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Random Dribble Before the Review Actually Starts Feel free to skip this. Or the entire review, for that matter... "When God created cigars, he imagined a Lonsdale." -Bloke i can't remember on this forum. Bloody hell do i hate 1999 box codes. Why in God's name did they have to have an annoying little transition phase for these? I mean, many good cigars i've had bear these codes (Dip 1s, Hoyo Coronas, Punch Margaritas, just to name a few) but damn is it annoying for the sake of consistency. Anyways, back to this specific cigar. CCES is July of 1999. This just so happens to be the month Hong Kong was relinquished from British control: July 1st. It also happens to be Canada day, which is how i remember that and it's a fact that's much more relevant to me. Sorry! Alright I promise: This paragraph actually has to deal with the Lonsdale, now. This Bolivar has consistently been one of my favourite Bolivars. I would even go as far as to say they have been my absolute favourite Bolivar vitola and blend. And this isn't something i say lightly. To unsuccessful dethroning attempts, i've tried 80s Royal Coronas, Corona Extras, most of the regionals (I say that as i'ven't yet tried MANY), and even a few decade old Corona Gigantes. All which pale in comparison with this outstanding Bolivar Lonsdale. And it's about bloody time I post up a review. Preliminary Comments and Illustration of Personal Bias Dry box for 3 days. Bolivar has always been a little ass-kicker for me. Whether it's a young Royal Corona or a tubed No. 3, they've always seemed to get me down and lower my count for "number of cigars left before i get sick". But i've always found them to be a gentle giant. In other words, if you only meet them for a year or less, they'll appear scary and ass-kicking. But the longer they are in your life, the sweeter they'll seem. And in the end, they mellow out to a bouquet of epic proportions. The strength has always seemed like a cauldron of amazing flavours and oils that really need some time to settle. They can be smoked whilst the porridge is still too hot for a ZING flavour. But i prefer my porridge too cold and would love for all the flavours to be mellowed out. before slmoking. I love Bolivar. Regionals make me love it more. If that didn't exist, i'd be smoking Corona Gigantes left and right whilst leaving the Belicoso Finos for at least 3 years before lighting those up. No. 2s are amazing smokes that are reminiscent of these aged cigars that i'm reviewing. Prelight Foot is beautiful. This flame is going to fit JUST right! Ligero is a tad one sided for my looks, might have some burn issues... But we'll see. The clearly visible crescent is, well, clearly visible. Less entropic than i'd prefer. Punch cut and found the normal inverted pigtail. Always a nice sight to see. Feels like when you cut open a watermelon and you know just from the sound, feel, and look that it's going to be the sweetest angel **** you've ever eaten Obligatory shot with entire cigar in hand. Say what you want about the construction, My BlackBerry has good enough resolution. Prelight draw is quite nice. Really nice Cohiba prelights - grassy, hay. Felt like i stepped into a beautifully kept barnyard that's been devoid of horses, cows, and other livestock for 2 weeks. No foul odours, just pure dessicated grass with the smell of waterdamaged wood about to crack and cave the building onto your skull. Day is the 21st of June, 2014 - Summer Solstice for us Northern Hemispherians. Touch of flame was at 1500. First Light and the First Fourth Absolutely euphoric. That's the Bolivar flavour i talked about earlier! It smoked like a nice vintage Bolivar should taste like. Devoid of nicotine and much power but had its substance replaced with a complexity of herbal soups like a Cohiba. Tastes like a vintage Cohiba's second third, actually. Quite the barnyard burn and a great, vegetal flavour. Tasted like Oktoberfest when everyone was still sober. The cornucopias, all the greenery, the smells of the combine harvester, wafting scents of ales, the slight sprinkle of sawdust to soak up the vomit to come in 3-5 hours, and the barmaid's occasional herbal perfume that mesmerises you as she walks by. Forgive me, for i have sinned. I was too entranced at the flavours that i just kept going back for more. Smoking so quickly without repercussions just led me to go back for more and more. Ashed, i realised how quickly i was smoking it and awoke from my daze. Much like a baby bunny or German shepherd puppy, you don't want them to grow up. But you know they have to change and the change is the reason why you bought the thing. Same goes with cigar. Moving on. Secondary Thoughts and the Second Fourth Awoken from the euphoric daze, i was a tad more down to Earth. Down to an earthy hint of dirt. Much like how a dribble of dirt seemed to have made that strawberry you picked as a child taste better, this same principle applies for this part of the cigar. It got filthier. The cornucopia disappeared and has started fermenting to a strong, sweet musk. Sulphur comes to mind. But so does vermouth. Not tasting it, but simply smelling it. Each drag was like a noseful of the vermouth that seemed to be hiding the odours from the first third. Very pleasant, though. The burn started to fix itself, too! Damn, do i wish i could return to the first third... When the Cigar Became a Cigar Again and the Third Fourth The Second Fourth sounded like it turned out to be absolute shite. But please consider relevancy. It bore resemblance to the first fourth and that alone gave it me a sense of euphoria. As it started to move down again, it's gotten more filthy. So much so that it actually tastes like a Bolivar No. 2, upon first light. This part of this cigar has made me realise that i am actually smoking and not lying on a cloud of white billowing smoke, being pumped flavours into my mouth. Has gotten filthier, again. Stayed calm with strong hints of nuts kicking in. Pistachios? Almonds? Peanuts? Who cares. Nuts. Has, of course, gotten stronger again with a sense that it is picking up some very good floral odours. Much like a young ERdM CS, it's preforming decently well with 30-45 second cool downs. Simply put, it tastes like a young ERdM CS's first light but twist in some cream, coffee, nuts, rosemary, and balls. Lots of balls on this cigar. Final Fourth and Final Resting Not much of the final fourth was smoked, actually. After the religh in the Third Fourth, it just wasn't the same. It got soggy and damp with barely any help with purges. I managed to get a decent way down the final fourth to make out with the nutty flavours again. Mixed with a stronger espresso. But like a strong espresso, the final bit remaining at the bottom of the cup is hard to swallow. The floral flavours are still there but at this point, it's like drinking sweet vermouth from the bottle. It's soggy. It's harsh. It's getting in my eyes. It's out. Closing Thoughts Final length: 3.5 cm Time when out: 1621. Those first two fourths got me entranced. Smoked too quickly for the first half and shortened the smoking time substantially! Perhaps i would've gotten it farther down if i didn't plow through the first 2 fourths. I've gotten these down farther! Ah finally! This review was a nice walkthrough of that glorious cigar. Get to relive every little flavour profile again. Loved it. Those outstanding aged Bolivar odours really show in this cigar. To me, it's the quintessential smooth Bolivar. The No. 2 being the quintessential young Bolivar. Lonsdale over any other vitola from that decade!! ... Until i try the Dunhill Bolivar Seleccions that seem to exist 95/100. That's the highest score i'd give to a cigar i couldn't nub. I'm pretty sure if i treated more of them better and focused a tad better, i could easily get it down to 2 cm or even 1.5. But this time, it isn't so. For comparison, the last one i've scored over 95 was a Partagas 20th Sublimes. New Trinidad Colonials normally rate 81 on my scale. Bolivar Tubos No. 3 rates at 72. The Por Larranga Panetela hits around a 67. The RyJ Short Churchill-Ts rate around 50. And the RyJ Duke i had a few days ago received a 42. Man, I need a box of these.