Why can't I taste my cigars?

[Swede]

The title is a slight exaggeration. I am not always able to taste my cigars (sometimes I literally just get the taste of "smoke" or "steam"). I thought I was puffing too often but the problem persists even if I take exactly one puff per minute. I think the problem may be related to RH (many B&M keep them at >70RH) and I have had most good smokes after dryboxing them (at the time unconsciously). Right now I am slowly converting my humidor to 62RH from 69RH. However I've met some people who claim to enjoy their cigars at >72RH. How is that possible? I seem to be able to fully taste and smell everything else, why cigars? I'm not complaining about not noticing subtle flavor notes I'm complaining about not being able to enjoy them at all.

I wanted to know everyone's opinion on this topic, and any advice because it's a bit frustrating. I'd especially like to know how common this problem is because I have heard others speak out about this on other forums etc., etc. but usually they seem to be the odd-man out!

P.S. Also how intense is the flavor of the average cigar meant to be? I only ask this because on a good smoke (after days of dryboxing) I can get an AF 858 to taste very smooth and nutty and a Hemingway to taste like caramel and a Flor de las Antilles to have raisin like notes, very intense flavors like a candy bar that lasts for an hour. But a while back I dryboxed a La Aroma De Cuba Mi Amor for a day and got NOTHING out of it. Was straining to notice any flavor out of it.

[JDoughty]

Do you retrohale? I would not be able to pick up nearly as many flavor notes from a cigar without a slow retrohale. 

[Swede]

Yes, but sometimes even retrohaling doesn't work.

[Ford2112]

Only when I hadCovid. I do tend to smoke every day so maybe my palate is Neanderthal-ish. I retrohale often while smoking. What are your storage conditions?

[Swede]

18 hours ago, Ford2112 said:

Only when I hadCovid. I do tend to smoke every day so maybe my palate is Neanderthal-ish. I retrohale often while smoking. What are your storage conditions? 

Tuppedor jars! Right now 62RH Boveda packs and some cedar sleeves. 

[Ford2112]

I find I struggle with humidity here as I am right next to the ocean and our dew point can be high. So many variables. Sounds like you are doing things right. I suggest maybe checking out some old @PigFish threads in the humidor forum. I learned a lot from there. Also how young are your stogies? I used to smoke Cubans way too young until I figured out which ones needed age. It takes trial and error. Good luck!

[ElLoboLoco]

I can’t taste much on the regular draw if it’s a mild to medium cigar. So, retro is a must for me. Higher octane cigars not so heavily dependent on the retrohale. Maybe try some different drink pairings. I find tea and ginger ale helps bring out some flavor notes. Oh, champagne or a bubbly is a great match as well.

[Swede]

18 hours ago, ElLoboLoco said:

I can’t taste much on the regular draw if it’s a mild to medium cigar. So, retro is a must for me. Higher octane cigars not so heavily dependent on the retrohale. Maybe try some different drink pairings. I find tea and ginger ale helps bring out some flavor notes. Oh, champagne or a bubbly is a great match as well. 

Interesting. I do tend to notice more "ON THE NOSE" more than the tongue even if I am not expressly retrohaling. I like Guinness, coffee or rum!

[CaptainQuintero]

I know it's different for each individual, but it may be the amount you're smoking? If I have more than two cigars a week my taste buds diminish massively and I miss out any type of subtle flavours.

[Swede]

18 hours ago, CaptainQuintero said:

I know it's different for each individual, but it may be the amount you're smoking? If I have more than two cigars a week my taste buds diminish massively and I miss out any type of subtle flavours.

Gotcha! I try to keep it to 2 cigars every 2 weeks. Celebrate incremental monthly progression.

[CaptainQuintero]

I can't speak for NC tobaccos massively, in terms of dryboxing, but I think it's fair to say Cuban tobacco definitely benefits from lower RH. I keep mine around 60-62, I did experiment seeing how low they could go and I got down to 52% ish and the flavours only got more intense. But beyond that the wrappers became too brittle and I wasn't confident storing cigars long term at that RH

But you can't ever get away from cigars being individual products so there's a limit to how much we can do to get consistent smoking experiences, even within the same box.

[nKostyan]

18 hours ago, Swede said:

La Aroma De Cuba Mi Amor for a day and got NOTHING out of it

I'm sorry, friend, but some cigars just don't have a good flavor. It's not a moisture issue, it's a tobacco quality problem. Stick to Cuban cigars, and you'll be happy.

 

[FOHgetaboutit]

Palate fatigue perhaps?

[Swede]

For now I think dryboxing is probably the way to go for me. I was at a total wine today and I bought an AF CUBAN BELICOSO on a impulse buy. I decided to talk to one of their store's cigar-aficionados and the dude said he smokes his at 72RH no drybox no nothing. (FY,I I also live in a fairly humid area) I got home, started working and left it in a drybox for a couple hours. Then I started smoking it and got...nothing.          

But, a few weeks ago I had this same stick dryboxed for three days and when I smoked it it was like a chocolate bar that I could eat for over an hour. It's not even an expensive or prestigious stogie but it was one of the best smokes I've ever had. Maybe I NEED IT INTENSE. I have no subtlety, I dunno.

But I will be religiously dryboxing for days from now on.

[BoliDan]

18 hours ago, Swede said:

Yes, but sometimes even retrohaling doesn't work.

Happens to me. Sometimes its because I caught a slight bug or environmental that causes my sinuses to cause zero flavor and feeling through a retrohale. I discovered I'm slightly allergic to ragweed. Even though my symptoms are nearly non-existent, cigars are super weak during ragweed season. The only thing that works is time. If I get a bad cold, forget it, even though i taste and smell normally, cigar flavor is still gone for 2 weeks minimum. Nettie pots don't even do it. 

[Swede]

13 hours ago, BoliDan said:

 If I get a bad cold, forget it, even though i taste and smell normally, cigar flavor is still gone for 2 weeks minimum. Nettie pots don't even do it. 

You know that's interesting. I've had a cold on and off for the last month or so. And I could only taste cigars if I super dryboxed them. But a week ago or so I shared an 858 with a friend (TAKING TOKES ) and he said it was so rich and nutty and floral and I got very jealous. (Like Kramer and Neuman with the Mackinaw peaches!) I'm hoping it's a mix of humidity and recovering from a cold because I used to really enjoy that stick.

FYI, my friend was over after dinner, his wife made him "PROMISE NOT TO SMOKE" but he ended up asking for tokes from my cigar. I ended up just handing it to him when I realized he was enjoying it more than me.

I might do a follow up poll in a few months to see if people have correlated allergies/sickness with a lack of flavor. It seems to be a relatively common problem the ratio on the current poll is 40/60. Cigars are meant for flavor so I think it'd be good if people knew why/when they cannot seem to enjoy their sticks.

[abcd1234]

Honestly this is how I feel about every NC I've tried and I'm past 20 different brands now.

Cubans are a whole different story, try a Juan Lopez No.1/No.2, Cohiba Siglo II, Bolivar Belicosos Finos or Por Larranaga Petit Corona.

[MrBirdman]

I haven’t really but I also never smoke until I’m fully recovered from a cold or if I’m stuff up, since I retrohale almost every puff. 

[JPark3]

I picked up pipe smoking for a bit last year and got bad tongue bite early on. I feel like I've never fully recovered because I believe cigars are tasting inconsistent now, primarily NCs. I know Padrons like they're my native language, and the chocolate note don't hit like they used to. With Cubans, I don't always get, say, cherry/floral notes from an RyJ. But on the other hand, I recently had my 3rd N8 Churchill from a bundle and tasted even more than the previous two. 

The only lesson I've learned for certain is breaks help lol, and ease back into old habits. I like at least one cigar a day, but if I do that, I start to lose taste.

[CrazyIvan]

Has anyone mentioned spicy food yet? My palate goes to sleep for 24 hours after particularly spicy food.

 

[rcarlson]

10 hours ago, JPark3 said:

The only lesson I've learned for certain is breaks help lol, and ease back into old habits. I like at least one cigar a day, but if I do that, I start to lose taste.

A two week break does wonders. . . or so I've heard.   

[FOHgetaboutit]

2 hours ago, rcarlson said:

A two week break does wonders. . . or so I've heard.   

On one right now…or so I’ve been told. 

[NYGuido]

I've been dealing with this for about a month and have recovered most of my flavor perception. Turns out, I overloaded my tongue with food, smoke, and other...abrading activities. Working with my doctor, some trusted friends, and ChatGPT, I've been following a detailed protocol of reintroduction, which followed an entire week off from smoking, spicy foods, and...well...it was supposed to involve a break from certain abrading activities, but I couldn't do that to my wife. 🫣

What has helped me is doing a baking soda rinse (1/2 tsp per cup of water) after eating (neutralizes pH), doing a salt rinse (same concentration), which eases inflammation, and taking rest days after 2 consecutive smoking days. Once I get past Thanksgiving, I will go to smoking 7 cigars per week, but with 2 rest days per week (so, 2 "double cigar" days per week). I then am building back up through the rest of the year with the hopes that my 2-3 cigars a day routine will be restored by January.

But I will continue the rinses and will continue taking a full day off from stressing my tongue each week.

Feel free to PM me if you want more specifics or just a sympathetic ear. So sorry you're going through this, but things get better!

[Swede]

Turns out I've had a cold off and on for the past month and I thought I was getting better but it just hit me hard and I spent a significant portion of last week bedridden. My cigars now either taste bland or harsh (I've been testing 10 minutes on like teenie cigarillos before tossing them so I don't waste a full stick), but I think it is due to the viral infection. It's interesting it seems that the flavor of cigars is mostly in the nose, even if you don't retrohale (I've seen a ton of other people attest to this). This is because I have no problem tasting anything else. Gosh the last stick I had a good experience on was this AF Cuban Belicoso and it tasted like Cocoa and it lasted more than an hour, before that was a Hemingway Short Story that tasted like caramel and lasted about an hour (surprisingly long for a teenie cigar!). I miss that :).

Next Friday I am going to try a CAO Amazonia dagger (because I won't mind wasting one if it's not good it's $20 a 5-pack) and see if I can taste it properly. At least I'm convinced that I'm not chemically dependent on cigars, I have no trouble discarding a stick if I am not enjoying it! But there is nothing quite like a cigar when it's good, you can just sit back and lose yourself in one it's fantastic I do miss it!