Bolivar Gold Medal '08 - a Thanksgiving review.

[PigFish]

No, this is a departure from the Pig's now standardized video review. I figured I would just make it simple...

The recent thread on the Boli Gold Medal more or less motivated me to pull out a box and smoke one. I did buy some of the original CW release, but just like today, I have not been much to be stabbed by 'limited' cigars and even at the 'group buy' price, I figured that they were more expensive than what they were worth. As their interest began to wane, I bought more of the re-release and I am glad that I did.

My cigar was firm and really well packed. It was dried sufficiently so that I could remove the foil and bands without tearing them. You might say that they had become a nice, dry 9 year old cigar.

 

It was a brisk 90F on Isla Pigfish, and I was wondering how well I might take the adverse climate!

... the soldiers weapons aligned, I went to battle!

The cigar opened with dry oats and shredded wheat. A hint of sweet followed and I thought that this was somewhat mild from what I remembered these to be.

Within an inch or so these flavors developed and became more robust as they added various spices including nutmeg and some cinnamon. The cigar gracefully conveyed me though this nominally robust and lighthearted medley for some period. It bobbed and weaved removing and adding variances to the melody until about halfway through the smoke. It then appeared that the opening band was left over from the 'home for the aged' festival... and I had arrived early to the 'tribute to heavy metal' festival... And it began.

The more graceful cigar came to a rather abrupt halt. As I have had a rather annoying cough for the past two weeks and have been off cigars since my last review, I began to wheeze a little and began to get some tingle from my throat, not previously hurting, but hurting now...

I was slammed with straight tobacco, pepper and smoked paprika. The lovely essence was gone, the brute force of untamed tobacco had begun.

In better condition, I would have likely enjoyed the cigar more, but being somewhat sick (still) I was bowled over by the torrent.

Don't get me wrong, the cigar was good. It was very interesting, as far a ambushes go, but I was just not well suited for it that day...

While super strong cigars are not really my forte, robust ones are. The cigar gets great points for making my interest and keeping it. It had huge constitution, and a lot of character to boot. In the right health and frame of mind I might have really been impressed, but in my case I felt more 'assaulted.' This of course was not the cigar's fault, but mine alone. Eventually I had to leave a good 2 inches in the ashtray... I just could no longer take it!

If you are ready for a boorish cigar, a bully in lambs wool, pull one of these out and give it a try.

Me, my throat is now sore as hell, and I am hacking like a sputtering lawnmower with water in the fuel. It is not the cigars fault, but my own. I look forward to taking one of his siblings to task another day, a day when I am done dressing my own wounds!!! -LOL Let the healing begin!

-Piggy

[LLC]

Hope you feel better and can enjoy the next one. I don't reach for my Gold Metals often but when I do it is normally very enjoyable.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sean3]

90 effin degrees F...feel free to just kick me in the balls, last I checked it was 34 degrees F in my neck of the woods and gonna get a hell of a lot colder!  But I digress, great review Mr. Piggy, and get better.  Cheers.

[CaptainQuintero]

  That's also been my experience of them Pigster, I think the only cigar that can remember having a jalapeno battering ram! Certainly something of a rarity in the Cuban world

[JohnS]

90°F this time of year? It's not even that warm in Hawaii! 

And what a powerhouse cigar! Did you need 2 or 3 OJ's to clean out your palate? 

[SCgarman]

Sorry to hear you were assaulted by the cigar Ray. I hope you are in good health and wish you well! Maybe this song is a suitable tribute to the cigar. A bully in lambs wool! LOL

 

[PigFish]

1 hour ago, Sean3 said:

90 effin degrees F...feel free to just kick me in the balls, last I checked it was 34 degrees F in my neck of the woods and gonna get a hell of a lot colder!  But I digress, great review Mr. Piggy, and get better.  Cheers.

... when your balls are cued up, just let me know! -LOL Over 80 today as well. Stone quiet, no wind as we usually get wind from the east to precipitate this kind of weather. I was actually able to use a Dupont soft flame lighter.

Really too bad that I reached for one of these while being sick. I figure it was a waste of a good cigar. Again, totally my fault. -Piggy

[PigFish]

56 minutes ago, NYgarman said:

Sorry to hear you were assaulted by the cigar Ray. I hope you are in good health and wish you well! Maybe this song is a suitable tribute to the cigar. A bully in lambs wool! LOL

 

... while this did make me want to take my own life for a brief period, I was thinking more along the lines of an assaulted, not asphalted!!! -LOL

-Piggy

[Sean3]

3 hours ago, PigFish said:

... when your balls are cued up, just let me know! -LOL Over 80 today as well. Stone quiet, no wind as we usually get wind from the east to precipitate this kind of weather. I was actually able to use a Dupont soft flame lighter.

Really too bad that I reached for one of these while being sick. I figure it was a waste of a good cigar. Again, totally my fault. -Piggy

80+ degrees...you're killing me.

[SCgarman]

3 hours ago, PigFish said:

... while this did make me want to take my own life for a brief period, I was thinking more along the lines of an assaulted, not asphalted!!! -LOL

-Piggy

My little hour or so of nirvana is a cigar, libation and hard and heavy rock and roll turned up to max volume. This is how I stay in 200% form at 51 years old. For myself, this is therapy no psychiatrist could ever come close to. Cheers and be well! John

[cigaraholic]

These cigars are monsters....or can be.

I smoked many of these that have been fantastic and broken into a few boxes and put the rest away.

And certainly a cigar not to mess with unless your ready for a heavyweight smoke.

 

 

[fastkiller13]

I’m sorry you’re ill @PigFish, I hope you get better soon. But thanks for the review,I was just talking about this cigar yesterday with a friend of mine. He was able to get 6 at some point and has two left. They are his all time favorite.

 I guess I need to figure out how to get one of those last two my buddy has now. 

[Leopolis Semper Fidelis]

I remember the original BGM (discontinued in the early 1990s) - one of my favourites.  The flavour of its successor was/is vastly different, worse so.  The interloper masquerading under the moniker is a shocker.  Its deletion elicited no tears from me; one of the few sensible things Tabacuba has done.

[PigFish]

5 hours ago, Leopolis Semper Fidelis said:

I remember the original BGM (discontinued in the early 1990s) - one of my favourites.  The flavour of its successor was/is vastly different, worse so.  The interloper masquerading under the moniker is a shocker.  Its deletion elicited no tears from me; one of the few sensible things Tabacuba has done.

Often a problem with re-releases.

Perhaps we don't see the RA Coronas and other because Tabacuba just cannot make them anymore. I see many of their cigars today as an embarrassment. I never really thought about it this way. When you make new cigars, you can make them lousy because no one has the experience with them from the past to tell another just how crappy they are!!! -LOL

-Piggy

[PigFish]

11 hours ago, NYgarman said:

My little hour or so of nirvana is a cigar, libation and hard and heavy rock and roll turned up to max volume. This is how I stay in 200% form at 51 years old. For myself, this is therapy no psychiatrist could ever come close to. Cheers and be well! John

This can be what working in my shop is like. While I don't imbibe, I can get immersed in work (humidor stuff) light up a cigar and blast my music (albeit less than acoustic perfection) and really get unwound in the shop.

I love music. Unfortunately (with no offense intended) that clip from above was more like working around a mini-ex breaking 20 year old 8000psi concrete!!! -LOL

-Piggy

[Akela3rd]

Sorry to hear you were assaulted by the cigar Ray. I hope you are in good health and wish you well! Maybe this song is a suitable tribute to the cigar. A bully in lambs wool! LOL
 

This Is Spinal Tap 2 !
At least Rob H has given up on the leather and studs even if the other old boys haven't.

Thunder & Lightening '75 - '15

[clutch5150]

Loved your cough description...LoL.  Mann you're a brave soul to venture to smoke while your sick. I had pneumonia for the first time ever 6 weeks ago and it sent me down for 2 weeks straight and just now getting to smoke again. Good review!

[PigFish]

16 hours ago, clutch5150 said:

Loved your cough description...LoL.  Mann you're a brave soul to venture to smoke while your sick. I had pneumonia for the first time ever 6 weeks ago and it sent me down for 2 weeks straight and just now getting to smoke again. Good review!

... not brave, just a guy wanting to smoke a cigar on a beautiful day and not giving much concern over the consequences! I am sure I won't be smoking again this week. The damn cough is certainly not getting better.

Cheers! -Piggy

[LGC]

You’re a much braver man than I am. I’ve been fighting severe complications with acid reflux that I just realized has been going on for many years. With no intentions of smoking, I took a draw on an unlit cigar the other week and could feel the burn on my throat. I have not touched a cigar or drop of alcohol since July, and my diet has been completely overhauled. At this point, I won’t be touching another stick until I am symptom free... whenever that is...

 

[blank]

On 27/11/2017 at 1:18 AM, PigFish said:

Often a problem with re-releases.

Perhaps we don't see the RA Coronas and other because Tabacuba just cannot make them anymore. I see many of their cigars today as an embarrassment. I never really thought about it this way. When you make new cigars, you can make them lousy because no one has the experience with them from the past to tell another just how crappy they are!!! -LOL

-Piggy

I have no experience with the cigars of old but can tell just how poor the whole process of cigar manufacturing is.

From farm to rolling know other country lives more (or could get away with) on its Elusion of Greatness!

[TheMonk]

Very detailed review as always, Piggy!

[PigFish]

On 11/27/2017 at 9:25 AM, Brandon said:

You’re a much braver man than I am. I’ve been fighting severe complications with acid reflux that I just realized has been going on for many years. With no intentions of smoking, I took a draw on an unlit cigar the other week and could feel the burn on my throat. I have not touched a cigar or drop of alcohol since July, and my diet has been completely overhauled. At this point, I won’t be touching another stick until I am symptom free... whenever that is...

 

Sorry to hear that Brandon. I have fought with that for years as well. For me it is about stress, eating late, being fat and the numerous meds I take for my heart.

These days I take meds to block the acid. I try to eat earlier and not before bed. It works pretty well. I also make an old time acid remedy. Since I cannot take much aspirin, it interferes with Brilinta, I mix citric acid with baking soda at a ratio of about 2(BS) to 1(CA) and it makes a neutral tasting fizzy water. The baking soda kills any burn that I get almost immediately. It is pretty much Alkaseltzer without the aspirin... 

As far as cigars. I have not smoked since I reviewed this cigar. I am a little bummed about it, but I have got to kill the cough. -R