At the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show, Cubariqueño Cigar Company launched a new line known as Protocol Sir Robert Peel . The Protocol Sir Robert Peel is a line that consists of two blends – a Natural (Rosado) and a Maduro (Pennsylvania Broadleaf). Protocol Sir Robert Peel would bring the total number of regular production blends to six. The blends in the Protocol Sir Robert Peel were intended to be Cubariqueño ‘s most premium lines – both from a tobacco standpoint and a packaging standpoint. Today we take a look at one of the blends – the Protocol Sir Robert Peel Natural.

One constant of Cubariqueño is the company’s homage to law enforcement. This ties into the fact that co-founders Juan Cancel and Bill Ives have served in that field. The name Sir Robert Peel continues that tradition. Sir Robert Peel is considered to be the father of the modern-day police force. It was in 1829 when Peel established the London Metropolitan Police Force.

Without further ado, let’s break down the Protocol Sir Robert Peel Maduro and see what this cigar brings to the table.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

When it comes to the Protocol Sir Robert Peel Maduro, this cigar uses a Broadleaf wrapper from Pennsylvania. It’s the first Broadleaf release to be added into the Cubariqueño portfolio. The remainder of the blend consists of Nicaraguan tobaccos. As with all Cubariqueño cigars, production is handled at Erik Espinosa’s La Zona factory in Estelí, Nicaragua.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Rosado
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: La Zona S.A.

The other blend in the line, the Protocol Sir Robert Peel Maduro, features a Pennsylvania Maduro wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and filler and is also produced at the La Zona factory.

Vitolas Offered

Both the Protocol Sir Robert Peel  Maduro and Natural offerings were launched in one size – a 6 x 52 Box Pressed Toro. Each is packaged in elegant 10-count boxes.

Appearance

The Ecuadorian Rosado wrapper lived up to its name with its medium brown color and rosado tint. There was not much in the way of oil on the surface of the wrapper. The wrapper had a slight amount of mottling on the surface. This was a smooth wrapper with thin wrapper seams. There wasn’t much In the way of visible wrapper seams. The box-press itself had a slight Cuban press style to it.

There are two bands on the Sir Robert Peel Maduro. The primary band has a gold, maroon, and white color scheme. On the center of the band is a portrait of Sir Robert Peel. Just under the picture is a maroon ribbon-like design with the text “SIR ROBERT PEEL” in white font. Surrounding the portrait is a shield and a series of gold medallions. There are images on each of the gold medallions that have significance to Cubariqueño and law enforcement in general. Co-owner Juan Cancel has referred to these as “Easter eggs.” To the left of the portrait is the text “ESTELI NICARAGUA” in white font on a maroon background while to the right is the text “HECHO EN LA ZONA” – also in white font on a maroon background.

The primary band rests over a maroon secondary band. This band is maroon in color with some gold colored “C”s arranged in a wallpaper-like fashion. The lower part of the band has the text “1829” in gold font surrounded by a gold pinstripe. The lower part of the band has a gold trim with a slightly irregular edge.

Finally, there is a gold colored ribbon around the footer. This differentiates the Protocol Sir Robert Peel Maduro from the Natural in that the Maduro has a maroon colored ribbon around the footer.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

A straight cut was used to remove the cap of the Sir Robert Peel Natural.  After the cap was removed, it was on to the pre-light draw. The cold draw delivered a mix of sweet natural tobacco and fruit. Overall this was a simple, but excellent pre-light draw. At this point, it was time to remove the footer ribbon of the Sir Robert Peel Natural, light up the cigar and move on to the smoking phase.

Tasting Notes

The Protocol Sir Robert Peel Natural kicked off with notes of earth, mixed fruit, natural tobacco, and a slight amount of black pepper. Early on the mixed fruit notes moved to the forefront with the natural tobacco, earth, and black pepper notes setting in the background. The retro-hale provided an additional layer of black pepper with a slight amount of cedar.

The second third saw both the earth and pepper notes increase. As the Sir Robert Peel moved through this stage, the earth notes increased enough to join the fruit notes in the forefront. The pepper and natural tobacco were still present but in no way was overpowering.

By the final third of the Sir Robert Peel Natural, the earth notes had displaced the fruit notes in the forefront. There was a little more in the way of pepper, but it was still nowhere near making the cigar a spice bomb. This is the way the Sir Robert Peel Natural came to a close. The resulting nub was cool in temperature and soft to the touch.

Burn

The Sir Robert Peel Natural performance did require few touch-ups along the way. For the most part, the cigar maintained a straight burn path – and had a relatively straight burn line. This was a firm ash with some darker streaks mixed in. The burn rate and burn temperature both maintained ideal levels.

Draw

For a box-pressed cigar, the Sir Robert Peel Natural performed quite well. Sometimes box-pressed cigars can draw too loose, but not in the case with the Sir Robert Peel Natural. This was a cigar that had a nice balance between openness and resistance.

Strength and Body

One can argue that next to the Protocol Themis, the Sir Robert Peel Natural is one of the more dialed back cigars by Cubariqueño Cigar Company. This is a cigar that started out medium in strength and body. While there was a slight increase in intensity of both of these attributes, in the end, the Sir Robert Peel Natural remained in the medium range.

In terms of strength versus body with the Sir Robert Peel Natural, both attributes balanced each other nicely – with neither overshadowing the other.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

One thing I have said about Cubariqueño Cigar Company is that this is a company that has an excellent set of regular production lines. All six of the regular production lines bring something different to the table and offer something for everyone. The Protocol Sir Robert Peel Natural is no exception. This is a cigar that pretty much delivers straight-forward flavors. It isn’t radical in terms of the flavors delivered, and it’s not overly complex. The Sir Robert Peel Natural’s medium profile seemed tailor-made to the flavors delivered.

This is a cigar that can be enjoyed by any cigar enthusiast any time of the day. As for myself, this is a cigar I would smoke again – and it’s one worthy of keeping multiples in the humidor.

Summary

Key Flavors: Fruit, Natural Tobacco, Black Pepper, Mineral, Earth
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium Minus
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium to Full (1st Half), Full (2nd Half)
Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: Buy Multiples
Score: 90

References

News: Cubariqueño Cigar Company to Introduce Protocol Sir Robert Peel at the 2019 IPCPR
Price: $11.95
Source: Cubariqueño Cigar Company
Brand Reference: Cubariqueño Cigar Company

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop