Liga Privada T52 Petit Corona review

3 1 4.9k

When the Liga Privada No.9 debuted from Drew Estate in 2007 featuring a “Stalk Cut” Connecticut Habano wrapper, it became an instant hit. Customers enjoyed the wrapper’s profile as well as the overall fuller blend. In a quest to outdo themselves with an even fuller-flavored smoke, the Liga Privada T52 was born. Utilizing the Stalk Cut Connecticut Habano wrapper once again and adding more ligero to the blend, they achieved another success. I’ve smoked the No.9’s in pre-release and official release straight from Jonathan, along with the T52’s. I was fortunate enough to check out the petit corona which is one of the new sizes released. Enjoy!

Product Specifics

  • Cigar Reviewed: Liga Privada T52 Petit Corona
  • Wrapper: Stalk Cut Habano Connecticut
  • Binder: Brazilian Mata Fina
  • Filler: Nicaraguan and Honduran
  • Size: 4 1/4” x 46 Petit Corona

Drew Estate Liga Privada No. 9 Petit Corona Review 4

Appearance & Construction

The Liga Privada T52 Petit Corona is dark and rustic looking with a mottled wrapper and significant veins along the sides. The cigar is hard and full of tobacco with the exception of a softer spot at the foot. Drew Estate—always with an eye for style—has the T52 with the similar eye-catching white band like the No.9. The scripted “Liga Privada T52” around it makes it look like a top secret experimental blend. “Understated” and “Cool” is what comes to mind when I see it on a shelf.

Flavor & Smoke Characteristics

After cutting the cigar, the cold draw provides a sugary sweetness with wood, earth and forest floor. With a straight cut and using my Lamborghini torch lighter, I light the T52 up. It starts off gritty, transitioning quickly to vanilla and a charry finish.  Notes of hickory emerge, with leather surrounding the palate. The draw is full and delivers a lot of smoke as I puff away. The leather continues with an underlying earth along with cinnamon spices. Thus far the T52 stands in the medium to full bodied range.

As the cigar develops, the ash becomes white and solid. The craftsmanship is quite good, with a perfect amount of tobacco within.  The progression of earth and leather during the first half transforms into heavy cream with a chalky finish. On the retrohale, cashew and white pepper take over with an underlying sweetness in the mouthfeel. The burn is razor sharp and smoke billows heavily from the T52.

Moving through the final third of the Liga Privada T52 Petit Corona, I get a lot of dirt and grit in an overwhelming fashion. Flashes of mint give a unique if less than harmonious flavor profile. Then, some sweetness returns with vanilla bean and leather. At this point the T52 becomes a mashup of dirt, leather and nuts. The final puffs of the Liga leave me with a bit of oak and a short finish.

Conclusion

I haven’t smoked a Liga T52 Privada in quite a while and returning to it was hoping for a bit more in the profile to keep me interested, especially in a size I enjoy smoking. I will say the cigar is expertly rolled and crafted in every sense and the burn and draw perfect. The Liga Privada line has never done it for me as it seems to lack the full body it claims and although the blend has some complexity, it doesn’t seem to always compliment the flavors it produces. Like I’ve said, I’ve smoked many of these cigars and although they have always been consistent in terms of quality it never really hits the level of flavor I enjoy. I’m probably in the minority as these sell very well whether it’s due to marketing which they do an outstanding job of or perhaps the style is in fashion for many. I will say if you haven’t had Liga T52 or you enjoy the N0.9’s then give this cigar a go.

Final Rating: 86

Reviewers note: this was a non-blind review

Montecristo Open Master Review

7 0 8.5k

Few brands in the cigar world have the of cache and sheer brand gravity that Montecristo does. It’s even more remarkable given that the brand is split, with the Cuban version owned by Habanos SA and a completely separate Dominican brand owned by Altadis. Today, we’re reviewing the Montecristo Open Master (Cuban). The Habanos SA website doesn’t offer much by way of information, but it does offer a few details as it explains,

Montecristo’s perfectly balanced blends are created exclusively with selected filler and binder leaves from the Vuelta Abajo zone, home of the finest tobaccos in the world. Both its original medium to full taste and medium flavour found in the Open Series offer a distinguished aroma and appeal equally to new and experienced smokers.

Product Specifics

  • Cigar Reviewed: Montecristo Open Master
  • Wrapper: Cuba
  • Binder: Cuba
  • Filler: Cuba
  • Size: 5 x 50 robusto

Montecristo Open Master Review2

Appearance & Construction

The Montecristo Open Master is a beautifully constructed cigar. The wrapper does have some very minor flaws (a watermark here or there), but otherwise has very fine veins and a velvety texture. When squeezed, the cigar has a slight give, suggesting a tight pack on the filler tobacco.

After using a straight cut, I test the draw and, unsurprisingly, it’s fairly restrictive. Probably an 8/10 in terms of level of restrictiveness. The cold draw is cool and light, but with a very strong presence of almonds and fresh bread. Off of the foot of the cigar, I pick up bright aromas of cedar, salt, and some light pepper. Nothing special, but lighting up can change that in an instant.

Flavor & Smoke Characteristics

Lighting the cigar, the Montecristo Open Master opens quite mild, with flavors evenly matched between mild sweetness, bitterness, and spiciness. The first impression is almonds, light pepper, yeast, and coffee. The retrohale is where most of the flavor resides, primarily in the form of spice and toasted bread. Fairly straight forward and uneventful. The tight draw doesn’t seem to have affected the smoke production much, which is about our even a touch above average, thankfully.

At an inch in, the burn is straight but the cigar doesn’t seem to want to stay fully lit for more than thirty seconds to a minute, forcing me to choose between smoking the cigar slow and getting too-little smoke, or puffing too quickly and overheating the smoke. Annoying, but the problem thankfully seems to subside by the beginning of the second third.

Montecristo Open Master Review

At the beginning of the second third, the mild body of the smoke increases, bringing along with it more flavor while remaining very smooth on the palate. The primary almond note, while still present, it’s superseded by espresso and pepper, giving the experience a bit more personality. These notes are nicely balanced by a new lemon peel flavor that touches the tip of the tongue.

About five minutes in to the second third, the balance and composition of flavors shifts dramatically, with a delicious sweet, almost floral cake note joining the pepper and espresso. It’s nicely balanced and has caught my attention, though the cigar has yet to reach even medium strength.

The Montecristo Open Master smokes this way until the final third, where the strength and body continue to creep up to just about medium. The espresso is now back in full force, along with strong cedar, and the pepper which was initially mild is now fully developed on the palate. There’s a bit of cream on the finish, but it isn’t quite pronounced enough to fully balance against the cedar which is a bit too bright for my tastes. Still, there are moments in the final third where the Open Master is fully balanced, and those moments are wonderful.

Conclusion

Though by no means a perfect cigar, I really enjoyed the Montecristo Open Master. After a somewhat subdued start in the first third, it gains some wonderful notes of sweet cake, cream, espresso and wood that is nicely balanced out by cream on the finish. Construction held the experience back at times, but it’s absolutely a cigar I’ll return to given the opportunity.

Overall, I think the Open Master accomplishes what Habanos set out to do, which is produce a cigar that is gentle enough for new smokers to enjoy, but complex enough for a veteran smoke to smoke in a pinch.

Final Rating: 90

Montecristo Open Master is available at many duty free shops or online at Montefortuna Cigars.

Warped La Relatos Review

3 0 4.1k

Warped La Relatos Review

Up for review today is another 2018 release, this time from Kyle Gellis and Warped Cigars. I’ve been a fan of Warped cigars ever since I smoked my first back in 2013. Kyle’s blends are, in my opinion, some of the most complex and expertly balanced on the market today. Perhaps because I love smoking Warped cigars so much, I haven’t gotten around to reviewing as many as I’d like. So we’re changing that up today and reviewing La Relatos. According to Cigar Aficionado, La Relatos is “a reincarnation of one of Warped Cigars owner Kyle Gellis’s original blends from about 10 years ago.”

That all said, let’s get to the review, shall we?

Product Specifics

  • Cigar Reviewed: Warped La Relatos
  • Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
  • Binder: Nicaragua
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Size: 6 x 38 (petit lancero)

Appearance & Construction

La Relatos comes wrapped in a dark, chocolate brown Ecuadorian Habano wrapper that is covered in a layer of visible oil. The small, purple band is ornately designed and very attractive with silver lettering.

After cutting using a straight cut, I test the draw, which is fairly restrictive, about an 8.5 / 10 in terms of restrictiveness. It makes it hard to pick up the cold draw notes, but I do get some earth and cocoa. Off the foot are sweet aromas of wood, hay, and slight spice.

La Relatos Cigar Review

Flavor & Smoke Characteristics

The Warped La Relatos kicks off with plumes of rich, aromatic, almost chalky smoke. It’s very sweet and creamy, not something I’m necessarily used to from Kyle’s work but it’s delicious. The sweet notes are creamy chocolate, nuts, floral perfume, and vanilla cake. Those notes are balanced nicely with slight bitterness and a touch of spice. The retrohale is easy and light, with flavors of chocolate cake and light baking spices. I’d put both strength and body at just below medium. Construction throughout the first third is excellent, with a consistently straight burn and the ash falling in half inch increments. It’s a damn great start.

As La Relatos burns into the second third, there’s a slight shift, with the bitter elements of the profile (charred oak, chalk, paper) taking on a bit more prominence. A few puffs later, the finish which was initially very clean takes on a lingering sourness which not endearing. Thankfully, a quick purge is enough to dispel that flavor. The strength and body are still hovering below medium at halfway, but the flavors are still clear as day.

In the final third, the sweetness that has characterized La Relatos subsides, with espresso, bitter wood, and dark chocolate coming to the fore. The texture of the smoke shifts as well, with more pepper on the palate and the tip of the tongue. It’s a nice change of pace, though I do think the bitter elements take up perhaps just a touch too much of space (a balance issue). Regardless, it’s a decent way to end what is undoubtedly an excellent cigar.

Conclusion

La Relatos from Warped Cigars is an obvious winner. It scores well on all counts: complexity, balance, harmony, progression, and construction. It has a great story to tell, and, minus some brief lapses in balance, is a downright excellent cigar. I’d be hard pressed to find any recently released cigars in this price range that are as memorable.

Final Rating: 92

Daniel Marshall White Label Robusto Review

2 0 4.0k

Daniel Marshall White Label Review

Daniel Marshall, as many may know has been creating custom high quality humidors since 1982 . He has provided expertly crafted cigar dwellings for celebrities, the elite and those who desire the best for their smokes. As a postscript to his humidors, Daniel Marshall went the route of creating his own line of cigars adhering to the same standards as his humidors. From the Red label, to Black (which received a positive rating from us) and even Gold, he has sought to provide several unique tastes for the cigar lover. With its Cameroon wrapper, the Daniel Marshall White Label robusto is a mild to medium smoke geared toward lovers of the leaf who enjoy subtleties in flavor and a balanced cigar.

Product Specifics

  • Wrapper: Cameroon
  • Binder: Mexican
  • Filler: Dominican
  • Size: 5” x 50

Appearance & Construction

The Daniel Marshall White Label Robusto sports a claro wrapper which is rather veiny. The cigar has a spongy foot and is not too firm to the touch. The squared label with white and gold accents simply displays an “M’ initial in cursive. The cigar itself visually doesn’t particularly stand out for me. There are no noticeable aromas to the wrapper save a bit of wood.

Daniel Marshall White Label Review Closeup

Flavor & Smoke Characteristics

At first lighting the Daniel Marshall White Label robusto I was met with a tangy note that was a bit off putting. The finish was flinty and rather short to start. The cigar produced a fine draw and as I puffed away some nuttiness came through. On the retrohale there was balsa wood and a bit of white pepper however that didn’t last long.

Midway the burn became uneven and the smoke ran rather hot despite puffing the cigar slowly. The flavors at this point were muddled and there was some citrus struggling to come to the forefront. Toasty notes developed then segued into a charry bitter finish. Thus far the cigar stayed in the medium bodied range.

In the last third the Daniel Marshall opened up a bit to reveal some gingerbread and toast. Another retrohale at this point delivered cashew and oak with white pepper returning. The burn struggled to correct itself and the ash was rather pale, almost anemic. The last remaining puffs burned hot intermixed with some bitterness, toast, nuts and a short finish. An uninspiring smoke.

Conclusion

While Daniel Marshall is renowned for high quality humidors I would say the White Label robusto is not the best example of this producer. I found the flavors lackluster and muted at best. A medium bodied cigar at its finest can and should yield subtleties of taste but that is much different than being able to barely grasp the essence of aromas from a cigar. The disproportionate burn throughout most of the smoke did not help which is question of quality control for me. I’ve enjoyed Daniel Marshall’s Red and Black labels more and I would suggest seeking those out rather than his White Label at least in the robusto vitola.

Final Rating: 85

Reviewers note: this was a non-blind rating.

Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado Belicoso Fino Review

6 0 3.4k

I think it’s fair to say that Tatuaje is a household name for cigar smokers these days. Pete Johnson has delivered some insanely good smokes, and some really fun ones too like The Bride (part of the annual Monster series) which we recently reviewed. Up for review today is the Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado, one of the company’s few anniversary releases.  The 15th Anniversary also comes in a separate blend featuring a Habano Oscuro wrapper, which I hope to review soon.

Product Specifics

  • Wrapper: Ecuador (Rosado Claro)
  • Binder: Nicaragua
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Size: 5 1/2 x 52 (belicoso fino)

Appearance & Construction

The Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado is a stunner of a cigar. The white band features raised gold lettering, which makes the cigar stand out in the humidor and gives it a rather celebratory look. The outer rosado claro wrapper has just one, small, visible vein and is otherwise silky to the touch. I also love the closed foot on this cigar (wrapper leaf extending past the foot and folded over). That basically guarantees an extra-flavorful start to the smoke.

After cutting the cigar with a straight cut, I test the draw, which is just about perfect (7/10 in terms of amount of restrictiveness). There’s not much to write home about on the cold draw because it’s so light, with some creamy natural tobacco and hints of wood. The aroma off of the foot is much more interesting, with a salt, oak, leather, and some bright spice which prompts not one but two sneezes as I write my notes.

Flavor & Smoke Characteristics

The Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado opens more forcefully than I was expecting, with a searing amount of spice and secondary pepper on the first four or five puffs. Smoke production is spot on, and strength and body lands at about medium. Generally, the smoke activates salty and bitter sensations on the palate. More specifically, I pick up oak, dry cedar, and an array of semi sweet baking spices (cinnamon, nutmeg) and light creaminess. Not a bad start, but quite a bit to handle from that closed foot.

As the ember burns past the first half inch, the spice and pepper draw down substantially. This gives much more of the spotlight to those baking spices, almonds, cream, and a slight lemon peel note. The retrohale is a solid medium, with nicely balanced notes of toasted bread and spices.

In the second third, the Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado settles way down at just above mild in terms of body and strength, and really hits its stride. The texture of the smoke is extremely smooth, with a profile dominated by warm bread, assorted nuts, cappuccino, and some light, slightly bitter leather. It’s a far cry from the aggressiveness of the first third, but much more balanced and enjoyable in my book.   The construction up to this point in the cigar has been good but not great, with the burn straying two or three times and requiring a few purges to correct. Still, even with the lightness of the profile it’s clear this cigar would pair incredibly well with coffee or espresso.

The final third continues most of the developments of the second, with a primary focus on toasted bread, light baking spices, and an overall mild strength. Some wood, salt, and sweet floral notes make occasional appearances as well. And thankfully the construction issues that degraded the earlier experience are nowhere to be found.

Conclusion

Construction issues aside, the Tatuaje 15th Anniversary Habano Rosado is a solid morning or early afternoon smoke, and worthy addition to the company’s portfolio. It puts forward a decently complex, well balanced experience that highlights flavors of toasted bread, baking spices, assorted nuts, and coffee notes. And as mentioned would pair remarkably well with coffee or espresso.

Final Rating: 89

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