Failure to taste Virginia's

[fitzy]

Kanse I've smoked some older stuff and it's definitely smoother but not fuller in flavor.
John I've had that on my list for years but never got around to trying it.

 

[bluegrasspipe]

John, I totally agree, I love deluxe navy rolls slightly more than escudo, and Orlik golden has a lot more flavor than FVF IMHO.

 

[sablebrush52]

I really like the sweetness in the McCranies 1983 and the McClelland 5100 but should I be tasting anything else other than a general sweetness and hot air? Also I maybe crazy but I tend to notice the sweetness more just after lighting.

5100 is pretty mild to the point of blandness when fresh. Even when aged, it's pretty mild, and it appeals to smokers who like a mild blend. To me, its best use is as a blending tobacco.
Red Virginias have a tangy funkiness that I tend to think of as a slightly sweet overripe rotten vegetable flavor. Sounds horrible, no? But tastes great! I'm not that partial to McCranie's 1983, but I really like the 1996 and the 2008. Haven't tried the new release as of yet.

 

[fitzy]

I've got a tin of 96 flake I forgot to list. I'll get to that eventually.
Also I do not smoke cigs.
I find the bottom third of the bowl tends to get harsher but not more flavorful.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Nope. Does it have lakeland? If so I'll pass as that I can taste granny's perfumy soap. ha ha

Black Twist XX is anti-Lakeland. Tastes like char broiled beef.

 

[hobie1dog]

My trouble is that I don't like any Va/Burly blends so far.

 

[fitzy]

Well in that case Captain I'll have to give it a shot.
Hobie other than Stonehaven I haven't really tried any other Va/Burly that I can think of.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Virginias are an unusual genre of tobaccos for the pipe, in that the flavor is very subtle. After years of developing an acquired taste for them, Latakia and bold Burleys are overwhelming to me except as a late night smoke after my palate is depleted and I am just wanting something stronger before bed. There are genres that I just don't like for many different reasons. maybe just chock it up as something you don't like.

However, if you have any Virginias left over that you want to get rid of, feel free to send them to me. ::

 

[jrenko]

I am the same! Have triend virginias over and over again but i always miss my latakia. I have a few tins in The cellar just in case but i am about to give up, I just love my latakiablends

 

[mawnansmiff]

Don, though I can largely relate to your McClelland Va experiences (though I do love their 2015 VaPer) I am puzzled that you find FVF bland. I get huge amounts of flavour from this blend right from the first light to the end of the bowl. I would suggest drying it more than you currently are, not quite biscuit dry but not far off.
I also agree with Jesse's comment that perhaps your palate has become so attuned to such powerful blends containing Latakia etc it needs to be 'reset' to appreciate the more delicate flavours of straight Virginia blends.
Perseverance is the key...good luck ::
Regards,
Jay.

 

[bigpond]

I suspect what follows will be bash your head against a desk obvious but here goes- latakia blends can dull your sense of taste temporarily. If you are smoking va blends in pipes that are used to smoke lat blends you may, at least initially, compound the issue.
Flame source can have a very large impact on va blends ime. Try using matches exclusively for these blends.
Perhaps you could try an experiment. Pick one blend and smoke it exclusively until its finished using fresh pipes. Reset your expectations and your ol'taster. I would recommend something in the middle range but with a bit of depth and interest such as 250g of bbf or sjf. I'd grab a few new pipes too but hey, Im always looking for an excuse. Again, only use matches.

 

[hawky454]

It's the weirdest thing for me but I can only taste Virginia's if I smoke my pipes in tandem. The blends just have to contrast. For instance, if I smoke Exotique for about 5 minutes then put that pipe down and pick up a pipe with (choose your VA) say Escudo, then I get amazing flavor from the VA's. Alternatively, if I go straight for Escudo it will taste like nothing but smoke. It's crazy but it works for me and these days I never just smoke one pipe at a time, I'm usually always switching back and forth between two pipes and sometimes up to six. It's an excellent way to get the flavors to pop and it keeps things interesting cause I never get palate fatigue this way.

 

[fitzy]

Jay I think I'll try smoking FVF for a couple weeks and usually I dry it very well but I'll play around with that some more.
Bigpond I've got several pipes dedicated to Va's and Va/Per's. Also I'm going to try just matches for a while.
Hawky and Adam I'm going to try alternating this weekend between maybe Mississippi River or Exotique and FVF to see if I can find some flavor.
I saw this in a post about lighting and it sounds like something I should look into:

Obviously, the differences in temperature are so extreme as to be almost absurd. As I considered the length of time I applied the butane flame to the tobacco, I realized that I was super-heating it, which could not help but impact the flavors, especially those sugary mature Virginias that I love.

and this too:

My little research project has left me both wiser and happier. I am finding that my smoking experience has been enhanced by more careful attention to managing the size and intensity of my pipe’s combustion zone. I am experiencing more complexity in my tobaccos and considerably less tongue bite.

Maybe I am super-heating it by trying to get most of the top of the bowl lit.

 

[hawky454]

Cool tidbits you posted above.
Honestly, no matter what I do, I have a hard time getting any flavors out of MR, it's just a very, very light blend. Too light for me.

 

[mawnansmiff]

"Maybe I am super-heating it by trying to get most of the top of the bowl lit."
If that were to be the case Don, it wouldn't necessarily affect the rest of the bowl, only the 'super heated' top. The temperature would settle down and be controlled by your subsequent puffing.
Regards,
Jay.

 

[fitzy]

Good point Jay.

 

[phantomwolf]

Cigarettes had my palate pretty well wrecked. I couldn't pick much up from VA/Per, VA/Burley, or even the Dark Fire Kentucky I tried when I first started smoking pipe. Wasn't till recently after quitting cigs that I started liking Virginia and the like. Here is a goofy question: Can you taste mild food well enough?

 

[hawky454]

Yeah, I don't think that's it either (what Jay said). I think some people have a harder time picking up the subtleties of VA's and you've been smoking long enough to where I don't think skill has anything to do with it. It's weird, when I can't taste a VA it's frustrating cause I know the flavor is there, I just can't taste it for what ever reason but the second I switch between pipes the flavors are there in all their splendor. I've been smoking a pipe for over 8 years myself, I know how to smoke a pipe and I grow tired of hearing people belittle other pipe smokers claiming that if they don't taste something in a blend than it must be user error but some people just have more sensitive palates and those that do can taste high notes, low notes and everything in between. I wish I was blessed with such a palate but I am not but obviously we work with what we're given. VA's and VaPer's are one of my favorite genres and I smoke them several times a day, I've just learned that I have to prep my palate so to speak and what works for me may or may not work for you and if not there are so many other tobaccos to choose from. Why do ya think Condor is my favorite blend? Cause I can taste it even with a stuffy nose! That stuff is magical!
Good luck and let us know how it works out for ya.

 

[pipesmokingtom]

Tasting things and caring about tasting them might be different in this case. You might taste them fine and not like them. That's just fine, too.

 

[pipesmokingtom]

I purposefully didn't smoke cigarettes long enough to get home and enjoy a Virginia on the porch with Vlad. If I had smoked a cigarette in the car on the way home, I wouldn't have enjoyed said Virginia nearly as much, nor would Vladislav. Live and learn.
Vlad: