Video review HERE.
(Description provided by General Cigar)
CAO leads the pack in bringing the world’s most unique and unexpected tobaccos to its fans. The brand team has gone deep into the Amazon jungle, to the wilds of Africa, and to Italy, Columbia and many points in between to create exciting blends. And now, with their newest release, CAO Borealis, CAO has set its sights on the North.
A new expression made exclusively for the Canadian market, CAO Borealis features a rare Canadian tobacco in its blend.
CAO Borealis gives a nod to the awesome skylights that only occur in locations as targeted as pinpoints on a map. This speaks to the fact that geography and climate are pivotal in so many ways, just as they are for tobacco. It’s why the CAO team ventured to the province of Ontario, where Canada’s highest quality farmland is located. There, in the province’s Southwest corner, near the Great Lakes where humidity and warm evenings prevail, a special Cuban-seed variety of dark air-cured tobacco is grown.
Rick Rodriguez, CAO’s blender/ambassador said, “When you think of great tobacco growing regions, tropical climates and hot, humid growing seasons come to mind. That’s of course true. With ‘Borealis,’ we wanted our fans to experience something new, so we once again took an unconventional path. This time, we’re featuring Canadian tobacco and are delivering a blend that has an air of something different. It’s an experience that’s enjoyable and colors slightly out of the lines. A cigar you’ll want to talk about. And that’s exactly what we wanted to deliver.”
Wrapped in Ecuadorian Habano Viso, with a Nicaraguan binder and a filler that blends Nicaraguan tobacco with Cuban-seed Canadian leaf, CAO Borealis is a true medium-bodied cigar that’s subtle in its uniqueness and deep on intricacy. The experience brims with notes of spice, cedar, pepper, nuts, and cocoa.
CAO Borealis will be available in two frontmarks, both packaged in 20 count boxes (5-4 layout), and released to all Canadian provinces. The line is handcrafted at STG Esteli and began shipping to select retailers on April 11.
CAO Borealis Robusto (5” x 52) REVIEWED TODAY
CAO Borealis Toro (6” x 54)
Before learning about this cigar I had no idea cigar tobacco was grown in Canada. That being said the cigar's band is quite basic and rather bland. The cigar itself has a nice feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was good with a touch of firmness. The initial flavors at light up were a sweet, juicy peach, brown sugar, a thick, pasty nutmeg, leather, and black coffee. There was black pepper rated at 7 to 7 1/2. A nice start.
At the first third (29 minutes) the burn is even and the ash is tight. The same flavor notes are in play. I really like the sweet peach. But now there is also a rather thick raw almond note that joins the nutmeg notes. At this point the cigar is quite nice. I rated the first third 92.
Moving through the second third (55 minutes) the cigar made one of the biggest transformations I've ever run across. The peach and brown sugar are gone. There is a light rimnent of citrus peel, earthy black coffee, and leather. The finish is leather with some light citrus peel with good lingering black pepper. It's like I'm smoking 2 different cigars. The first third was quite nice but the second third is definitely not. I rated the second third 86. It is definitely going in the wrong direction.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 18 minutes. The final third was not appealing to me. It was earthy black coffee with light leather and light charred cedar notes. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish was leather with some black coffee and good lingering black pepper. This cigar started off nicely. The first third was good. After that it went straight downhill. Very disappointing. I rated the final third 80. That's about the lowest score I issue due to my respect for the industry. This cigar did not do any favors to the country of Canada. The overall score is as good as it is due to the first third. It saved the cigar from scoring lower.
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