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Oliva Serie V Lancero Cigar Review
By Jesse | December 3, 2007
Brand: Oliva Cigars
Line: Serie V Ligero
Vitola: Lancero 7 x 38
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Habano Sun Grown
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Jalapa Valley Ligero
Body: Full
Strength: Medium-Full
Box Price: $161.99 (Box of 36)
Description: I reviewed the Oliva Serie V Figurado back in July and have been eagerly awaiting for my local shop to get their latest shipment. Finally, The Party Source got their shipment in and I get a chance to try Lancero that I’ve heard so much about on the cigar forums. The Oliva Serie V Lancero is just as well constructed as its larger brothers, but it isn’t as firm as the larger sizes. The prelight draw had a nice resistance on it, these small ring cigars can often tend to be tight, but I had no complaints with these. Even the prelight draw test had some interesting complexity to it, I picked up a mix of walnuts and sweet grassy flavors.
One of the reasons I love these small ring gauge cigars is the burn, typically I have better luck with corona sizes or smaller than I do with the larger cigars. Each one of these I smoked burned flawlessly from start to finish. The Lancero started out with a combination of a nutty and woody profile that reminded me of walnuts. I noticed right away that this cigar wasn’t nearly as smooth as the Figurado, but it did allow me to pick up more of the wrapper’s flavor you might miss in the larger sizes. A third of the way in some of the woodiness went away and the cigar became more earthy and sweet spices, definitely picking up a mix of coffee and cocoa. Occasionally I picked up some hints of what I’d call leather, but it was really subtle so I’m not positive on that. Probably because there is less filler in this cigar it doesn’t pack quite the punch of the larger sizes so I had less concern about how quickly I smoked it.
Verdict: A prime example of how changing the size of the cigar completely changes how the cigar smokes. As soon my local shop gets a few more in I’ll be picking up a box of the Lanceros and some of the larger sizes. The Serie V is one of the best cigars to be released this year and I’d be hard pressed to find a better cigar for the money.
Similar Cigars: Don Pepin Garcia Black Label, or the EO 601 Red Label Habano are comparable smokes.
Popularity: 22% [?]
Tags: Cigar Reviews, Nicaraguan Cigars, Oliva Cigars, Strong Cigars
Topics: Cigar Reviews |
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January 14th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Jesse, did you get a chance to try the larger sizes?
January 14th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Yeah, I’ve also reviewed the Figurado and loved it.
January 29th, 2008 at 10:51 am
[…] Oliva Serie V Lancero […]
February 15th, 2008 at 11:31 pm
[…] on I got a chance to try the Lancero vitola of the Serie V and was really impressed with it. It has some of the characteristics of the larger ring gauge Serie […]
February 29th, 2008 at 11:15 am
I’ve really been enjoying these sticks lately. Got a few for $3.50 apiece!