Am I the only one who feels the bowl gets more flavorful as it goes on? I’ve been struggling with tasting my tobacco lately but as I am trying to smoke more to retrain my palate, I’m noticing that the first 1/8-1/4 of the bowl tastes like hot air but as I go on the flavor builds more and I start getting saltiness, hay, fruit, etc. as the bowl burns through. Is this a shared experience?
Flavor Intensifying Throughout the Bowl?
- Thread starter fishmansf
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I believe that's how it's supposed to work minus the hot air at the beginning. I taste more floral notes on the top end and more rich earthiness nearer the bottom.
I have found that since switching to a zippo or wooden matches to light my pipe that I get full flavor from my pipes starting from the beginning. When I used bics and other not soft flames I would find that the bowls started bland.
The second half is always the best part of the bowl for me; especially with Virginia Flakes. I've heard that the hot smoke kind of caramelizes/stoves the leaf below the ember, but that could be a load of crap. I do notice I get a flavor bomb of bready sweetness though towards the end of the bowl.
I find both cigars and pipes to grow in strength/fullness of flavor the farther one goes, but as for subtle nuances, those are easiest to detect early through the first 3/4 bowl for me. Funny you bring this up. There are a few women in my life that like to taste what i'm smoking if they're around when i have a pipe or cigar going. The feedback is the same: they all prefer to taste closer to light up. After that they all say it's getting too "harsh." Where they find harsh i find fullness of varying flavors. Moral of the story? I suggest you find a good woman or as many as you can bring into the fold to smoke the first 1/4 bowl for yas so that you can enjoy the rest.
For me, the following generally is true for both pipes and cigars:
At the start, the flavors and textures of the smoke are typically “soft” and somewhat “average” in flavors. In the middle range of a pipe or cigar, I find the flavors building in strength and flavor, but also being rather “mellow” as well. And, then as I reach the end of a bowlful or the end of a cigar, the flavors and textures of the smoke further strengthen, and they similarly become “sharper”. All stages are enjoyable to me, but I find that I need to smoke the pipe or cigar even more slowly towards the end to keep the coolness and flavors of the smoking intact so they do not become harsh or unpleasant.
At the start, the flavors and textures of the smoke are typically “soft” and somewhat “average” in flavors. In the middle range of a pipe or cigar, I find the flavors building in strength and flavor, but also being rather “mellow” as well. And, then as I reach the end of a bowlful or the end of a cigar, the flavors and textures of the smoke further strengthen, and they similarly become “sharper”. All stages are enjoyable to me, but I find that I need to smoke the pipe or cigar even more slowly towards the end to keep the coolness and flavors of the smoking intact so they do not become harsh or unpleasant.
It depends on the blend, honestly. With most aromatics, the first 1/3 or 1/2 are better than the last 2/3 or 1/2. For many English blends, they’re great all the way through as the flavors shift and different component leaves come to the fore. For Virginia blends, it all depends on the composition of red/bright/stoved/etc.
But that’s just my experience.
But that’s just my experience.
I think Virginias particularly intensify in flavor as the smoke progresses as long as it isn't smoked too fast. That may cause the flavor to intensify as well but not in a good way.
I agree. When I smoke any type of VA blend I get a really rich flavor that reminds me something of freshly baked bread, a real malty savory flavor about 1/4- 1/2 through the bowl
Different, but not necessarily better in my opinion. The top of the bowl has a sweeter, lighter flavor, which is great. The middle is more rich and carmely, which is great. The bottom is more acrid(in a good way).
Cigars are the same for me.
When I tell my wife and friends that a pipe load or a cigar is like an ice cream sundae, they think im crazy.
The top is sweet, your taste buds are getting bombarded with goodness. The middle is more of the same, but the flavors are melding due to ingredients mixing and melting. The bottom is a gooey, thick amalgamation of the top and middle.
If you offer me a hot fudge sundae with all the fixins', OR a bowl of nicely aged McClelland Virginia, OR a Padron 25th anniversary.....it would be as difficult as choosing my favorite of my pets.....there is no right answer.
Cigars are the same for me.
When I tell my wife and friends that a pipe load or a cigar is like an ice cream sundae, they think im crazy.
The top is sweet, your taste buds are getting bombarded with goodness. The middle is more of the same, but the flavors are melding due to ingredients mixing and melting. The bottom is a gooey, thick amalgamation of the top and middle.
If you offer me a hot fudge sundae with all the fixins', OR a bowl of nicely aged McClelland Virginia, OR a Padron 25th anniversary.....it would be as difficult as choosing my favorite of my pets.....there is no right answer.
I noticed that with conical shaped chambers the effect is intensified. At first it was a mystery why my one dublin did that so well. Then I read other people say conical shaped bowls do that. So maybe that strengthens your argument or not.
That's interesting; I mainly smoke classic British shapes and I usually reserve the Dublins and stacks for Virginia Flakes.
Must be the concentration near the end that gives it a more robust flavor. I'll have to break out my Dublin to try it out.
I think it's simple science. As you smoke, you are drawing smoke through the un-burned tobacco, which is becoming more and more saturated with all the elements in the smoke. It makes total sense to me that it gets stronger as you go. Many have mentioned the same phenomenon with cigars - there's no place for the smoke to go except through the un-burned tobacco which strengthens it naturally.