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Unlit Impressions

Extremely oily, and just as equally heavily mottled, the mahogany-colored Habano Grueso Oscuro wrapper on the outside of this blend is both beautiful and beastly. The "Bullneck" vitola is a particularly large-looking cigar, even though it runs a relatively standard 6½" x 52 toro configuration. Perhaps it's all of the lengthy veins and that big-ass chrome band, but it looks way bigger than it actually does on the webpage. 

That Connecticut-based wrapper smells the part too, with a damp, heavily oiled leather jacket aroma hitting me first, followed by some funk from the dampness, malted beer barley, Brazil nuts, and the faintest hint of cacao, cardboard, and soil. Sweet and spicy in modest amounts, the foot forms more molasses, oatmeal cookies, raw wholegrains, granola, and more leather.

Sever that flat cap, and tastes of more oatmeal cookie swirl together with raisins, prune, split firewood, dark soil, and medium spices and spiciness. The cigar also feels chewy in the mouth and very supple, making it an ideal "gnawing stogie" for those who prefer to chomp on a blend before sparking it up.

Initial Smoke

Oatmeal cookies by the box, scraps of leather, and some peppery retrohales that hit you with black pepper-grade intensity touch off the first five minutes under medium throttle. The draw is perfectly controlled, and the smoke pulled is chewy, oily, and a lot of fun to play around with, thus making for a very good start.

1st Half   

Nutty and roasty flavors fill the nostrils and lips with loads of leather, tree nuts, and a retrohale that amplifies it all. Medium-roast cups of coffee tannins and bitter depth soon develop, and the cigar shifts away from those sweeter oatmeal cookie flavors for a medium-strength baking spice mixture that evolves and teases the tongue.

Halfway down that veiny barrel, you may detect a spike in sweetness and dampness, as well as a moist cake-like taste. With the prune and raisin still rolling around on that increasingly lengthy finish, and those baking spices skipping about up front, the taste of date nutbread enters the subconscious. Funky, deeply decomposed rainforest terroir tacks on a secondary strain of tastes, which more than likely is the result of the combustion of the "Arapiraca" Brazilian binder inside. 

2nd Half 

Increased levels of mineral make the move toward the final half even more organic in nature, which like everything else about this blend at the midway mark is medium-full in potency. Playing perfectly off the soil-heavy flavor profiles that continue to rev toward full-throttle, this is where the macho smokers in the convoy will start smile.

Leather by the ton, more mineral by the gram, black licorice by the stick, and dank molasses by the spoonful, final third flavors and aromatics are a mixture of muscle and mom's home baking. Gradually growing in salt content, and strong to the point where I can confidently call it "intense," this section does not waver in its determination to deliver the tough guy attitude you signed up for, regardless as to whether you are ready or not.

Parting Puffs

Salty and heavily spiced, with a strong, spicy finish, parting puffs remind me a bit of smoked jerky. Served alongside some spiced ryebread, this malty, chewy, and slightly sweet mixture makes for a suitable counter balance to the dark, bold final nicotine-drenched moments of this stick.

Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw

This blend consistently provides a lot of highs and lows in its combustion and smoke production process. While the smoke entering the mouth is devilishly good, and due to being so oily manages to stick to all it touches, you have to work to get it. Despite having a very fluid-feeling draw, the first tug doesn't produce much in the way of smoke, and so a secondary pull must be made almost immediately thereafter. This proved to be the case on each cigar smoked, and while rare, it is not unheard of in the cigar world.

A few other notable considerations include an ash that flakes, drops, and looks unappealing to the eye due to its wavy burn and occasional spot of discoloration. There also was a massive touch-up that was required in the final third of my review stick, which created a brief moment of charry off-flavor.  

Final Thoughts 

One of the biggest surprises about this cigar was how it does not create a whole ton of harshness on the tongue or nose, even when you are deep in the final third. Another is the slow way in which this blend burns. Despite being a "twin-pull smoke," this blend burns at a cruising speed, and that means close to a 2½-hour smoke session at the very least. 

However, that isn't me saying that this blend doesn't increase in potency as it goes, because by the time you get to the last section you are looking for one of the more full-flavored blends in the Klaro Collection. If you are not keen on nicotine or aren't into oily, extremely rich leather flavors and the taste of molasses-soaked oatmeal cookies, then do not buy this blend.

But for those of us who dig a deep, dark, slightly dangerous premium cigar blend, then the CAO Flathead Steel Horse has your ticket to ride. Just don't forget to pair this blend with something boozy and strong, or if you are going alcohol-free, a beverage that is milky and equally rich, or coffee-based in some way.

Stogie Specs