A CAO Arcana With Two Personalities
General Cigar Co. is adding a new blend to its limited-edition CAO Arcana series called Stokk. Introduced in 2021, each Arcana release is intended to highlight an unusual tobacco. Stokk was made in collaboration with Danish pipe tobacco brand Peter Stokkebye, so the odd leaves in the blend are ones that are typically found in pipes rather than cigars. The filler includes a bit of smoky pipe tobacco. The new cigar is expected to reach retailers August 4.
Stokk is intended to be a smoke that evolves. When first lighting, Dominican andullo is the first type of tobacco to burn. Unlike most cigar tobacco, which is aged via bulk fermentation, andullo is rolled into long, dense logs tightly wrapped in palm tree pods and then hung to ferment for two years. This process makes for sweet, concentrated tobacco.
Once the flame reaches the midpoint, the andullo transitions to some fire-cured Latakia leaf from Cyprus—a tobacco typically associated with pipes. According to General, this creates a segue from rich and earthy flavors to a smoky profile. Some Honduran filler also makes up the blend. Holding the cigar together is a Nicaraguan binder underneath a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper.
According to the company, Stokk is intended to be a medium to full-bodied cigar.
“CAO is all about pushing the boundaries in tobacco exploration,” says Cory Beardsley, brand manager for CAO. “Working with Peter Stokkebye tobacco gave us the chance to blend a cigar that's truly unique, not for the sake of novelty, but to show the unlimited possibilities when two traditions collide.”
Stokk comes in one size, a Belicoso measuring 6 1/2 inches by 52 ring gauge, and has a suggested retail price of $12.99. Made in Nicaragua at STG Estelí, CAO Arcana Stokk ships in 20-count boxes decorated with rune-like lettering and a wood grain finish in tribute to Stokkebye’s Danish roots. Production is limited to 3,500 boxes.
Stokk is the fourth cigar in the Arcana series, the previous releases being the Mortal Coil, Firewalker and Thundersmoke.
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