- Size: 3.9″ x 60 (Perfecto)
- MSRP: $188.90 (box of 12); $15.74 for a single
- Country of Origin: Nicaragua
- Wrapper: American Habano
- Binder: Unknown
- Filler: Unknown
- Body: Medium / Medium Full
- Strength: Medium
- Humidor Time Prior to Review: 1 year+
- Cigars smoked prior to review: 0
- Date Smoked: June 23, 2018
I’m on something of a cigar reviewing kick, so I figure I would ride the momentum and review this T52 that has been lying in the bottom of my humidor for some time. This cigar was a gift from a good cigar smoking friend, Matt. At over $15 it’s certainly a more expensive cigar than what I would usually purchase. So lets check it out, and live the high life for an hour or two. I’ve smoked a few Ligas and they have all been good. I currently have a 10 pack of their little Pappas Fritas simmering away in my humidor.
In the meantime, lets try one of their flag ship cigars. The T52 is supposed to be a stronger more robust cigar than their Number 9. Here is a link to Drew Estate’s website where you can read what they have to say about it. I think I’m more confused after reading their description of the cigar. Basically this cigar’s novelty is in it’s stalk cut Connecticut Habano wrapper. They chop off the entire tobacco plant at once, rather than plucking the leaves off every few days. Here is a good video Drew Estate put out so you can get a little more background information on what makes this cigar unique:
Without further yammering lets get into the review.
Appearance and Prelight Aromas
This is a little powder keg of a cigar. Aptly named the “Flying Pig”, this fat little bastard is beautifully rolled. Featuring a rich dark brown wrapper, showing an open foot, tight seams, and a lopsided pig tail on the head of the cigar, it’s handsome to look at. It’s also a dense cigar and has some heft to it. The band on my cigar has yellowed, demonstrating extreme patience on behalf of Matt. I wouldn’t be surprised if this one has aged for several years. Matt was in and out of cigars and this one spent some time in his humidor before it was gifted to me. Lets see if there is still any smoke left in it.
Sniffing the wrapper I get a mix of rich earthy aromas. Deep earth, barnyard, chocolate, spice, rich mahogany and leather bound books. I get less from the foot of the cigar.
I go through the process of moving all my shit outside to get set up. Camera, laptop, folding chair, cup holder for the folding chair, folding table for the ash tray, ash tray, glass of water etc. Oh yeah, and lets not forget the cigar. I fuel up my lighter and grab my cutter as well.
I take a handful of photographs of the cigar in natural light. Finally, I sit down, grab my cutters, and gently snip away the cap. I take a test draw. I’m met with some resistance, but it’s still free and reasonably easy. I’m greeted with molasses, chocolate, and earth. I get to toasting and light her up.
Start time is 4:00 P.M.
First Third
My first puff hints at some interesting flavors. The cigar is different and the flavor profile is going to take me a few puffs to digest. There is some dark chocolate, leather, and a dark fruity flavor. Plenty of pepper of both the red and black variety.
A couple puffs in and some cream is emerging in a blend of interesting flavors. It’s complicated. The aroma is nutty. It’s smacking me in the face as smoke pours from the foot of my resting cigar. A Liga trademark. I’m now getting some wood, some of the molasses I tasted in the dry draw, and the hint of something jammy. Blackberry? Only time will tell.
10 minutes in and the cigar is burning slowly, the char line traveling slowly downed the curved portion of this perfecto foot.
15 minutes in the, burn line is wavy but we are hitting the full 60 ring gauge. The draw is producing lots of smoke, especially now we are at wide open throttle. Flavors are a little on the subtle side at this point. Here they are: cream, graham cracker, coffee, cedar, toasted nuts. Not getting much pepper at this point. The retrohale hints at something fruity and I also detect some cinnamon.
It’s nice enough, but I’m hoping things will pick back up as the initial puffs were promising but now that the cigar has hit wide open throttle I’m left wanting more “oomph”. This cigar has been resting without cellophane for years potentially, so hopefully it didn’t mellow out to the point of being underwhelming.
The sun is high overhead and moving fast. It’s late June in Florida, but a nice breeze has me reasonably cool. Still, I may need to move my chair as my shade is shifting. Sweat begins to bead and drip behind my ear.
The flavors are also morphing and I’m getting some more coffee. Maybe this will be a color changing chameleon like the Padron 1964 Maduro I reviewed last week. That would be nice. I take another puff and get cream, coffee, toast, nuts, pepper, cinnamon, and a long peppery finish.
I stand up to take a picture. The burn is a bit raggedy. It’s also quite slow. We are near the half hour mark and have traveled 3/4″ at most. I am not complaining. It’s an expensive stick so I’d rather not see it turn to ash in an hour. I may correct the burn if it doesn’t eventually even out.
Flavors have shifted to a deep coffee and wood. Little creaminess at this point. Body is at a medium full. I can feel the nicotine tugging at my brain. Palm fronds wave lazily in the breeze.
The fruitiness I hinted at, is developing into more of a deep raisin or prune. Woody notes back it up. Frankly I’m not wowed by the flavors at this point. It’s not really my kind of flavor profile. At least at this point.
Depending on what side of the cigar you look at I’d say we are done with the first third. I use my torch lighter to hit the high spots and usher this cigar into the next chapter.
Second Third
Smoke time is at 35 minutes. My burn correction seems to be working. The burn is a little wavy, but relatively even. Flavors have picked up a little. I’m getting some cocoa and coffee now. Some indistinct wood. Some cinnamon. Some weak black pepper. Then the raisin and prune flavor comes back. Little transitions every puff or two.
The ash is a little flakey, but hanging tough.
The burn has picked up a little. We are at a trot. Smoke continues to drift away from the resting cigar. The direct sunlight shows the depth of color in the wrapper. Light to dark brown. It almost has some chatoyance to it.
The coffee has stepped up to an espresso flavor. The wood has built to the point where the cigar is whacking me in the head with a 2×4. Or maybe that is the nicotine. I can be a bit of a pussy when it comes to nicotine, and the T52 has my pussitis flaring. I’m sure the 90 degree heat isn’t helping, but the current weather is child’s play for Florida. It’s going to get a lot hotter as we venture into July and August.
An inch or so of ash tumbles away as I reach for the cigar. At least it didn’t fall into my lap. With the conical ash gone it looks like I have smoked on this thing for over an hour. But there is still plenty of mileage left on this one.
At this point the flavors are savory. Strong coffee. Wood and earth. The aroma is sweet and bready, but everything else is decidedly not sweet. And then I take a puff and the plum returns, as if on cue. Chocolate is creeping back in as well. Clever girl, this T52.
I picked the wrong spot to sit in. I’m burning alive. So I move my gypsy wagon of crap over to the shady spot in the yard. The cool side of the pillow. It gives the cigar a moment to rest. To cool off now that the insulating layer of ash has denuded the cherry of this stick. I take a puff and am greeted with some oily wood. This review is beginning to read like a trashy romance novel.
I take another puff and get raisin bread. There seem to be a cluster of flavors here, waltzing about in 3/4 time.
This wrapper leaf is beautiful. I understand that Drew Estate went to great lengths to source it. I couldn’t appreciate it under the fluorescent lights of my office. It’s a deep and oily brown.
A cicada buzzes loudly in the neighbor’s yard. Another one answers back in the distance. Then they both begin blaring at peak volume. A squirrel offers some lonesome cries. I close my eyes and am transported to the deep south. I wouldn’t be surprised to walk inside and find a pot of gumbo simmering on the stove. Or maybe squirrel stew…
The T52 is still doing its thing. To be honest I’m not super impressed. It’s not burning particularly well and the flavors are ho hum. I liked the Number 9 I had at the cigar store more. That was a sweet and spicy treat. This is more like a wet log soaked in coffee. I had a Feral Flying pig that I enjoyed more as well.
Your mileage may vary. I’m just one obscure data point on your cigar smoking journey.
On that note, I’ve noticed traffic on this website is picking up slightly. We are getting a handful of visitors a day now. I haven’t done a thing to promote it. Mother Google is offering a tiny trickle from its massive teat. I have no idea if the people who landed on the site are reading the reviews. If you are reading leave me a comment please. Let me know what you think. Should I keep writing reviews or be quiet? At least point out a mistake. I’m sure the first comment will be to correct some sort of factual error in my reviews. That is usually how it goes.
We have a new flavor: leather. Its different. Prunes come back.
The nicotine on this cigar is quite potent. I had lunch a couple hours ago. Chicken McNuggets. That decision is almost always a mistake. I feel weak in the knees and I’m having trouble seeing straight.
An hour in and the cigar is inching along like a John McPhee book. Moments of brilliance but kind of dry on the whole. Something I should like, but lack the sophistication to truly appreciate.
The T52 slowly peters out on me and eventually stops smoking entirely. It has been tunneling. I give it a couple minutes to cool before knocking away the ash, purging the cigar, and rebooting it.
On the relight I get blasted with leather and prunes. Not my favorite combination, but it’s making a statement at least. Strong prune flavor courses through my nostrils on the retrohale. Now that I’ve done some major cigar triage we are at the final third.
Final Third
Smoke time is at 1 hour 10 minutes. My reboot has the T52 smoking like a chimney. Firing on all 8 cylinders I hope. Smoke swirls around my face after I take a puff.
Here are the flavors as I experience them: prunes, coffee, wood, leather, earth, black pepper, and a little cinnamon.
We are getting towards the band. The band is interesting. A thick waxy paper. Embossed with gold foil on one end. It takes some effort to pick it apart. Ultimately I slide it off the tapered end and cut it apart with my pocket knife.
I think some of this tobacco was grown on a Sun-Maid farm. The raisin flavor is strong with this cigar. That’s the dominant flavor now. I like raisin, but prefer it with a strong chocolate flavor. On it’s own the cigar has a distinctly geriatric feel to it. Do they pass these around the assisted living facility? Right before everyone’s morning constitutional? Something to look forward to I suppose. Or not. Wood and earth swirl back into play. Pepper ticks up slightly.
The flavors are darkening. Black coffee and earth. I’m sure prunes will come back any puff now. I find myself bored. I realize that my experience flies in the face of other’s experiences. I could have gotten a bad stick. We are at an hour and a half here. Probably not normal, even for a slow smoker like me, and I’ve been having some burn issues. At this rate it’s going to take 2 hours to take this one down. Not sure if I’ll be able to hang in that long. Not that I have anywhere to go on this lazy Saturday afternoon. But I’m getting antsy. Not good.
If the cigar isn’t smoking right, it’s not for lack of rest. This puppy has been resting for eons. Maybe that’s it. For all the talk about aging cigars, it’s possible to age out. Some cigars get better with age while others mellow into nothingness. I figured a premium stick like this Liga Privada would do well with some age on it, but I’ve been wrong before.
I touch the wrapper up again and the signature resting smoke picks up. Smoke pours out of my mouth after a gentle draw. The Raisinettes return to carry me off, trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. Everyone is wearing cool sunglasses.
Finally we work this one down to a fat little nub. Coffee, bitter baker’s chocolate, wood, raisins. Not much has changed here. The smoke is hot and a little acrid. The aroma is nice at least. Perfuming the air with a sweet bready aroma.
With little happening in the final inch or so of the cigar I move to write my final thoughts. You can see those below. The flavors don’t change much towards the very end. Nothing new or note-worthy and I’ve already blabbered enough.
Liga Privada T52 Flying Pig Review – Final Thoughts
Well, this one isn’t my favorite. And after a morning of cleaning the house, and 2 hours of smoking in the heat I’m a little exhausted. In a sea of glowing reviews my contribution stands as an awkward outlier. And who knows. I’ve had some construction issues with this cigar, and it’s my only stick. A sample size of one isn’t fair. I try to buy 5 packs for this very reason. But at ~$15 a stick I don’t see myself ponying up the cash any time soon to try this one again. There are other cigars in the Liga Privada line up I will try before returning to the T52 Flying Pig. It goes to show how subjective this stuff is.
Keep in mind I am writing these reviews for fun. I don’t proclaim to be an expert. Just one man with a laptop and some time on his hands. To the chagrin of company men and corporate cogs.
On my 0-2 scale I’d rate this a “0”. Pretty harsh for a storied cigar. If I give it the benefit of doubt I’ll rate it a soft “1”, meaning I would try it again but not buy a box. I might grab a couple more singles if I find them on deep discount, which is wishful thinking as these sell like hotcakes and are rarely marked down. Pick up a couple singles and see what you think. And feel free to leave a comment if you disagree with me. Thanks for checking out the review.
Final smoke time: 2 hours.
Final score: 2/5
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