CAO Cigars (named after the company's founder, Cano A. Ozgener) has been developing many interesting blends of cigars since the cigar boom of the mid-90's. However, their first blend that got the company rolling is called CAO Black. This cigar is made with Nicaraguan, Honduran, and a hint of Mexican filler tobaccos, and uses a Connecticut Ecuadorian wrapper. I sampled this cigar in the Churchill size, which they call the Frontier. The cigar is seven inches in length with a ring gauge of 50.
Flavor
My CAO Black cigar was mild-to-medium in flavor, with a very pleasing sweet cedar taste. The smoke itself was sweet, as opposed to some cigars that have a touch of sweetness on the head of the wrapper that you can taste without even lighting the stick. The smoke was very smooth and mellow, and thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. I smoked this cigar down to two inches, which took over an hour.Draw and Construction
The cigar was very well made, and provided a nice volume of smoke with little effort. CAO has a reputation for draw-testing every cigar that it makes, and there were no issues with the construction of the cigar to detract from my enjoyment of this very pleasing smoke. The cigar burned evenly and did not require any relights.Value
The CAO Black Frontier cigar is reasonably priced at around $5.40 per stick when purchased in a five-pack or box. The price is lower for smaller sizes, such as the Robusto (Storm) which goes for about $4.70 per stick in a five-pack. CAO has built a solid reputation in the cigar industry, and it all started with this blend. Although the company was acquired in early 2007, members of the Ozgener family will continue the CAO tradition as part of Henri Wintermans Cigars.
