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CAO Italia Gondola Cigar Review
Written by Bobby Rica, Wednesday, 26, November 2008
- Brand: CAO Italia
- Shape: Torpedo
- Wrapper: Honduras
- Ring: 54
- Filler: Nicaraguan/Italian/Peru
- Size: 6 1/4
- Binder: Honduras
Review
Like all CAO cigars, Italia’s are made in Honduras, from Honduran wrapper and binders. It's the filler that's unusual here and gives the line its name: Habano seed, but grown in Benevento, southern Italy, exclusively for CAO (or so they say). This is blended with tobacco from Nicaragua and Peru to make the filler.
Now whether this really makes a difference or is all hype, I don't know. But I have found the various CAO Italias to have a distinctive, full-bodied flavor that's made the line a staple in my humidor. It's a cliché, but the Italia really is the cigar I can't refuse.
Comments
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Stella Lipnicki
30 Nov 2008
07:59 (EST)As Italian as a mafia don. Smooth, suave, and impressive, with flavors that are on point, straightforward, and oh so defined. In true Italian character, this cigar’s got strong coffee and expensive leather on the inside, with a few notes of cream for extra character. I felt like I should have had an accent when I was smoking this.
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Herbert Barnes
30 Nov 2008
05:52 (EST)You have to work up to it, but it’s worth the effort. An impeccably-turned-out figurado, long with a tapered end just like the boat it was named for. Not for amateurs -- I’d suggest this for long-time smoker buddies who know what they like, and appreciate (or at least don’t mind) a lingering, earthy aftertaste.
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Harry McKinley
28 Nov 2008
10:08 (EST)Upon taking out a Gondola, the delightful aroma of the wrapper stimulates and takes hold of the sense. The sweet cocoa flavor dominates the taste, and the lack of a peppery finish may surprise some expecting some explosiveness in the smoke. There are burn issues that make the cigar either impossible to light or difficult to catch up due to it being hastily consumed by the light. However, when the Gondola burns, this pup does indeed burn a complex medium-full bodied smoke that is interesting, at the very least.
