Ventura Cigar Co. is a subsidiary of Phillips and King International, which itself is a subsidiary of Kretek International. Phillips & King is the largest distributor of tobacco products in the country and Ventura is the company’s premium cigar brand. For the last few years it’s been all about PSyKo Seven, but now the company is adding a few new lines centered around Archetype.
The booth is big, busy and full of products. Archetype gets a large presence as does the new Case Study, a result of what happens when you launch a line with 66 SKUs.
Archetype Axis Mundi
There are five new cigars under the Archetype name. It’s inspired by Dr. Carl Jung who wrote about the concept of archetypes and then Joseph Campbell who applied them to a hero’s journey, a concept that is widely-used in storytelling.
Drew Estate is producing two lines, both offered exclusively to Ventura’s VSR accounts.
- Wrapper: Habano Maduro
- Binder: n/a
- Filler: n/a
- Archetype Axis Mundi Corona (5 x 46) — $10.49 (Boxes of 20, $209.80)
- Archetype Axis Mundi Robusto (5 x 54) — $11.49 (Boxes of 20, $229.80)
- Archetype Axis Mundi Toro (6 x 52) — $12.49 (Boxes of 20, $249.80)
- Archetype Axis Mundi Churchill (7 x 48) — $12.99 (Boxes of 20, $259.80)
Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Production: Regular Production
Archetype Initiation
The second of the Series B, Drew Estate-produced lines.
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian habano
- Binder: n/a
- Filler: n/a
- Archetype Initiation (5 x 46) — $9.99 (Boxes of 20, $199.80)
- Archetype Initiation Robusto (5 x 54) — $10.99 (Boxes of 20, $219.80)
- Archetype Initiation Toro (6 x 52) — $11.99 (Boxes of 20, $239.80)
- Archetype Initiation Churchill (7 x 48) — $12.99 (Boxes of 20, $259.80)
Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Production: Regular Production
Archetype Dreamstate
Oettinger Davidoff AG is handling production of the other three blends, two of which come from Occidental Cigar Factory in the Dominican Republic. Dreamstate is the first of those.
- Wrapper: Dominican Connecticut
- Binder: n/a
- Filler: n/a
- Archetype Dreamstate Robusto (5 x 52) — $9.99 (Boxes of 20, $199.80)
- Archetype Dreamstate Toro (6 x 50) — $10.99 (Boxes of 20, $219.80)
- Archetype Dreamstate Churchill (7 x 48) — $11.99 (Boxes of 20, $239.80)
Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Production: Regular Production
Archetype Sage Advice
The second of the Occidental Cigar Factory releases.
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
- Binder: n/a
- Filler: n/a
- Archetype Sage Advice Robusto (5 1/4 x 54) — $10.99 (Boxes of 20, $219.80)
- Archetype Sage Advice Toro (6 x 52) — $11.99 (Boxes of 20, $239.80)
- Archetype Sage Advice Gordo (6 x 60) — $12.99 (Boxes of 20, $259.80)
Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Production: Regular Production
Archetype Strage Passage
This line is being produced by the Agroindustria LAEPE S.A./Camacho factory in Honduras. It is the only Archetype line to be box-pressed.
- Wrapper: n/a
- Binder: n/a
- Filler: n/a
- Archetype Strange Passage Short Robusto (4 1/4 x 50) — $8.99 (Boxes of 20, $179.80)
- Archetype Strange Passage Robusto (5 1/4 x 54) — $10.49 (Boxes of 20, $209.80)
- Archetype Strange Passage Toro (6 x 60) — $12.49 (Boxes of 20, $249.80)
Launch Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Production: Regular Production
Case Study
After World War II, Arts & Architecture magazine commissioned some of the most famous American designers to construct modern homes that would be affordable to returning veterans and their new families. A total of 26 homes were built, largely in Southern California, and many have become landmarks today. Case Study pays tribute to that project, a new series containing a mixture of new blends, limited editions and a variety of factories. In total, there are 66 new SKUs.
Some are limited editions based off of cigars that have been previously released, some are entirely new blends. They are all packaged the same–in boxes of 20–and are sold through Ventura.
Five factories are part of the project, so that seems like the easiest way to divide these up.
From Oettinger Davidoff AG’s factories:
- Case Study No. 1 (Ecuadorian habano wrapper)
- 5 x 50
- 6 1/2 x 46
- 7 1/4 x 50
- Case Study No. 3 (Mexican San Andrés wrapper)
- 5 5/8 x 54
- 6 x 50
- 6 7/8 x 57 salomon
- Case Study No. 4 (Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 52 torpedo (limited)
- Case Study No. 6 (Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 50
- 6 x 52
- 7 1/2 x 50
- Case Study No. 10 (Dominican Yamasá wrapper)
- 5 7/8 x 50 perfecto
- 6 x 54
- Case Study No. 15 (Ecuadorian habano wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 50
- 6 x 54
- 4 3/4 x 52 perfecto
- Case Study No. 19 (Ecuadorian habano wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 52 (limited)
- Case Study No. 20 (Ecuadorian habano wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 46
- 5 1/4 x 52
- 6 x 50
- Case Study No. 24 (Dominican Yamasá)
- 5 1/2 x 52 (limited)
Drew Estate:
- Case Study No. 9 (Mexican Maduro wrapper, Connecticut broadleaf binder, Pennsylvania and Nicaraguan filler)
- 5 x 43
- 6 x 46
- 6 x 52 belicoso
- Case Study No. 13 (Connecticut broadleaf wrapper, Indonesian binder)
- 5 x 50 (limited)
- Case Study No. 18 (Ecuadorian habano oscuro wrapper, Indonesian binder)
- 5 x 50 (limited)
La Aurora:
- Case Study No. 2 (habano binder)
- 5 1/2 x 42
- 6 x 50
- 6 1/2 x 52 belicoso
- 7 x 50
- Case Study No. 7 (habano wrapper)
- 7 1/2 x 52/60 salomon (limited)
- Case Study No. 12 (maduro wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 42 (limited)
- 5 x 50 (limited)
- 6 1/2 x 52 belicoso (limited)
- 7 x 50 (limited)
- Case Study No. 21 (habano wrapper)
- 5 x 50
- 6 x 47
- 6 1/4 x 52
- 6 x 58
Plasencia:
- Case Study No. 5 (Nicaraguan habano oscuro wrapper, Mexican San Andrés binder, Nicaraguan fillers)
- 4 7/8 x 60 (limited)
- 5 3/4 x 54 (limited)
- 6 3/4 x 52 (limited)
- Case Study No. 14 (Nicaraguan habano wrapper)
- 5 x 50
- 6 1/2 x 58
- 6 1/4 x 52
- Case Study No. 17 (Nicaraguan habano claro wrapper)
- 4 3/4 x 52
- 6 x 50
- 6 3/16 x 50 belicoso
- Case Study No. 23 (Honduran Connecticut Talanga wrapper, Nicaragua binder and Nicaraguan fillers)
- 4 3/4 x 50 (limited)
- 6 1/4 x 54 (limited)
- Case Study No. 25 (Nicaraguan Connecticut Talanga wrapper)
- 6 x 50
- 7 1/2 x 50
- 6 1/4 x 54 (belicoso)
- Case Study No. 26 (Nicaraguan habano wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, Nicaraguan filler)
- 5 x 54 (limited)
- 5 1/2 x 56 (limited)
- 6 x 52 (limited)
Rocky Patel:
- Case Study No. 8 (Indonesian Sumatra wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 50
- 6 1/2 x 52
- 6 x 60
- Case Study No. 11 (Nicaraguan corojo wrapper, Costa Rican binder, Honduran filler)
- 6 x 52
- 6 x 52 torpedo
- Case Study No. 16 (Nicaraguan corojo wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers)
- 5 1/2 x 54
- 6 1/2 x 52
- 6 x 54 torpedo
- Case Study No. 22 (habano wrapper)
- 5 1/2 x 50
- 6 1/2 x 52
- 6 x 60
Hugo
Named after Hugo Cassar, the ceo of Phillips & King, the cigar will honor an upcoming major birthday for Cassar. It’s being produced by Rocky Patel’s TAVICUSA factory, though that’s about the end of the details. The company told me they were still waiting for blend details themselves.
PSyKo Seven Connecticut
I didn’t grab pricing details, but the PSyKo Seven line is getting a Connecticut version.
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
- Binder: Dominican San Vicente
- Filler: n/a
- Toro (6 1/2 x 48)
- Robusto (5 1/2 x 50)
- Gordo (6 x 60)