Video review HERE.
(Description taken from Cigar-coop.com website)
At the 2021 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Protocol Cigars will launch the third installment of its Lawman Series, the Protocol Bass Reeves. Like the other installments, the Protocol Bass Reeves will have a natural and maduro offering along with its traditional, refined, and regal packaging.
The Protocol Lawmen Series pays homage to those men and women in law enforcement who work hard fighting criminals. Protocol Bass Reeves follows the Protocol Sir Robert Peel and Protocol Eliot Ness releases. Bass Reeves was one of the first Black Deputy U.S. Marshals in history. According to Protocol Cigars, Bass Reeves arrested 3,000 criminals during his long career in Arkansas and the Oklahoma Territory, In 1875 he was sworn in as a U.S. Deputy Marshal.
“Bass Reeves was the inspiration for The Lone Ranger and we tried to incorporate that into the design of the packaging. We added a white horse and incorporated silver into the design on the vista because The Lone Ranger’s horse was named silver. We can not think of a more deserving historical law enforcement figure to get a cigar in their honor!” Said Kevin Keithan, co-owner of Protocol Cigars in a press release.
One thing that is different is while the Sir Robert Peel and Eliot Ness Natural offerings utilized Habano wrapper, the Bass Reeves Natural will feature a Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper – marking the first time a Sumatra wrapper is being used on a core Protocol offering. The Bass Reeves Maduro features a Dark Nicaraguan Habano wrapper. Both the Bass Reeves Natural and Maduro feature Nicaraguan binder and filler. Each cigar is a 6 x 52 box-pressed. Production comes from the San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua. The cigars are presented in ten-count boxes. Pricing is set at $119.50 per box for both the Natural and Maduro.
“Bass Reeves was blended with tobacco leaves from the different growing regions of Nicaragua. Both were blended to have incredible taste and balance. The maduro is a dark habano with sweet subtleness. The natural is a nutty sumatra with a delicious underlying spice note.” Added Hector Alfonso Sr. Espinosa’s Master Blender.
Juan Cancel added, “We are proud to feature Bass Reeves as the newest addition to the Lawmen Series. I feel it truly shows the diversity of the law enforcement community as a whole, that men and women from all races and ethnicities come together to serve the public at large.”
Today we look at the natural.
Bass Reeves Natural
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: San Lotano
Vitola:
6 x 52 Box Pressed
Like all the cigars in this series it is well made. It has an average feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was good. The initial flavors at light up were citrus, dry cedar, brown sugar, cinnamon, toffee, light nutmeg, and leather. There was a tremendous amount of black pepper rated at 8 to 8 1/2. A nice start bur there are a lot of dry notes.
At the first third (25 minutes) the dry notes continue. The citrus, cedar, and toffee are slightly decreased. But now there is a lot of dry nutmeg. It's in abundance. There is also quite a bit of leather. There is now light black coffee at the base. I haven't had this much dry nutmeg in a cigar in a long time. The finish is toffee and a little dry nutmeg with very good lingering black pepper. The black pepper on the front end is still around 8. The cigar is medium bodied. The profile of the cigar is dry and peppery. The sweeter notes are very nice but you have a lot of dry nutmeg. I rated the first third 93 because it's still quite tasty even with all that dry nutmeg.
Moving through the second third (48 minutes) the cigar continued the dry notes. In this third the nutmeg didn't really increase but the citrus notes seemed to drop off. There is still some cedar and toffee. There is still quite a bit of dry nutmeg and leather with a light black coffee base. The cigar is still medium bodied. The finish is nutmeg, light leather, and a drop or two of toffee with very good lingering black pepper. I rated the second third 92.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 6 minutes. It's still quite dry. But, the citrus notes made a small comeback. There is still a ton of dry nutmeg with some leather and a light black coffee base. The cigar is still medium bodied. The finish is toffee, a little leather, and very good lingering black pepper. This is, even with all the dry nutmeg, a good cigar. I enjoyed it but if it didn't have so much dry nutmeg it would have scored much higher. I held the score of 92 for the final third.
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