Gran Fabrica Drew Estate - Liga Privada "Unico Serie A"

Here's a cigar to which I've been looking forward for quite some time. It's Drew Estate's "Liga Privada Unico Serie 'A' ", a 9.25x47 super-lancero cigar that's part of their famous and sought-after Liga series. Other entries include the "T52", "No. 9", and many "Rat" variants. Cigars of this realm sell for upwards of $15 each retail; boxes can run you hundreds of dollars if you can find them.

Today's is made from a fine list of pedigree tobaccos: it's got a tweaked Liga Privada T52-blend filler, a Brazilian Mata Fina binder, and a wrapper blend of Connecticut stalk-cut shade and cured sun-grown habano. These are probably all my favorite tobaccos, literally rolled into one, so I'm really excited to smoke this.

Just like the television commercials of old, this cigar is not sold in stores. Debuted at the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Tobacco Retailer's 2011 trade show in Las Vegas, this cigar is only available as either an incentive cigar (at a Barnsmoker event, or the trade show) or as a gift from a Drew Estate rep. This was one of the incentive cigars I got in the Drew Estate Connecticut Barnsmoker gift bag back in August.

Packed up my walkin' shoes and headed down to the National Mall to smoke this one. The cigar lit up nicely, draw was a bit tough, and at once I experienced some soft, slightly sweet Liga tobacco flavors coming through. Reminded me of the Liga Undercrown, only sweeter. The smoke, however, was not voluminous and didn't have much to show for each drag.

The flavor seemed more delicate than the other Liga Privada variants. The wrapper was strong, and the flavors generally clean and soft with solid notes of tobacco and wood. The cigar smoked nicely throughout, despite the touchy draw, it presented some coffee notes in addition to the woody tobacco flavors. I was actually rather surprised at the delicate nature of these flavors; previous experience with this line led me to believe it would be stronger and a bit more full-bodied. As it smoked, it maintained a nice fidelity of flavor - even as I burnt it down to the end, it didn't turn harsh or sour.

The draw wasn't as nice as I would have liked, though, and I think that perhaps inhibited my full enjoyment of the smoke. Other than that, I was impressed and had a pleasant smoking experience. The format - a so-called "super-lancero" - is a lot of fun and the blend of flavors was spot-on. Unfortunately, this is not available for purchase but I would definitely be interested in having one again.