L'Atelier

L'Atelier is Pete Johnson's second house; this atlas already holds his first, Tatuaje. He founded it in 2012 with Dan Welsh, K.C. Johnson and Sean Johnson, under the same roof as Tatuaje.

The stated intent is unusual and it is twofold: to make premium cigars at a price the smoker can follow, and to raise what is expected of a cigar at every level of the range. The house released two premium brands in its first year, L'Atelier and Surrogates, along with two keenly priced lines.

Everything is rolled by the García family, at My Father Cigars in Estelí — the factory this atlas holds as My Father, and the very one Tatuaje uses. Two houses, one founder, one workshop: it is one of the clearest configurations on the boutique scene, and one of the few where the link is declared.

That is also what sets L'Atelier apart from the other houses without a factory. Where Crowned Heads or Dunbarton spread their production across several factories, Johnson uses only one, and it is the one behind his first brand.

Range Depth

• L'Atelier

  Wrapper Rolled at My Father, Estelí · Strength Medium-Full

  The range that carries the house's name. Its vitolas are designated by ring gauge rather than by a shape name — a convention few brands follow.

  LAT38 · LAT46 · LAT54

• Surrogates

  Wrapper Rolled at My Father, Estelí · Strength Medium

  The other premium brand launched in 2012, under deliberately brutal names. Same workshop, same García family, a more direct register.

  Skull Breaker · Tramp Stamp · Bone Crusher