Perhaps you’ve spent the start of your summer like us - watching gas, food, and travel prices continue to rise. The only thing being lowered is your patience for a sub-par cigar. So let us be your complete guide to filling up those summer afternoons with some dogs on the grill, some baseball on the radio, and the right smoke to top it all off. Summer is the perfect time for get-togethers outside - whether on the beach, the golf course, or in your own backyard. And (for now) these places are the last bastion where cigar smoke is still a legal and welcome guest, and Smoke wants to help you make the most of it.

SMOKE Cigar Ratings
Rating	Quality
0-5.9	Poor
6.0-6.9	Fair
7.0-7.9	Average
8.0-8.5	Good
8.6-9.0	Very Good
9.1-9.5	Excellent
9.6-10.0	Superior

As always, we’ve taken the name-dropping biases out of cigar reviewing by supplying our fearless crew of tasting panelists from around the country unbanded cigars for their scrutiny. Herewith are the fruits of their labor: detailed descriptions and impression of 34 different cigars. Among their favorites in this issue’s cigar review were the Cuban Diplomaticos (9.4) and a string of Nicaraguan smokes such as the Nicaragua Reserve from Savinelli (9.3), the all-Nicaraguan LSV Series from Elogio (9.2), or Joya de Nicaragua Celebracion (9.2). Newcomer Kangaroo Alley’s all-Honduran Joey also came in with a strong showing (9.1). But for something different and unexpected, the Kentucky Gentleman’s $13 mint julep-flavored jobusto was a surprisingly enjoyable smoke.

So sit back with a lemonade, turn that ball game on high, and light-up a stogie of your choice. While economics might make a vacation prohibitive, Smoke can help make chilling in the back yard this summer all the more enjoyable. And there’ll always be plenty of time to get around to cutting the grass, cleaning the pool, and painting that deck.