CAO Brasilia Versus Italia:Artistry of Champions:Italian Flag Perfecto

Ah rare cigars, or rare anything really. Nothing out there in world has more prestige then something that is rare. Today I bring you the CAO Italia, not just any regular ol' Italia, but what I think is THE Italia to own and to smoke. This cigar is 1 outta 5 special vitolas that CAO made back in 05' to show their master rollsmanship and a tribute to their flagship brands. These cigar we're all shipped in a special commemorative box that retailed $100 and only 2000 of these boxes have been made. I was lucky enough to get a hold of one of these boxes, these things are so rare that trying to find any info on these is pretty much next to impossible. As far as I'm concerned I'm the first one ever to review this vitola and I plan to do it justice. So in to the deep abyss of CAO I go!

SPECS-
Size-7/46ish
Wrapper-The Center Piece is a combo of-Maduro,Candella,and Conn. Natural Wrapper
Binder-Honduras
Filler-Italy,Nicaragua,Peru
Cost-Around $20
Cut-Straight
Drink-Iced Tea
Smoke Time-1 hour and a Half

FIRST IMPRESSIONS-At first glance this cigar is a piece of art. The lines are very neat. The Italian flag center piece is in perfect squares, though at the reverse side the Candela strip is slightly discolored probably due to uneven sun exposure. The wrapper on this cigar is very oily and almost veinless giving the cigar a silky appearance, the sweetly fragrant cedar on the leaf just adds to this masterpiece, its almost a shame to smoke it. The foot of this cigar smells of peaches and the cold taste produces a perfect draw of sweet peach and cedar.

FIRST HALF- The cigar took the flame very well, at the first puffs the cigar opens up with a super smooth and creamy nut taste with a slightly salty cedar finish. The black pepper profile in this cigar was blended to a T, it hit the nose smoothly and never overstayed it's welcome. As the cigar progresses one can notice its very simple taste. There's nothing too complex, all the flavors are well homogenized and play off each other well. Once the smoke reached the flag centerpiece the flavors got simply sublime, along with the original main flavors small touches of chocolate and caramel were hinted with a touch of a toasted bread finish.

LAST HALF-As the longest ash feel a slight flavor switch was made. A deeper caramel flavor is added along with a deep espresso. The smoke becomes less creamy and smooth but the smoke is still soft on the palate. The construction is still holding up well and the ash is a very even and never flaky. Touch ups on this cigar were kept at a minimal but there was only a slight flaw on this cigar. During this last half the flavors didn't progress much they just stayed the same, though a pleasant taste of leather was added towards the end. The slightly salty cedar is also a minor complaint on this cigar, the saltiness sorta builds up in the back of the throat and just becomes a little too much.

FINAL IMPRESSIONS-This in no doubt in my mind the best CAO I ever tried, also one of the best cigars I have ever had and the best Italia out there. The tastes this cigar produced were very easy to follow and I'm sure any palate could appreciate the cigar. As much as I'm sad to see this cigar go, as one of my main center pieces in my humidor, I'm much happier now that I've smoked it. This Italia is also one of the better Vitolas in the B.vs.I box. I've smoked the trumpets and the Bratalia(the centerpiece) and I believe those are much better off left alone as pieces of art. I now cannot wait to taste the Brazilia Flag Perfecto and see how it compares to this majestic stick.

RATING-95
Buy It Again? If I could I would
Recommend It? If you can get your hand on 1 make the plunge, you won't regret it.