AFTER ABOUT 30 years of steady price increases, Irish smokers will see the cost of a packet of 20 Pall Mall cigarettes cut by 50 cent from February 7th.
Tobacco manufacturer PJ Carroll has told retailers that it is reducing the recommended retail price (RRP) for Pall Mall to €7.25 from €7.75 from next Monday.
This move follows a ruling last March by the European Court of Justice, which found that the Government’s fixed minimum pricing of tobacco products violated EU law

I've already reviewed a bunch of exotic, unusual and expensive cigarettes, but I've mainly ignored the big name ones, until now. So which ones are the best and which ones should you stay away from?

CAMEL: Camels tend to have the most diverse flavor profile out of all of them. The Camel filters are my favorites - nice, strong tobacco-y flavor. The draw is fairly smooth. Turkish Silvers have a sweetre flavor them, with subtly nutty hints, and the draw is very smooth. Camel Signature Robust is decent, and has a punchy flavor, but not exactly a very good flavor. 

MARLBORO: The Reds are pretty good, with a semi-strong flavor, though not as much of one as the Camel filters. The flavor is mainly tobacco-y. The draw is just slightly harsher than the Camel Silvers, and about on par with the Filters. 

Reds: 7/10

PALL MALL: The king of the budget cigarettes. The Reds' flavor is hard to describe, yet interesting and tobacco-y, moreso than the Marlboro Reds, and the draw is good, yet they tend to give me a bit of a headache at times, though it might just be luck of the draw. More than worth the money you save.

Reds: 8/10

SONOMA: Uninteresting flavor, and a little harsh on the draw. They're ok if you're really broke and really need some tobacco, but beyond that, look elsewhere.