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ern1911

28 Oct 2009
11:37 (EST)

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CAO America Review 5.0 x 56 - Potomac Strength: Medium-Full bodied Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro and a pinstriped Connecticut Natural Country/Filler: Honduran I like the CAO line of cigars for a few reasons. First most I love their attitude, the whole "Cuban Shmuban" moxy and the fresh hip look of the company. Most of the half dozen lines I have tried thus far from CAO I liked and enjoyed, there hasn't been a CAO cigar I have completely disliked, only a couple that were just not my cup of tea. I have found every CAO cigar has been very well constructed and burned well and the CAO America is no exception, this is a beautifully crafted cigar from it's star spangled banner label to the thoughtful pin striping, pedigreed with the Connecticut Maduro leaf and Connecticut Natural leaf in the dual wrapper. How could you not like this cigar? Especially after being so aptly named as "America"! As I write this I'm finding it hard to get it all down as I have sampled this cigar at least 5 times, the very first being the Potomac which is a 5.0 x 56. I got this as part of the CAO World Sampler from my local cigar shop, you can find this sampler pack online at Famous Smoke Shop. The Potomac was the first burn and most memorable for me in the CAO America line, so much so after this sampling I went ahead and bought the 5 sampler in the Constitution from Cigars International. However, is it me, but does anybody else feel the same about the the Robusto sized cigar? For whatever reason I believe this is the most flavorful bang for your buck and best sampling of a cigar. All the good things I liked about the flavor and strength of the CAO America cigar I found best with the Potomac. Curiously and oddly enough I found a similar experience with the CAO Criollo as reviewed earlier. The highlights and notes of the CAO America are characteristic of a very medium bodied tasting cigar. In the Potomac I felt the 1st third was a tad spicy upon light up with an earthy leathery creamy taste. In the 2nd third this turned into a toasty chocolate coffee like taste and with this size cigar I thought it was really brought out. By the way when I say chocolate it's not milk or sweet chocolate, more like real chocolate which is bitter, or almost like a burnt toasty taste. The America for it's last third then finished smoothly with a smooth back to the leathery and coffee like taste and peppery at the end. As for strength of this cigar it was definitely medium bodied, for cigar smokers that like more spiciness and more kick to the cigar, this will be mild for them. Construction as described above I have found to be typical of all CAO cigars I have lit up, well made, even burn and good draw. So far CAO has not disappointed in this area of quality control. The Constitution which I have burned 3 times and most recently last week have been good experiences and I enjoyed the smoke, however I felt it was not as "wow" factor as the first time with the Potomac. It seems the larger sized CAO America cigar seemed to not quite hit the same notes or highs as the little brother, it felt like it was just a notch below hitting those favorable marks, but don't get me wrong I still found it to be a pleasant smoke. Where does this rank in my humidor? I would definitely buy and smoke this cigar again, both in Potomac and Constitution to comparison smoke the differences I noted here in this review. The CAO America is a favorite of mine in the medium bodied cigar level and come July 4th I would have a few of these around to celebrate the occasion. I recommend this to my cigar novicionados if they are exploring maduro leafed cigars and don't want to be intimidated by a full bodied strength. More experienced cigar smokers who like more spiciness and "umph", would probably call this an average cigar and have another stick they would prefer to smoke. Bottom line for me though, I liked it and would keep some in my humidor.

Jack Spanotzik

30 Nov 2008
09:46 (EST)

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You don't need to like soccer to love this cigar. A rich, tasty, memorable smoke that I will always keep on hand. Big full-bodied flavor, with no harsh surprises – what can I say, it's definitely a score.

Lucius Spengler

30 Nov 2008
08:43 (EST)

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Once a CAO, always a CAO...not!  The America Potomac, sadly, fails to live up to the CAO name.  Sure, it’s good-looking and impressive, like most CAOs, but the structure didn’t have staying power, and the burn kept changing its mind the whole time.  Luckily the flavors had at least some punch—pepper, cedar, and coffee—but were not enough to keep me interested.  Next cigar, please.

Herbert Barnes

30 Nov 2008
05:51 (EST)

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The Potomac kicks things off with spicy tones bursting in your mouth followed by hints of cedar halfway and ends with a touch of coffee for a smooth finish. Despite the multitude of flavors, the smoke is far from having a complex taste due to the short duration of each flavor. However, the worst thing about the cigar is the flimsy wrapper that falls apart more than half the time. Given the deceiving fact that its construction is tight and the stick feels like a rock upon first touch, the smoke is a crumbling experience. Even the burn had to be retouched a couple of times in order to become even. Succinctly put, the Potomac is not up to CAO standards.