CAO Pilón was named “Cigar of the Year” by celebrated international cigar magazine L’Amateur de Cigare.
The magazine’s prestigious tasting panel rated a total of 450 cigars, with Pilón ultimately winning out against the finest cigars available in France, one of the world’s leading markets for handmade cigars.
Regis Broersma, president of General Cigar said, “We are extremely proud that CAO Pilón received this honor from such a distinguished and respected international publication. When we created Pilón, we developed the brand according to a 19th-century Cuban fermentation technique, so it is ironic that Pilón beat out the best of the best cigars from Cuba, as well as other top cigar-producing countries.”
L’Amateur de Cigare described Pilón as “elegant” and hails its “great complexity and agreeable persistence,” while praising Pilón’s “satisfying finish” and “excellent value.”
CAO Pilón was introduced in the U.S. in 2015 and launched in France in 2018 at an exclusive event in Paris at the DuPont headquarters.
Handcrafted in Nicaragua at STG Esteli, Pilón was created by Rick Rodriguez and the CAO blending team who utilized the labor-intensive pilón process of natural fermentation to maximize the flavor and color of the Cuban seed Ecuadoran wrapper, delivering a taste and appearance unattainable through other methods. The blend consists of spicy Nicaraguan filler and binder leaves from the distinctive growing regions of Esteli and Ometepe. CAO Pilón bears a deep, rich color and an incredible depth of flavor, featuring notes of wood, spice and a touch of sweetness.
CAO Pilón is available in the U.S. and in select markets worldwide in these formats:
Churchill 7x 48 – SRP per cigar $8.49
Robusto Extra 5 x 52 – SRP per cigar $7.49
Corona 5.5 x 44 – SRP per cigar $7.09
Toro 6 x 58 – SRP per cigar $8.49
Torpedo – 7 x 54 – SRP per cigar $8.89