CIGAR BISTRO Review
CAO Cx2
Vital Statistics:
Country: Handmade, Nicaragua
Size: Robusto – 5 x 52
Wrapper: Cameroon – double wrapper
Binder: Cameroon
Filler: Colombia, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium

The Feel: The CAO Cx2 has a nice, solid feel to it. The wrapper was dark brown and luxuriously smooth with a very slightly oily texture.
The Smell: The Cx2 had a–what other way to put it?–smell of fine tobacco mixed with other scents that some have called “cocoa” and others have described as “caramel.” In spite of a prolonged session of slowly taking in the Cx2 aroma before it was lit, I couldn’t settle on a definitive descriptor. I will say that it was “delightful” and reminded me of the smells one encounters on entering a well-kept cigar shop.
The Cap: The cap was firmly attached and cut easily.
The Draw: Despite the heft, the draw was excellent. Sometimes, well-packed cigars have a problem with the draw. The two CAO Cx2 Robustos I smoked both had an excellent draw.

CAO CX2 NOTES:

The CAO CX2 presented one problem, which was a pleasant one: I couldn’t quite make out the extra flavors in the aroma. The flavors changed from a lighter (woody?) mix–when the CX2 was first lit–to a heavier (coffee? caramel?) flavor as the cigar’s halfway point was reached.

Over it all, an earthy taste of fine tobacco prevailed. It was the additional pleasant flavors which contributed to the aroma which were harder to nail down.

In fact, I left my desk and retired to lie down on the couch, the better to concentrate on the captivating flavors swirling about me. Alas, it wasn’t much help. It was a particularly pleasant problem to have.

The one thing that was distinctive: the CAO CX2 Robusto was a good smoke right up until it was too short to hold comfortably. There are some cigars that are best abandoned 1-2 inches from completion. Not the CAO CX2.

MORE on CAO CX2 Cigars.

CAO CX2 cigars (Cameroon times two) present a rich-tasting, medium-bodied cigar brimming with velvety-smooth flavor and a seductive aroma. Now made expressly for Famous Smoke Shop, these cigars have a perfectly-balanced blend of robust Nicaraguan and Colombian longfiller tobaccos surrounded by TWO rare, Grade-1 African Cameroon binder and wrapper leaves. The smoke is laden with earthy-woody flavors underscored by sweet tobacco notes. One of CAO’s BEST cigars.

FINAL VERDICT:

Despite not being able to quite put my finger on the hints of flavors the cigar contained, the CAO CX2 was a fine smoke. Unlike some cigars which disappoint the second time around, the subsequent smoking of a second CAO CX2 was a no less rewarding experience.

FINAL CIGAR BISTRO SCORE:

Intangibles (Feel, Heft, Smell, Cap): 9
Wrapper: 10
Draw: 9.5
Flavor: 9
Aroma while Smoking: 9
Smoking Experience: 9
Value: 9

Total: 64.5/70

All in all, I look forward to next being reacquainted with the CAO CX2. Perhaps then, those other fainter, more elusive flavors will give up their secret.

by Mondo Frazier
images: DBKP; Famous Smoke Shop
CAO CX2 obtained through: Trinity Insight LLC

Back to DBKP Front Page.

Photo courtesy of Real Estate Sizzle

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CIGARS GET TOO WET

The question is usually how do you keep cigars fresh and moist. But what happens if cigars get too moist? What’s the best way to dry out an overly-wet cigar? Here’s one answer below.

QUESTION:

From Over wet cigars, best method to dry them out?:

I bought two cigars today. In order to prevent it drying out before I smoke them later this week the seller sprayed the inside of a ziplock bag before placing the cigars in a carboard sleeve and into the bag. To my dismay I noticed, at home, that the water had collected at the bottom, soaking through the cardboard and wetting the caps of the cigars (much like when over salivated if smoking). My question is whether I can save them? If so, how? I immediately dried the inside of a bag and transferred them to a new sleeve and placed them back in, is that a step in the right direction? Would cutting past the wetness be advised. I plan on smoking them in about 2/3 days.

ANSWER:

I have never seen water sprayed in the inside of a ziplock bag before placing the cigars in a cardboard sleeve and into the bag. You have nothing to worry about. Just let the cigar sit in a cigar box or humidor and in a few days it will be dry. If you don’t have a humidor or empty cigar box, then let it sit out until it’s dry. The only side affect of the water is a water stain on the cigar. The formerly wet head does not affect the taste or burn as long as you let the cigar dry out before smoking. Most cigar makers prefer to smoke dry cigars as they will taste and burn better

Answer submitted by Cuban Crafters.

by Mondo

There’s a love of cigars–and then there’s the ridiculous.

From the Seattle WA area:

Kidnapper demanded money, cigars, sex

The man was wearing a long black wig and demanded to know where the safe was. He also kept making calls on his cell phone.

“Just kept calling his friend Jay, Jaybird,” the woman says.

“When the friend didn’t come to get him, she says he cleared out the till and grabbed some cigars and cigarettes.”

No word on whether the smoking bandit was apprehended.

image: metro

Interesting story from Tarpon Spring FL via TampaBay.com.

From Native Cuban hand rolls cigars on Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks:

Lazaro Victores became interested in cigars at age 12.

Victores, now 21 and a Holiday resident, would sit in Tarpon Springs with elder cigar rollers who would show him the intricate process of neatly and snuggly wrapping the tobacco filler.

Victores can be found daily at Dream of Cuba on the Sponge Docks, hand-rolling cigars.

“It’s very interesting to be rolling cigars in Tarpon Springs because everybody is Greek,” Victores said. “You’re there, rolling cigars at the table and you have people all the time, they come watch you and they are fascinated with what you do. It makes you feel real good.”

Now, that’s the life: sitting on the dock of the bay–and doing something worthwhile–watching the tide roll away.

And Tarpon Springs appears to be one of the few places in the USA tht one can obtain a real, honest-to-goodness Cuban hand-rolled cigar–legally.

by Mondo
image: tampabay.com

If you live in Pennsylvania and enjoy a good cigar, expect the price of it to continue up as the government continues to take a bigger bite out of things people enjoy.

From Governor says layoffs, higher taxes are likely necessary to plug $1 billion Pa. budget gap:

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – With Pennsylvania facing a $1 billion-plus deficit for the second year in a row, Gov. Ed Rendell called on legislators Monday to increase taxes to limit the number of state employee layoffs or furloughs that are likely to result from spending cuts.
[...]
Rendell said little spending can be cut without also forcing the state to eliminate jobs. To avoid more substantial layoffs or furloughs, legislators must consider imposing new taxes on cigars, smokeless tobacco and the extraction of natural gas, he said.

Nope, there’s not anything the Governor could possibly find in the PA budge that needs cutting. It has to be more taxes.

…and this time, those taxes are planned to land on cigars, among other things.

Wonder how this will affect Bethlehem (PA) Cigar International? Florida might be looking pretty good if this goes into effect.

by Mondo
image: offerincompromiselawyer.com

So, you just bought a cigar and it says “Maduro”.

What’s that mean?

From Cigar Parts:

Wrapper Types

Double Claro (also called Candela or American Market Select) – green to greenish brown. The color is achieved by picking the leaf before it reaches maturity, and then drying it rapidly. Very mild, almost bland with very little oil.

Claro – Light tan. Usually this is the color of shade grown tobacco. Connecticut Shade wrappers are said to be some of the finest in the world. Shade grown tobacco is grown under large canopies to protect the tobacco from harsh sunlight. Neutral flavor and smooth smoking.

Natural (see also English Market Selection) – Light brown to brown. These are most often sun grown, meaning they are not protected by canopies like shade grown leaves. Fuller bodied flavor than shade grown leaves, but still very smooth.

Colorado Claro – Mid-brown, tawny. (For example, brands such as Dominican Partagas or Fuentes, using Camaroon wrappers.)

Colorado – Reddish dark brown, aromatic. A cigar with this wrapper tastes robust and rich.

Colorado Maduro – Dark brown, medium strength, slightly more aromatic the maduro. Usually gives a rich flavor, as found in many of the best Honduran cigars.

Maduro – Dark brown to very dark brown. These usually have more texture and veining than the lighter wrappers. They are often described as oily looking, with stronger taste – sweet to some palates with a unique aroma.

Oscuro – Very dark brown or almost black. They are the strongest tasting of all wrappers. These wrappers tend to be from Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico, or Connecticut Broadleaf.

English Market Selection – A broad designation refering to brown cigars (anything other double claro essentially). The darker the color, the sweeter and stronger the flavor and the greater the oil and sugar content of the wrapper. Darker wrappers normally spend longer on the plant or come from greater altitudes. The additional exposure to the sun at higher altitudes tends to enhance the production of oil (which protects the plant) and sugar (because of increased photosynthesis). Sure leaves are typically fermented for longer as well.

Don’t you feel better?

Now, go ahead and light up.

Being knowledgeable won’t make the cigar smoke any better, but knowledge is its own reward.

What is the best way to store your cigars?

There’s two schools of thought: wood and plastic. The article below favors a wood humidor (as do most places that sell such items).

From How to Store a Cigar:

Cigars must live in an environment, (warm and very humid); similar to where they were born and the best way to simulate that environment is with a humidor. A humidor will vary sizes from the small wooden boxes to the large wooden cabinets. Before purchasing a wooden humidor perform the “whoosh test” by lifting the lid about three inches, let it drop and listen for a “whoosh” of air escaping which prevents the lid from slamming. A “whoosh” means the humidor is crafted well enough to create a tight seal.

Another option, if for some reason you don’t want to purchase a nice wooden humidor, is to use a plastic container (Rubbermaid or Tupperware); however, plastic containers don’t allow your cigars to “breathe” and a modest amount of air flow is needed to help prevent mold and keeping your stogies fresh. Open the plastic container once a month to check for the proper moisture.

Cigars kept in a Ziploc bag are only good for a couple of weeks before they experience any ill effects. If you are looking for something similar with a greater lifespan, try our Fuente Humidor Bags for not only that freshness seal but also a scientifically engineered humidification packet.

Having a humidifier is also a good idea.

What about plastic?

In a book by the doctor who was the head of the Cuban cigar industry (it’s a small book and I couldn’t find it in my library), a plastic Tupperware container is touted. The doctor says that a air-tight plastic box was “the best way I’ve found to store cigars”.

Now that Cigar Bistro is up and running, I’ll have to run that book. It was small, but full of useful tips, pictures and personal cigar anecdotes.

Hope this information has been helpful.

image: http://www.adorini.com

Hours of smoking pleasure
House of Cigars
Wheeling, WV
Nov 16 2009

Rows of bundles of tasty cigars…
House of Cigars
Wheeling, WV
Nov 16 2009

Okay, this is more a “Beginner’s Guide to How to Light and Smoke a Cigar”.

BUT, you have to start somewhere, I suppose.

From Tips For Novices On How To Smoke Cigars:

Many novice smokers have embarrassed themselves trying to smoke a cigar with the same frantic, huff-and-puff energy that goes into cigarette smoking. But cigars aren’t cigarettes, any more than cheap beer is fine wine, and just as you’d never guzzle a fine Cabernet Sauvignon, you shouldn’t just inhale a cigar.

The site from which the article is quoted is named, oddly enough, “You Stop Smoking”?!?

Be that as it may, what follows are a few of the tips the article offers

ON LIGHTING A CIGAR

How to light? Steer clear of paper matches, which will only stay live long enough to light a small portion of the cigar. You need a full flame that will cover the entire head of the cigar. Wooden matches may work, though it’s recommended that you let the sulphur burn off the tip of the match before lighting.

Butane lighters are free of odor and taste and are the favorite method for many smokers, as are “torch” lighters. Whatever you prefer, make sure you turn the cigar as you light it (”turn and burn,” experienced smokers say), so that the entire cigar is lit. Some aficiandos believe it’s a bad idea to let the flame touch the cigar and prefer to use a lit cedar strip, but many American smokers argue that this is just a bit of unnecessary European pretension.

HOW TO SMOKE THE CIGAR

More from You Stop Smoking:

Inhaling the smoke is unnecessary and dangerous. Once again, cigars are not cigarettes. You pull the smoke into your mouth and, like a wine taster, allow its flavor to saturate your palate, without allowing the smoke into your lungs. For this reason, cigar smoking is more taste-oriented and less harmful to your health than cigarette-smoking.

The taste of the smoke varies depending on the tobacco type and the sorts of flavors added by the makers, as well as the age of the cigar, the conditions in which it’s been stored, and many other factors. Regardless, the taste is richer, fuller and subtler than that of cigarettes, and many people who don’t enjoy cigarette-smoking have found that they like the taste or odor of cigars.

More at the link above.

NOTE: Definitely agree with the “turn and burn” approach to lighting a cigar. If you take a few extra seconds to ensure the entire end of the cigar is burning, it saves a lot of grief later.

Two useful bits of information here though: how to light and smoke a cigar.

We always boiled it down to a few simple rules.
1-Make sure you have a cigar.
2-Make sure you have (or have the ability to bum) a lighter or match.
3-Fire it up!

Enjoy!

by Mondo Frazier
images:
* www.citizenofthemonth.com
* http://www.citycigarcompany.com
* womensmokingcigars.wordpress.com