The Last Third of the Bowl

[yanoJL]

Sometimes I see comments about changes to a tobacco's flavor during the last third of the bowl. By the time I progress that far through a smoke, my sense of taste seems to diminish and the smoke becomes less flavorful.

This is surely a me issue, not the tobacco. I feel like I have a good, relaxed cadence. I am usually just enjoying wisps of smoke; deliberate but gentle. I retrohale frequently. While smoking I don't feel burned or irritated, but upon completion my tongue feels a bit leathery and I am not tasting much anymore.

Is that tongue bite? I kinda assumed that tongue bite meant an acute or sharp pain (like a bite).

Am I getting bit?

 

[Chasing Embers]

Is that tongue bite?

Sounds more like palate fatigue.

 

[yanoJL]

Sounds more like palate fatigue.

In another post, you suggested that someone eat an apple to help refresh the palate. I saw that comment you made and tried it. And it did help.

I've been smoking a lot lately. I work from home. So yeah. There's that too.

Thanks, Cap

 

[Chasing Embers]

In another post, you suggested that someone eat an apple to help refresh the palate. I saw that comment you made and tried it. And it did help.

I've been smoking a lot lately. I work from home. So yeah. There's that too.

Thanks, Cap

Very welcome. I smoke throughout most of the day and having a drink or a palate cleanser like apples or crackers really helps.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

How do are your pipe bowls? Could just be tongue fatigue. Nothing wrong with sitting the pipe down around half way and coming back to it after a break.

 

[Grangerous]

Sounds perfectly normal.

 

[anotherbob]

I find the opposite. Often the start of the pipe is pretty flat and bland for me. It's about two to three minutes in before I start noticing the details. Who knows why?

 

[reloader]

I find that the first part of a bowl is the most flavorful with aromatics. By the time I'm down to the last third I'm tasting more of the tobacco than the toppings. The opposite is true for me when smoking straight tobacco blends. I get a lot of flavor near the end. I'll agree with most of the posts that palate fatigue could very well be the cause of your dilemma.

 

[bullet08]

Bottom 1/3 is the best. Keep your tobacco dry and keep your pipe dry also if you want that amazing last 1/3 bowl of orgasm in pipe smoking.

 

[yanoJL]

Bottom 1/3 is the best. Keep your tobacco dry and keep your pipe dry also if you want that amazing last 1/3 bowl of orgasm in pipe smoking.

I have been waiting until I finish the bowl to use pipe cleaners. And they do come out wet when I feed one through the stem from bit to bowl.

For my next bowl, I'm going to try using the pipe cleaner mid-smoke, and get any moisture out of the stem along the way. That should help keep things a bit drier.

Thanks, Bullet.

 

[crossroads]

I have been waiting until I finish the bowl to use pipe cleaners. And they do come out wet when I feed one through the stem from bit to bowl.

For my next bowl, I'm going to try using the pipe cleaner mid-smoke, and get any moisture out of the stem along the way. That should help keep things a bit drier.

Thanks, Bullet.

Good idea, it will make the second half of the bowl much nicer to smoke. In the U.K we call the last tarry moist bit of tobacco in a pipe ‘the Dottle’ and its not usually smoked.

 

[rmbittner]

In the U.K we call the last tarry moist bit of tobacco in a pipe ‘the Dottle’ and its not usually smoked.

We call it that in the US too.

 

[Coreios]

I think your pallet needs cleaning.

 

[Blue ridge smoke]

This is going to sound crazy. But for "palate fatigue" I'll eat a couple of jumbo jalapeño stuffed olives, sometimes floating in 3oz of beefeater gin .

 

[yanoJL]

This is going to sound crazy. But for "palate fatigue" I'll eat a couple of jumbo jalapeño stuffed olives, sometimes floating in 3oz of beefeater gin .

Not crazy. Sounds awesome, regardless of palate fatigue

 

[Andriko]

If it is a very tall or large bowl, tapping out the excess ash about halfway through can help also, in my experience.

 

[OverMountain]

I find that the first part of a bowl is the most flavorful with aromatics. By the time I'm down to the last third I'm tasting more of the tobacco than the toppings. The opposite is true for me when smoking straight tobacco blends. I get a lot of flavor near the end. I'll agree with most of the posts that palate fatigue could very well be the cause of your dilemma.

I would presume this is because the aromatic oils/topping have been cooked off as the tobacco is first heated and heat (taste) drawn down into the bowl. It also explains why smoking aromatics cool and slow provide the best taste and prevents aromatic oils from going straight up the chimney through excessive heat.

 

[lukifer]

I have noted through my own experiments using the same tobacco in the same bowl on different days that focusing on slowing down and getting a cooler smoke all the way through maintains or improves the flavor towards the bottom. I do believe that smoking too fast, and therefore too hot/wet DRASTICALLY changes not only the flavor but also makes the smoke hotter, muted and sometimes sour. I have come to the conclusion that whenever I hear people disparage the bottom half of the bowl, they are smoking too hot/wet. Not entirely sure how/why this happens, my assumption is we are cooking the tobacco yet to be burned before actually burning it or oversaturating it with moisture from the previously burned tobacco. What is left still burns, just unpleasantly and sometimes with a sizzle or pop towards the bottom.

I suggest experimenting with tobacco dryness to try and achieve that perfect "goldilocks" zone and really focus on slowing down and taking gentler pulls. The advice that was given to me is "only hit it enough to keep it lit". How you pack/tamp the bowl could affect this as well but I would attempt to rule out the first 2 as culprits before the latter. Also, try running a pipe cleaner through it when you notice the flavor change or cover the bowl and give it a flick to cast out moisture in the stem(if smoking outside). I have had similar experiences and these helped me, YMMV, best of luck in your experiments.

 

[ADKPiper]

It depends on the blend. Some progress nicely. Some become way stronger by the end. For instance HH Old Dark Fired. I love it but the last third is strong. Good strong. I mostly drink coffee with a pipe. Some blends I smoke without any drink. Burley I really like to have coffee or iced tea with. Proper English I just smoke with or without a drink.

 

[K.E. Powell]

That trick with the apple that Embers mentioned is a good one. My palate "cleanser" is usually a beer, but Ember's method is probably more effective.

As for how that last third tastes? As with so many pipe smoking questions, the answer just simply depends. Some blends really open up and get spicier and bolder by that final third; Briar Fox is that way for me. Others can taste a bit ashen an dull once you get near the end. And of course, how you pack, tamp, and dump ash is important. Dumping ash in a larger pipe is particularly important for that last third; you have to develop a feel for it, because too much ash makes it taste rough, but not ash at all makes so you have to relight more than you need to, which presents its own problems. As a rule of thumb, for my larger pipes, I tap the ashes gently 2-3 times during the course of the smoke. For smaller pipes, once is usually sufficient.