Initial Thoughts
Trying to find Liga Privadas has almost become like trying to find a unicorn, or a leprechaun, or a Sasquatch. I think we’ll go with a Sasquatch. Luckily, I’ve recently discovered a shop in Murfreesboro, TN that carries a boatload of Ligas. So now I’m never in short supply. I just have to drive 45 mins to get them. Good news for me is, that the wife drives to the ‘Boro once a week for her symphonic band practice. Now, guess who’s driving every week with her? That’s right. This guy.
A couple of weeks ago I hit up this store in search of some Ligas I really wanted a #9, T52, and whatever else they had. I would have loved to get a Feral pig too. Having smoked all of these already I was trying to size them up to see if they had anything else to offer. Then I spotted the L40 box! I’m a huge fan of lanceros so this caught my eye. I slowly opened the box to my disappointment there weren’t any left. So I asked the guy working the counter, what’s the deal with the empty box. He said that’s so you know they are on re-order. So I was pretty pumped about that. I went ahead with my purchase of the #9, T52, and the UF-13 and told him I’d be back in a week for the L40s.
So a week passes by and I’m back. However there are no L40s to speak of. I was kind of bummed because that’s all that had really been on my mind to pick up. So I was about to walk out of the store and the guy (I’m assuming the owner) stopped me and said “Do you really want an L40?”… I said “Yeah, I’ve been thinking about it all week”. He went and dug into his personal locker and pulled one out for me. He said come on back in I’ll hook you up. Score!!! I was so pumped. It was very cool of that guy to do this for me. I went on my merry way to go Christmas tree shopping with the wife and all was good. I just want to give a shout out to The Humidor in downtown Murfreesboro, that’s where this entire story took place and I’m grateful I found them. Not only do they have Ligas they have a ton of other sticks that I browsed while I was there. So needless to say I’ll be going back practically every week.
So I went to all this work to try and find a Liga Privada L40, but what’s so special about it? Well to be honest, I’m not sure. I know I love lanceros and I’ve loved just about everything from the Liga Privada line that I’ve smoked. So I figured I needed to smoke this one as well, you know for research purposes. First off the L40 stands for Lancero 40 which is a nod to the fact that the typical lancero ring gauge is 38, but they bumped theirs to 40 to fit in all the tobaccos that they needed to round out this flavor profile. Plus L40 sounds a lot better than L38. It rolls off the tongue better. This is part of the Liga Unico series which you can learn all about here on Drew Estate’s site. Well, I think we have enough back story about this stick it’s time to get to the review before you all become un-interested in it!
Looks
The one thing I love about the Liga Privada L40 and the Liga line in general is the consistency of the packaging. The boxes are made out of a nice light, almost balsa-looking wood. They all have the Unico logo on it which is the lion standing on its hindquarters looking like it’s scratching something. These cigars are easily identifiable in the humidor.
The next step in consistency is the band that goes around each one of these cigars. The front of the band always looks as if it was hand written with a felt sharpie. Then on the back of the band, again the Unico logo with the lion on it. Great classy packaging all the way around.
The one thing that really separates this Liga Privada L40 from others in the line is obviously the size. Not too many 7″ cigars are out there in the cigar world. The lancero is a very special vitola that takes an expert craftsman to master the construction of it. I always naturally gravitate towards these vitolas because they are becoming more difficult to find.
The wrapper on this cigar is very similar to the others in the Unico series. Nice dark brown chocolate looking wrapper. With strokes of velvet it looks inviting, almost begging you to smoke it. So I’ll oblige, let’s get this thing going!
Function
Being a lancero I have a feeling this Liga Privada L40 is going to be packed pretty tight. I rolled it through my fingers just a bit to see if I was right. To my surprise, it’s firm, but not completely packed to the brim. I took a look at the head of the cigar and it’s just your run of the mill triple cap. No special flag cap or pig tail like some of the other cigars from the Unico series.
Time to nip off that cap and see what we have under the hood. While testing the dry draw I’m already getting a sense of the flavors that I’ll discover later while smoking. The dry draw is a little tight at first which I’m not surprised about, especially being a lancero. I think it’s time to put the flame to this guy and see how if it takes flight!
Smoking
During the first third I really had this Liga Privada L40 going. It was just churning out smoke. If you’ve had any other LP’s then you know they are great at churning out smoke. This one was no exception. This third burned perfectly just chugging right a long. It was burning a little bit slower than I wanted to, but once I got into it I just sat back and relaxed and let it burn. That’s what you’re supposed to do with a cigar anyway, right?
The first ash held for about an inch before I decided to knock it off. Personally, I don’t enjoy holding ashes for longer than that, especially on a lancero. I believe it personally blocks up some of the flavor and causes it to be more difficult to smoke. Just my personal experience though.
The second third burn had more of the same. Tons of smoke, great burn, great draw. In fact the draw really opened up in the second third and started smoking a little faster. More along the speed that I had hoped for during the 1st third.
This continued to the end of this Liga Privada L40. Great draw, and great smoking experience all around. Not much more I could have asked for in terms of construction. Let’s get into the flavors that I discovered throughout this thing!
Flavor
First off, while nosing the foot of this cigar in the pre light I picked up on some beautiful notes. The first of which was a molasses and wet tobacco smell. Some might not like the smell of wet tobacco, but I enjoy it personally.
The first third is filled with a unique earthiness to it. There is a strong mineral / metallic note to the finish on the tongue. Personally I’m not a huge fan of this flavor note. There is also a strong creamy note that is the core flavor throughout this third. The best way I can describe it is a cream filled metallic canon. Imagine a Twinkie, but instead of yellow cake surrounding the creamy goodness, you have a metallic earthy compost that you have to battle through to get there. Yeah. Personally, not loving it.
The second third of this Liga Privada L40 brings a different flavor to the table. It kicks up the spice to take over that metallic note. The creaminess is still there, but almost drowned out by the spice. The spice isn’t overbearing in terms of strength, but it’s definitely taken over all the other notes currently.
The final third hits with another change. The spice has subsided back to that earthiness but with a savory finish. The creaminess is gone, the mineral note is way back there and this savory / meaty note has come to the forefront. It’s been an interesting transition between the sections of this cigar.
I would have to call this stick full bodied in terms of flavor, but I’m hesitant to call it full bodied in strength. I guess maybe medium-full would be more applicable. I’m still on the fence about the entire flavor profile of this cigar. I give it kudos for being different and moving around so much. However, I just can’t get over the metallic /mineral note throughout. It just didn’t sit well with my palate.
Would I Buy It Again?
I think so, even though I didn’t love it. I enjoyed the complexity of the cigar.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
No, way too expensive for that.
Would I Buy a Box?
Potentially, just because I like the harder to find box purchases. I think this could be a great box purchase.
Conclusion
Overall, I’m giving this an 8. The construction was phenomenal, I loved almost everything about this Liga Privada L40. The thing I didn’t like was the mineral notes I picked up through the majority of the cigar. It’s just not something that I’m looking for in a cigar that I really enjoy. I appreciate the complexity of the flavors, but this one didn’t really hit my palate in an appealing way.
