Does Tobacco Smell Or Taste Better In Cooler Weather?

carolinachurchwarden · Mar 7, 2019

I always notice that things smell better in the fall and winter. Maybe they're more pronounced. Maybe they don't have as much heat or humidity in the air to affect the smells. I remember working at a Lowe's hardware store in high school and my first few years of college. At the upper end of the parking lot sat a bunch of restaurants, a few of them, steakhouses. I noticed the smell from the meat cooking in the summer as well, but there was something about the air turning colder that enhanced the aroma so much more.
I noticed this same sensation while I was out back smoking some Maltese Falcon yesterday. The taste from it seemed much more pronounced. The aroma from the lingering smoke was much more intense than when I smoked it over the summer. Maybe it's me, I don't know, but I feel like things, including tobacco, has a way of tasting and smelling better in the cooler days than warm or hot days.
What do you think? Do you notice a difference in the way a blend tastes/smells from cooler months to warmer months? I know some people smoke certain types of blends in the summer more so than the winter and vice/versa, but is this the primary reason?

jeff540 · Mar 7, 2019

Even though I smoke primarily indoors, in the winter with lower humidity there's a noticeable improvement to the smoke: drier, cooler, and much sweeter tasting. I actually like good cigars during the dog days of summer.

trouttimes · Mar 7, 2019

We have such low humidity all year round, the only time I notice a difference is when it rains. Then everything seems "heavy" including the smoke.

carolinachurchwarden · Mar 7, 2019

We have such low humidity all year round, the only time I notice a difference is when it rains. Then everything seems "heavy" including the smoke.

I've experienced this a few times within the last few weeks with all these raging storms we've been getting. I noticed all the added moisture in the air seems to mingle with the smoke and it almost makes the damp air and smoke seem different. I tend to notice how soggy everything seems to taste and smell. Sometimes it's so off putting I just snuff the bowl and go back in.

jvnshr · Mar 7, 2019

Molecules move slower when it is cold. Colder the weather less odor molecules enter your nose. That's why everything stinks and smells in summer, because it's hot and molecules move like crazy. In summer there 10 different odor molecules in the air while there are 1 or 2 in the winter. It is like the sounds during the day compared to the night. You may even hear the crackling sounds coming from your pipe during the night time. Smoke odor is more intense in winter, because there is almost nothing to compete with it. Also cold air helps burning process (more oxygen) so your tobacco burns better. Besides, cold air prevents your pipe from smoking hot. Enjoy the winter, gentlemen!

cosmicfolklore · Mar 7, 2019

Great points, Javan,

I am always amazed at how well sound travels in the winter. I can hear our neighbors talking as if they are right there next to me on really cold night.

trouttimes · Mar 7, 2019

It's snowing like hell up here so I though I would try a little experiment. I'm a pro, don't try this at home. I smoked a bowl of 965 and then a bowl of Plum Pudding. I smoke both these blends a lot. I could definitely tell a big difference in the aro and not so much in the 965. Your results my vary but the weather, for me definitely made the aro much heavier than normal and had not so much effect on the 965.

pipestud · Mar 7, 2019

Yes and Yes.

diamondback · Mar 7, 2019

I sure think so. When it gets really hot I switch over to cigars. They seem to hit the spot, but even Padrons and Ligas (etc.) aren’t as tasty as good pipe tobacco. To me at least. Never had a Cuban.
I do love a good ‘desert’ stick on a summer night after a meal. A Triple Maduro Camacho or even a lowly La Aroma de Cuba Rothschild usually does the trick. Those are a couple of my go-tos in cigar season.

loadclear · Mar 7, 2019

I have no idea why but...
I smoke year around in my house and outside in Alaska.
Recently, I went on vacation to Mexico. I just couldn't get into my pipe down there. I could only smoke outside there, where it was mostly 80F.
Regardless of the temp outside here (-30 to +70F) I seem to enjoy my pipe more in AK. Even in my cabin, where it is cold outside, yet +75+ inside the cabin next to the woodstove, I seem to enjoy it more. I'm sure it's psychological. Kinda like you enjoy winter blends of beer, hot cider, or hot chocolate in the winter... even though it's 70 in the house where you are drinking.

cranseiron · Mar 7, 2019

Gulf Coast summers pretty much shut me down for pipe smoking. Disgustingly high humidity-- almost nothing tastes good.

secateurs · Mar 7, 2019

I used to be a heavy cigarette smoker, and I absolutely noticed the first few really cold days dramatically changed the experience.

virginialover · Mar 8, 2019

I prefer Spring/Summer smoking to Fall/Winter smoking. I only smoke my cigars in Spring/Summer, I will not waste a Cuban in cold weather.
As for pipe smoking, as a Virginia lover, warm and normal or lightly humid is the way to go. In the colder weather I smoke more Latakia, Kentucky and stronger Virginias.

5star · Mar 8, 2019

For me, temperatures impact the form of smoking. I smoke more cigars during warmer months. I haven’t experienced a lot of difference in the quality of smoke. Though I do smoke more lat heavy English blends in the winter & more Virginia blends in my pipe in the spring. High humidity isn’t much of a factor where I live.

hoosierpipeguy · Mar 8, 2019

I am always amazed at how well sound travels in the winter.

Sounds actually travels faster in warm, humid air than it does in cold, dry air. On the other hand, it does travel further in cold air than warm air.
The vast majority of my smoking is done inside so I don't notice much difference with the change of seasons. I'm thankful for that. What little smoking I've done outside in hot, humid weather has had some added challenges. Less than ideal.

warren · Mar 8, 2019

I do believe crisp (20f and lower), clear air sharpens the senses. So, better? I'd not say but, certainly more flavorful for me.

mso489 · Mar 8, 2019

If you really get into the heat, a bowl of leaf may not have quite the appeal, or not unless accompanied by quantities of ice water. With a.c., a pipe is good any time of year, probably, even if the actual smoking is done outside in the sultry air.

hiplainsdrifter · Mar 9, 2019

Cool, yes. Cold, no. Those terms are relative, but below about 20 degrees I notice muted flavors, not to mention much worse condensation and gurgling. I would say that 40 to 60 degrees is my happy window of the best flavor. Humidity matters but doesn't vary much in Wyoming.

JimInks · Mar 9, 2019

As Pipestud said: Yes and yes.

haparnold · Mar 9, 2019

I always use this when friends tell me I'm addicted to smoking. Fact is, I've put down the pipe for 3-6 months every summer for the last ten years or so. Once our first crisp fall day rolls around, I have to have a smoke!
So maybe I'm addicted, but it's certainly more of a ritual addiction than a chemical addiction, and it's very dependent on the weather. Since moving from Alabama to Kentucky (average of 10 degrees f cooler year-round), I'm definitely smoking more.

Does Tobacco Smell Or Taste Better In Cooler Weather?

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