Again, this week, Draw has been victim to the Kansas weather. I can not pass up this lovely, 80 degree, Arizona afternoon so I’m taking the opportunity to try another of the singlets in my humidor — an Olivia Serie O.

This one I got from the first “real” cigar shop I visited — Big Sticks in Mesa. I’ve been holding on to it for about a year and it is 6″ long with a 38 ring gauge, making it a panatela designation.

Beginning — The wrapper is light colored and the aroma is very pleasant — typically grassy and slightly sweet (like clover?). I punched this guy, and the draw is one of the tightest I’ve had — in the “tight” to “very-tight” range. After lighting the initial flavor adjectives which come to mind are: leather, slight grapefruit, creamy, smooth, mild — pleasant.

It didn’t seem to smoke a lot — from either end, and the ash was very white (for whatever that indicates).

Middle — Add cedar to the flavor profile, and a little spice. Still smooth and quite pleasant.

End — Now, with about 2 inches left, I’m tasting a bit of pine. And, wow, the flavor is amping up; in both complexity and intensity! While I dislike making the association, Pine Sol is what comes to mind — the surface characteristic of what I would imagine it would taste like — almost industrial tasting — sort of a menthol . It is quite rich, complex, and very interesting. With an inch-and-a-half to go it is getting pretty hot to handle; possibly a characteristic of being thinner than the 42 plus sizes I’m used to, so after an hour of smoking I declare it “done”.

Burn or spurn? — One of the most remarkable flavor profile changes I have experienced in my relatively short tenure as a cigarist. Draw has got to try one of these. I’ll definitely have another, myself. Burn baby, burn!