Cigar Info
CAO, owned by General Cigar, announced a new cigar last year in June, the CAO BX3. This new cigar falls in the same category of cigars like MX2, CX2, and LX2 with the letters representing the type of tobacco used in the blend and the number depicting the number of leaves used. In this case, BX3 refers to Brazilian tobacco times three.
This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed. All of our cigars reviewed are shipped to the panelists with Boveda packs to ensure optimal smoking experience.
The tobaccos used in the CAO BX3 come from the primary growing regions of Northeastern Brazil. The blend uses a Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper, Brazilian Arapiraca binder, and Brazilian, Nicaraguan, Mexican, and Honduran fillers. CAO BX3 is rolled at General's factory in Nicaragua, STG Estelí and comes in three sizes: Robusto 5 x 52 $8.99, Toro 6 x 54 $9.49, and Gordo 6 x 60 $10.49. All come in 20 count boxes.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 52
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Brazilian Mata Fina
Binder: Brazilian Arapiraca
Filler: Brazil, Mexico, Nicaragua, Honduras
Factory: STG Esteli
Blender: Undisclosed
Number of reviewers: 4 – Ryan H. (Ryan H.) Quinn (quinnpins269) Jai P. (Jai) Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Price: $8.99
Age: 6 Months
Release Date: July 2022
Contributed by: General Cigar
Initial Impressions – CAO BX3 Robusto
Appearance: 88
“5 x 50 double cap, moderately veined a little tooth on the medium brown wrapper. Very firm bunch.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
Aroma: 86
“There was a pleasant amount of sweet tobacco aroma coming from the foot of the cigar. The wrapper offered up a nice mild earthiness with a bit of barnyard.” –Quinn (quinnpins269)
First Third
Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“Started out with subtle notes of dark chocolate.” –Jai P. (Jai)
“Out of the gate I was introduced to a wonderful amount of fresh roasted coffee with hints of gram cracker. There was just a small amount of peppery notes on the retro hale. It was never much or overpowering.” –Quinn (quinnpins269)
Second Third
Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“I love how clean the profile is, no dirty mouth feel. Very sweet and floral. Burn straight as an arrow. Draw is tight but, this is a really good cigar worth overlooking a small flaw for a profile as good as this.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“It's been a dozen years since I've had boiled peanuts, it's been that long since I've been some place where you can find boiled peanuts, but the last that I had tasted a lot like this cigar at the middle section-salty, muddy, peanut shell taste. The draw was still loose though no longer spongy after the ash fell from the first third. I did have to touch up the burn again.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The profile has been unchanged so a lot of consistency. This cigar is well worth a visit. Good cigar for those times you don't have to have a full meal on board to enjoy it.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Fresh cut oak is the first thing I picked up in the final third. The woody aroma was front and center and stayed that will till the end of the review. There was a nice amount of pepper as well as more of the gram cracker sweetness.” –Quinn (quinnpins269)
Overall Impressions – CAO BX3 Robusto
Draw: 88
“In the beginning the cigar was both loose and spongy on the draw. Once the burn passed through the first portion and the ash fell, the draw was just plain loose.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Burn: 90
“I had a fair amount of waviness to the burn in the first third. I touched it up as I started into the second and it straightened out for the remained of the review after the single touch up.” –Quinn (quinnpins269)
Construction: 87
“Nice firmness throughout, no unraveling.” –Jai P. (Jai)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 89
“This cigar was delicious. Well worth a try and a possible box.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“A nice well rounded overall medium smoke from beginning to end. The heavy amount of fresh oak at the end was a nice finish to the cigar. I would enjoy smoking this one again.” –Quinn (quinnpins269)
“A well constructed cigar made for a light that we dream of. I needed only one short match for an even light. As the smoke hit my palate, I could easily identify the subtle bitterness of dark chocolate surrounded by silky nuances. After about ten minutes, the flavor began to change, introducing mint to the party on the palate. Unfortunately, it was a little much, as it muted the other flavors that had been present. As I continued to smoke, the mint settled down and the other flavors returned for a merry blend that pair well with a morning cup of joe, or a nightcap with some Irish cream.” –Jai P. (Jai)
“This cigar, I reckon, could use some time in a dry box before smoking. Most of the time it came across a bit damp in the flavors and the loose yet spongy draw. The final third was where this cigar finally came to life, but by then I would have given up and fired up a different stick if I weren't sticking it out for review purposes. I might revisit it again, just to see if it can be a better cigar than what I had to experience today especially since I so much enjoyed the ending.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 52
Reviewer | Appear. | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall Experience |
Ryan H. | 87 | 87 | 90 | 90 | 92 | 85 | 95 | 87 | 92 |
Quinn | 90 | 87 | 90 | 88 | 87 | 90 | 88 | 87 | 88 |
Jai P. | 95 | 95 | 88 | 92 | 87 | 90 | 92 | 97 | 92 |
Isaac M. | 85 | 83 | 85 | 85 | 87 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 85 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.