Portrait of Steve P.

60″ x 48″

Acrylic on Canvas

Jason Oliva 2009

This full length portrait was commissioned by Steve’s wife to commemorate his 50th birthday.

If you have any questions about commissioning a painted portrait feel free to contact me at jasonoliva@gmail.com

Steve P. A full length portrait by Jason Oliva UK 2009

A los amantes de la poesía los invito al conversatorio La poesía y el pensar que realizará la escritora argentina Lucía Fontela,  en la Casa Taller de Pedro Pablo Oliva, mañana 26 de noviembre a partir de las nueve de la noche.

La también integrante del Comité de la Editorial Club de Lectores y Licenciada en Ciencias Políticas nació en Buenos Aires, es una poetisa fuera de los circuitos tradicionales y una mujer atenta a los fenómenos linguísticos. La poesía es una de las cosas que mejor la resume, la parte más esencial de su persona.

Variaciones de un ínfimo esplendor es su primer libro de ficción, un poemario que cala hondo en otras personas y hasta en otras culturas.

Sus libros son traducidos a varios idiomas y la fuente en la que se nutre es de poetas que venían de otras culturas, que recibía a través de traducciones. Esa poesía universal le resultó maravillosa y la ayudó a descubrir el sentido poético con una actitud amplia.

Sus poemas están relacionados, con reminiscencias de la poesía precolombina y  la poesía china antigua, otros con una visión más actual, personal, ya que se refieren a un espacio y tiempo íntimo.
En La mariposa en vuelo y La luna de Pascua alude al sentido virtual, no sólo de los medios virtuales de comunicación actual, sino a una virtualidad profunda de la comunicación humana, que ha existido tal vez desde siempre.

Fontela  es una creadora que ha escrito en la soledad de su vida y en determinados momentos tiene visiones poéticas pero disfruta a plenitud de la poesía antigua china como una fuente maravillosa e inagotable de sorpresa y de disfrute.

The 460 is a 4 inch by 60 ring cigar with a Brazilian maduro wrapper and Nicaraguan long-filler. The cigar feels firm and has a free pre-light draw. Aroma is oak and hay.

Since the Nub is designed to hit the sweet spot quick and stay there, there isn’t much change in flavor or evolution with this experience. The light brings some pepper and unsweetened chocolate with a bit if oak and moss.

The body stays medium with a nice dense mouthfeel, but not overly thick. Flavor is in the mid range of strength.

The only change in flavor came toward the end when there was about an inch and a half left and things got bitter.

The burn was mostly even and very slow. Burn time was close to an hour.

The only stick I can compare this to is the Oliva O Maduro (Oliva makes Nub) which has similar earthy notes but more spice.

New York to England …. and now onto France!

A couple of weeks ago we arrived in the small & very picturesque village of Collioure, in the south west of France, with one suitcase, one backpack and one laptop each. We’re going to stay here for a while. Jason’s studio is now within the walls of a creaky and characterful 18th century fisherman’s cottage, rather than a drafty 20th century garage in Norfolk … there’s nothing like changing the backdrop once in a while! Still, with art supplies at hand and an internet connection its business as usual.

Sophie

Walking towards ‘Blue Shudders’ as Jason has taken to calling the place, after a misspelling.

Last day in the UK studio.

France…for now

Alcalde de Oliva

La Asociación de Afectados por el deslinde (de la Ley de Costas) tiene como misión dar a conocer la problemática que afrontan los propietarios y con el fin de solicitar la actuación y el apoyo político municipal, ha mantenido una reunión con el alcalde de Oliva, Sr. Fuster y la concejala de urbanismo, Sra. Tercero.

Se ha solicitado al consistorio una serie de cuestiones muy concretas:

1. Acompañamiento por parte del Ayuntamiento a próximas reuniones que se vayan a mantener con delegaciones de Costas.
2. Firma de informes que no tengan por propósito la enajenación de los bienes de los propietarios de Oliva y que respeten sus derechos.
3. Mayor determinación y apoyo por parte del municipio a los olivenses y propietarios afectados.

Se tiene previsto realizar una entrevista la semana que viene con los técnicos
de la Conselleria, es decir, con Costas a nivel Autonómico, para ver cómo  pueden apoyar a los afectados, así como otra entrevista con un político
a nivel de Comunidad Autónoma, para informar sobre todo el perjuicio que que supone la Ley de Costas.

En estos momentos la Asociación está esperando cita para hablar con el Sindic de Greuxes, (equivalente al defensor del pueblo del estado).
También estamos esperando cita para hablar con Lidia Pérez.

Directora general de "Sostenibilidad de la Costa"

Se ha elaborado un informe con un cierto carácter técnico del Sector 5, para presentar al Ayuntamiento para que lo estudie y lo firme si están de acuerdo para ser usado en las alegaciones del abogado de la Plataforma Nacional de Afectados por la Ley de Costas y representante legal de la Asociación, Sr. Ortega.
Más información próximamente…

Country: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan Ligero (Jalapa, Esteli, Condega)
Size: Torpedo 6.0″ x 54 ring

My previous review was of the Cain Habano Robusto.  In that review I detailed a bit about the makeup and story of the this straight Ligero cigar so click on over and check that out as well.  Today I am smoking the Maduro Torpedo.  I was trying to find some more information about this wrapper and was unable to find anything definitive about it.  I have seen it referred to as a Nicaraguan Maduro, a Mexican Maduro, and even a Brazilian Maduro wrapper.  I am not sure which it is at this point.  I am not inclined to agree with the Brazilian label though.  As Maduro wrappers go this one doesn’t have much tooth to it, and in my experience, the Brazilian maduro is on of the toothiest maduro wrappers I have seen.  That is just an opinion and a guess though.  It could very well be Brazilian, I just don’t know right now.

The wrapper on the Cain Maduro  is dark and mottled with a few prominent veins running across its surface.  It has a slight tooth and oily appearance.  This cigar starts off very similar to the Habano.  I ti s smooth and creamy, medium bodied without much power.  It has a very nondescript, sweet maduro flavor to it .  I began to wonder if this one would pick up in the last third like the Habano did, but it did not.   It was very one dimensional.  The flavors never changed and it never developed any power.  It was surprisingly light for an all ligero cigar and flavor wise it was pretty boring.  The Habano version was much better.  This cigar just never did anything for me.  I’ll be smoking the Habano again, but I don’t have any interest in revisiting the maduro.

Rating – C

‘Art History’
Triple Triptych
40″ x 360″
Acrylic on Nine stretched canvases
2009

Jason Oliva

SOLD

Collection: NY Vintners 21 Warren Street New York, NY

Jason Oliva
UK October 2009

The Facts:

Oliva Serie ‘O’ Maduro

Ring Gauge: Robusto (5″x50)

Tobacco: Maduro Wrapper with Nicaraguan fillers

Bought: October 31st 2009

Smoked November 5th 2009

Price: $2.99 a stick purchased during a special at Cigar.com (reg. $5.85)

Beverage: Red Wine (White Oak Syrah 2003)

Smoke Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Initial Thoughts:

Honestly, I have a fondest for Oliva. I have always found them to be consistent great smokes.  I say that to put my biases up front though I attempt to rate all cigars fairly.  So with that being said, I selected this Oliva from my humidor and noticed that it had a consistent smooth dark, almost black, brown Maduro wrapper. No flaws in the wrapper could be found.  The cigar was firm and slightly oily.

The Light Up:

The cap was not especially easy to cut off, but was manageable. The cigar lit up just fine to a thick complex-body smooth aroma. The initial burn was ok but a little askew. This medium cigar was absolutely a red wine kind of cigar, I found them to go together perfectly.  What initially struck me about this cigar was how smooth it was and with an initial sweetness.  The initial draw was a little tight for my liking.

25% Oh yeah!

The burn has evened itself out. The cigar has opened up into a rich-complex, sweet, spicy aroma. Though it is a maduro I would judge it a medium in terms of strength. It is easily tolerated and sits well on the pallet. The flavors are well balanced.  The ash is a firm gray, no flakiness, and seemed solid.  The draw started to open up and at rest the cigar continued to burn just fine.

50% Good thing I have more!

The ash continues to grow! The taste qualities and body haven’t changed. It has been a sweet consistent smoke from the start. The draw is now good and between effortless and tight. The cigar’s construction is holding up just fine. The burn is now even and continues on just fine. Excuse me while I get some more wine.

75% Stumbled at the end…

Ok, so to be honest the cigar required a relight at between 90% and 100% and the burn started to become moderately uneven at about 75% and 85% and continued to be uneven until the end. The flavor and taste were still excellent though! No harshness set in while we ended the smoke. I smoked this thing to a nub. The overall performance was good and medium body. The aroma was pleasant. The taste profile could be summed up as rich, smooth, sweet, spicy, with cedar notes.  This is a complex cigar with a lot going on!

The Results are in!

Construction 29/30

Appearance 20/20

Burning Properties 13/15

Taste 30/35

(Minus “Party Foul” Deductions)

-2 required a relight and burned uneven at the end

Rating:   90 (A-)

Zaterdag 31-10-2009

Vandaag was het echt zo’n dag van rusten, en lezen. Wat het laatste betreft, Klaas heeft al 3 boeken uit, ik zelf ben met de tweede bezig. Vanmorgen nog wel geinternet, e.mailtje gestuurd naar fam: en kennissen. Het verslag duurgestuurd naar Natasja, die de website beheerd. Ook nog even ge msn’t met Natas, daar begint het ook zachtjes aan zomer te  worden.

S,Avonds nog gewandeld langs de boulevard en een Capucino gedronken op een terrasje, waar op de t.v. Real Madrid aan het spelen was ( geen hollanders opgesteld ).

Zondag 01-11-2009.

Vandaag was het weer vroeg dag, na een hele onrustige nacht, er stonden wat tenten met nogal luidruchtige jongere op de camping.

Rond Half negen reden we weg uit Cambrills, Eerst hadden we de tomtom op Benicassim  ingesteld, maar toen we daar waren hadden we er niet zo’n goed gevoel bij, er was weinig fiets gelegenheid en de camping was midden in de stad, dus maar op richting Valencia.

Na een ongelukkig stukje weg, aangegeven door de tomtom, kwamen we weer op de Route Meditarine. We zagen dat we al 3000km gereden hadden deze drie weken.

Het was een hele mooie trip, met een heel verschillend landschap, van Bergen naar hele stukken vlak, links ontzettend veel hotels en rechts schitterende plantages met Olijf en sinasappel bomen. We passeerden onderandere plaatsen als Tortosa –Amposta-Vinaros Castello en Valencia.

Uit eindelijk zijn we nu in 100 km onder Valencia in Oliva camping Kiko park, aan het strand ( je hoort de zee nu ).

We gingen een plekje zoeken, en besloten op 76 te gaan staan, geholpen door de buurman en een voorbijganger stonden we al heel gauw, het zijn heerlijke rechte plekjes, dus de caravan stond helemaal waterpas.

Na de thee gedoucht en gegeten, en geslapen als een os.

Maandag 02-11-2009.

Een Maandag van boodschappen, het braden van het vlees, Hachee gemaakt ( 25graden ) maar toch lekker.

Het was bewolkt dus een mooie gelegenheid om de luivel op te zetten, want als het hier niet verveelt, blijven we hier wel een aantal dagen, daarna lekker lof met runderlapje ( Vaca ) gegeten, buiten met kaarsjes, en het eten ging er wel in na zo’n werkdag.

S’Nacht waaide het behoorlijk.

Dinsdag 3-11-09.

 Wat ik nog vergat te vertellen dat we maandag naar een ander plekje zijn gegaan haast 2 x zo groter, dus konden we ook de auto plaatsen. Hollanders hè graag alles dicht bij.

Klaas begon met internetten die we even mochten gebruiken van mede landgenoten, hij had gelijk skype contact met Piet, maar dat mocht maar kort duren want het was illegaal. De ontvangst van internet is niet optimaal, je betaalt voor 1 uur 4 euro en een hele week € 15 voor een maand € 29. We moeten dat nog even bekijken, voorlopig staan we hier een week en misschien 14 dagen.

Na de koffie zijn we op de fiets gestapt ( veel wind ) om naar Gandia te gaan zo’n 13 km, we kwamen ook nog in een plaatsje Bellreguard een echt toeristisch Dorp ( Leva ) waar het echt uitgestorven was, massa’s appartementen, allemaal dicht, wel mooi, met veel mozaïek , uiteindelijk kwamen in Gandia aan ook toeristisch maar meer een vissersdorp.

Op de terug weg nog even sinasappels geplukt,en boodschappen gedaan. Vandaag kip en sla.We beginnen ons al aardig thuis te voelen hier qua omgeving en temp het lijkt een beetje op de Antillen ook qua begroeing, lekker buiten spelen en eten.

This is the Belicoso size 5×54 with a beautiful reddish brown wrapper, solid construction and a well-wrapped head and cap. The vitola had a nice weight and was firmly packed.

The cold aroma is of tobacco and cedar with a touch of spice. Licking the cap before cutting left spice on my tongue.

The light up brings loads of spice and a clean cedar taste that isn’t too woody–it’s a clean cedar note that let’s the spiciness stand out with a long finish. The body is light to medium but flavor is strong. Quickly as it progresses in the first third I rich tobacco flavor came through and body increased to medium weight. The spice mellowed but was still a major factor in the overall experience.

The middle shows little change other than a slight increase in flavor and body. I’d rate both at the full end of medium.

From the middle to the nub everything stays mostly consistant. There’s a touch of coffee in the cedar, spice and sweet tobacco notes now. Exhaling through the nose really shows off the spice and cedar.

This is not as earthy as the Serie O but cleaner and richer in tobacco flavor. Personally I like the peppery coffee and soil-like notes of the O better. Overall, for $5.60 per stick theses are a great bargain and in high demand.

In comparison to the double robusto vitola V this was somewhat lighter and less complex but not by much.

The Facts:

Cain

Ring Gauge: 6 X 54

Tobacco: Triple Fermented Nicaraguan Ligero (binder and wrapper)

Bought: October 13th 2009

Smoked November 9th 2009

Price: $5.80 Pipeworld, Round Rock Texas

Beverage: water

Smoke Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Initial Thoughts:

Oliva well known for their cigars has launched a new line of cigars called Cain. I attended an Oliva event and bought a box of these stunning cigars. My first impression was: “This is a well made cigar”. The wrapper was a medium smooth even brown. The cap construction was flawless. I could find NO flaws in the wrapper. The cigar felt firm and even. I knew I was going to be in for one hell of a ride with an all Ligero cigar this was going to be good.

The smoke…

This cigar is truly awesome. Oliva lives up to their reputation with this cigar. The light up was even, smooth, and perfect. The draw was effortless from the start. Cain sits heavy on your palate but is full of flavor, smoothness, that you don’t care how it sits! The aroma is excellent.  This is a cigar you can smoke to the cap and it never gets bad. Out of half the box I have never had one burn uneven, go out, and all the wrappers have stayed intact.  The ash is a little on the brittle side, but not grossly so. The cigar taste profile can be be summed up as complex, spicy, leathery, and some cedar. The triple fermentation really shows as no bitterness is detected and I smoke this cigar inside and after a couple of hours no staleness lingers. My only regrets is that I only bought one box.

The Results are in!

Construction 30/30

Appearance 20/20

Burning Properties 14/15

Taste 30/35

(Minus “Party Foul” Deductions)

No Party Fouls Here!

Rating:  94 (A)

Cigar.com Weekend Blitz

From Cigar.com

10/29/09 – Sometimes there is nothing better than a great tasting, well-aged maduro. For all of you maduro fans, we put together this selection of our favorite and best selling maduro blends since we’re sure you’ll enjoy their rich characters and sweeter nuances just as much as we do. It’s not everyday you can pick up a selection as wide as this one, with brands such as Alec Bradley, Oliva and Rocky Patel all at over 50% off MSRP. We even included the all-new Nica Libre blend, which is a tasty treat comparable to the likes of Padron. These cigars are all medium in body with rich flavors of espresso and coffee, while earthy undertones develop throughout. If you love maduros or if you’ve never tried them, this sampler should be at the top of your shopping list.

Now Through Sunday 11/1/09 Only:

Sampler Includes 20 Best Selling Maduro Cigars
4 x Perdomo Habano Maduro Toro (6″x50)
4 x Oliva Serie ‘O’ Maduro Robusto (5″x50)
4 x Nica Libre Exclusivo (5.5″x50)
4 x Rocky Patel Edge Maduro Toro (6″x52)
4 x Alec Bradley Maxx The Fix (5″x58)

$59.95!

Country: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler:  Esteli Ligero, Condega Ligero, Jalapa Ligero, and a small amount of “other tobaccos”
Size: Robusto 5.70″ x 50 ring

Cain – Straight Ligero.  For those that know what Ligero is, you are probably thinking “damn”.  Ligero is the highest priming of tobacco on the plant.  These are the leaves at the top of the plant that get the most exposure to direct sunlight and the elements.  Ligero tobacco is the thickest leaves and the strongest in terms of nicotine.  It is also generally considered the most robust in terms of flavor.  Most cigars only use a small percentage of ligero tobacco blended leaves from other primings on the plant.  The blending of the different leaves is done to produce specific flavors that the blender want as well as to give the cigar balance in flavor, strength and construction.  Now the Cain is not really 100% ligero.  It is actually around 82% or 84% (I have heard both numbers bandied around) ligero.  This is still way more ligero than is typically found in a cigar, but the addition of the non-ligero tobacco is done for construction and combustion reasons.  Ligero is the thickest leaf and as such is the slowest burning and hardest to keep lit.  The other tobacco used helps to balance things out a bit to allow the cigar to burn properly.  All that ligero still affects the burn though.  This cigar burns awfully slow but more on that later.

The Cain comes in two different wrappers.  Habano and Maduro.  There is also a Cain “F” which is a special souped up blend that is even more powerful and robust that the regular Cains are reported to be.  These are the creation of Sam Leccia and Oliva Cigar Co. who also brought us the Nub.  They are available in three sizes that I know of:

• Robusto 5.7″ x 50 ring
• Double Toro 6.0″ s 60 ring
• Torpedo 6.0″ x 54 ring

The “F” is only available in a Robusto and I believe is a limited edition.  On to the review…

The wrapper on the Cain Habano is the color of milk chocolate with a leathery look. It has lots of small veins and a slight tooth. The draw is a little firm but not unpleasant. It smokes slow and cool… very slow. I was completely surprised by this cigar at first. It was not at all like I was expecting it to be. Much was made of the fact that it is almost entirely made up of ligero tobacco. Because of that I was expecting a rich, earthy, peppery and robust smoke with a lot of power. In actuality, it begins as a medium bodied smoke that was smooth and creamy with out much of a nicotine kick at all. My specimen has no spice or pepper at all. It started off smooth and creamy with notes of cinnamon and a subtle sweetness that I want to describe as apple. Like a Rome apple or some other cooking type of apple that isn’t overly sweet. It also had an undertone of toasted tobacco. I was half way through smoking the Cain Habano and I was thinking it was a very unique smoke but it was not at all complex. In fact thought it a bit one dimensional, but still the flavors were unique and very enjoyable. The last third is where this cigar comes alive. Suddenly I began detecting a little bit of a peppery bite to the flavors and then the cigar quickly transitioned into that robust earthy, spicy smoke I was expecting and I also started to feel its power.  Although I wouldn’t necessarily describe this cigar as a “power house” it does back a nice little punch that kind of sneaks up on you.  My experience with the last third of the smoke makes me say that this is not a cigar for beginners.  Less seasoned smokers might get a little green from it.  Someone who is used to stronger and more robust cigars won’t really be phased by it. I had a bit of problem keeping it lit and it tried to tunnel on me a couple times. It took me almost an hour and a half to finish it. Like I said, it burned very slow.

At first I thought I was smoking Abel, but it was all a lie as Cain revealed himself in the end.  I enjoyed this cigar and it was interesting how it completely changed character on me there at the end.  I will be smoking more to see if this experience is consistent or not for me with this cigar.  It was also quite remarkable to me how long it took to smoke this cigar.  This was perhaps the slowest burning cigar I have ever smoked.  It took me almost two hours to smoke this nearly toro length robusto and I am not known as a slow smoker.  The Cain Habano is a good smoke that is worth a try and something I will probably keep in my humidor in small quantities for times when I want a change of pace from my Tatuajes.

Rating – B

Some other takes on the Cain Habano:

• Ben over at Cigar in Hand enjoyed the Torpedo
• as did the Cigar Inspector
• The Stogie Guys enjoyed the Toro

As diferenças entre eles vão desde o tipo de matéria prima e fabricação, até a composição química. Para a saúde, interessa saber que esses alimentos tem três tipos de gordura. A saturada é a que faz mal, pois eleva a taxa de colesterol ruim, chamado de LDL. A monoinsaturada faz o contrário: ajuda a reduzir o colesterol e a afastar os problemas do coração. Já a poliinsaturada auxilia a baixa do colesterol e pode diminuir a taxa de triglicérides. Saiba mais (mas não abuse das gorduras e pratique exercícios):

AZEITE EXTRAVIRGEM DE OLIVA: extraído da primeira prensagem das azeitonas, sem passar por nenhum processo químico, é o menos ácido e o mais nobre de todos.

AZEITE REFINADO DE OLIVA: de sabor menos concentrado, é indicado no preparo de alguns pratos, porque não mascara o gosto de outros ingredientes.

AZEITE PURO DE OLIVA: o sabor é bem menos acentuado. Em compensação, o preço é mais baixo e o valor nutritivo é o mesmo.

ÓLEO DE CANOLA: é considerado o mais saudável. Possui menos gordura saturada e maiores teores de monoinsaturada e de ômega 3, uma substância benéfica para o coração.

ÓLEO DE GIRASSOL: tem baixo teor de gordura saturada e é rico em gorduras poliinsaturadas, que ajudam o coração. É outra boa opção.

ÓLEO DE MILHO: possui alta concentração de gordura poliinsaturada, que tende a reduzir a quantidade de colesterol e de triglicérides.

ÓLEO DE SOJA: dos óleos vegetais é o que tem mais gordura saturada. Por outro lado, é um dos mais ricos em ômega 3. Conforme o uso, o saldo pode ser muito positivo.

I’ve been a little under the weather, and decided to give myself some time before attempting another review. Now that my palette seems to be back on track, I decided to give a fairly new Oliva cigar a chance. The Connecticut Reserve line was introduced earlier this year and in my opinion, was a smart addition to the Oliva line. I typically enjoy Oliva cigars, and I was anxious to see what they could do with a Connecticut shade wrapper. The wrapper is grown in Ecuador and the binder and fillers are from Nicaragua. This churchill was 7 inches long with a 50 ring gauge. The MSRP on a box of 20 is $138. I have been finding single sticks between$5-7 depending on the size at my local B&M.

Oliva Connecticut Reserve Churchill

Oliva has always impressed me particularly for their choice of wrapper leaf. I rarely find issues with their construction or appearance, and this cigar was no different. The wrapper had only a couple examples of veins and these were very small. The wrapper was uniform in color. There were no soft spots and the cap was excellent. This is one of the better looking cigars I’ve seen in a while.

I used my Xikar to cut the cigar and lit it with a butane torch. The draw was slightly resitant but opened up after the first inch or so. I detected straw, hay, and bread in the aroma. The cigar burned perfectly straight until the last inch or so, and then required a couple of touch-ups. The cigar produced a stunning white ash that was very firm.

The flavor profile was fairly constant throughout the smoke. The flavors consisted of the same straw, hay, and bread I detected in the aroma with the addition of a creamy butter flavor and a little black pepper on the short finish. The Nicaraguan tobacco also gave some of the “Nic zing” on the finish. The overall body of the smoke was medium and the strength was mild.

Highlights:

+Excellent presentation

+Nice flavors and aroma

-Some minor burn issues

I took off three points for the draw three points for the burn. Another good performer with a score of 94.

Back in April i got a box of these from one of my friends who was visiting Dubai from the USA. I was pleased and confused at the same time because these cigar looks just amazing and  i haven’t had any Oliva before. By now I’ve smoked few and found here what i found:

Thank you for visiting us. We have moved to our new website! Click here to visit Toasted Foot!

Size: 3.7×48, Special G

Wrapper: African Cameroon

Binder: Cuban-seed Habano

Filler: Nicaraguan Habano

Strength: Medium

Price: $4.20, Local

Grade: 9.0

A unique size that is sold in boxes of 48, the Special G is fun to hold and more fun to smoke. I picked this stick up a month or so ago from our local B&M and I’ve been waiting for a night when I only had 30 minutes or so to smoke. The Serie G comes in 11 sizes, including a couple of other unique sizes, such as the Belicoso and Figurado. The Oliva G was listed as #11 on Cigar Aficionado’s best cigars of 2006.

Obviously there is a lot to enjoy about this cigar so let’s get to the review!

Appearance, 1.7:
The Special G had a great pre-light aroma, with a sweet smell that reminded me of an old cellar. The draw was excellent, if not a bit loose, and the unique shape was a lot of fun to hold. The head and foot looked nice but could have been a little cleaner with some very slight wrapper pulls. The overall exterior was good but the wrapper had a bit of a rustic feel with noticeable veins and a leathery appearance.

Burn, 1.8:
The G had a very open draw with plenty of thick smoke pouring from each exhale. Though this may be due in part to the thin size of the Special G, it burnt fairly hot throughout. The ash was excellent and moved very cleanly through the Figurado type foot. The ash layered and stacked very well and was a nice, clean gray. The perfect draw kept the score high despite the hot burn.

Flavor, 2.7:
The G started off with a bit of harshness and heat, but it quickly cooled off. The smoke was dominated by black pepper in the first half and never really transitioned into the sweetness that was detected in the pre-light draw and aroma. I enjoyed the peppery notes but was hoping for some movement–the only movement was a decreased amount of pepper in the second half. The deduction here is for lacking a bit of flavor profile, though it scored perfectly for consistency.

Overall, 2.8:
Overall, this is an excellent smoke and one that I would consider buying a box of, especially as the winter months are upon us. When I smoke this stick in the future I will pace myself a bit and hopefully this will help with the hot burn of the tiny stick. The flavor was great on this stick and it had a very fun burn to it and drew very well throughout. This is a winner to be sure!

(Total: 9.0)

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Buenos días, a todos!!

Hoy hay dos razones para trasladar los contenidos de un blog amigo: no he escrito nada y estoy de trabajo hasta arriba y me ha gustado la mención de biocuidados que hay hecho desde www.unpelosano.es a tener un pelo saludable con aceite de oliva.

Os lo dejo a continuación. Un abrazo a todos y muy buen día!:

El clásico aceite de oliva, es una pieza clave en nuestra dieta mediterránea por sus propiedades terapéuticas y nutritivas. Además, este “oro líquido” es un ingrediente clave dentro del mundo de la belleza y la cosmética por sus innumerables propiedades hidratantes y antioxidantes.

Hoy en día, el aceite de oliva se  utiliza con fines cosméticos en infinidad de mascarillas capilares, en cremas hidratantes, exfoliantes. Podemos decir, que el aceite de oliva, es toda una fuente natural de beneficios  muy próxima a nuestros hábitos y a nuestra cultura. Entre sus propiedades cosméticas podemos destacar:

- Aporta hidratación a la piel ya que el aceite de oliva posee grandes dosis de ácidos grasos esenciales.
- Reconstruye las membranas celulares de la piel, gracias a la acción del ácido oleico.
- Se utiliza como emoliente corporal para realizar masajes.
- Tonifica la epidermis y le da firmeza
- Protege la piel contra agentes ambientales externos

En particular, para el cuidado del cabello, y el cuero cabelludo, el interés del aceite de oliva también está documentado.

Hidrata el cabello, le aporta suavidad y firmeza.
Su uso no tiene mayores secretos: un masaje con aceite de oliva puro dejándolo actuar entre 15 minutos y media hora conseguirá resultados espectaculares. A continuación lava el cabello de forma habitual. ¡Pruébalo y cuéntame qué te parece!

Hemos venido a Menorca para aprender el proceso de recolección y preparación de la aceituna de la mano de una familia de Jaén que los hijos llevan viviendo muchos años en la isla y son unos auténticos expertos conocedores de lo que la naturaleza nos brinda.

La oliva ya esta lista y a continuación os mostramos el proceso que debemos seguir para prepararla:

1. Recolectar.
2. Machacar las aceitunas de una en una.
3. Meter las aceitunas en una garrafa.
4. Llenar la garrafa de agua.
5. Cambiar el agua todos los días :: es importante utilizar la misma fuente de agua. Lo mejor es utilizar agua de pozo aunque podemos sin ningún problema utilizar la del grifo.
6. A partir del 4º día empezamos a probar las aceitunas :: menos días, más amargas; más días, más dulces. Cuestión de gustos.
7. Preparar salmuera :: Llenamos un recipiente de agua, metemos un huevo crudo y empezamos a meter sal gorda hasta que el huevo flote. Cuando esto ocurra estará preparada la salmuera. Este paso es para la conservación de la aceituna.
8. Introducir las aceitunas en el recipiente donde las vayamos a almacenar y lo llenamos con la salmuera preparada.
9. Meter hinojo, tomillo y una cabeza de ajo para darle sabor a la aceituna.
10. A degustar.

Algo muy importante es no introducir ningún elemento metálico que entre en contacto con el agua donde están las aceitunas. Utilizar una cuchara de madera.

Por supuesto hay otras muchas formas de prepararlas que llevan más tiempo. Como esta ha sido la recomendada por nuestros amigos expertos de Jaén, ni lo dudamos.

1.516 caracteres

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Size: 5×50, Robusto

Wrapper: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan Estelí Ligero (32%), Jalapa Ligero (25%), Condega Ligero (25%)

Strength: Full

Price: Box of 5, $25.00

This is Agent 24 from The Cigar Spy! I am doing some “off-the books, contract work” for the gentlemen here at Cigar Reviews! My target  was The Cain F. The Cain is the latest offering from Nub architect Sam Leccia and the Oliva family of cigars. It is billed as a full ligero cigar. This means that the filler is almost 100% ligero. The ligero is the top of the tobacco plant and is billed as the most flavorful and powerful part of the plant. Sam uses 3 different ligeros from Habano Seed Estelí, Jalapa and Condega plants. Each plant name represents the region of Nicaragua that it was grown.  The F, which stands for Fuerte, is 82% ligero as compared to 77% ligero in the regular lines.

Appearance:
This is a cigar that is meant to speak for its self and it comes unbanded. It does come in a nice cedar package with the 5 cigars inside wrapped in a red Cain ribbon. It is very nicely constructed. It is firm from head to foot, with very few veins and no loose spots. The wrapper is an oily, dark brown and smells of cedar and fresh cut grass. After the cut, the cold draw was outstanding and I have a lingering sweetness on the tip of my tongue. This surprised me; I do not expect this cigar to be sweet!

Burn, 2.0:
From the light, the Cain F has a great draw and thick, billowy smoke that gives off the aroma of cedar and dark cocoa. The burn is consistent all the way through and needs no re-lights or touch-ups. The ash is bright white and holds almost through the entire 1^st half of the cigar. I only ashed this cigar four times during an hour and a half of smoke time.

Flavor:
As expected due to the strength of the ligero, I was immediately hit with a blast of spice. This left a lingering hot pepper taste and was a little spicy on the retrohale. While it did give a hot pepper burn on the retrohale, it was not overwhelming at all and actually was kind of pleasant. If you enjoy spicy food, you know what I am talking about; it was spicy, but enjoyable. The real treat was the other flavors that made up the profile of this powerhouse. During the 1^st third, I had a woodsy, roasted nut flavor that balanced out the spice. This continued throughout the cigar with the occasional hit of dark cocoa to make for a consistent and balanced flavor profile.

Overall:
Oliva and Sam Leccia have another winner in the Cain F. I enjoyed this full-bodied smoke from pre-light all the way through to the nub. I was expecting a powerhouse of spice and while it was spicy, it had a nice even flavor profile throughout that balanced out the power of the spice. Also, while I had heard that this was a nicotine powerhouse as well, I found it to be very even on the nicotine as well. I did get that full stomach feeling, but at no time was I overwhelmed. I will definitely be adding the entire Cain line to my regular rotation and at the price, it is an affordable and enjoyable full-bodied smoke for anyone who likes a little kick in the ass from time to time!

Thanks Agent 24 for the Guest Review!