Vitola: Churchill- 7” x 50 ring gauge
- MSRP $18.99
- Samples provided by General Cigar Company
Background
I’m old enough to remember when CAO’s then-CEO, Tim Ozgener, wanted to have a cigar that came in a box that was a humidor and that humidor should capture the essence of the Apple iPod design ethic. The humidor was clean white and had neon blue lighting when you opened it up. It was glorious…the cigar that came inside it was not bad, but it was never remembered as something amazing or particularly memorable…that humidor, though!
Fast forward to 2020 and current CAO Brand Ambassador, Rick Rodriguez, took inspiration from the original Vision and the mentorship he enjoyed under the legendary Benji Menendez to develop a new version of the blend that was absolutely not named after the Marvel Comics character. Benji Menendez loves Cameroon leaf and after traveling the world representing CAO, Rick decided that the new Vision should be built around the Cameroon wrapper. It starts with Nicaraguan Habano fillers from Estelí and Jalapa, continuing with an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder, before being finished off with the Cameroon.
The packaging is not exactly the same as the old version, but it is reminiscent, with a beautiful white humidor and cascading blue lights on the interior. Instead of replacing batteries, for this current one, you can apparently recharge the internal batteries via a USB cable. Just one size of the Vision is being produced and it is a limited release, with only 2,500 boxes of 20 released in the US, along with another 2,000 boxes going to select retailers in Europe and Asia. Like everything else in the industry these days, though…if it sells well and sells out, I would not bet against seeing it come back as a semi-regular release.
General Cigar Company sent me samples for review. This review is based on my third smoking of the blend. If your local cigar shop doesn’t carry this blend, you can get them at our sponsoring website, Small Batch Cigar.
Prelight
Packaging description & impressions
The wrapper leaf of the Vision was a medium-brown with a slight reddish tinge and just the slightest gray cast under certain lighting conditions. Not sure where that gray impression comes from, but since a friend pointed it out to me that most Cameroons have it I haven’t been able to un-see it. The wrapper had an metallic mineral and cedar aroma while the foot was earth and leather with a touch of semisweet chocolate.
I clipped the head and got a good draw from it. I picked up notes of hay and earth, leather and cedar, with faint whiffs of copper and berries. At this time I’ll urge you to consider the weather before you cut a cigar for smoking. It was mid-40s in temp and pretty dry when I clipped this one, causing the head to crack quite a bit. It was still smokable and I won’t count off any points based on that crack…but it it gets too much I’ll be starting this review over again.
Flavor
The CAO Vision started off with earth and floral notes, backed up with copper and short-lived red pepper on the palate. The retrohale had stronger cedar and short blasts of wasabi spice. The first third continued on with an earthy core, highlighted by sweet floral notes and ample pepper spice. The mineral notes faded by the time I got halfway through the third.
As I burned on into the second third, I noted that the Vision was turning out to be a great mellow Nicaraguan-based blend, not so much the aggressive character that Nicaraguan leaf often has. There was still a good amount of sweetness and spice, although the sweetness was turning more into a chocolatey note that was very pleasant.
The last third displayed a little more of the strength of Nicaraguan leaf with earth and cedar coming out in front and a nice increase in pepper. Sweet floral notes were still there, although more in the background.
Construction
The cracked head caused me no real problems. I still had a great draw, even enough burn line, and solid ash.
Value
There’s no doubt that I enjoyed this cigar, but there’s also no doubt that it doesn’t stand up to a $19 price point. To me it was a very good $12 or $13 cigar. With that in mind, if you are interested in a whole box, the inclusion of the humidor makes the price more sensible.
Conclusions
The revamped CAO Vision is definitely better than the first version that appeared so many years ago…or at least my memory of that first version. It seems rare that we see a new Nicaraguan blend with a Cameroon wrapper and this one is definitely a nice one…rich, complex, spicy and sweet. But the price tag is simply too high unless you love the blend and are planning on buying a box so you can get the humidor that comes with it.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: .5/1
Total: 8.5/10
