CAO Brazilia
Friday, July 31st, 2009Anyone who knows me has heard me brag about tobacco from Brazil. My taste for tobacco from that region came from smoking Dona Flor and Alonzo Menendez cigars. The CAO Brazilia differs in that only the wrapper is from Brazil.
Thanks to Cigars Direct for sponsoring this review. You can check out their CAO Selections and the Brazilia at their site. I filled up a glass of water and sat down to do the review. Let’s see how it goes this time around.
Wrapper: Brazil
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Size: Gol! – 5 x 56
Price: $5.00
Pre-smoke & Construction:
The first thing I noticed about this cigar was how packed and firm it was. The pre-light draw was a little tight as a result, and had a sweet earthy taste. Overall, the wrapper looked great with very small veins. When I sniffed the wrapper, I was reminded of a barn yard and rich soil (earthy). The foot had a sweet earthy smell.
I did no burn corrections, and the ash held firm for over an inch. The stiff draw loosened up and became a distant memory.
Flavor:
The first third opened up with a simple, smooth and great earthy flavor. A smooth pepper morphed into a sweet spice mixed with slight mocha.
The second third had a nice sweet spice that was similar to cinnamon mixed with pepper. A tinge of mocha combined with coffee and wood. Earthy notes would become sweet and then revert back to a more traditional rich soily taste.
The last third went well, but didn’t open up like I thought it would. Woody flavors were dominant. There was mocha present, but it was hard for me to detect. Peppery notes came back and were fairly strong and smooth. An interesting combination of coffee and cinnamon offered a nice zing to the mix. Good times.
Conclusion:
This was a good full bodied cigar. The flavor profile wasn’t as rich as the Itilia, but that’s really my only complaint. The flavor profile was interesting and changed up a bit to hold my interest. I would definitely recommend any fan of a full bodied cigar to give the CAO Brazilia a try.