What is the Indiana Ortez story?

My life and my story are all about emotions and passion. I'm the youngest of the Ortez family, and that means I’m the "black sheep"- always going on the opposite side of life! My mother wanted me to work in marketing developing products, or any path that would have nothing to do with smoking cigars. But I was curious about the perseverance and passion I saw in my father since I was a child, and I wanted to discover the world that had completely trapped my dad.

While I did make my mom happy by studying Marketing and Advertising at university, all of my projects were based on Omar Ortez Originals, like creating brand positioning campaigns, communication strategies and advertising campaigns, always focusing on the consumer.

During my university years I discovered that the Ortez family was the first in the tobacco business with three generations of 100% Nicaraguan lineage. I understood that this was unique and special, and knew it needed to be made known. I was fascinated by the family’s philosophy, which, at that time, had already transcended the third generation with my two older siblings, Anielka and Omar, who respectively, were already in charge of the administration and lands of the family's tobacco business. I call the world of tobacco "the New World". It balances you, demands all your energy and time, and if you are working in it from the heart, it returns to you in a perfectly balanced smoke, capable of making you fall in love.

At almost 26 years old, I am in love with this new world of tobacco, and the person I have become through my experiences. I’m a different one, always sensitive and intense, but now with much more tolerance and open to accepting criticism.

Right now, I supervise quality control at Agrotabacos—I am not yet a boss! I have fun in my position, but to challenge myself, I invented a position: CMO of Agrotabacos. This is not official, it is only my favorite hobby, sharing about our family. But at the same time, I’m in charge of managing new clients, collaborating with their blends and ideas in development, often sitting down to smoke with them while we have a good coffee and decide where we should take the next project.

This is 2020, and I have new responsibilities to add to my story. I´m now also in charge of the stripping process, where the tobacco is sorted and selected based on the type of leaf, color, and quality. This allows me to spend half of the day by my father's side, inspecting and approving, and of course, always learning from him. And I get to smoke puritos of each bale that we're using in our blends.

Additionally, I am currently involved in the blending development process and tasting in Agrotabacos, and am also working with Ventura Cigar Company and developing my brands in the social media space.

I remember reading about when you started learning to roll cigars. What does it take to construct a good, quality cigar to your Father’s exacting standards?

With my father’s high standards, it takes a lot of patience, persistence, and dedication. But most importantly, he needs to be able to see that I feel the passion. When I started bunching, I had to make 100 perfect hand-held shot and draws, and only when I got it right could I move on to the next stage. It took me about three and a half months, working from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., to get my first 100 well-done cigars. Without salary and with a high demand. Let me tell you that when my dad came to supervise, he made me nervous (hahaha), but my fellow bunchers and rollers taught me a few tricks so that the cigars would not fail or result with flat heads or hollows.

I consider my Dad as the highest quality control in Nicaragua, just saying. He pushed me to perfect my rolling skills with strict reviewing of the cigar bunch, and I learned that I always needed to give my best effort: if you’re not going to do your best, please leave and move away. I discovered that in the world of tobacco, especially in production, you can be artistically free to create and leave an impression of your emotions on each cigar and blend. When you experience your first real and deep connection with tobacco, there is no turning back; you realize that it has caught you before you are aware, but it’s a good thing.

What’s your process when blending a new cigar?

a. First, pick the right wrapper. In this step, I only analyze the wrapper fermentation (combustion). Once I define the wrapper, I move on to the second step.

b. Second, choose the perfect binder that matches and works well with your wrapper flavor’s profile. I sort the binder by colors and texture. Most blenders choose the binder only by texture, but I learned that if looking for consistency, we need to also be careful with the binders’ colors. When we smoke grado puro of the different binder colors, we decide which color we are going to use in future blends.

c. Third, move onto the Filler life. Here we decide which tobacco we’re using, which often depends on the farm and crop. Once defined, we select the bale for the blend by choosing a leaf randomly from the bale we’d be using. 

d. When we want balance, we must respect the growth of the plant, working it upside down. So, we taste the thicker tobacco (ligero), and then move to the visos, and finally the seco that will help in the combustion. Not necessarily meaning that we’ll use all 3 primings. 

e. Once the bale is defined, we sort the leaves by color. We sort the 4 different colors and make the churros to be smoked. We select the best in aroma, combustion and dominant 

f. Sometimes, even though we have the best tobacco in aroma and combustion, they may not work with the blend, so we move to the last step: the game of portioning and balancing, where we add or change positions, looking for the perfect balance.

When I first lit the PSyKo SEVEN Nicaragua, it felt exciting and refreshing. What does it take to create a truly new expression with so many blends on the market?

PSyKo Seven Nicaragua was my second big challenge. Originally, I didn’t like Connecticut cigars because they overwhelm my palate with their dominating sour and bitter flavors every single time I smoked them.

One day, Benjamin Winokur from Ventura Cigars asked me: “Indiana, have you ever tried Connecticut Desflorada?” My answer was: “No, Ben, I don’t like Connecticut at all.” He then said, “well, I have smoked maybe 3 cigars with that wrapper, and they are really good. Can you blend it for us?” And I said “yes, let me see what I can do.”

So, I asked my Dad if we had Connecticut Desflorada and he sent me to the tobacco bales. When I smelled that acidic aroma from the CARMELITA wrapper, I thought well, this is not regular Connecticut. I then made a “Purito” and found a completely new world in that Connecticut Desflorada wrapper.

I always keep in mind that “I want to create a Connecticut cigar that I can smoke every single day.” When I’m blending, I don’t think in terms of someone else’s blend. I just accept the challenge to discover a new tobacco expression. So, my goal with PSyKo was to create a blend with zero sourness in the back of the palate. When I achieve that, I am able to concentrate on giving more flavor complexity, resulting in a cigar that changes every single inch, providing sweetness throughout the retro hale and creaminess into your mouth. But I think the really interesting thing in this blend is its fascinating AROMA. I think in Nicaragua, especially in Jalapa, we have the most aromatic tobaccos.

So, this cigar was created to my palate, with my smoking profile preferences and the strength of my senses. I think PSyKo Seven Nicaragua it is a game changer, and not just in my mind, it's a game changer into our factory.

If Indiana Ortez were a cigar, which characteristics would it have?

Every single inch of the cigar would be different, depending on the way it was smoked. If you rush, it would be the worst cigar you ever smoked (hahaha). But if you allowed time, a relaxed smoke would start, with strong flavors- a lot of pepper at the beginning. 

In the second inch you would experience a drastic transition into unexpected sweet, and the third inch would be well-balanced, smooth, flavorful, and enchanting. An Indiana Ortez cigar would always be consistent and well-constructed.

What role does social media play in the next generation of the cigar industry?

I think social media plays and will continue to play a fundamental role for the new generations of smokers that are developing with the need to understand the tobacco world. This new market is willing to explore, and social media gives this community a platform. With this growing group demanding an almost mystical connection with the brands that it consumes, manufacturers can indirectly guide their discovery successfully through social media for little cost, by offering insight into both product and lifestyle.

I am not saying we’re gonna sell through social media, but I recognize the connection social media offers, which goes beyond simply featuring product. It allows us all to share our passion for tobacco and create a community around our ideas and ideals.

What are three things that most people don’t know about you?

1. I’m a perfectionist.

2. I get stressed easily and sometimes I have a harsh mood.

3. When I feel passionate about something, I dedicate my time and efforts wholeheartedly.

We’re in a new age where we can communicate directly with our favorite tobacco blenders! If you could tell our audience just one thing, what would it be?

Be authentic and real. We, as manufacturers, need your real thoughts to keep improving our factory’s skills and end product.

Everyone’s favorite question! Anything new from your portfolio hitting the shelves in the next 12-18 months?

Well, recently I have been playing with and exploring “PERUVIAN TOBACCO” and I have to admit that the acidic flavors are keeping me intrigued again. Probably in about 18 months, you’ll be able to smoke my next collaboration, unless it’s ready to be tasted before the launching. 

Can you imagine a small batch of blend-tasting and reviewing before we decide to run as regular production? I think that will cost some money but it’s time to convince my Dad to again support one of my crazy ideas—to let our consumers taste on a small scale and decide which blends are best to move forward on a larger scale. 

I’ve been working on more than 10 different blends in 2019 and can’t wait to hear what actual customers and supporters think!

In this new year 2020, I'm planning to work on only ONE blend. I’m looking to start from scratch, forgetting everything I’ve already learned, and to spend more time with my Dad and my brother Omar. 

I want to reinvent myself, refresh my vibes and my way of tasting cigars. I will be back with something... maybe powerful flavors or something smooth and linear… I never know, I just want to flow with the year and see where my passion takes me.

View PSyKo SEVEN Nicaragua