Cigar Info
Last year, El Artista rebranded to Artista Cigars and unveiled their new designs at PCA 2022. As a part of this rebrand, the company split their lines into new groups, including one totally new group: the Artista Series. The first two lines in the Artista Series are the Artista Harvest and Artista Midnight.
This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed. All of our cigars reviewed are shipped to the panelists with Boveda packs to ensure optimal smoking experience.
The Artista Series is now the company’s most premium offerings. Each blend is identified by a different name and color, and each will have a distinct strength and profile. The bands in our pictures are not the final bands due to them being pre-release.
Artista Harvest (Yellow-Gold) is a medium bodied blend featuring a Sumatra wrapper, Habano Seco binder, and a proprietary Dominican filler blend. The new Artista line carries over those yellow and blue accents from the band to the cigar box. Artista Harvest and Artista Midnight both come in boxes of 20 and in the same sizes and prices: Box Pressed Robusto 5×54 $10.20, and Box Pressed Toro 6×50 $10.40. The new lines are expected to go on sale early 2023.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Ecuadorian Habano
Filler: Dominican Republic
Factory: Tabacalera El Artista
Blender: Ram Rodriguez
Number of reviewers: 5 – Kevin J. (maninblack77) Kevin A. (Kevin A.) Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi) Lauren S. (Lauren S.) Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Price: $10.20
Age: 6 Months
Release Date: TBD
Contributed by: Artista Cigars
Initial Impressions – Artista Harvest Robusto (Pre Release)
Appearance: 89
“This cigar has such an extreme press to it that I think it has been smooshed in someone’s back pocket. The walnut color wrapped looks to be uneven with it going from lightest to darkest when you look at it from the foot to the cap. There are a few flat veins visible. As far as the roll, the seams are tight and visible while it is finished with a messy triple cap.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Aroma: 89
“The aroma from the foot of the cigar is primarily natural tobacco and barnyard. The body has more sweet tobacco aroma that reminds me of a curing barn. Pre-light draw is just about perfect, with barnyard, damp cedar, and a floral finish.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
First Third
Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The blend opens as a solid earthy and minerally stick. As the blend warms up suddenly a blast of graham crackers shows up with a hint of chocolate. The opening has been a bit of a hard draw and slightly difficult to get a good mouthful of smoke.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
“The cigar starts off with notes of cherries, sourdough bread, and red pepper flakes, with a very smooth white pepper note on the retrohale. Draw loosened up a little bit once the cigar was lit, and is now a little open, but not overly so. Strength is medium, with body and complexity in the same range. Smoke output is fairly heavy and dense, with a nice even burn.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Second Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“It continues with a ton of smoke output. The rich creamy texture of this cigar continues with a good mouthfeel. The deep oak and cinnamon flavor. Retrohale still very mellow and oak flavor.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
“The flavors open up as we move into the second third with some brighter floral notes as well as some leather and a slight nuttiness. Still medium in strength and body but the wavy burn has straightened itself out. Very enjoyable second third.” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
Final Third
Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The cherry, floral and cedar notes are dominant towards the end of the cigar. There is a menthol-like note on the finish, while the creaminess continues to keep everything smooth. Getting towards the end, black pepper and just a hint of earth enter the picture. The retrohale still is heavy with floral, with just a hint of black pepper to tingle the sinuses. The draw has opened up to what I would consider loose, and burn, while wobbly, continues to perform well.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“Tons of smoke output. The very thick mouthfeel of creaminess. The cigar continues with a solid deep oak flavor. Some spice of black pepper starts to kick in, and notes of cinnamon. Retrohale is very nice and mallow with an oak flavor.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Overall Impressions – Artista Harvest Robusto (Pre Release)
Draw: 88
“This extremely pressed cigar created a rather open draw. This is very noticeable in the final third. Having a draw this open would make too much heat. If you smoke it too fast it can really mess with the flavor profile.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Burn: 91
“Cigar burned great, and even powered through a wrapper blowout midway.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Construction: 89
“For being as extremely pressed as this cigar it never feels underfilled or improperly bunched. It burned evenly from start to finish. The ash is strong and held on for about half of the cigar.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 93
“A nice medium-bodied cigar that although it started slightly rough, really turned things around and opened up with some great flavors. Leather, woods, nuts, and some nice floral notes. I’d try this again if given the chance and would recommend this as a good smoke to start your day with.” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“This cigar actually surprised me. It smelled “young” during the pre-light inspection, but it performed well and had an excellent flavor profile. The peppery floral notes were very enjoyable, and the sweetness throughout the entire experience, made for a memorable cigar that I would be proud to have in my humidor.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“To me, it feels like this cigar is always trying to find its identity. For a fleeting moment in the second third it all came together but the overall smoking experience was disjointed. This might be off-putting to most, myself included, but there are some high points. Sadly, at the end of the day, it is just not all there and not for me.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
“I loved the flavor of this blend despite the few issues I ran into while smoking it.
The earthy graham cracker flavor with a hint of opening chocolate set the tone. Then the introduction of the cinnamon and baking spice put the flavor into a unique and delicious experience. I smoked it until I couldn’t hold it and wished it had been a longer cigar.
I’m hoping a future trial of whatever this stick is would not have the opening draw and ending burn issues I ran into.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
“This was a really good smoke. It’s a smoke bomb with a light flavor of oak, cinnamon, and some black pepper at the end. Thick mouthfeel. Retrohale is very mellow with no spice and deep oak flavor.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 76
| Reviewer | Appear. | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall Experience |
| Kevin J. | 92 | 88 | 92 | 95 | 95 | 97 | 97 | 95 | 95 |
| Kevin A. | 88 | 85 | 90 | 90 | 88 | 85 | 90 | 90 | 93 |
| Estevan Z. | 90 | 92 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 92 | 90 | 90 |
| Lauren S. | 88 | 92 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 87 | 90 | 88 | 95 |
| Chad M. | 90 | 85 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 87 | 85 | 88 | 88 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.