back to reliability - Bolivar Coronas Junior 2005

After a few duds in a row, its easy to select a cigar to smoke with only 40 minutes to spare.  I was needing a good cigar to kill 45 minutes before Big Brother.  Why I still watch that show is beyond me, but I do.  So I reached for a no-lose selection, the Bolivar Coronas Junior.  This is a truly unique cigar.  You can enjoy it aged to dust or you can enjoy it fresh out of a brand new box.  This one falls somewhere in the early-middle of it's life, 7 years old.  I lit it up and it burned so slowly.  I was worried that it was going to burn too slowly to finish it or at least do it justice in a short 45 minute window.  It is still really hot outside, and the forecast is for yet another week of intense summer temperatures.  The wild card tonight was the great breeze blowing through the neighborhood with the weak front moving through.   

But man was this cigar fighting my attempts to burn it up.  In a way it was the fault of the draw.  I used to be SUCH a dry-boxer, but I have been consistently pulling cigars out of storage and smoking them right up.  In a lot of cases it is hurting the performance of cigars I am smoking for this blog.  This cigar was firm, and as stated, slow as molasses.  But the flavor was good.  Strong, tannic, a little tangy and with a creamy and acidic mix that was intriguing.  I popped the top on a Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale, one of my strong ale favorites.  But it is NOT a hot weather beer.  I felt like I was being smothered by a wet towel constructed of malt, hops, and frozen honey.  

But I soldiered on and puffed that bad boy til my brain just couldn't take it anymore.  Wave after wave of little Bolivar Shock Troops hit the beach.  I really enjoyed having a cigar that was up to the challenge for a change, though.  I have had two in a row that just tasted like hot air and were NOT good cigars to have on a hot and muggy night.  The beer helped a little bit, but it was too much body on too hot a night.  I really chose poorly all around, but especially on the cigar.  But I HAD to have a winner.  And when the chips are down you ALWAYS bet on Bolivar.  Things I should have smoked instead?  New Partagas Chico...I eyed a Monte Petit Edmundo, but there was NO WAY I was going to take a chance on THAT wreck of a vitola OR a nice, springy new tubo-covered MPE.  I just didn't think it over long enough.  But the clock was ticking, like I said.


You handicap a perfect cigar by not letting it dry out for a day, you press yourself for time, and you smoke on a hot Memphis night and you end up with a 88 point cigar that wanted to be a 95.