The original CAO Amazon Basin was inspired by a rare tobacco in a remote region of the Amazonian Rainforest. The initial release happened in 2014 and was re-released in 2016 and inspired several spinoff cigars in the years since. Now in 2022, the original blend is coming back again.
When we launched Amazon Basin, we had a unique opportunity to use Amazonian tobacco before anyone else in the world had used it. At that time, we were able to create a smoking experience that was completely different from anything on the market. Eight years later, CAO Amazon Basin still stands apart as one of the most important blends we have ever developed. It gives us great pleasure to re-introduce this incredible blend and share the extraordinary smoking experience it delivers with our fans.
Rick Rodriguez
The unique tobacco in the blend is “Bragança.” It is organically grown on unspoiled tropical land in Brazil and harvested just once every three years. Seedlings are transplanted directly into the soil a full yard apart from each other, resulting in less than half the yield of other tobacco plants.
The leaves are rolled by hand into tubes called “carottes” where they undergo six months of natural fermentation. They are then transported out of the rainforest by canoe, taken to the mainland, and ultimately brought to the CAO factory in Esteli, Nicaragua.
The Brazilian Bragança leaf is used in the filler, which also contains Dominican and Colombian tobacco. The rest of the blend uses an Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper from the highest primings and a Nicaraguan binder.
The cigar is rolled at STG Esteli and comes in just one size, a 6” x 52 toro that sells for $12.99. It will be available starting in the middle of January in 18-count rustic wooden boxes. For the 2022 release, only 6,000 boxes were made.