Hmmmm, what have we got here?  This cigars wrapper makes a starless night look brilliantly bright.  For this review, we tried the CAO MX2 “Rob”, a 5 x 52 robusto.  The new CAO MX2 is by far the darkest cigar we have seen in awhile.  The highly anticipated MX2 was introduced at the RTDA in 2003.

CAO describes the MX2 line of cigars as follows:

“The CAO MX2 (“Maduro-times-two”) is a double-maduro cigar that combines a triple-fermented Connecticut Broadleaf maduro wrapper with a peppery Brazilian maduro binder. “Our goal was to create a flavor profile that combined the spicy quality of our Brazilia line along with the bittersweet chocolate characteristic of our CAO L’Anniversaire Maduro,” said CAO Vice President, Tim Ozgener. “The filler we blended for the CAO MX2 is an exotic marriage of tobaccos from Nicaragua, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, and Peru. The end result is a full-bodied cigar with intense flavors of sweet and spice; it’s like smoking a chocolate bar and chasing it with a jalapeno pepper.”

Humidor candy the MX2 is.  You can gander at this smoke for a good long time without tiring your eyes.  The oils in the wrapper seem to drip like molasses off a wooden spoon.  The cigar alone might appear slightly rustic, but the stylized band has a space age look to it.

The construction of the MX2 Rob was unanimously praised amongst the folks testing the cigar.  All cigars were very firm to the touch, and held a very solid feel in between your fingers.

“Some might pass on this cigar based on the feel.  After the cut, I was surprised that the cigar had a nearly perfect draw ala the Padron Anniversario line.  The burn was mostly even with a firm light gray ash.  The cigar burned at about the right speed.”

“This was one of those cigars that feels so solid, you wonder if you will be able to get a draw out of it.  Physics was challenged, as the draw was near perfect.”

The taste and texture of the MX2 Rob was another hit.  The only flaw found by any reviewers revolved around a slightly “chemical” like pre-smoke odor, and in some cases a mildly tight draw.  It’s also important to note that once the cigars were lit, it didn’t take long for the praise to fly from the reviewer’s mouths.

“The taste was quite nice, and I would rate it as a spicy flavor with a strength of medium.  If they weren't quite so tight the volume of smoke may have lifted the strength to a medium-full.  It provides you with a very rich taste, but none of the bitterness typical of full strength cigars.”

“The MX2 robusto had a strong spicy aroma at the start.  The taste during the first third of the cigar was very strong, bordering on harsh.  Moving into the second third of the cigar, the aroma mellowed and became soft and full.  The taste smoothed out also with a moderately spicy, woody, and somewhat dry taste.  The tobacco tasted a little young.”

“Damn if this wasn’t what I was hoping for.  While perhaps a hair young, this was a very robust cigar with an exceptionally smooth taste.”

No need to belabor the obvious…the CAO MX2 line of cigars is going to be a hit.  Even with Top 25 Cigar buying one of the first boxes on the market, the cigars were still loved by the reviewers.  We think once these cigars have a little time on them, they will bet even more popular.

If CAO is trying to give the cigar smoker a new experience without following the recent trend of overpowering the palate, they have succeeded in spades.  If you get a chance for this cigar…go for it.

Vital Statistics:
Size: 5 x 52
Shape: Robusto
Wrapper: Connecticut
Binder:  Brazil
Filler: D.R., Hon., Nic., Peru

Est. Cost: $