Video review HERE.
(Description provided by Protocol Cigars)
Protocol Cigars is pleased to announce its first exclusive limited release of 2022. The Protocol Hard Coal Detective, HCD for short is being release in collaboration with Breaker Cigars of Shamokin, Pennsylvania. Like all of the limited edition releases the company does with smaller brick and mortar shops, they try to incorporate the heart and soul of the shop into the project. Juan Cancel, founder and co-owner said, “When we do these great projects we try to capture as much of the spirit of the shop we are releasing the cigar through as possible. The Hard Coal Detective is no exception.”
Breaker Cigars is named after a coal breaker, which is a coal processing plant which breaks coal into various useful sizes and also removes impurities from the coal. Shamokin is in one of the largest coal regions in Pennsylvania and is a coal mining town. Breaker Cigars’ logo is that of a coal miner smoking a cigar. Coal is in the blood of this shop and town, so that’s how we developed the Hard Coal Detective. The cigars will come in a 10 count coal colored paper bundle and have an MSRP of $9.20 per single cigar and $92.00 per bundle. HCD will come in a 6x52 standard toro vitola. Only 250 bundles have been produced and once these are gone they will not be reproduced. The cigar has been masterfully created at the La Zona Cigar Factory in Esteli, Nicaragua under the watchful eye of Erik Espinosa. The cigar was blended by La Zona’s resident master blender Hector Alfonso Sr. The blend has an Ecuadorian Rosado Oscuro wrapper with a Jalapa, Nicaragua binder and a Esteli, Nicaragua filler that translates into a beautiful medium bodied cigar with deep notes of cinnamon, cedar and white pepper with a touch of warm backing spices. The cigar is well balanced and has a very creamy and smooth finish. The cigar presents an enjoyable experience with rich flavors and aromas without being overpowering.
“We are all very excited about this project. Like the majority of our limited edition releases, we like to do them with smaller brick and mortar cigar shops. We are a small company that enjoys doing exclusive projects with smaller shops that would usually not have cigar companies doing exclusive releases for them. It’s is great to give them something special!” added Kevin Keithan co-owner. The launch of the cigar will be on Saturday, April 2nd starting from 2pm to 11pm at Breaker Cigars located at 500 N 8th St, Shamokin, PA 17872. The cigars go on sale in store and online at that same time. With a limited onetime quantity of 250 bundles they will likely sell out fast! The website to purchase these limited edition cigars is http://BreakerCigars.com. Mike Snyder, owner of Breaker Cigars added “I’m extremely proud to be able to create a project with the team at Protocol. I’m also extremely proud to be able to bring the first modern cigar to Shamokin, Pennsylvania. This is definitely something our area will be proud to call their own!”
Cigar Information:
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Rosado Oscuro
Binder: Jalapa, Nicaragua
Filler: Esteli, Nicaragua
Vitola: 6 x 52 Toro
The cigar is well made and has a nice feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was good. The initial flavors at light up were sweet grapefruit, brown sugar, dry nutmeg, and leather. There was black pepper rated at 7 1/2. A nice citrusy leathery start.
At the first third (28 minutes) the cigar is burning very evenly and the ash is still intact. The cigar has made a little improvement since the light up. I still had the grapefruit but now there is caramel following it. I also still had brown sugar, dry nutmeg, and leather. The finish is citrus, caramel, and leather with good lingering black pepper. The cigar is medium bodied. I feel that it will move up. These type flavors are something I like. I rated the first third 93.
Moving through the second third (58 minutes) the cigar is still burning very evenly. At this point the cigar is trying to change over to an orange citrus. It's somewhere between grapefruit and orange citrus. I still had caramel, smooth nutmeg, and leather. The leather has crept up ever so slightly. Even though it's elevated it hasn't hurt the cigar too bad. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is (what appears to be) orange citrus, a little caramel, and leather with good lingering black pepper. The elevated leather caused the score of the second third to lower to 92.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 34 minutes. A very good burn time. There were some more changes but they didn't amount to any scoring change. I now had orange citrus, brown sugar, leather, and black coffee. There's a nice base of leather and black coffee but there is plenty of sweetness from the orange citrus and brown sugar. I didn't have the caramel notes anymore. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is orange citrus and leather with good lingering black pepper. I held the score of 92 for the final third. I enjoyed this cigar. It is a nice shop exclusive for Breaker Cigars.
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