Video review HERE.
(Description taken from Cigar-coop.com website)
At the 2021 PCA Trade Show in Las Vegas, Protocol Cigars will add a 6 x 60 Gordo line extension in the Protocol “Blue” Line debuting at the 2021 PCA Trade Show. The Protocol “Blue,” which it has unofficially been referred to as, was the first release for Protocol Cigars back in 2015.
The new 6 x 60 is the first line extension to the Protocol Blue line in five years. It’s also the first regular production 6 x 60 the company has done. Protocol Cigars says more 6 x 60 line extensions are planned for the future.
“The demand for a 6 x 60 has steadily been increasing over the years from our supporters, so we decided to feed that demand,” said Kevin Keithan, co-owner of Protocol Cigars, in a press release.
The Protocol Gordo will be the same blend as the original line. It will be an Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro Leaf, wrapping around a Nicaraguan Habano, covering all Nicaragua long fillers that include quadruple ligero in the blend, According to Protocol Cigars, the double habano wrapper and binder combination balances out the quadruple ligero giving it a creamy finish.
“We had to listen to the demands for a 6 x 60 vitola, so we couldn’t think of a more appropriate blend to launch a Gordo than the original ‘Blue’ Protocol. We feel this blend will hold up great in a 6 x 60 format,” added Juan Cancel, founder and co-owner of Protocol Cigars.
Like it’s predecessors, the Protocol Gordo will be manufactured at the Erik Espinosa La Zona Factory in Estelí, under the tutelage of La Zona’s Master Blender: Hector Alfonso Sr.
Protocol Blue Gordo will have an MSRP of $110.00 per ten-count box or $11.00 per single cigar.
Blend and Origin
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro
Binder: Nicaragua Habano
Filler: Quadruple Ligero Nicaragua
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: La Zona S.A.
Vitolas Offered
Gordo: 6 x 60
Corona Gorda: 5 5/8 x 46
Toro: 6 x 52
Lancero: 7 1/2 x 38
The cigar is dark and well made. It has a nice feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was good. The initial flavors at light up were a combination of citrus, apricot, and citrus peel, brown sugar, dry nutmeg, and worn leather. There was black pepper rated at close to 8. A nice start.
At the first third (41 minutes) the cigar is not burning evenly. The notes now are light citrus and apricot, light brown sugar, increased nutmeg, and leather. The cigar is medium bodied, leaning toward medium to full. The finish is citrus, nutmeg, and leather with very good lingering black pepper. I think this cigar is a victim of extra filler. In a lot of cigars that expand to include a 60 ring the extra filler tends to water down the overall flavor profile. I rated the first third 91.
Moving through the second third (1 hour 3 minutes) I noted 2 important things; after a touch up on the burn the cigar is still burning unevenly. And the cigar is burning hot. By that I mean the cigar is hot to the touch back from the burn line. This means the filler is burning much faster than it should. The cigar is not combusting well. However, the flavors have actually improved. There is more citrus and apricot, more brown sugar, nutmeg, and leather. The finish is citrus, nutmeg, and leather with very good lingering black pepper. The cigar is very close to full bodied. My original thought was to score the cigar 92. But with the burn issues and burning hot I deducted a point for each making the second third score 90. The burn issue and burning hot issue must improve or the scores will suffer.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 25 minutes. In the final third the cigar would not burn correctly. It basically went out. I was getting pieces of burnt tobacco and looking at the intake end you can see a dark spot where the cigar had already burned. Not good. To be fair, I did not have these issues in the previous samples but I am judging this cigar. The combustibility in this cigar is not good. And it was still not burning evenly. I rated this section 87 after another 2 point deduction. I do not believe this is typical of this cigar since I did not have these issues in previous samples. It's a better cigar than the score will show. I will let Juan know about my findings. This cigar should rate out at 91+.
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