Ismael Oliván is a martial artist and former serviceman with over 20 years of experience creating blends, both for his own brands –B.A.M.F. (Barbed Wire), Don Oliván, and K9– and for hundreds of private labels manufactured at his company: ROCF, Rodríguez Oliván Cigars Factory, which has three establishments in the Dominican Republic.
Creative like few others, Ismael always seeks to bring innovation to all his ventures, whether in construction or in the premium tobacco field, where his creations range from the Inside Out, a cigar crafted with an inverted roll, starting with the wrapper in the filler and finishing with a reversed, glued band, to the Around the World, which alternates a robust filler with a twisted bunching to create a flavor “roller coaster.”
Read in the magazine (rotate your device for a better reading experience):
Anatomy
The impeccable construction of the Barbed Wire is a result of this innovation. Its interior varies the bunching techniques to provide a flavor journey whose intensity changes depending on the draw and the shifting position of its visos, secos, and ligeros leaves.
In his dual role as owner and blender, Ismael Oliván’s creations always have a personal touch. In the case of this eye-catching cigar, a braid made with Connecticut tobacco resembles barbed wire –a common tool in barracks and battlefields.
But beyond an aesthetic function, Ismael asserts that the braid serves to cool the tobacco, enhancing the experience and providing a natural pause to the smoke, ideal for those who tend to rush their tobacco.
CHARACTERISTICS
Size: Robusto, 5 inches, ring gauge 54.
Wrapper: San Andrés and Connecticut in the braid.
Binder: Dominicana.
Filler: Olor Dominicano Ligero, Dominicana San Vicente, and Piloto Cubano Seco.
Weight: 19 grams, average.
Smoking time: 60-90 minutes.
Suggested Price: 12 USD.
Cold Draw:
The draw on this cigar is variable due to its construction characteristics, but a quick test on the wrist’s pulse can give an idea of its quality. From the foot, it announces that it is Dominican, and sweet and floral notes are its distinctive signature.
Lighting:
Due to its construction style, the flavor journey is unpredictable, revealing the presence of San Vicente leaves at the beginning of the smoke. The intensity is total, without an apparent nicotine punch, but with a high intensity of very Dominican flavors.
First Third:
When this cigar is bunched, the orientation of the viso, seco, and ligero leaves from Olor, San Vicente, and Piloto Cubano alternate –sometimes up, sometimes in the middle, and sometimes down– giving the smoker an ever-changing experience that keeps things interesting.
Second Third:
Due to its characteristics, by this point the draw has loosened slightly, delivering dense smoke and balanced flavors. Although changes continue as you advance, the smoke is pleasant and pairs perfectly with black coffee accompanying a conversation.
Final Third:
Throughout the smoke, the Connecticut braid fulfills its function, providing the appropriate pauses so as not to rush the burn and ruin the experience. But when the band is removed, the surprise arrives: the main knot of this ‘barbed wire’ –the longest pause– brings intense saline flavors, typical of this leaf, added to what the Piloto Cubano contributes.
Ismael Oliván
With a range of over one hundred blends for his own brands and 750 registered with the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) for private labels –a number that continues to grow– Ismael Oliván boasts a restless mind, attributing some of these creations to the need to solve problems and utilize raw material that he has secured around the world over the years.
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