Tatuaje Cigars

Aside from being an exceptionally talented cigar blender, Pete Johnson is known for being adorned with several ornate tattoos, inspiring him to name his cigar company Tatuaje, which is the Spanish word for “tattoo.” Early in the inception of Tatuaje Cigars, Johnson befriended the famous cigar maker Don ‘Pepin’ Garcia of My Father Cigars, who still makes most of Tatuaje’s cigars to this day.

“I was their first client, and I’m their most loyal client,” Johnon told the Premium Cigar Association in a 2024 interview about his relationship with Garcia and My Father Cigars. “But we run very separate businesses. I don’t get involved in their business, because it’s not my business. We have different business models, and our styles of cigars are very different. The only time I get involved is when they ask me to be involved.”

Johnson came to the premium cigar business from the music industry. Having moved to Los Angeles when he was 18, Johnson was packing his cigar kit with him and smoking onstage during rock shows at the Whiskey and the Roxy. A mainstay in the Glam Rock scene of the 1980s, Johnson began to drift into the premium cigar industry when his job as a bouncer led him to part-time work mixing pipe tobacco at a local retailer. From there, Johnson became the store’s chief buyer and would study deeply the nuances of the humidor and what made each and every cigar great. Eventually, he was hustling at some of the industry’s top trade shows and taking aback some of the most experienced blenders in the cigar business with his ideas. When Tatuaje hit it big with its first top-five rated cigar from the prestigious Cigar Aficionado magazine, Johnson was still working multiple jobs, but was simultaneously hosting a booth at the PCA convention in which he was too busy to move thanks to incredible energy surrounding his smokes.

It's this kind of entrepreneurial spirit that sets Tatuaje apart. Johnson is no doubt an artist and has translated that necessary passion and showmanship from L.A.’s biggest stages to the forefront of the cigar industry. It allows him to take some chances that other cigarmakers can’t, as he did with the esteemed La Vérité line. Translating as “The Truth,” this cigar followed tobacco from a single farm for a single year. It was the truest form of what many would call a “puro.”

“My point with Vérité was the tobacco is ready, it’s clean, there’s nothing bad left in it that’s going to make it taste wet or grassy or whatever, or filled with ammonia, let’s put it in the cigar and let it age gracefully in the cigar, and it will hold the strength levels longer,” Johnson told Cigar Aficionado.

Today, the Tatuaje Cigars portfolio features over a dozen top-rated blends, all made with Cuban-style blending and construction. With so many amazing blends to choose from, Tatuaje has long been a favorite brand of both insiders, aficionados and novices alike.

Some of my favorites from Tatuaje Cigars include the Monster cigars, Fausto, Havana VI, Avion, and the incredibly popular Black Label. These rich and flavorful smokes are made with finely aged Nicaraguan long filler and binder tobaccos and adorned with a variety of top-quality wrappers. Aficionados turn to these blends whenever the situation calls for bold, full-bodied smokes.

Although much of the Tatuaje Cigars lineup features bold blends, there are a few that show off Tatuaje’s softer side. Blends like the mellow-medium bodied Cabaiguan and the medium-bodied Tattoo cigar were great smokes for those first starting my cigar journey and getting acquainted with Tatuaje Cigars. Check out our Tattoo cigar review on the Blending Room for a deeper dive on this cigar.

Over the last 20 years, Tatuaje Cigars has become one of the most sought-after and highly regarded boutique brands on the market today. Find out why by ordering some Tatuaje Cigars online from Cigars.com today!