Around 75 minutes. Quite satisfying.

May 25th, 2022: Much the same as the cigar above. Lightly packed but I eked out 90 minutes from this cigar. Cameroon flavour was pronounced and tasty. Aroma was rich and the aftertaste was spicy and lingered. There was a slight increase in flavour/body around the second half, making the cigar more delicious. 90 minutes. Burn and draw were fine. Delicious to the nub. Satisfying. 

August 15th, 2022: Lightly packed and fast burning with easy draw and perfect burn. Flavour was pleasant with a good, rich aftertaste. Aroma was quite pronounced and fragrant. No strength. The cigar barely lasted 70 minutes: pleasant but not quite satisfying. 

Tasty, easy draw, rich aroma, mild to medium body, but too burned too fast.

December 26th, 2022: Much the same as the previous cigar in August: mild to medium bodied, distinctive Cameroon nutty, earthiness, easy draw but erratic burn, pleasant aroma, reasonable finish/aftertaste. 80 minutes. A pleasant puff.  

June 24th, 2023: Again, much the same as previous: mild to medium, lightly packed, irregular burn self-corrected. Probably only 70 minutes. Not as complex and satisfying as the O but quite pleasant.

August 2023: I smoked two of these. Both were consistently delicious and complex, medium bodied throughout, drew and burned well despite the light packing and had fragrant aromas.  Each smoked for about 70 minutes. Quite satisfying.

February 10th, 2024: Smooth, cool, easy draw, mild to medium body. Quite tasty in the final third but not as much body and flavour as the Cameroon Nub 460. 70 minutes, or just under and quite satisfying.