Black Label

The Tatuaje Black Label first debuted in limited quantities in 2007, then known as the Private Reserve. This is because the blend was made as a personal cigar for company owner, Pete Johnson, after returning from a trip to Cuba, where he became particularly fond of a certain private-label cigar made by one of the locals and gifted to Johnson throughout his trip. Upon returning, he worked with the García family to recreate the cigar's general performance. This was achieved with the Tatuaje Private Reserve Corona Gorda, a limited-edition offering that made use of an all-Nicaraguan blend, topped with a Criollo-seed wrapper.

Tatuaje Black Label was first rolled at the Garcías' lesser-known Nicaraguan factory, Tabacalera Cubana S.A., but is now produced at their larger My Father Cigars factory in Estelí. The brand was introduced in various limited formats from 2007 to 2016, when it transitioned to a regular release with a lineup of five sizes.

I decided when traveling to Nicaragua to work with the Garcia family that I would try to recreate this special cigar for myself. Together we spent quite some time working on the blend and looking at different leaves for wrapper. The marbled toothy wrapper was perfect for this cigar, rustic looking but with tons of aroma. After smoking the first sample, I was immediately brought back to that island relaxing on a fence, enjoying life, smoking a great cigar. A great cigar that will always in my mind represent the place, the time, and the experience of the purity of the simple life. This cigar may be considered ugly by some but inside that surface roughness it contains such rich flavor and aroma.

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. This is a tribute to that cigar.

—Pete Johnson