early signs of palate burnout?

KingoftheCove

About a week ago, almost every cigar I smoked tasted crappy for the first inch or so, then the flavor I expected finally started coming thru, but in a muted fashion.
Then a few days ago this phenomena lasted for 1/2 the cigar.
Yesterday I smoked a La Aurora and an EPC and both tasted ashy/almost nasty for the whole smoke - and I've had plenty of these and love them.........

My humis are fine, my rh good, etc.
I have stepped up my smoking since June - used to be 3-5 cigars/week on Fridays and weekends only
Now I'm double that, smoking one or two cigars a day, 4 to 5 days week.
So..........I think for the first time, I have palate burnout................bummer!

Planning on taking 5 days off......................long enough?
Anyone have any short-cuts?
rzaman mentioned bitter chocolate and soda water in a similar thread here. Any other "quick-fix" remedies?

Lee.mcglynn

This happens to me every once in a while but usually even the taste of food is effected!! Most of the time it's do to allergies in my experience but who knows lol

The_buffalonian

thats the only one i know of 90% dark chocolate and perrier

jliu

KingoftheCove:

About a week ago, almost every cigar I smoked tasted crappy for the first inch or so, then the flavor I expected finally started coming thru, but in a muted fashion.
Then a few days ago this phenomena lasted for 1/2 the cigar.
Yesterday I smoked a La Aurora and an EPC and both tasted ashy/almost nasty for the whole smoke - and I've had plenty of these and love them.........

My humis are fine, my rh good, etc.
I have stepped up my smoking since June - used to be 3-5 cigars/week on Fridays and weekends only
Now I'm double that, smoking one or two cigars a day, 4 to 5 days week.
So..........I think for the first time, I have palate burnout................bummer!

Planning on taking 5 days off......................long enough?
Anyone have any short-cuts?
rzaman mentioned bitter chocolate and soda water in a similar thread here. Any other "quick-fix" remedies?

go to 99 bottles in downtown. spend 2-3 hours there. bam! prob solved haha

jthanatos

That stinks. I have had muted flavor issues before, but I always attributed it to allergies and colds. Some hot dark coffee always helped me, but once again, I don't think it is the same as what you are experiencing.

*Petey*

This has hapened to me a few times as well. I only smoke about 1-2 per week, so way les than you are right now, but the only solution I've found is giving it some time and then switching up what you smoke when you get back to it for a bit. For me I found that I had spent a long time smoking singles and randoms and such, and not my favorites, and then everything starting tasting the same. So I took a while (Month for me) off of cigars in total and then came back with a fresh palate and hit up all my favorites and that righted the ship.

Good luck man.

kuzi16

it may be your diet.
does your pre smoke routine have a bunch of alkaline foods before you smoke?

Lasabar

kuzi16:

it may be your diet.
does your pre smoke routine have a bunch of alkaline foods before you smoke?

Explain Alkaline foods? I don't really have problems, but every once in awhile I will have a for sure good smoke taste like a ****.... school mo 'oh Kuz

jliu

kuzi16:

it may be your diet.
does your pre smoke routine have a bunch of alkaline foods before you smoke?

i remember you saying you would eat something citrus based an hour or so before your smoke (like an orange). I do that now (more in the weekends when I have more time). it works for me

kuzi16

Lasabar:

kuzi16:

it may be your diet.
does your pre smoke routine have a bunch of alkaline foods before you smoke?

Explain Alkaline foods? I don't really have problems, but every once in awhile I will have a for sure good smoke taste like a ****.... school mo 'oh Kuz

alkaline foods like Rice, green veggies, Cashews, almonds, vinegar will all get your mouth's pH to the alkaline side. since cigar smoke is alkaline in nature this will make it harder to taste. Taste buds work better when they are not "accustomed" to what they are tasting. sensory acclimation is most commonly seen with scent. when you walk into a gym or weight room you can smell the sweat and general funk that is in there. as you work out you are no longer able to smell it. your olfactory receptors have become acclimated to the smell. your taste buds do the same thing.
so you are able to taste opposites better than things that taste the same. examples in food included pairing things like Chocolate and salt, or pizza and pineapple, or any other salt and sweet. (this is why i drink orange juice when i eat pizza. i can taste both better.)


so if you are eating alkaline foods before you smoke your mouth cannot taste the cigar as well because the cigar is also alkaline. get your pH closer to neutral or more acidic. Coffee, a great pairing with cigars, is acidic. the above explanation shows us why. it is why i like Coke (not pepsi) or Dr. Pepper with a cigar.

this may not be palate burnout. it may be pH issue.

Gray4lines

My new favorite is water with a slice of lemon in it, maybe some mint

PadronPete

Signs of Palate burnout? 1. You have too many AJ smokes in your humi. 2. Every one tastes the same. 3. Your favorite smokes suddenly have no flavor. 4. You wonder why cigars taste horrible yet you keep smoking them. 5. You decide to take a week off, only take a day, and still wonder lol. 6. All of the sudden, the maduro phase is over, and conny's taste better. My suggestion, take some time off, try some different smokes, plan your meals or cigars. I cannot tell you how many great smokes I wasted by following mexican food or spicy asian. A Pepsi/Coke/Dr Pepper throwback is a good pair, along with gin and tonic with lime or orange juice I've found.

KingoftheCove

Thanks all for the replies....it appears all is well after a mere 2 days off.
So I didn't quite make it a week .......hehhe.........as per padronpete's "prediction"

Turns out, in retrospect, that I smoked too many cigars in a short time span.....duh... going back to one a day for a while, with a day off here and there.

Streater

Go Cowboys! 2 Antihistamine do it for me. Great idea with the Throwback Cokes. Sugar is much better on the palate than high fructose corn syrup.

kuzi16

Streater:

Go Cowboys! 2 Antihistamine do it for me. Great idea with the Throwback Cokes. Sugar is much better on the palate than high fructose corn syrup.

its actually about the acidity, not the type of sugar or flavor. almost any soda that has citric acid will work to cleanse the palate and give the mouth a slightly acidic pH so that the slightly alkaline cigar smoke can be tasted better.

a spoon full of sugar will not change the pH of your mouth in any way. it is a 7 on the acidity scale. that is neutral. so is HFCS. wont change much.

now, if you just like the pairing better i get it, but as far as pH is concerned, it makes no difference.

Streater

Yes, but I don't get that slimy film on my tongue with the throwback Cokes like I do with the HFCS flavored ones. I love the throwback Mtn Dew, but just can't do the HPCS ones. I taste it for the rest of the day. Kind of like a Swisher sweet.