When CStoreCigars first began, not even but a little over three years ago, the cigarillo market was dominated by a few brands that it seemed EVERYONE smoked. Black & Mild was (and still is) one of the top sellers in every corner store. Swisher was number one worldwide in sales volume (and still is!) and it seemed to be here in the US, as well. You couldn't find Backwoods anywhere due to a shortage in leaf. And the rest of the players - White Owl, Game, Dutch, and a handful of others - all had significant market share on convenience store shelves. 

Skip ahead to today - and you'll find not only has the market changed - but the landscape of cigarillos is now changing to a more centralized market not only on a regional level - but even down to the city in some areas. There are brands out now that you may never even heard of - but they are some of the top sellers in other areas of the country - who may wind up at the top of the heap somewhere down the road. There are multiple reasons for this happening. One - many large distributors of tobacco products figured out they could make their own brands and sell them to their retail customers for a larger profit due to diminishing profits from large manufacturers. It also gives them more control of their own supply chain both internationally and domestically. Production and shipping during tough times when large manufacturers couldn't keep up with demand due to drastic weather conditions where tobacco is produced and events like Covid resulted in empty shelves.  You'll find these copycat versions most anywhere with names that sound like the version the mimic. Some are actually pretty good - and some others - mmmmhh...not so much. 

The legalization of marijuana also changed things such that cigarillo sales have increased in every state where it has been legalized already. 

So - as of today - we can't really determine the ranking on a national level of ALL cigarillo brands because some you'll only find sold in certain areas of the country. Give it a few years until the market shakes out some of the newer brands and we'll do another review of them then. But for now - we're trusting one of the biggest cannabis influencer's in the industry and his take on some of the bigger names in cigarillos ranked from worst to best. Not every cigarillo is on this list - but I would be willing to bet it covers at least 80-90% of cigarillo smokers, depending on where you live. 

There are many characteristics that are important to a cigarillo smoker - whether you are smoking them as a cigar (which believe it or not- a LOT of people do!) or gutting them and rolling them up with your finest cheeba. Burn time, staleness, flavor and availability are some of the top reasons someone would choose one brand over another. One other is affordability - but if are choosing one brand over another just because it's much cheaper - well, as they say - you might just get what you pay for... 

So-  without further ado - here are eight brands that DeezysGasStation has ranked in cigarillo brands based on the above. You may or may not agree with this list - please comment on the list - or send us some of your own choices and why you think they are some of the best (or worst!) and we'll work on an updated one soon!

At the bottom of Deezy's list is Good Times' brand, 4 Kings. Based out of Tampa, FL, Good Times does massive volume across the country with brands such as 4 Kings, City Life, #HD and more. They likely have the most extensive flavor list you'll find on the planet - although your local store may only carry a few popular flavors for their shelves. Deezy puts them at the bottom of the list for one main reason and that's they burn the back of your throat when you smoke them. (He also makes a point that - they sell 4 for 99 cents and "that should just tell you what they will taste like!") So - while they are widely popular in sale volume - they very well may not be your go-to when choosing a wrap. Some of the more popular flavors of 4 Kings are Sweet and Delicious and Watermelon. 

Next on the list is likely going to make some of you mad. Deezy puts White Owls next for a couple reasons. One - he says they are a go-to for some because they are the easiest to roll. Now - we here at CStore find that to be a good thing. But he's basically saying that some will just smoke White Owl because they can't roll anything else yet. White Owl is the original mass market cigar to ever hit the market. So - their original flavor (back when there was only one) sold by the millions - hell, I even remember seeing family carrying a box of White Owl cigars back when I was a kid. Today, though, they have an extensive list of flavors that you can find. As Deezy points out - White Owl has some of the more "exotic" flavors on the market and for a lot of weed smokers out there, all the different flavors mask the taste of whatever you're rolling and in some cases, taste pretty gross when you get to the bottom of your blunt. 

Next on the list - Phillies. Phillies have been around forever - and as Deezy puts it - they are like the "older generation" cigarillos. Sold in just 7 flavors (but 12 different varities Black Max, Blunt, Cheroot, Cigarillo, Mexicali Slim, Mini Blunt, Panatella, Perfecto, Sweet, Tip, Titan and now Phillies Finest.) Phillies are a solid cigarillo to smoke - and even Deezy can't find anything bad to say about them other than the fact that they are what he buys when Game, Garcia Vega's or Swishers aren't available. 

Next on Deezy's list - Dutch's otherwise knows as the Dutch Fusion line. And he gives a few reasons why. One, he states, that Dutch's are "basically like smoking a leaf in a cigarillo form." Made from a natural leaf wrapper, the Dutch Fusion line comes in many different flavors. The problem as Deezy hints at - after a while of smoking Dutch's - you can feel it in your lungs. He also points out that he found Dutch's to be inconsistent on production in the past finding stems and them being stale. They also come packaged as a two pack instead of his next on the list - Dutch Masters.