Yard 'Gars: Best Cigars for Yard Work
Whether you cruise the back yard on a Cub Cadet or a John Deere, or you prefer the old-school manual walk-behind mower, there’s a cigar that goes with yard work. Also called “yard ‘gars” or “utility smokes,” cigars meant to be smoked while you’re raking leaves, shoveling snow, or washing the car share one big thing in common: they’re cheap. And by cheap, we certainly don’t mean bad, bland, or repugnant. Yard ‘gars actually have to have pretty decent flavor. Most guys are chomping on them while their hands are tied up trimming a tree or laying a coat of paint down on the porch. It’s tough to keep a lit cigar perched in your jaw if the taste is bitter and the room note wafts up into your face and stings your eyes. Keep in mind, though, you’re not smoking something from the top shelf.
Besides being flammable and delivering tolerable taste, yard ‘gars possess one undeniable quality that sets them apart: when a yard ‘gar hits the ground or gets wet from the garden hose because you accidentally dropped it out of your mouth, you’ll never curse or get upset. Why? Because it’s easy to replace a yard ‘gar by grabbing another one from the coolerdor thanks to their ultra-cheap prices. Everybody buys yard ‘gars in quantity. Some of ‘em are as cheap as a bag of nails. As we officially head into warmer lawn-mowing weather, here’s our list of the top yard ‘gar brands you should stockpile this season. Bon appétit!
#1 – Rocky Patel Mulligans
Because Rocky Patel pumps out a prolific number of new cigars every year, not every single masterpiece makes it out of his warehouse and onto a store shelf. But, that doesn’t mean he wants to keep his finest work hidden. The Rocky Patel Mulligans franchise was created as an unlimited outlet for bargain hunters who refuse to pay a penny over outlet mall prices for top-shelf Rocky smokes. With just one glance at the sheer magnitude of the Rocky Patel Mulligans portfolio, it’s no surprise it’s one of the most reviewed brands on our entire site. There are over a dozen different Mulligans blends to smoke today, and they include Connecticut Shade, Connecticut Broadleaf, Ecuador Habano, and San Andrés wrappers. Some of Rocky’s most popular Mulligans are the Masters Collection, Clubhouse Select, and the Trophy Series. Rocky even blends a Candela cigar called the Fairway Edition, a barber-pole, called the Golden Ferret, and a short, fat, Nub-shaped series, called the Groundhog. It’s impossible not to find a Mulligans cigar that will exceed your expectations for flavor and strength. Beginning at only $1.99 per cigar, we know a few guys who’ve never separated the aroma of an ‘RP’ Mulligans cigar from a trail of lawn mower exhaust.
#2 - Villiger
The “V” in Villliger stands for value thanks to dirt-cheap, down-and-dirty discounts on virtually every cigar in the brand’s portfolio. The critics in Cigar Aficionado have showered plenty of praise on Villiger for the 94-rated La Vencedora, 93-rated San’Doro Colorado, 93-rated Cuellar Black Forest, the mild and creamy Cuellar Kreme, and the 93-rated La Flor de Ynclan, a former ‘Top 10 Cigar of the Year.’ When you’re swapping out the Valvoline in your hot rod, reach for a box or bundle of Villiger at rock-bottom prices. Starting at only $2.24 per cigar, it’s easy to fire up a Villiger with a little grease on your hands.
#3 - Don Lino
Dog-walking discounts apply every day of the year on every Don Lino bundle in our sprawling warehouse. Don Lino is an old value brand that picked some steam back during the Cigar Boom of the 1990s but today is considered a blowout bin classic, respected for its consistent taste and ultra-affordable prices. Beginning at just $1.99 apiece for Don Lino Fumas, this franchise also includes the wildly popular oversized Don Lino Trojan Horse and one of the finest handmade Candelas in existence, Don Lino Casa Verde. Its sweet and grassy flavor fits in perfectly when you’re bagging up a sack of lawn clippings. Don’t overlook Don Lino’s deeply discounted portfolio for yard ‘gars guaranteed to impress your gluttonous pals on poker night.
#4 - Padilla
Touch up the paint on your white picket fence with a top-notch Padilla Fumas pinched in your jaw. It’s one of the only Fumas on the face of the planet that’s actually packaged in a box. If that’s not romantic enough, prices start at only $1.99 per smoke in every wrapper varietal, including Connecticut, Habano, and Maduro. Padilla La Terraza Maduro and Cazadores boast some impressive reviews too. Notes of baking spices, wood, and coffee beans will easily chase the turpentine out of your nostrils when you’re done cleaning up your paint brushes.
#5 - Oliva Gilberto Oliva
Normally, award-winning smokes from the prestigious Oliva portfolio would be off limits for yard ‘gar purposes, but you can pump up the pedigree a notch thanks to the rock-bottom prices we apply to the 90-rated Oliva Gilberto Oliva and the 92-rated Oliva Gilberto Oliva Reserva Blanc during one of our regularly recurring Oliva deals. Pull up your striped, white knee-high socks from 1983, tuck your tank top into your jean shorts, and pull the chord on your push mower with a premium Oliva handmade in your mouth. Your neighbors will whisper behind your back that you’ve probably come into some money.
#6 - Alec Bradley White Gold
More than a simple mix of chicken feathers and pencil shavings, Alec Bradley White Gold delivers raw, rudimentary flavor with an unhinged aroma in three classic shapes for as low as $1.74 per cigar. You might not smoke the whole thing, even if you’re on a noisy tractor whacking weeds off the roadside, but you don’t have to save up to buy ‘em either. ‘AB’ White Gold is only for those who want no-frills flavor and not much else. It’s easily the cheapest of all the Alec Bradley cigars in existence.
#7 - Gran Habano
Gran Habano is totally geared for frugal guys with a green thumb. Shop a deep variety of boxes and bundles beginning at $2.99 per cigar. Beware – you can get them even cheaper when we slap one of our deep daily discounts on the brand. You’ve got plenty to choose from, including Gran Habano Vintage 2002, Corojo #5, and Vintage 2004. These premium Honduran handmades have won a ton of admirers who’ve never smoked indoors before.
