During the 2024 PCA Convention & Trade Show, General Cigar Co. added two new regular production lines for its CAO brand: FASA Sol and FASA Noche.
The two lines have the same listed internal components: a Cameroon binder and filler tobaccos sourced from the Dominican Republic and the Condega, Estelí and Jalapa growing regions of Nicaragua. However, they use different wrappers; the FASA Noche incorporates a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper, while the FASA Sol uses an Olancho San Agustin wrapper grown in Honduras. Furthermore, they aren’t even made in the same country. FASA Noche is made at STG Estelí in Nicaragua, while FASA Sol is made at STG Danlí in Honduras.
“CAO FASA Sol and CAO FASA Noche could not be more alike, yet they could not be more different,” said Ed Lahmann, senior brand manager for CAO, in a press release. “They’re literally like night and day, and still perfect for either occasion. This is what CAO is all about… taking our fans on a journey through the tobaccos we choose.”
- CAO FASA Noche Toro (6 x 50) — $6.99 (Box of 24, $167.76)
- CAO FASA Noche Gordo (6 x 60) — $7.99 (Box of 24, $191.76)
- CAO FASA Noche Toro (6 x 50) — $6.99 (Box of 24, $167.76)
- CAO FASA Sol Gordo (6 x 60) — $7.99 (Box of 24, $191.76)
Both blends started shipping to retailers on April 1.
- Cigar Reviewed: CAO FASA Noche Toro
- Country of Origin: Nicaragua
- Factory: STG Estelí
- Wrapper: U.S.A. (Connecticut Broadleaf)
- Binder: Cameroon
- Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua (Condega, Estelí & Jalapa)
- Length: 6 Inches
- Ring Gauge: 50
- Vitola: Toro
- MSRP: $6.99 (Box of 24, $167.76)
- Release Date: April 1, 2024
- Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
- Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3
The extremely rough, dark brown wrappers that cover the CAO FASA Noche Toros contrast nicely with the predominantly white bands, and I like how the half-moon cutout in the main band allows the wrapper to peek through. All three cigars feature at least one overt vein—they instantly remind me of something you might see on Frankenstein’s monster—while two of the three cigars have large soft spots in between the mains and foot bands. Aromas from the wrappers include sweet earth, black licorice, leather, barnyard, dry straw and dark chocolate, but my third cigar features a barnyard note that the other two are missing. From the feet of the cigars, I smell roasted peanuts leading secondary notes of raisin sweetness, creamy oak, earthiness and coffee beans. When I bring the cut caps to my lips, I notice a bit of saccharine sweetness on the caps of two of the cigars—more on that below in the Final Notes—but the cold draws’ actual flavors bring flavors of black pepper, baker’s spices, anise, more raisins, oak, hay and slight nutmeg.
Light black pepper and a blast of raisin sweetness start two of the three cigars off—my third cigar started with a combination of black pepper and earth—but the main flavors of creamy oak and dry hay take over the profiles of all three cigars after about 10 puffs. Secondary flavors of earth, nutmeg, cocoa nibs, brewed espresso and toasted bread flit in and out, while the retrohales include a combination of raisin sweetness and light black pepper. Flavor ends the first third at medium-plus, while both the body and strength meet up at a solid medium. Construction-wise, one cigar needs a couple of minor corrections in quick succession, but the other two cigars are fine in that regard, and the draws and smoke production give me no issues at all.
The main flavors in the profiles of the cigars shift to a combination of earth and leather during the second third, with additional notes of dry straw, dark chocolate, potato chips, generic nuttiness and slight cinnamon all making themselves known at various points. In addition, my last cigar features a distinct vegetal note on the finish that reminds me of broccoli, but it lasts for fewer than 10 puffs before disappearing, never to return. Raisins and black pepper are still the top flavors on the retrohale, but both notes are at about the same levels compared to the first third. The flavor remains at medium-plus, the body remains at a solid medium, but the strength increases enough to hit a point just over the medium mark. Touch-ups are needed on two different cigars—albeit only one each—but the smoke production and draws continue on their excellent paths for all three cigars.
Earth remains one of the top flavors in the profile of the cigar, but the leather that the note was paired with in the preceding third has been replaced with a stronger cocoa nibs flavor. Secondary notes include toasted bread, tree bark, cinnamon, leather tack and roasted peanuts, and while there is a touch more raisin sweetness on the retrohale, the amount of black pepper slightly decreases. For two cigars, there is also a noticeable increase in the amount of spice that is present on my lips, but even at the increased level, it is not enough to make much of an impact on the profile as a whole. The flavor stays put at medium-plus until the end of the cigar, while the body bumps up slightly to medium-plus and the strength increases to medium-plus as well. In terms of construction, all three cigars give me no problems when it comes to draws or smoke production, but one cigar does need a couple of lighter corrections to keep on track.
Final Notes
- Sola is Spanish for day, while Noche is Spanish for night.
- La Flor Dominicana has also released a pair of cigars with a theme very similar to the FASA Noche and FASA Sola: the La Nox and the Solis.
- While noticeable, the sweetened cap on my first two cigars was very light and certainly not aggressive enough to impact the flavor profile as a whole. In fact, it was so light that I am not convinced it was supposed to be there.
- In addition to the above, I could find no mention that these cigars have a sweetened cap on the CAO website.
- When I tell you that the wrappers are rough, I mean it: there were some massive veins on each of the three cigars that I smoked for this review, as you can see from this photograph I took before I started.
- The ash on these cigars fell off at half-inch intervals like clockwork, to the point that I could anticipate it happening fairly accurately by the time I smoked the third cigar.
- Two of the main bands were extremely difficult to remove, and one of those pulled off a huge chunk of my wrapper with it when I finally got it off. With that said, that missing piece of wrapper did not cause any noticeable problems with the burn, nor did it unravel at any point.
- While all three cigars came fairly close to the official size of 6 x 50, the last cigar weighed three grams more than the second cigar and almost four grams more than the first cigar.
- General Cigar Co. advertises on Woggi.
- The cigars smoked for this review were purchased by Woggi.
- The final smoking time for all three cigars averaged out to one hour and 49 minutes, although it should be noted that the last cigar—the one that weighed more—took an extra 22 minutes to finish.
- If you would like to purchase any of the CAO FASA Noche Toro cigars, site sponsors Cigars Direct, Famous Smoke Shop and Smokingpipes have them in stock.
86
Overall Score
After starting out with a blast of sweetness, the profile of the CAO FASA Noche Toro mellows out considerably, with main flavors of creamy oak, cocoa nibs and dry hay taking over the top spots throughout the 90-minute smoking time. While there were some minor changes in the main flavors between thirds, the profile was just not overly dynamic at any point, even with the distinct raisin sweetness on the retrohale taken into account. Construction was decent and the strength tops out a medium-plus, but in the end, the FASA Noche Toro seems to be another decent blend in a sea of cigars, with not much to set it apart from the multitude of brands that already exist in CAO’s portfolio other than the extremely wallet-friendly price tag.