ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto

The vast majority of cigar boxes don’t really garner much attention. First, they are functional, providing a hopefully protective environment for the cigars while in transport. Then, they serve to tell some sort of story about the cigars inside through text and imagery, and again, hopefully enough to capture a shopper’s attention in a crowded retail humidor.

There are plenty of examples where cigar boxes go above and beyond, many of which get recognized in our annual Packaging Awards. This can be for craftsmanship, an innovative design, special artwork, or any number of factors.

In the case of ADV & McKay Cigars Co., I still remember visiting the company’s booth at the 2022 PCA Convention & Trade Show, where Marcel Knobel proudly and excitedly showed off the newest chapter in the ADVentura series: Barbarroja’s Invasion. However, instead of just talking about the cigars, he closed the lid of one of the boxes, and then proudly opened, with a recording coming from the lid that said “Arrrrrgh….ADV’s Barbarossa’s Invasion…taste it, or pay the price,” in a fairly menacing, gravelly voice that one could certainly envision coming from a pirate.

It was an addition to the standard cigar box that landed Barbarroja’s Invasion on the 2022 Packaging Awards, finishing in a tie for 6th place.

Jump ahead two years to the summer of 2024, and another chapter would be added to the ADVentura story, a line billed as the response to Barbarroja’s Invasion called Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge, and it, too, uses a box that plays a recording when opened: “a small price to pay for the taste of sweet revenge.”

The ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge has a blend that uses a Mexican San Andrés Colorado wrapper, a Dominican olor binder, and Dominican fillers, with the tobacco having been aged for five years prior to rolling. The cigars are produced at Tabacalera Mina del Rey, which ADV & McKay’s co-founders—Knobel and Henderson Ventura—opened in late 2023. Once the cigars have been rolled, they head to the factory’s aging rooms for six months of rest prior to release.

ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge is available in the same three sizes as Barbarroja’s Invasion.

The cigars debuted in mid-July via ADV & McKay Cigar Co.’s Elite Accounts before heading to all retailers in August.

• Cigar Reviewed: ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack's Revenge Robusto
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera Mina del Rey
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés Colorado)
• Binder: Dominican Republic (Olor)
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• Length: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Shape: Round
• MSRP: $14.20 (Box of 20, $284)
• Release Date: July 12, 2024
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

The ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto is a pretty standard-looking robusto, maybe feeling a tick thicker than its listed 52-ring gauge although the measurements don’t bear that out. The three cigars have wrappers that are a medium-dark shade of brown with a lot of gritty texture, not much in the way of oiliness, and an average to above-average vein structure. The third cigar has the most interesting visual aspects, with a spot just above the band on the backside of the cigar where the veins and seams look almost like stitches you’d get to close a wound, particularly because they sit horizontally. There are also a few spots where it looks like the wrapper has sustained some damage, enough that I’m a bit surprised this one passed inspection. The cigars are rolled firmly and look good, with nothing concerning standing out in terms of density or their visual appearance aside from that one wrapper. The foot has a pretty mild aroma, but I do get something that reminds me of chocolate cake donuts and a black pepper that takes a few seconds to unfold in my nostrils, but when it does, it elicits two sneezes after smelling the first cigar. The cold draws range from ideally smooth to slightly firm, while the flavor is a bit more vibrant, with some bark-covered wood, a bit of pepper, and a touch of chocolate sweetness on the finish. The second cigar also imparts a lot of tingle on my lips.

The ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto starts with some earthiness, damp coffee grounds, and black pepper, before some black tea leaves and cocoa powder join the mix over the course of the first 10 minutes or so. There are also some hints of chalk and minerals in that earthiness, which I’m not a fan of and, therefore, hopeful they depart quickly. Retrohales are peppery but show a range of intensities; the first cigar has a subtle but building tingle of black pepper, while the second is much livelier and more intense. There’s a bit of creaminess at spots, though I wouldn’t call it a defining characteristic of the profile across the three cigars, especially when the other flavors are at their most vibrant, but it is quite welcomed. I find the profile’s character to swing between an earthier expression after a retrohale to a creamier expression on puffs, which provides an option for how to experience the blend. I also find that the chalk and mineral aspects are long gone, which is a big plus for the profile. Flavor is medium to medium-full, and a tick fuller with retrohales. The body of the smoke is medium, while strength is medium-minus. On the whole, construction is good, though the second and third cigars’ ash both flowers and flakes off more than I’d like, while the third cigar’s burn line is noticeably uneven.

The second third starts by leaning a bit more on the earthy aspects of the blend, more in the flavor than what I found in the first third. This brings a certain gruffness to the profile, though it is far from harsh or abrasive. Given that the company said it was blended to be sweet on the palate as well as via retrohales, I’m somewhat surprised that I’m not finding more sweetness in the profile, though there is a fine line between being noticeable and then getting too sweet, and I’m okay with where the profile is at. Retrohales have more creaminess than they did in the first third, and there is some sweetness there, while some threads of chocolate syrup are present as well. The pepper in the retrohale sharpens up right around the midpoint of the cigar while the earthiness quickly fades away through the nose and the smoke dries out my nostrils. The final puffs in this section are also drier than they have been to this point, while the flavor blends dry earth, a touch of creaminess, some toast, and a bit of black pepper. Flavor is medium-plus, body is medium and strength is medium-minus. Construction remains serviceable if not always ideal, due to the burn line and flaky ash, but relights aren’t needed and there is plenty of smoke, both of which help the cigar’s case.

For being on a trajectory of getting quite dry—and mouth-drying—the ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto’s final third starts with touches of creaminess emerging amidst the other flavors, which are largely the same but have more edge from the toast, which is the flavor that sticks with my palate and mind the longest after each puff. If there wasn’t a lot of sweetness earlier, there is seemingly none at this point, while the earthy flavor is lighter and drier. Retrohales have a bright pepper to them, and they quickly shift my focus to my tingling nostrils. The blend gets some of its creaminess back as things come to a close, but the profile stays largely dry, finishing with earth, pepper, a bit of nuttiness, and a finish that has some light and very dry wood. Flavor finishes medium-full, body is medium-full, and strength is medium. Some flaky ash is about my only issue with the construction of the cigar, as a good chunk of the cigar landed on my desk, laptop, shirt and the floor. But the smoke is plentiful, the draw stays smooth, and whatever burn line issues there are tend to resolve themselves.

Final Notes

• All three cigars smoked very well, but the second one did it just a bit better in terms of how the individual flavors came together in complexity and harmony. It’s hard to put a finger on it or words to it, but the blend was just more in the proverbial sweet spot on that one cigar.
• While the core elements of the band are the same as previous releases, I do like this new background, even if it does make the text a tick harder to read.
• I’m beginning to think that overly flaky ash might be my biggest pet peeve when it comes to certain cigars. Always having to brush off or vacuum up stray ash is not something I like to have to do, even though I fully accept it can be part of the enjoyment of cigars.
• I can’t say how nice it is to smoke cigars that aren’t plagued by combustion issues.
• By my metrics, the ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto doesn’t have a lot of strength, but there is a bit to be found in the final third.
• While not yet for sale, there are prototypes of a lancero version of this blend floating around.
• ADV & McKay Cigars Co. sent samples of the ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge, but they were not used for this review. The cigars smoked for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• The company lists these as a 5 x 52 robusto. The numbers above are the measurements we found for the three cigars used for this review.
• Final smoking time was two hours and five minutes on average.
• Site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co., Cigars Direct, JR Cigars, and Smokingpipes carries the ADVentura Blue Eyed Jack’s Revenge Robusto.