Hey Kuzi... great thread. One question regarding the nose. When I smoke I like to draw in a little(very little here) smoke IN THRU my nose not OUT THRU my nose. Is this what you were saying or do you blow the smoke OUT the nose.
I find that by drawing a very small amount of the smoke from my mouth up into my nose as I exhale the smoke from my mouth, then I can really taste the flavours of the cigar. If I do it the other way and blow the smoke out my nose I can't taste the cigar the same.
I have heard this reffered to as French inhaling but I don't think it is quite the same. I do not "Inhale" the smoke so much as allow it back into my nose as it leaves my mouth and by drawing VERY lightly thru the nose I can smell / taste so much more of what is going on with the cigar. Yes that is the definition of inhaling I know, but it is not done to the same degree as purposefully inhaling the smoke deep into your lungs like a cigarette.
Am I just mixing up what you are saying or what?
Hey Kuzi... great thread. One question regarding the nose. When I smoke I like to draw in a little(very little here) smoke IN THRU my nose not OUT THRU my nose. Is this what you were saying or do you blow the smoke OUT the nose.
I find that by drawing a very small amount of the smoke from my mouth up into my nose as I exhale the smoke from my mouth, then I can really taste the flavours of the cigar. If I do it the other way and blow the smoke out my nose I can't taste the cigar the same.
I have heard this reffered to as French inhaling but I don't think it is quite the same. I do not "Inhale" the smoke so much as allow it back into my nose as it leaves my mouth and by drawing VERY lightly thru the nose I can smell / taste so much more of what is going on with the cigar. Yes that is the definition of inhaling I know, but it is not done to the same degree as purposefully inhaling the smoke deep into your lungs like a cigarette.
Am I just mixing up what you are saying or what?
Ok just to add a note to what I have said here. I just finished a Montecristo Tubos while drinking a fantastic cup of Sumatra Mandheling coffee from freshly roasted and ground beans, mmmmmmmmmmmm!
I always try to exhale some smoke thru my nose but prefer to draw it IN lightly as stated. I did however notice more of the leather and peat? while exhaling just a tiny amount of smoke thru my nose. This leads me to two questions. Was I trying to exhale too much smoke? Because all I ever noticed before today was a stinging burn in my sinuses and after a few seconds a "taste" that I could not identify nor enjoyed.
My second question regards noses. Can the nose work in both directions does anybody know? I seem to taste the complete aroma and complexities of the cigar when I draw in thru the nose. Now today I can say I did TASTE different elements of the cigar when I exhaled the smallest amount of smoke out thru my nose. Does anybody else know what I am talking about. I am having trouble expressing it here in a way that totally says what I mean.
i think that smoke that is brawn IN through the nose wafting up from the cigar is "aroma"
when you breathe it out through your nose its "flavor. "
i always try to keep it a small amount of smoke through thte nose. too much and you can get a burn/pain/not fun thing goin on. its just to taste better, not to sear off the nose hair.
i think that smoke that is brawn IN through the nose wafting up from the cigar is "aroma"
when you breathe it out through your nose its "flavor. "
i always try to keep it a small amount of smoke through thte nose. too much and you can get a burn/pain/not fun thing goin on. its just to taste better, not to sear off the nose hair.
I agree not fun lol
I see what you are saying about aroma / flavor.
I know that the olfactory senses are a direct pathway to the brain and when I "smell" my own cigar by small wiffs thru the nose it brings back memories of "adults" smoking cigars when I was way too young to smoke and somehow that intensifies the whole smoking experience.
I agree.. I don't like the smell of a cigar when someone else is smoking it. I love the aroma of a good cigar when I'm smoking it. When I come inside after a particularly good cigar, I can be spotted in a corner snorting off the back of my hand like some kind of coke addict.
I don't care for 2nd-hand cigar smoke, either. Oddly enough, pipes are just the opposite. If anything, 2nd-hand pipe smoke smells better than when you're smoking it.
If anything, 2nd-hand pipe smoke smells better than when you're smoking it.
i agree on this but i do think that cigar smoke smells good. It may be a learned thing. My father smoked an ocasional cigar when i was a kid. maybe that has something to do with it.
its funny how when i walk up to people smoking a cigar it smells one way and when i light one up its totally different.
Hey Kuzi, I was thinking the same thing just the other day. I love the smell of a burning (good) cigar. But I never get that experience with the ones I am holding. Maybe it is that my senses are overwhelmed.
i think it has something to do with overwhelming the sences but it may also have something to do with the fact that the smoke we are tasting has been drawn through the cigar. If you notice while you smoke the color of the smoke is different depending on if it was drawn on or if its comming out of the end of the cigar.
Thanks for the cigar tasting tips Kuzi.
I love wine and have tried the tasting tests you list with wine but never thought to do it with a cigar.
As I am trying to develop my palate for cigars, I may try and add some of these techniques.
This leads me to two questions. Was I trying to exhale too much smoke? Because all I ever noticed before today was a stinging burn in my sinuses and after a few seconds a "taste" that I could not identify nor enjoyed.............
I had the macanudo 1968 last night and tried to put some smoke through my nose.
It worked and I got some very robust flavors from it. I tried it a couple times and on the third or fourth I completely fried my sinus and burned stung my sinus and eyes and coughed a little That being said I am completely stoked that I can now pass the smoke through my nose and that the flavors are there (I didnt care for the cigar as it kicked my A$$)
But I hear you on the stinging sinus sensation.
another formatting question, and Ive seen it posted here before, just too lazy to go find it.
How do you 'block' in the quote from a prior thread into your post?
another formatting question, and Ive seen it posted here before, just too lazy to go find it.
How do you 'block' in the quote from a prior thread into your post?
i hit the quote button.
OR
'left square bracket' quote user ="usernamehere" 'left square bracket' words you wanna quote 'left square bracket' /quote 'right square bracket'
just hit the quote button its much easier. i havnt figured out how to do that like multiple quote thing but ooh well i will probably never use it. anyways
great article. i really enjoyed this its actually a really interesting topic and i look forward to trying this out and seeing how it works for me.
so i have a few questions regarding this... first i have found that as of about two weeks ago i would able to taste every part of the cigar and every flavor that the cigar had in store for me, however i have found that in the last few cigars i havnt been able to aquire this taste they all taste the same til almost the end, every little while i will be able to taste a little something but its usually nothing. can it be that i have burnt out my palette too quikly? i understand the food thing and the wine but is it possible that smoke can diminish your sense of taste if you smoke too often?
ahh ok ya before i smoked once a week or so but now ive been doing it much more so ill let my palatte rest a little bit. i have found it common to have like a greenish flavor to the cigars does that mean they should sit more its like a earthy leafy flavor. also i thought i had a blueberry flavor in a cigar is that possible?
green leaf flavor.... sure. I find that a lot in a connecticut shade leaf. If thats your thing it can be quite good. ill even reccomend an inexpensive stick that has that flavor that i found to be quite good: Gespert.
id smoke those again. its kinda mild in body but it tastes good.
blueberry... i havent had that but if you review my catalog you will find several different fruits in there -- rasins, figs, oranges- to name a few off the top of my head.
I know that green leaf flavor, and I even called it green on previous posts. If colors had flavor I know that one. I personally don't like when that flavor shows up in my cigars, and when it does, often that cigar is about to be retired. I compare it to cigars I smoked in the boom of the mid-late 80's that were rushed to the consumers. Very young and often times not very pleasant. Now cigar smokers will not put up with inferior products since there are so many great cigars available. I intend to try them all someday.
i actually did read the fig review im not sure about the other ones i find your reviews very helpful though. i actually didnt like the green taste that much i kept thinking that it was a cigar that was too young. i like buttery and nut like flavors i had a peanut oil like cigar i cant remember which one it was but it also had a great melted butter like flavor i think it was a fonseca
Comments
when you breathe it out through your nose its "flavor. "
i always try to keep it a small amount of smoke through thte nose. too much and you can get a burn/pain/not fun thing goin on. its just to taste better, not to sear off the nose hair.
I agree not fun lol
I see what you are saying about aroma / flavor.
I know that the olfactory senses are a direct pathway to the brain and when I "smell" my own cigar by small wiffs thru the nose it brings back memories of "adults" smoking cigars when I was way too young to smoke and somehow that intensifies the whole smoking experience.
I agree.. I don't like the smell of a cigar when someone else is smoking it. I love the aroma of a good cigar when I'm smoking it. When I come inside after a particularly good cigar, I can be spotted in a corner snorting off the back of my hand like some kind of coke addict.
I don't care for 2nd-hand cigar smoke, either. Oddly enough, pipes are just the opposite. If anything, 2nd-hand pipe smoke smells better than when you're smoking it.
just a theory but it sounds logical.
I love wine and have tried the tasting tests you list with wine but never thought to do it with a cigar. As I am trying to develop my palate for cigars, I may try and add some of these techniques.
I had the macanudo 1968 last night and tried to put some smoke through my nose.
It worked and I got some very robust flavors from it.
I tried it a couple times and on the third or fourth I completely fried my sinus and burned stung my sinus and eyes and coughed a little
That being said I am completely stoked that I can now pass the smoke through my nose and that the flavors are there (I didnt care for the cigar as it kicked my A$$)
But I hear you on the stinging sinus sensation.
OR
'left square bracket' quote user ="usernamehere" 'left square bracket' words you wanna quote 'left square bracket' /quote 'right square bracket'
does that fololow?
great article. i really enjoyed this its actually a really interesting topic and i look forward to trying this out and seeing how it works for me.
id smoke those again. its kinda mild in body but it tastes good.
blueberry... i havent had that but if you review my catalog you will find several different fruits in there -- rasins, figs, oranges- to name a few off the top of my head.