Summary
Characteristics
Origin: Nicaragua;
Smoking time: around 100 minutes;
Packaging: single, pack of five cigars, box of twenty-four cigars;
Price: $16.50 per stick, $78.99 per pack, $376.99 per box.
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf;
Blinder: Brazilian Mata Fina;
Filler: Nicaraguan and Honduran tobacco;
Size: 6×52;
Vitola: Toro;
Wrapper Color: Maduro;
Construction: Firm, Even;
Handmade: Yes.
Strength: Full;
Body: Full;
Aroma: Cholocate, Cedar, and Spices;
Initial taste: Dark cocoa, Sweetness, Cedar;
First third: Cocoa, Walnuts, Cedar, Spices;
Second third: Chocolate, Raisins, Spice, and Leather;
Final third: Chocolate notes, Leather, Nuts, and Spice.
Smoking Hub Rating: 4.8;
Awards and Ranking: Cigar’s Aficionado gives the Toro vitola a rating of 89 points..
Draw: Ideal resistance;
Burn: Cool;
Smoke: Opulent amount of smoke;
Ash: steel grey.
This blend is perfect for a special occasion with close friends. You will share a wonderful and complex smoking experience. The blend is full-bodied but very smooth. If you have not tried it yet, do it!
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Origin, Blend, and Vitolas
Liga Privada №9 is a blend that every aficionado should try. Originally, the №9 was initially a limited edition cigar. The blend was intended for Steve Saka, then president of Drew Estate, who wanted to enjoy it during his workday. The project began in 2007 and lasted over a year. And №9 is the ninth blend they tested for this series. In 2011, the blend became a regular production cigar for Drew Estate. The cigar is made at La Gran Fabrica de Estelí in Nicaragua.
Prior to the Liga Privada series, Drew Estate was known primarily for its flavored cigars. Jonathan Drew selected only natural tobaccos for this blend. It consists of an oily Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, a Brazilian binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and Honduras. The Liga Privada №9 is full-bodied and full of flavor.
The blend is available in the vitolas Belicoso, Perfecto, Petit Corona, Corona, Double Corona, Lancero, Robusto, and Toro.
On the market
The Drew Estate Liga Privada №9 is available in sampler packs of 5 cigars and boxes of 24 cigars. The price for a single stick is about $16. If you buy a box of 24 cigars, you will get a single stick for less than $16.
Appearance
The cigar has a dark, oily appearance with a few visible veins. The №9 features consistent construction with firm springiness with no soft spots. The №9 has a precisely placed cap and offers a silky feel.
The band is elegant and simple. Drew Estate has chosen a handwritten style of typography that gives the cigar an artisan charm. The box has the same stylish look with a slight touch of elegance.
Pre-Light Draw, Aroma, Taste
The smell of the cigar is reminiscent of chocolate and spices. Before lighting, the cigar tastes of cocoa, spices, sweetness, and some cedar. The draw is wide open with slight resistance.
The cigar has a strong aroma of chocolate, cedar, and spices.
The Toro vitola requires about a 2/8-inch piece of the head to be cut off. The draw is perfect and there is the resistance you need to enjoy all the flavors this blend offers.
First Third
With the first puffs, you get sweet cocoa, coffee, and cedar. The cocoa becomes more bitter as the smoke progresses, like dark chocolate. There are black pepper, cedar, and walnuts. On the retrohale, there is spice, cedar, and some cocoa. This Liga gives you wonderful complexity on the retrohale, which is pretty rare in most cigars. Our team disagrees on what type of spice is found in the retrohale. Whether it is black pepper or white pepper, we all agree that the overall flavor profile is precisely balanced.
By the end of the first third, the flavor develops as sweet chocolate with lots of cocoa, coffee and cinnamon.
Second Third
In the second third, the body becomes a bit more intense compared to the first third of the cigar. The flavor develops with more cocoa but with more sweetness, making the taste chocolaty. The pepper is still there. But in the end, the Liga Privada №9 offers notes of leather. It does not have much of the complexity of the first third but still offers a flavorful smoke. The retrohale is not as complex, either. It is a mix of sweet cinnamon and black pepper.
Final Third
In the final third, the sweetness and pepper are in perfect balance with a lot of coffee notes. The taste features dark chocolate, leather, and nutty notes. On the retrohale, you will experience a mixture of black pepper, sweet cinnamon, and cocoa.
Ash
The Drew Estate Liga Privada №9 develops a strong ash backbone. It holds about an inch. If you are not clumsy, you can achieve much more than an inch. But it’s not a challenge. Just relax and enjoy the sticks. There is no need to reach an ash backbone all the way to the nub.
Burn
The cool burn of the cigar provides a strong backbone and a slightly wavy burn line. Even after the middle of the last third, the cigar stays cool so you can hold it in your hand without burning your fingers. Normally, you need to touch up the burn of the cigar once or twice per smoke. Really, not much of a problem.
Smoke
Liga Privada produces so much smoke. From the start, the cigar produces an opulent, dense smoke.
What Drink and Food Pairs Well with the Cigar
Drink
Liga Privada pairs perfectly with iced coffee, espresso, bourbon, rum, or cognac.
Food
You can combine this blend with dried fruits, chocolate, or roasted nuts.
Cigar Smoked for This Review and Tasting Methodology
For this, we smoked nine Liga Privada №9, Toro, 6×52. Each of us smoked three cigars for three days, noting the characteristics of each stick. To keep our palates clean and not affect the flavors of the cigars, we accompany the cigars with water.
Before test smoking, we stored the cigars for a month in a humidor with 68% RH and 70 degrees. In this way, the cigars are in perfect condition for smoking.
Final Verdict
Liga Privada №9 from Drew Estate will not disappoint you. Great balanced and complex blend. Great smoke production that makes it really enjoyable to smoke. Huge flavors and high-quality construction. The cigar is worth the money you will spend on it.
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