Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

The 10 best vanilla cigars I’ve tried and tested in 2024

Vanilla sticks and cigars on stylish background.
Jocelyn-Morales | Edited by Briley Kenney / Unsplash

Cigars fall into two major categories: naturally flavored and infused. Like many that come from Acid, infused cigars are soaked in essential oils, sugars, botanicals, or beverages like cognac to make them fruitier, sweeter, and wholly unique. Natural cigars, on the other hand, get their flavors from the blend of tobacco leaves they’re made from. Some cigar enthusiasts like both kinds, while some like one or the other. It’s mainly up to your preferences and tastes. But if you’re looking for a much broader range of flavors, infused cigars are the way to go. Some other popular brands that make infused cigars are Dutch Master, Rocky Patel, Drew Estate, and Baccarat. Here are a few of the best vanilla cigars I’ve tried and tested in 2024.

Acid Blondie Blue Natural

Acid Blondie Blue cigar bundle best small cigars
Drew Estate Acid
  • Strength: Mild to Medium
  • Infused: Yes

I’ve recommended the Acid Blondie Blue before, and I stand by that. It’s a great mild to medium-bodied smoke infused with various flavors, including vanilla. Yes, you’ll get a few more flavors from the experience, but if you like sweet, creamy vanilla notes, you’ll love this one.

Avanti Vanilla

Avanti Vanilla cigar single out of the box from best vanilla cigars.
Avanti
  • Strength: Mellow
  • Infused: Yes

Made of Kentucky tobacco, the Avanti Vanilla is a small, quick cigar brimming with vanilla flavors. You’ll also get a little spice, but don’t worry; it’s still a mellow, relaxing smoke. When I tried these, I paired them with some coffee in the late morning.

CAO Bella Vanilla

CAO Bella Vanilla cigars in the box from best vanilla cigars.
CAO
  • Strength: Mellow
  • Infused: Yes

CAO’s Bella Vanilla is wrapped in a gorgeous Cameroon leaf over Nicaraguan tobacco and infused with vanilla beans to give a short, sweet smoke rich in flavor. They also come in a cigarillo size, but when I tried the blend, I opted for the Robusto.

Azucar by Espinosa

Azucar by Espinosa single cigar from best Vanilla cigars.
Espinosa
  • Strength: Mellow
  • Infused: Yes

This vanilla-flavored cigar hails from the Dominican Republic and features a natural Dominican wrapper and tobacco. It’s sweet and creamy and pairs well with your choice of a sugary beverage. Fun fact: Azucar means “sugar” in Spanish.

Garcia y Vega Game Palma Vanilla

Garcia y Vega Game Palma Vanilla in packaging from best vanilla cigars.
Garcia y Vega
  • Strength: Mellow
  • Infused: Yes

Aromatic, flavored, and plentiful, since they come in boxes of 40, the Garcia y Vega Game cigars are excellent everyday smoke. The Palma Vanilla features — you guessed it — lots of vanilla, some sweetness, and some creamy goodness.

La Gloria Cubana Corojo de Oro

La Gloria Cubana Corojo de Oro in Toro size from best vanilla cigars.
La Gloria Cubana
  • Strength: Medium to Full
  • Infused: No

Okay, first things first. The La Gloria Cubana Corojo de Oro is a traditional cigar, so it’s not infused, but the blend works together to produce some incredible flavors. It has an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper with Brazilian Mata Fina, Dominican Piloto Cubano, and Nicaraguan Ometepe filler tobaccos. The primary flavor is caramel all the way through, with some dark flavors like coffee, nuttiness, and cedar. But the way the caramel and sweet notes roll off the tongue gives it a delightful, vanilla-like experience.

M by Macanudo Vanilla

M by Macanudo Vanilla / French Vanilla
Macanudo
  • Strength: Medium
  • Infused: Yes

This cigar has been discontinued, so it’s a tough find. That’s a shame because it’s chock full of vanilla, sweet, and creamy flavors. Since I’ve been able to try one, and they may still be available at select stores and locations, I’m including it on this list. I recommend grabbing more than one if you can get your hands on it. While it is unfortunate, cigars are often available in limited releases due to the natural agriculture behind them and the availability of grown tobacco strains. Sometimes, they don’t sell well; other times, continued production isn’t viable or sustainable. You can, however, try some of the other labels in the M by Macanudo line. They’re just as flavorful.

Sobremesa Brulee

Sobremesa Brulee delicious medium bodied cigars
Dunbarton Tobacco
  • Strength: Medium
  • Infused: No

While it’s not infused and instead a traditional cigar, the Sobremesa Brulee is pretty damn close thanks to light flavors like wood, caramel, and vanilla. It’s also nutty, creamy, and extra sweet. Even if your taste buds don’t pick up the vanilla, it’s still a phenomenal smoke.

Tatiana Classic Vanilla

Tatiana Classic Vanilla from best vanilla cigars.
Tatiana
  • Strength: Mild
  • Infused: Yes

Aged specifically in vanilla essence, this smooth, mild smoke never lets up on that flavor. You’ll taste it all through, along with lots of sweetness, sugar, and cream. Be careful; if you light one of these around some guests, they might beg you for one, too. They give off a lovely aroma.

If you like the Classic, you’ll also like the .

West Tampa Tobacco Co. White

West Tampa Tobacco Company White from best vanilla cigar.
West Tampa Tobacco Co.
  • Strength: Medium
  • Infused: No

Rich and creamy, this medium-bodied smoke from West Tampa Tobacco Company is a stunner. They’re handmade in Nicaragua and feature a Habano wrapper with an Ecuadorian Habano binder. The fillers are from Ometepe, Pueblo Nuevo, and Jalapa. You’ll get some leather, pepper, brown sugar, and plenty of vanilla cream. Since I live near Tampa, I cheated a little here — they may be harder to find out west if you’re not fond of shipped cigars.

If you like these, you should also try:

Get to know our expert

Best Connecticut cigars up close and personal
Briley Kenney / The Manual

Why should you listen to me? It’s a valid question. I smoke cigars all the time, and I have many recommendations and plenty of advice to share with others. But none of those things qualify me as an expert. Instead, it’s the years of experience, the time I’ve invested in the world of cigars, the excellent connections I’ve made with cigar makers and sellers, and the vast wealth of knowledge I’ve gained during that time. I know what goes into an excellent cigar, and I’ve certainly earned the right to recommend some to others, whether you’re a beginner and this is your first time smoking or have your own cabinet humidor stocked and maintained. Instead of waxing poetic, I’d rather let my recommendations speak for me.

Editors' Recommendations

Briley Kenney
Senior SEO Copywriter

Briley has been writing about consumer electronics and technology for over a decade. When he's not writing about deals for Digital Trends or The Manual, he's writing how-to content and guides for other online publications. He's also a ghostwriter for more than one confidential SEO marketing agency. In his downtime, he's either spending time with his family, playing games, or enjoying a good ol' stogie.

Send all editorial inquiries HERE.

This delicious cigar is 50% off right now and I just bought some — you should too
Man in pink suit smoking and enjoying what a cigar tastes like.

Amazing cigar deals don't happen too often, especially on boxes, but that's exactly what's happening at Atlantic Cigars. The absolutely delicious HVC Hot Cake in its standard line is 50% off right now for boxes. That means you can get the Laguito No 4 or Robusto equivalent size for just $114, normally over $227. That's an incredible deal, and we're talking about boxes here. HVC boxes come loaded with 25 cigars, more than the average of 20 per box. Atlantic deals are known to sell out fast, so don't wait around. I have already bought some, and I think you should too.

Why you should shop the HVC Hot Cake 50% off deal

Read more
These are the best Maduro cigars I’ve tried and tested in 2024
Maduro cigars on Spanish decorative tile table

Maduro cigars offer some pretty complex flavors. While there are a few major cigar wrappers, from Connecticut and Corojo to Habano and Maduro, Maduro is one of the broadest categories in the cigar world, second only to Natural (Connecticut). The tobacco used to create Maduro wrappers is usually harvested from the top of a tobacco plant, where it gets the most sun exposure. They're also aged and fermented, where most of the oils and darker colors come from. Maduro means "ripe" or "mature' in Spanish and is also called Capa Negra.

You may recognize Maduro cigars by their markedly darker colors and shades. Still, the Maduro category includes many types, like Connecticut Broadleaf, Double Maduro, Mexican San Andres, Colorado Maduro, and more. Most people mistake Maduro cigars as being the strongest, but that's not necessarily true, and it's not always the case. Maduro flavors are rich and full-bodied for sure, but also usually very sweet. Depending on the type and the blend -- including the filler and the binder -- you'll taste flavors like chocolate or cocoa, coffee, earth, wood, leather, and cream. Varying pepper levels may also come through, especially when smoking Nicaraguan cigars.

Read more
The best cigars for a wedding, chosen by a cigar expert
Man in a tux at a wedding holding a lit cigar.

Cigars offer the perfect celebratory experience, and that's precisely why people give them out to commemorate a birth or to honor a relationship union and a wedding. In fact, I'd argue one of the absolute best times to smoke a cigar is at a wedding.
The top cigars I'd recommend for a wedding
I will go into more detail about each category below and offer a few more options. But here are my top choices if you want a cheat sheet:

Get the in a Double Robusto size for your Best Man.
Get the in a Toro size for your groomsmen.
Get the in a Robusto size for the rest of your wedding party.
Get a or a in the Cello (Rothschilds) size for your family.
Get some in the Rothschild size, or in the Petite Corona size for your guests.

Read more