Why don't I feel the scent of the tobacco when I'm smoking?
- Thread starter briarup
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No, it's just that, as humans, our sense of taste overwhelms our sense of smell. So you'll taste the smoke more than smell it, which can be good or bad, depending upon the blend.
Nawww aint nothing wrong with your nose. It's just the way it goes. Some kind of curse or something. Sure some Biologist or Chemist has a real explanation. I have to be attentive to Room note as I live in an apartment. I might have screwed-up just now though. I just finished a bowl of Mac B Scottish Blend. I got the door wide open and trying to air things out. I wasn't in the mood for an aromatic. Well, as they say, proof is in the pudding, See if the little lady complains later. :wink:
It's TOTALLY about the blend!
It's a rare aromatic that actually tastes as good while smoking as it smells in the pouch because the casings burn off. After years of frustration, I finally gave up the aromatics.
There are exceptions, however. The only two Aro's that I've found that taste as good as they smell are Trout Stream from pipesandcigars.com and Morning Coffee from Just For Him in Springfield, MO. These are both absolutely amazing.
It's a rare aromatic that actually tastes as good while smoking as it smells in the pouch because the casings burn off. After years of frustration, I finally gave up the aromatics.
There are exceptions, however. The only two Aro's that I've found that taste as good as they smell are Trout Stream from pipesandcigars.com and Morning Coffee from Just For Him in Springfield, MO. These are both absolutely amazing.
I will add a few aromatics that taste like they smell:
Savinelli Aroma (carmel & bourbon)
Villiger 1888 Mid Day (my current favorite smoke) (toasted marshmallows with a hint of spice)
Boswell's Christmas Cookie (delicious... I'll let you decide what it tastes like)
W.O. Larsen Signature Vintage (Fruity and spicy sweet)
Check them out!
-Jason
Savinelli Aroma (carmel & bourbon)
Villiger 1888 Mid Day (my current favorite smoke) (toasted marshmallows with a hint of spice)
Boswell's Christmas Cookie (delicious... I'll let you decide what it tastes like)
W.O. Larsen Signature Vintage (Fruity and spicy sweet)
Check them out!
-Jason
I'm no doctor but I'm guessing there's nothing wrong with your nose.
I read reviews all the time and wish I had the nose to pick out the flavors that others claim to find. Sometimes with quick sips I can detect chocolate cocoa or berry flavors, grass is an easy one so is nutty.
You only taste salt, sweet, bitter, and sour with your tongue... the rest is up to your nose... and your imagination.
http://library.thinkquest.org/3750/taste/taste.html
I read reviews all the time and wish I had the nose to pick out the flavors that others claim to find. Sometimes with quick sips I can detect chocolate cocoa or berry flavors, grass is an easy one so is nutty.
You only taste salt, sweet, bitter, and sour with your tongue... the rest is up to your nose... and your imagination.
http://library.thinkquest.org/3750/taste/taste.html
I can never smell the aroma of the tobacco I'm smoking. On rare occasions, when I step out of the room and return some time later, I will detect a faint remnant of the aroma. The best you can hope for is to experience the aroma of what someone else is smoking -- and at that, it's better if you're not smoking at all.
:D That's the only reason I encourage folks to smoke Middleton's Cherry Blend! It's great if you're not the mope smoking it.
:D That's the only reason I encourage folks to smoke Middleton's Cherry Blend! It's great if you're not the mope smoking it.
I must be a lucky guy, because I've been pretty happy with the taste and smell of the tobaccos I've been trying on for size. Right now I've got 5 Altadis blends, and two provide as strong a flavor smoking as just sniffing the bag: Vanilla Royale, their "most complex" vanilla, and I concur that it has as rich a taste and scent while I'm smoking as when I open the bag; and Black Spice, a dark blend with cinnamon and nutmeg notes that is a lot like an after-dinner tiramisu and espresso in my humble opinion--so good that I'm going to order a pound as my standard sweet blend and possibly use to cut with other less favorable tobaccos. The other three are delightful in the bag, but in the way of flavor and nose while smoking aren't as developed: Root Beer, which smells, well, similar to root beer, tastes sweet-ish, but mainly leaves a room note like a light vanilla and not much flavor other than vanilla while smoking; Rum & Maple which smells fine in the bag, tastes mainly like a vanilla, and hangs in the room slightly better than the root beer; and Black CHerry, smells wonderful in the bag, tastes good to very good and not just like a vanilla, and hangs nicely in the room. I've also got a couple ounces of Nat Sherman #370, a cherry that tastes...like soap. Smells good (not great) in the bag, but of the three bowls I've had of it, it's just bland--the flavor is all on top, there's no richness hiding underneath, and when I'm done the finish is akin to washing my mouth out with liquid soap from the office restroom. Which is a shame, because unless I'm in the mood for someone to flog me with their superior attitude or just plain ignore me while I try to give them money, this means I have absolutely no reason to step into the Nat Sherman B&M store here in Manhattan. Anyway, back to my original point, I can taste, smell, and enjoy all of these (the Altadis anyway) before, during, and to a lesser degree after I smoke. I sincerely don't think I have an extraordinary or well-developed palate at all; so am I the odd exception or is it kind of a 'some people do, some people don't' experience?
If I wonder about the "Room Note"... I ask the War Department.
I get a pretty straight forward, "It's Ok." meaning it smells good. Or, "That sh** stinks" meaning... it's has latakia in it.
But, I'm after taste. I'm not out to please those around me... except when I'm out and about. Then Room Note is important, makes the passers, and those I meet, more amiable.
I get a pretty straight forward, "It's Ok." meaning it smells good. Or, "That sh** stinks" meaning... it's has latakia in it.
But, I'm after taste. I'm not out to please those around me... except when I'm out and about. Then Room Note is important, makes the passers, and those I meet, more amiable.
My better half will give subtle clues to her distaste with phrases such as [Put that sh;; out or get out ][HOW CAN YOU SMOKE THAT ? ]Are you out of good tobacco ] .I have found I can use this to my advantage to purchase more tobacco . :lol:
I like to sleep until the crack of noon
midnight howlin' at the moon
goin' out when I want to, comin' home when I please
I don't have to ask permission
if I want to go out fishin
and I never have to ask for the keys
--Tom Waits, Better Off without a Wife
:nana:
midnight howlin' at the moon
goin' out when I want to, comin' home when I please
I don't have to ask permission
if I want to go out fishin
and I never have to ask for the keys
--Tom Waits, Better Off without a Wife
:nana:
As Tommy mentioned, taste isn't straightforward - aroma and our olfactory senses play a huge role in the flavours we derive from food, drink, and in our cases smoke.
Like anything else, Briarup, you need to train and exercise these senses. I am fairly proficient with wine and beer - in a week I will be entering my first sommelier training class - but I find that pipe tobacco presents a whole new world. Smoke is so transient and influenced by so many factors that our experiences are extraordinarily subjective. It's much harder to communicate since it involves much more technique than sipping from a glass. I am only learning, too; with time and practise, I'm sure we can both learn to nail down certain tastes and scents with more ease. In your everyday life, become more aware of your sensory environment; note the smell of burning rubber when someone squeals their tires, for example. Try to savour your meals and isolate the different elements. Pick out the spices in known recipes, swish your coffee once or twice to really connect with what it tastes like, smell the zest of a lemon peel. If you can't put a name to something, you will never truly know it is there.
For example, aged Riesling wines sometimes take on a petrol note reminiscent of kerosene or gasoline. It is a well documented chemical reaction. It can actually be pleasant, though I'm sure someone who has siphoned gas will attest that its nothing like the real thing! But if you didn't know the label to stick on that smell, you'd probably take it for an unusual flaw. Someone living in a petrochemical-free world would be mystified by it! As far as chocolate goes, since it is such a familiar smell perhaps you are looking for something a little too specific. I've heard people say Young's Double Chocolate Stout tastes nothing of chocolate - to me it is creamy, rich and chocolatey to the max; this beer is made with roasted malts and real chocolate, earning it its chocolate name. But it remains a beer, and not a milkshake. I think they take the taste thing too literally. It very much is a compound of a "dark" semi-sweetness and hints of cocoa taste - unless your pipe tobacco was doused in a lot chocolate sauce it may be tricky to pick out!
Have you ever smelled raisins in a pouch of Captain Black White? It is there for me. I find it translates directly to the smoke. Makes me want a glass of Malmsey Madeira to go with it, a fortified wine which offers a similar taste to me.
Be aware of new tastes and smells, explore them, and keep an open mind when you smoke - you may start making associations you never thought of before!
Like anything else, Briarup, you need to train and exercise these senses. I am fairly proficient with wine and beer - in a week I will be entering my first sommelier training class - but I find that pipe tobacco presents a whole new world. Smoke is so transient and influenced by so many factors that our experiences are extraordinarily subjective. It's much harder to communicate since it involves much more technique than sipping from a glass. I am only learning, too; with time and practise, I'm sure we can both learn to nail down certain tastes and scents with more ease. In your everyday life, become more aware of your sensory environment; note the smell of burning rubber when someone squeals their tires, for example. Try to savour your meals and isolate the different elements. Pick out the spices in known recipes, swish your coffee once or twice to really connect with what it tastes like, smell the zest of a lemon peel. If you can't put a name to something, you will never truly know it is there.
For example, aged Riesling wines sometimes take on a petrol note reminiscent of kerosene or gasoline. It is a well documented chemical reaction. It can actually be pleasant, though I'm sure someone who has siphoned gas will attest that its nothing like the real thing! But if you didn't know the label to stick on that smell, you'd probably take it for an unusual flaw. Someone living in a petrochemical-free world would be mystified by it! As far as chocolate goes, since it is such a familiar smell perhaps you are looking for something a little too specific. I've heard people say Young's Double Chocolate Stout tastes nothing of chocolate - to me it is creamy, rich and chocolatey to the max; this beer is made with roasted malts and real chocolate, earning it its chocolate name. But it remains a beer, and not a milkshake. I think they take the taste thing too literally. It very much is a compound of a "dark" semi-sweetness and hints of cocoa taste - unless your pipe tobacco was doused in a lot chocolate sauce it may be tricky to pick out!
Have you ever smelled raisins in a pouch of Captain Black White? It is there for me. I find it translates directly to the smoke. Makes me want a glass of Malmsey Madeira to go with it, a fortified wine which offers a similar taste to me.
Be aware of new tastes and smells, explore them, and keep an open mind when you smoke - you may start making associations you never thought of before!
Excellent observations, Sparroa. You make the point that development of discernment in taste and aroma should parallel the development of an appropriate vocabulary. We see it all the time in specialized fields of study and science -- it facilitates precision in communication and organizes the learning process.
I don't want to hijack the thread, but interestingly enough Tom Waits is tied to my earliest pipe smoking. I was in N'Awlins on a pool-shooting trip (long story), and ended up going home with a lovely local lass by the name of Kipley. Heard "Closing Time" for the first time, and it has since been etched indelibly into my mind along with the taste and scent of Perique, my old Sneaky Pete (which I then named after her...at least a certain part of her)8O and stumbling through the French Quarter blind drunk on moonshine.
Ah, to have another youth to misspend....
/sigh/
Ah, to have another youth to misspend....
/sigh/
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