July 12, 2023 Patrick Lagreid PCA 2023,  PCA 2023 Booths

PCA 2023: ADV & McKay Cigars Co.

ADV & McKay, best known for its ADVentura line of cigars, returns to the PCA Convention & Trade Show with its adventure-themed booth, drawing inspiration from the characters ADVentura and McKay and their adventures around the world. It’s a look that leads me to think of it as nautically-themed, but that might be my own take on it.

As you might recall, it’s been a challenging year not only for ADVentura & McKay but for Tabacalera William Ventura, the factory that produces the company’s cigars as well as many others. A fire claimed the main building in September, and while construction on the new factory began in November, production is still ramping back up via the El Maestro factory, so the company has been focusing on catching up on backorders and beefing up the supply of its regular production cigars before deciding to release new projects.

In fact, it wasn’t until mid-June, just a few weeks ahead of the trade show, that the company announced that there would be two new cigars, one an addition to the ADVentura The Navigator line, the other the second release for its La Llorona line, which is offered to the company’s top-performing retailers.

ADVentura The Navigator Ponce de Leon

The Navigator gets its fourth size, the 6 x 60 gordo that the company is calling Ponce de Leon, though fans of the ADVentura The Navigator line will recognize that this cigar has previously been available in non-U.S. markets under the name Columbus.

  • Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
  • Binder: Indonesia (Sumatra)
  • Filler: Dominican Republic
  • ADVentura The Navigator Ponce de Leon (6 x 60) — $13 (Box of 20, $260)

Production: Regular Production

Release Date: Late August 2023

La Llorona Corona

Also getting a new size is the La Llorona line, which is only available via ADV & McKay’s top accounts. The La Llorona line debuted in 2022, initially offered in a 5 x 50 robusto vitola, and gets its name from a character in Latin American folklore known as the crying woman, adapted here as a widow who is trying to hunt and kill pirates. This backstory ties La Llorona into the larger ADVentura storyline, which chronicles the adventures of ADVentura and his sidekick McKay, who travel the world on various expeditions, missions, and adventures.

  • Wrapper: Ecuador
  • Binder: Dominican Republic
  • Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
  • La Llorona Corona (6 x 44) — $16 (Box of 10, $160)

Production: 1,000 Boxes of 10 Cigars

Release Date: Late August 2023

Overall Score

ADV & McKay Cigars Co. ADVentura The Navigator ADVentura The Navigator Ponce de Leon Henderson Ventura La Llorona La Llorona Corona Marcel Knobel PCA 2023
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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for Major League Baseball, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.

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