All I taste is ash...

[cwalker816]

Hi everyone. New to the forum, and this is my first post. Hoping to solve my problem of only tasting ash when I smoke.
I am an avid cigar smoker. About 5 years ago I decided I wanted to pick up a pipe because there were many gentlemen at the cigar shop I frequented that really enjoyed the experience. Bought me a decent pipe and found that I really enjoyed Orlik Golden Sliced and Solani Aged Burley Flake. I was fascinated at the flavors you could get from pipe tobacco that you can't get from cigars. At this time I was getting my undergraduate degree, and I found that smoking a pipe while studying was too difficult. I couldn't keep up with the pipe, flipping pages, and taking notes all at the same time. So, I put the pipe down.
About a week ago I decided to pick that same pipe up again. Loaded a bowl of Orlik Golden Sliced and from the very beginning it tasted like ash. There is a chance that I left some dottle in the bowl from the last time I smoked, but I can't be sure. Tried again a few days later, after a through cleaning, and I got the same result. Tried again last night--same result. You know that ashy flavor you get from drawing your pipe without any tobacco in it? That's what it tastes like when I am smoking. I've looked and looked to try and find an answer to my problem, and I can't find anything. I'm dealing with a mild case of tongue bite, but I'm not sure if this is what would cause there to be no flavor in a tobacco that I used to love.
I'm driving myself crazy trying to figure out the cause. Is it tongue bite? Is it my pipe? Is it a bad batch of tobacco? Is it because I may have smoked dottle in the pipe?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Dry it out really well. Maybe even to bone dry. Pack a little tighter than normal for bone dry, and smoke slowly. If it still tastes like ash, you may just have to develop you palate all over again.
Also, try sipping water or a light tea while smoking. OGS is a very subtle flavor, so coffee or a harder sweeter drink could overwhelm the flavor easily. Also, you might try a pipe with a more narrow chamber. While I will mix up narrow and wide bowls for the same tobaccos, a narrow bowl might make it easier to focus in on those subtle sweet Virginia flavors.

 

[sablebrush52]

When you cleaned the pipe after a break of 5 years, did you remove the stem and clean out the mortise? Old deposits in the mortise could be partially responsible for the bad taste. Make sure to thoroughly clean out the airway from the chamber to the slot to rid the pipe of stale deposits. Pare back any old cake.
Tongue bite is usually caused by a combination of several factors. Too much moisture in the tobacco, too fast a smoking cadence, too tight a pack in the chamber, too hot a temperature for the tobacco to give up its flavors before being burnt. Cigars can be puffed, but pipes must be sipped.
Dry out your tobacco before packing it. I get the most flavor when I've let the tobacco dry to almost bone dry, such that it feels substantially dry to the touch when squeezed, but not yet brittle or crumbly. I can feel just a suggestion of moisture in it.
Try packing the pipe a bit more loosely so that the draw is easy. Puff a few times while lighting the tobacco then sip to keep it simmering. You'll get the most flavor from your blend when it's kept to a simmer, literally at the edge of going out. Sip the smoke and ease it out through you nose, as slowly as possible. You'll pick up more of the flavor nuances when you do this.
Anyways, that's all I can think of that might address your issue.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Yes, the mortise may well be the culprit. You'll remove the most ash by a hot water rinse down the chamber and out the stem, followed by pipe cleaners. A pipe tool will help with gunk in the mortise, followed by Q-tips or a rolled up piece of paper towel. Towel dry the chamber also, and you can load and smoke right away.
Is this the same tin from five years ago?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Hmmmm, maybe, I could see it being the mortise if he had said sour or bitter flavor, but ashy? Maybe.

 

[cwalker816]

Not the same tin from 5 years ago, so it's hard for me to believe it is the tobacco that's the problem.
Thanks for all the info guys!

 

[cwalker816]

I am getting a bit of a "sour" flavor, but I was contributing that the the citrus notes in the Orlik. Maybe I'm wrong about that.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Well, we tend to suggest drying the tobacco, especially as someone is building a taste palate for a more subtle Virginia. Any moisture dilutes the flavor, and adds steam to the mix which can burn your tongue.
Maybe you would prefer a more robust flavored tobacco, like an English or an Oriental? These are usually easier to smoke, and many, many fine gentlemen enjoy them.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Sorry, I didn't see your post just before mine. Disregard.
Then yeh, try cleaning the mortise, but there is a very citrusy note to OGS, IMO.

 

[workman]

When I have had that ashy taste from OGS it has been because I have packed to tight and puffed to hard.

 

[cwalker816]

Bought a corncob that I will try tonight to see if it is my pipe that is the problem. I'll let you guys know how it goes!

 

[cwalker816]

When giving the pipe a through cleaning, how much "gunk" should a scrape from the bowl? I definitely have some stuff hanging around, but I'm not sure what is cake and what is gunk.

 

[admiral]

Cake needs to be scraped with some hard tool - pen knife, reamer or etc.

Gunk usually comes out by brushing with pipe cleaner, cloth, napkin (depends where it is)
In general if you see something obstructing the draft hole/airway it is not good

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Gunk is cake

 

[cwalker816]

I haven't inspected the pipe too much because I thought some buildup was good. Should I get rid of all buildup I have in the pipe?

 

[jpmcwjr]

No. A hot water rinse with drying the chamber with a rolled up piece of paper should be all you need. The paper provides a bit of abrasion and will remove most bits that are on the cake.

 

[sumusfumus]

Dip the tips of your pipe-cleaners in high-proof drinking spirits like Rum, Brandy, or Rum Extract -which can be bought in the Baking Section of any large super market.
Stale dottle, saliva deposits, and tarry fouling trapped in a stem, or mortise can taint your pipe. Start with a freshened pipe. This may help along with all the above suggestions. Also, try different tobacco blends.
Hope this helps you to enjoy your pipe(s). Good luck.
Frank

NYC

 

[pipebuddy]

I think you need to remove the cake which has built up in your bowl (but do leave a thin layer). You should see a major difference.

 

[derekflint]

Was this the same OGS's from 5 years ago ? Was it stored properly ? Any time I got ash taste was when the tobacco was too dry,bone dry....Then overdoing the initial light and re-lights because it's not burning rite , which makes more ash and so on...

 

[jpmcwjr]

No, it was not the old stuff.

Stale dottle, saliva deposits, and tarry fouling trapped in a stem, or mortise can taint your pipe. Start with a freshened pipe. This may help along with all the above suggestions.

All the above is neatly removed with a hot water flush. Then you'll have the freshest take possible. And I would not remove all the cake, if any.