Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus by Drew Estate
Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus by Drew Estate

In 2020, Drew Estate announced a new addition to its Liga Privada Unico Serie known as the Bauhaus. The Bauhaus was the 14th cigar that would be released in the Liga Privada line. What would be different about this cigar is that it would be an exclusive cigar to the European cigar market. The Liga Privada Unico Serie is a series of cigars that feature a unique blend in a different size. All of the cigars in the series are limited and small batch in production. Some of the releases are more limited than others.  The cigars are not only limited in terms of production, but in some cases have been regional, shop-exclusive, or event-only cigars. Many of the Unico Serie cigars have some ties to the Liga Privada No. 9 or Liga Privada T52 in terms of the tobaccos used. Today, we take a closer look at the Bauhaus and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Closed box of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus

The following is a list of the Liga Privada Unico Serie offerings.

The names of the Unico Serie cigars vary quite a bit. In this case of Bauhaus, it refers to a German art school known for combining craft and fine arts.

Without further ado, let’s break down the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus and see what this cigar brings to the table:

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

On paper, when you look at things tobacco-wise, the profile of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus looks similar to the Liga Privada No. 9. This consists of a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, a Brazilian binder, and a combination of Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos Production of the Bauhaus comes from Drew Estate’s La Gran Fabrica in Estelí, Nicaragua.

Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Brazilian
Filler: Honduran, Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate

Vitolas Offered

The Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus is offered in one size -a Short Robusto: measuring 114mm x 50 (or 4 1/2 x 50). The Bauhaus is presented in 12-count boxes.

Liga Privada Unico Series Bauhaus - Open Box
Open box of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus

Appearance

The Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus had a rich chocolate-brown color to it. Upon closer examination, there was some mottling present on the surface of the wrapper. This wrapper didn’t have much in the way of oil on it, but it did have a rather silky complexion – a surprise for a Broadleaf wrapper which is often more rugged. There also were some visible veins and visible wrapper seams on the surface of the wrapper.

Liga Privada Unico Series Bauhaus - Close Up
Close Up of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus

The band to the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus is a variation of the bands found on other Liga Privada cigars. This is a band that was white with a gray pattern in the background. The upper portion of the band has the text “HECHO EXCLUSIVAMENTE PARA EL HEFE UNICO SERIE” in gray font. The lower portion of “LA GRAN FABRICA DREW ESTATE S.A.” on the lower portion.  The center of the band has the text “BAUHAUS” in a blue-stamped font. On the far right is a blue and gold Unico Serie logo.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

Prior to lighting up the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus, a straight cut was used to remove the cap. After the cap was removed, it was on to the pre-light draw stage. The cold draw delivered a mix of chocolate, earth, and anise. To me, this was a satisfactory pre-light draw experience. At this point, it was time to toast up the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus and move on into the smoking stage.

Tasting Notes

The Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus opened up with more notes of chocolate, earth, and anise. During the early stages, the chocolate and anise emerged as the primary notes. The earth settled into the background. In addition, a slight mixed pepper note emerged in the background. On the retro-hale, there was a combination of mixed pepper and anise.

During the second third of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus, some earth notes joined the chocolate notes in the forefront. There was a gradual diminishing of the anise notes. Meanwhile, the pepper notes increased from the background and were joined by some baker’s spice.

The last third of the cigar saw the earth and chocolate remain grounded in the forefront. The pepper and baker’s spice closed in on the forefront but didn’t quite cross the threshold. There still were some notes of anise that were a little more distant in the background. This is the way the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus came to a close. The resulting nub was cool in temperature and firm to the touch.

Burn

The Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus is a well-constructed cigar and this was reflected in the performance of the burn. There was an occasional bit of jaggedness on the burn, but overall this cigar had no problems maintaining a straight burn path. The resulting ash was skewed toward the firm side. This ash had a near-white color to it. As for the burn rate and burn temperature, both were ideal.

Burn of the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus

Draw

The draw to the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus scored very nicely. It has what Ben Lee has termed the “milkshake draw” – which is that touch of resistance to it. I consider that to be a positive. This cigar also produced an abundant amount of smoke.

Strength and Body

The Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus started out as a medium strength, medium-bodied smoke. As the cigar experience progressed the intensity of both attributes increased. The body increased at a greater level than the strength and by the second half, the Bauhaus was in medium to full-bodied territory. While there was more strength in the second half, it remained in the medium range until the end of the smoke.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

There is good news and bad news about the Liga Privada Unico Serie Bauhaus being a European exclusive. The good news it the European market has a winner. The bad news is if you don’t live in Europe, this is going to be a cigar you are going to have to hunt down. This is an outstanding expression of Connecticut Broadleaf for the Liga Privada Unico Serie. Flavor is where this cigar excels. What’s nice about the Bauhaus isn’t your cookie-cutter Connecticut Broadleaf. The short robusto format also works very well with this cigar. This is a cigar I would not hesitate to recommend to a novice or experienced cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar worth smoking – and it’s one that garners box-worthy consideration. At 91 points, this cigar exceeds the threshold for the Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence.

Summary

Key Flavors: Chocolate, Earth, Anise, Bake’s Spice, Mixed Pepper
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium (1st Half), Medium to Full (2nd Half)
Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: Box Worthy Consideration
Score: 91
Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence

References

News: Drew Estate Announces Liga Privada Unico Serie Pancetta Lounge Exclusive for Two Stores
Price: ~$ 17.75 USD/ € 15.14 EUR
Source: Drew Estate
Brand Reference: Liga Privada