Puff Cigar Discussion Forums

Nickerson · 08-02-2009, 05:35 PM

Looking to get some fine quality smokes without having to take out a second mortgage on your house? Look no further. I've assembled a list of some smokes that are favorites and good quality go to sticks by many people. They might not be Padron Anniversaries, Arturo Fuente Opus X, Oliva Serie 'V', Rocky Patel Decade, Don Pepin Garcia My Father, etc. etc. But they are great smokes relative to their price. I'm always on the hunt for good value smokes.

You don't have to spend big to smoke big.

Quality Budget Smokes

Here's a list of some pretty good budget smokes I've found. Most are in the $1.00 to $3.00 range. Most of these I've found off Cigars International, although they are offered on other sites as well. If anyone has any that I should add to the list please reply!

Nica Libre - I made a thread about these and they gained a lot of popularity. You can get a box of 20 on cigarbid for under $40.00 buy-it-now. They are said to be similar to the Padron Thousand series, but look like a Padron Anni.

El Mejor Emerald - These are suppose to be pretty good smokes. You can get these for around $35.00 on cigarbid buy-it-now.

El Mejor Espresso - Said to be very similar in taste to the Nestor Reserve Maduro's which got a 93 rating. They look very good but haven't heard much about them from others.

Nestor Reserve Maduro - Speaking of Nestor, why not go with them? I heard great things from people. Strong rich taste, great appearance and a great value. 93 rated coal black box pressed torpedo's at $2.00 a stick.

5 Vegas Classic - This is the go-to smoke for many people. You can pick up a nice box on cigarbid for under $40.00 for 20 sticks. Less than $2.00 a stick. I'd recommend the Fifty-Five, 5.5" x 55 box pressed.

5 Vegas Gold - If you love milder cigars, this is a great stick. Nice Connecticut shade wrapper, mild yet flavorful. Can get a box of 20 on cigarbid for around $40.00 and some change.

5 Vegas A - Welcome to the darkside of 5 Vegas. These are great. Dark maduro wrapped medium-full smokes that come cedar wrapped. Gotta love it. A lot of people love these smokes. Can get around $2.00 a stick on cigarbid.

5 Vegas Miami - Made by Don Pepin Garcia, these things are great. They are a bit more expensive than the other 5 Vegas cigars, but are well worth the price. You can find a good deal under Joe's Allstars or on cigarbid which makes them around $3.00 a stick.

Cuba Libre - Made by Nestor Plasencia these are some pretty good quality smokes. They retail for about $3.00 a stick but you can find them on cigarbid for around $2.00 or less. A full bodied smoke with lots of flavor and a nice dark corojo wrapper.

La Vieja Habana - I heard a lot of good things recently about these. Drew Estate makes a lot of top quality smokes, and these are his budget sticks. They come in Cameroon, Maduro (I linked to Maduro), Connecticut, and Corojo.

Legend Series - This is an exclusive series made for Cigars International. There are 11 different companies that made a cigar for this series including; Don Pepin Garcia, Rocky Patel, Perdomo, Camacho, Drew Estate, Graycliff, La Aurora, Cusano, Nestor Plasencia, etc. Normally between $2.50 to $3.00 a smoke depending on the cigar, you can get for around $2.00 or less on cigarbid.

Isla Del Sol - Another great smoke by Drew Estate. Use to be around $30.00 a box but recently doubled in price. I'm sure you can still get for around $30.00 on cigarbid. These are infused with coffee flavors and have a sweetened tip. If you like sweet cigars, this is for you!

Onyx Reserve - Another dark maduro beauty similar to the Nestor Reserve. These ones cost just a little bit more, but received a 94 rating. You can find them on cigarbid pretty cheap.

Original Cubans - Haven't heard much of anything on Puff about these, not many have tried them. They look great though and have received some pretty good fan mail on CI's website. May be worth trying for around $1.25 a stick on cigarbid.

Indian Tabac Super Fuerte - This was one of Rocky Patel's first cigars he made. Comes in Maduro or a Sun Grown. I'd go with Maduro. They nice boxed press smokes. Can get for under $2.00 a stick on cigarbid.

Perdomo Mistakes - Cameroon or Maduro, I'd go with Maduro. These are great smokes by Perdomo. The only mistake is they aren't boxed pressed and no cigar band. None the less, they are a great smoke. Can get for under $2.00 a stick on cigarbid.

Perdomo Fresh Rolled Wheels - Under $2.00 a stick and can get cheaper on cigarbid. Nice maduro freshly rolled cigars where the tobacco is already aged. Only problem is they come in bundles of 50, so you got to buy a lot.

Tierra del Sol - Haven't heard to much about these... They are made by Perdomo and I generally like all his stuff. They come in Natural or Maduro, once again I'm a maduro man and go with the maduro's. $2.00 a stick.

Flor De Oliva - Made by Oliva who makes some of the best smokes around today. CI doesn't offer different types but they do make a Maduro, Corojo, Gold and a few others if I'm not mistaken.

Benchmades - These are pretty good budget smokes. Made by Don Pepin Garcia for Ashton who always makes quality smokes. They are about $3.00 a smoke. Not sure if these are Holts Exclusive or not.

Fumadores - This is made by Don Pepin Garcia's son Jose. Once again, I'm not sure if these are Holts exclusive but I cannot find them elsewhere. Good $2.00 smoke!

Random Budget Smokes

There is a ton of other bundle budget cigars I don't know much about, but may be worth checking out since they are only a buck a stick or less... Most are probably trash, but you may find a diamond in the rough. If anyone has any that I should add to the list please reply!

Flor del Todo
Free Cuba
Calle Ocho
John Bull
Ghurka Sherpa
Ghurka Park Avenue
Profesor Sila
Puros Indios Viejo
Pirates Gold
Brocatus
Bahia B-Line
La Cuna Habano
Black Sheep
Argyle
Babalu
Fine Catch
Herfdog
Savoy Maduro
Cigar.com Blue Label
Cigar.com Brazilian Label
Cigar.com Cameroon Label
Cigar.com Corojo Label
Cigar.com Cuban Label
Cigar.com Purple Label
Cigar.com Red Label
Primeros Regionals - Costa Rican
Primeros Regionals - Cuban
Primeros Regionals - Dominican
Primeros Regionals - Honduran
Primeros Regionals - Nicaraguan

Online Cigar Retailers Overview

Here is just a general overview on some of the major cigar retailers on the internet. If anyone has any that I should add to the list please reply!

CigarsInternational.com is perhaps my favorite online retailer. They offer great prices on the widest selection of cigars. They also have some damn nice exclusives like the new Nica Libre's, and the great 5 Vegas. In my opinion they have the best selection of samplers as well. They also got some good deals like Joe's Daily Deal and the Make Me an Offer.

Cigarbid.com aka the devil site. You can find some hell of a deals on this site. Its similar to ebay, its a cigar based auction site. Most people call it the devil site because its addictive. You find yourself browsing it all hours of the day looking to snag a great deal. And there are plenty of great deals on there. They are owned by Cigars International and offer anything thats in the Cigars International store.

Cigar.com are owned by Cigars International and are generally more upscale in the price. They have a few upscale exclusives that may be worth checking out, as well as a few budget smokes that may be worth checking out. They generally offer most of what CI has to offer, but their prices seem to be higher.

JRCigars.com is most famous for their "Alternatives" lines. They offer cigars that are said to have "similar" tastes to other more expensive cigars. They are generally under $2.00 a stick. Some like em, some don't. The "Cuban Alternative" line has gotten some praise, but the JR Edicion Limitada Alternatives are said to be very good. They also have a very wide selection of cigars. JRCigars has many retail stores nation wide as well.

Famous-smoke.com is perhaps one of my favorite online stores. They have a wide selection of cigars at great prices. I love their 5 pack deals. They offer cheap 5 pack deals for Robusto size cigars for hundreds of different big brands. Huge savings to be had there. Their exclusives tend to be more upscale rather than budget smokes, which I also like. The Famous 70th Anniversary line with cigars made by Padron, Perdomo, Plasencia, Don Pepin Garcia, La Aurora, Cusana and Camacho.

ThompsonCigars.com has some pretty good samplers. I prefer Cigars International for samplers, but Thompson offers a few nice deals. I generally find their boxes over priced though. I've also heard of some bad customer support and shady business tactics from them. If the price is right though, I'd buy from them.

Holts.com is another of my favorite. Its in my top three online cigar distributors with Famous and CI. They got some of the best exclusives, not really budget but nice exclusives. Rocky Patel Ocean Club, Old Henry by DPG, Fumadors by DPG, Benchmades by DPG, Casa Royale by DPG, Padron Legacy, etc. etc. More upscale exclusive blends rather than budget blends. Holts also has some great pricing on 6 packs. Limited secection but what they offer have great prices.

MikesCigars.com - I don't have too much experience with Mike's Cigars, but I do receive their catalogs. They got a wide selection of cigars at prices to match the top competitors. They have great samplers as well. Whats unique about their samplers is they come in 3 different sizes. Usually 5 different cigars, you can choose 2 of each cigar, 4 of each cigar or a whopping 10 of each cigar. Definitely worth checking out!

TabooCigars.com is an all around great site. They are mostly known for their own cigars. They are relatively inexpensive, generally around $5.00 a smoke, and they often offer exclusive discounts to Puff members. They really are some top quality smokes. The Limited Reserve series is one of their best in my honest opinion, which comes in Connecticut, Maduro and my favorite Havana. I had some of these that I gave out during a party and they got rave reviews. Some even compared them to Cuban cigars. They also offer some other high end smokes like Arturo Fuente, Oliva, Padron, etc.

Rubix^3 · 08-02-2009, 05:54 PM

Great work Cory!
I just saved this thread in order to share with others in the future.
Thanks for making/keeping the puff community great.

Nickerson · 08-02-2009, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rubix^3

Great work Cory!
I just saved this thread in order to share with others in the future.
Thanks for making/keeping the puff community great.

Your welcome! If you have any suggestions of things to add or edit let me know!

Juicestain · 08-02-2009, 06:18 PM

Very good list here! As far as websites go you might also want to try SeriousCigars.com premium cigars at discount prices I have not placed an order as of yet but they have some of the lowest box prices I have seen and free shipping on boxes to boot.

DBCcigar · 08-02-2009, 06:24 PM

Great job!

I think for the money, the 5 Vegas Miami is HANDS DOWN the best cigar for the money!

dubels · 08-02-2009, 06:27 PM

Thanks again!

pitbulljimmy · 08-02-2009, 06:36 PM

Thanks for the ideas!

MrMayorga · 08-02-2009, 07:03 PM

One online e-tailer you didn't mention, that is my favorite, is: cigarplace.biz. They have a great assortment, great service and generally the best prices I have found. Find a better price they will match it. Their website also has Live inventory. By far, IMO, the best e-tailer out there. And no I don't work for them. lol