Oliva Serie V No.4 (Prerelease)

Today we will be taking a look at the Oliva Serie V No.4, a limited production prerelease vitola for the famous Oliva Serie V line. The Oliva Serie V line has been a hit from the moment it hit shelves in 2007, giving the Oliva fan a full bodied, full flavored cigar to enjoy. I am personally a fan of the line and have smoked many so it will be indeed enjoyable to try out a new vitola.

The Oliva Serie V No.4 is strictly a limited production at this point. The only commercial release of it is a single stick that was included in a STUDIO TOBAC sampler pack for an event at the Outlaw Cigar Company last month (February). There were only about 100 Samplers made and the pack contained two Cain F Lanceros, two Cain Daytona Coronas, a Oliva Serie V No.4 and a NUb Habano perfecto. Every cigar in the sampler is at least brand new or unreleased. We asked an Oliva Rep about the Future of the Oliva Serie V No.4 and he had this to say about it.

“It will be released at TAA to its members as a promotional cigar, after that it goes to Europe as an exclusive for a bit. It may be released eventually in the states but the time frame is currently unknown.”

• Cigar Reviewed: Oliva Serie V Liga Especial No.4
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Tabacalera Oliva de Nicaragua S.A. (TABOLISA)
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Sun Grown
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Size: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 43
• Vitola: Petit Corona
• MSRP: $5.45 (Boxes of 24, $130.80)
• Date Released: February 2011 (Outlaw Studio Tobac Sampler Pack/TAA Release/Regular Release at IPCPR)
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 1

Visually the first thought that enters my mind when I look at this cigar is “Look how small it is!” which is a good thing! If you are at all familiar with the Serie V line you will know that all of their vitolas are large ring gauges and just large vitolas in general. It’s nice to see a little Petit Corona size. Other than the size it looks everything Serie V, it has a beautiful dark chocolate wrapper, minimal veins and a tight pack. The cigar also has a nice amount of oil to it. Oliva has some of the best wrapper leaf stock out there and this doesn’t disappoint.

The pre-light aroma is cedar with leather and chocolate, a very sweet pungent tobacco aroma as well. The pre-light draw is sweet with bits of coffee and some leather.

Starting off in the first third I get a blast of spice and pepper but it immediately dissipates after a few puffs to reveal a mellow creamy coffee profile with cedar and leather very similar to the pre-light. Halfway into the first third it gets very thick and creamy in texture and some cocoa flavors appear. It’s a very thick mouth feel with lots of flavor and body but medium in strength.

Coming into the second third the cigar transitions into a deeper, darker profile, the creamy coffee flavor turns a touch bitter giving it an espresso like flavor, the cocoa turns into a dark chocolate with just a bit less sweetness and the leather is still present. The finish is long and clean and full of dark chocolate, pepper and a nutty flavor that just adds to the already complex profile. The performance is great; just a perfect draw and a razor sharp burn.

Finishing up in the final third the cigar doesn’t stray much from the last third that much however the spice from the beginning comes back a bit which is a wonderful discovery. The profile is earthy and sweet with just the right amount of spice and a nice pepper kick on the finish. This is truly an enjoyable cigar with an interesting profile.