The Liga 10 Aniversario Toro

The Liga 10 Aniversario is a celebration of 10 years of the Liga Privada No. 9 being in production. I have been excited to try one of these personally, as the presentation of these cigars is top notch and the availability has been minimal (that which has been scrutinized). There are two things which really caught my attention with this cigar. First, the unique fan tail head couple with a closed foot on this vitola is very impressive and masterfully done. Second, the wrapper on this cigar is a Criollo wrapper which is grown in the Connecticut river valley.

The Liga 10 Toro stands at 6 inches x 52 RG, but for some reason looks and smokes bigger than it’s actual size. The blend is produced at La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate in Esteli, Nicaragua. Willy Herrera and Jonathan Drew were the blenders. The Liga 10 is touted as a powerhouse- a supercharged Liga experience.

Upon lighting this cigar’s closed foot, that was definitely my impression. The rustic, toothy Criollo wrapper puts out a black pepper and espresso experience which was nothing short of full bodied. The Liga 10 uses a Mexican San Andrés Otapan Negro Ultimo Corte binder(what a mouthful), and fillers from Nicaragua and the USA(Pennsylvania). Once the rest of the bunch comes into the mix, the cigar settles down into a well balanced profile. The profile is pretty straight forward- pepper, espresso, and sweet raisin notes throughout- without much evolution. The cigar had an abundant smoke output, which is the norm for a Liga, but the construction was iffy in the three samples i tried.

Overall, I’m glad I tried the Liga 10. I also appreciate the creativity of the wrapper and the skill of the torcedors in the application of the wrapper. However, I can’t say that I would go through the hassle of tracking down another box and paying an inflated price for them. I would most likely opt for a Liga No. 9 if I wanted to scratch the itch of a Liga Experience.