Cigars

The CAO LX2 (which stands for “ligero times two”) prides itself on its potency. A hybrid across the board, the cigar sports Dominican and Nicaraguan longleaf filler, a Honduran binder leaf, and a relatively dark Nicaraguan wrapper. Like a custom computer or a built-for-speed automobile, the combination suggests a smoke with unique potential, maximizing for enjoyment and pulling together its disparate characteristics to create something better than its parts.

I had hoped this was the case for the CAO LX2. I’ve enjoyed different lines from CAO in the past, and the Brazilia “Gol!” cigar was one of my go-to favorites during my time in the humidor. I lit this CAO on the back porch with Stephen earlier this April.

The burn took a little adjusting. The fire wanted to canoe to one side, but that’s just a simple matter of turning the cigar the correct way. After some maintenance, the LX2 settled down. The first third tasted rich, woodsy, and with more than a generous helping of black pepper. There’s not a lot of spice in the LX2, otherwise – just a solid heft of flavor that floats along smoothly and without fuss. While still avoiding the canoeing issue, the second third transitioned into something toastier and sweeter. This is one of the cool things about smoking cigars: certain things are delicious that might sound odd if combined in actual ingredients for a meal. The second third sported a graham cracker-like crust or toast, but also had earthy and sweeter tones of wheat and hay. It’s a transporting aspect.

Unfortunately, the issues with the burn continued for the remainder of the cigar. By the final third, I was tending to the LX2 as much as I was noting its flavors and experience. The draw seemed quite tight, tighter than most cigars I’ve enjoyed, but the flavor remained worth it. After the woodsiness of the first third and golden wheat of the second, the finish seemed something like a chalky dark chocolate. Dry, almost powdery and bitter, but still delicious.

Remember the potency we’d expected at the beginning? Maybe I’m just a nicotine fiend, but this cigar did little to knock me over, such as, say, the Perdomo 20th might (which we will review next week). Still, the tastes were involving and out of the ordinary, the maintenance was not too big of an issue, and the price point on these remain reasonable from $6-8. Distributors in our area (Central Texas) are out at the moment, but pick the CAO LX2 up here if you need it sooner than later. Flavor-hounds, rejoice in this custom-built cigar.

A couple of weeks ago, before the hard rains hit and Central Texas began filling up to its brim, Stephen and I visited SPEC’s in search of the CAO LX2. I’ve had that smoke before – it’s excellent, but it’s been discontinued in our area. Need to run through it one more time to write a thorough review. With the LX2 unavailable, I asked the humidorian for something new and fresh.

You gamble when you ask a salesman which cigar matches up with your taste, may or may not result in a transcendent experience, etc. As a fodboldtrøjer børn former humidor clerk, I was often instructed or incentivized to promote certain lines over others, regardless of quality. This is all in the game and makes it worth doing a little research before you hit the humidor. Since I entered SPEC’s on the fly, I did not do my research this time around.

The gentleman led me to the Alec Bradley Nica Puro Diamond Rough Cut, which I picked up promptly and took home. I love a good Nicaraguan, and the Diamond Rough Cut is a Nicaraguan on all three fronts: wrapper, binder, and filler. I thought the name “Diamond Rough Cut” alluded to the way the tobacco was arranged or cut. Instead, the cigar makers performed a box cut on this limited edition and squeezed it a little, giving the cigar a lopsided square shape. Or, a diamond, if you want to get picky about it. Either way – this seems lazy to me, and it’s not a great foundation on which to lay an entire line of cigars.

Don’t read any further if you’re picky about technique. My first cut on the cigar was a little small, so I tried to trim the edge to open it up and allow for a better draw. This works on regularly-rolled cigars. With the “diamond cut,” the trim unraveled a significant portion billige fodboldtrøjer of the bottom third. It’s possible this affected my draw. The cigar burned hot for the majority of the smoke, worsening as I got down to the last third. In turn, the heat affected the flavor profile and I could not pinpoint anything remarkable about the smoke. Even if the heat intensified during the process, I expected to be able to pick up some notes on the first third. Nah. Just tasted like burning wood.

I take full responsibility for my carelessness on that first cut. But my gut tells me that there were more issues intrinsic to the cigar. How, barring sickness or a brain injury, can you not taste a single interesting flavor on a smoke? Mainly, I overpaid for the Alec Bradley name, the “novelty” of the cut/squeezed trapezoid shape, and my own ignorance. Don’t make my mistake.

I lit up the Antaño at a good little cigar shop in Austin on one of those days when the sky only pretends that it will rain. I’d been angling for a Liga Privada, maybe a T52 or a Dirty Rat, and not really wanting to try anything new at the tail end of the week. But I opted at the last minute for an Antaño, something I’d never tried before. I toasted the foot first, took a puff, and realized I have never been so struck by flavor that immediate.

A good cigar may ease into something better, surprise you at the end, or even indicate something interesting at the very beginning. The Antaño demands attention from right out front. I quote from my notes – “Wow!!” For context, I’m not normally a two-exclamation mark kind of guy. The whole front third of this smoke stayed rich with lots of smoke production, and I noticed a little red pepper introduced after the initial wallop. I did have to keep rotating the Antaño so that the burn would stay even, but it was a joy to tend because of the richness of flavor.

The second third sweetened up a little bit but maintained most of its richness and depth. Sometimes, cigars forgo complexity for sweetness, and vice versa. The Billige fodboldtrøjer tilbud Antaño struck a perfect balance in this section. Along with the chocolate flavor from earlier, I experienced something like a toasted marshmallow and graham cracker. So, indeed, this is the most s’more-like cigar I’ve ever smoked. I don’t imagine anyone would take offense to that.

The Antaño peaked at the beginning and eased into a second third. The last third changed from graham cracker and oats to a grassier, almost nutty flavor. Seems like a weird transition (chocolate and red pepper to s’mores to Parmigiano Reggiano or hay), but worked just fine for me. Paired with just a little Donut Shop Keurig coffee, which they had at the store.  Nothing too fancy needed to pair with this $8 cigar. Strong buy.