Cigar Info
General Cigar’s CAO brand announced a new limited edition earlier this year, follow-up to their Pilón CAO Pilón Añejo. The original CAO Pilón was released in 2015 and we have reviewed it several times. This limited version will use the same labor-intensive fermentation techniques along with a new blend and aging time after it’s been rolled.
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.
Only 5,000 boxes of the CAO Pilón Añejo were released in the US. It is rolled in Honduras at STG’s HATSA factory. The blend uses a Cuban seed Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper, Honduran Habano binder, and Nicaraguan and Dominican fillers. CAO Pilón Añejo comes in boxes of 20 and three vitolas: Robusto (5.5” x 54) MSRP per cigar $8.89, Toro (6” x 52) MSRP per cigar $8.99, and Gigante (5.88” x 60) MSRP per cigar $9.29.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5 1/2″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua
Factory: HATSA
Blender: Rick Rodriguez
Number of reviewers: 4 – Alan (Eulogy) Sean F. (fullermaine) Ryan H. (Ryan H.) Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Price: $8.90
Age: 4 Months
Release Date: April 2022
Contributed by: General Cigar
Initial Impressions – CAO Pilón Añejo Robusto
Appearance: 90
“Dark brownish espresso color; dry wrapper with light toothy wrapper to the touch.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Aroma: 89
“A mixture of pine and hay musty smell to this cigar.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
First Third
Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“Very deep cocoa notes to start quick addi g aged tobacco and leather. No spice detected through out the palate. Draw is acceptable not perfect but not plugged either. The smoke is so thick and chewy.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Subtle notes of light black pepper coming through.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Second Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“The profile is still very sweet with waffle cone, baking spice, cedar, sweet tobacco, and mild pepper. The draw has opened up just a touch and the smoke output remains fantastic.” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Flavor continue to roll with hay, moss, and cedar on the palate. There is a salty butterscotch flavor that has developed and hits the back of the tongue. On retrohale some black pepper spice has started to develop from the previous flavor, the spice has given this smoke some much needed kick. ” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Final Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Mild-Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“There isn’t quite as much sweetness as the previous and the waffle note is now more of a popcorn flavor. The other notes are the same with baking spice, cedar, sweet tobacco, and coffee.” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Flavors have changed to now just very light hay, moss, and cedar. The major flavors now are salty and butterscotch flavors. Retrohale is light salty and very slight black pepper spice.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Overall Impressions – CAO Pilón Añejo Robusto
Draw: 88
“It was too tight for the first third but did open up around the halfway point. I found it to be a little too snug but manageable.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Burn: 96
“Burn was exceptional through out the experience. Never needed any touch ups and could be set for several minutes without any problems.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
Construction: 93
“Mild bumps and veins showing with a minor split that don’t hinder the pleasure.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
Experience Overall: 92
“If you enjoy a very naturally sweet cigar this is an awesome choice. The smoke was creamy, profile was rich, and it stuck a nice balance with the strength. I could see myself picking up a few of these to enjoy in the future and it is well worth picking a few up to try out.” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Another great cigar that I enjoyed. Beautiful light chocolate wrapper with bumps and veins showing. Nice notes of sweet tea, hickory, black pepper, and butterscotch balance this cigar out. Minor splitting at the end that corrects itself. Even burn with a nice inch long ash. Great late afternoon smoke. A cigar I’d try again.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
“Nice balanced profile pretty good construction burn and draw performed to my standards. I do wish the profile had a little more to offer, but I did enjoy the cigar.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“The flavor and smoke was a very light smoking experience. The major flavors of hay, moss, and cedar. Midway through salty and butterscotch flavors developed. There was some black pepper spice that kicked up in the second third on the retrohale.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 79
| Reviewer | Appear. | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alan | 90 | 92 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 90 | 95 | 95 | 95 |
| Sean F. | 90 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 100 | 100 | 95 | 97 |
| Ryan H. | 90 | 85 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 87 | 93 | 90 | 88 |
| Chad M. | 85 | 85 | 85 | 88 | 88 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 88 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.