Tis’ the holiday season, and most of us have at least one person on our shopping list that smokes premium cigars. Anything less than a good box of stogies will more time than not bring great disappointment. That’s easy enough; just buy Uncle Frankie a box of his favorites – right? Not necessarily, the price of many of these stogies will wind up giving you sticker shock and poor Frankie will end up with another ugly tie. That is unless you know about the BEST 10 cigars to give as a gift on a budget. Now it’s time to have your calculator, and bank statement ready while I show you some great sticks that taste great and won’t you cost an arm and a leg- in fact not even a toe!

1. Blue Ribbon Bundle Cigars
For those longing for a premium Jonathan Drew creation but never wanted to pay top dollar, we have some great news for you! Now you can get a genuine Drew Estate Cigar on the cheap with his new Blue Ribbon Bundle Cigars. To create these medium-bodied vitolas, a carefully chosen blend of Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos are expertly rolled inside a gorgeous nut-brown Ecuador Habano wrapper. Fragrant notes of graham cracker, sweet spice, cocoa, leather, and pepper will have your taste buds thinking your smoking one of his fancy brands. Blue Ribbon is the perfect name for these cigars because the definitely win a top prize for quality, taste, and value.

2. Casa Blanca Cigars
Casa Blanca is a handmade premium Dominican cigar that has been a JR fan favorite since its inception in 1984. Mild to medium in flavor, these slow burning, and very fragrant cigars come to you in both a Natural and Maduro variety. The Natural selection feature a silky Connecticut Broadleaf/Shade leaf with notes of caramel, almonds, cocoa, and milk chocolate. The Maduro variety boasts a very dark, yet mellow-tasting leaf that adds some espresso and sweet spice to the mix. Casa Blanca cigars are widely considered one of the best mild-bodied blends to come out of Santiago. They certainly are one of the least expensive.

3. Casa de Garcia Nicaraguan Blend
Manufactured by Altadis USA, Casa de Garcia cigars boast a crisp blend of aged Dominican and Honduran long-filler tobaccos, a Connecticut binder, and your choice of three distinct wrappers: a dark maduro Connecticut broadleaf, a tannish brown Sumatra or an even lighter Connecticut shade. From the very first puff to the last tasty drag, the mild, sweet flavors remain constant. Novice and aficionados alike will find it hard to believe these are budget priced cigars.

4. Consuegra Cigars
From the famous manufacturers of Excalibur, Punch, El Rey del Mundo, Hoyo de Monterrey, and JR Ultimate, Consuegra cigars have built a cult following among dedicated smokers who don’t want to spend a fortune for a quality product. Although these handmade cigars are segundos and production overruns, they still pack a delicious medium to full bodied, earthy, Cuban style taste, and come pretty darn close to the originals at a fraction of the cost.

5. Five Star Cigars
A popular handmade smoke at a machine-made price, Five Star Cigars are crafted in the Dominican Republic in a famed factory that creates some of the cigar world’s finest sticks. However, price alone is not what has earned the popular Five Star a top spot in the JR House Brand Hall of Fame – it’s the darn good taste!

This is just a simple, mouthwatering, and mellow blend of top-quality Dominican long-filler tobaccos, finished in your choice of a Connecticut wrapper leaf in a golden tan hue with an eye-catching gleam, or a deep, rich dark brown maduro. Both offer a mild silky-smooth smoking experience with notes of cream, caramel, cocoa, and aromatic cedar. The maduro wrapper adds a subtle touch of sweet spice to the fray. The Five Star handmade premium cigar selection is packed in budget-friendly bundles of 20 that deliver the quality and flavor of cigars costing a whole (bundle) more.

6. JR Edicion Limitada Alternative Cohiba Behike Cigars
These premium beauties inspired by their Cuban namesake that costs the equivalent of $50 bucks a pop, are finished with a stunning Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, and choice aged Nicaraguan and Honduran long filler leaf. Every bit as tasty as the real deal (at a fraction of the cost), these full-bodied gems deliver bold notes of earth, pepper, leather and charred wood. This is as close as you will ever come to enjoying a genuine Habano without having to travel 90 miles south of Miami.

7. JR Tradicion Dominicana Cigars
Manufactured by Altadis USA, the popular JR Tradicion displays a delightfully smooth blend of Dominican and Honduran filler tobaccos, a Connecticut binder, and a golden brown Connecticut Shade wrapper. Mild to medium bodied in strength, this impeccably constructed cigar burns very slow, allowing you to savor its fragrant layers flavors of cream, cocoa, toast, cedar, and caramel while at the same time, savoring its delicate sweet aroma. JR Tradicion Dominicana is a surprisingly affordable bundled cigar that only tastes expensive. Note: the JR Tradicion Nicaragua is equally as impressive, but nobody does a Top 11!

8. Maria Mancini Cigars
This highly rated Cuban-style; box-pressed cigar with a very flavorful H2000 wrapper is creamy, dense, well packed, and pressed with a rich blend of aged fillers. The natural-wrapped sizes are spicy and peppery, while the dark black Costa Rican maduro wrappers have a mellower, earthy flavor. For well over twenty years, Maria Mancini has been the choice for medium-full bodied cigars smokers for over 20 years. This inflation proof premium boxed cigar is without a doubt, the best value on the planet!

9. Mayorga Cigars
Mayorga cigars have been around for a very long time. After several unsuccessful blending changes, they fell into the trusted hands of cigar maker extraordinaire Nestor Plasencia. Now made in his famous factory in Nicaragua, this solid, square-pressed vitola is loaded with creamy coffee flavors and a sweet lingering finish that will have you lickin’ your chops. Mayorga is available in your choice of a spicy Nicaraguan EMS wrapper or a jet black and oily Costa Rican maduro. Their maduro cigar stunned Cigar Aficionado with a ´94´ rating, and each of their other cigars has never received a rating below ’89’! At these prices, you might as well try them both – They are equally delicious!

10. Special Jamaicans Cigars
With the cigar market flooded with tons of new premium brands. Many of the old classic are sadly overlooked. Our ageless Special Jamaicans just happen to be one of those brands.
These handmade bundled cigars rival the taste and quality of any top-quality cigar smoke made today. What makes this Jamaican Special is its abundant creamy smooth, naturally sweet flavor and warm sugary aroma. News flash – they are not made in Jamaica anymore… In fact, many of you younger smokers were still wearing diapers when they came from Kingston. However, you can blame that on a hurricane that put the entire island right out of the cigar business – but so much for the history lesson. If you’re looking for an affordable no frills stogy that simply tastes great- this is a brand worth rediscovering!