Autumn Evening—No Taste?

[Tobacco-Taco]

Hello, again!

So today I received an order from last year consisting of a 2 oz bulk bag of Autumn Evening as well Voodoo Queen. I decided to try out the AE as the smell was purely magical and I had to taste it. So I went out to my favorite smoke spot (I hate smoking my pipe out in public) and puffed away. What can i say? It simply tasted like hot ash. I could just barely pick out a maple flavor, which is strange considering this blend was advertised everywhere by everyone as an Aromatic that actually tasted like it smelled out of the tin. Maybe I am smoking too fast, but even when I tried to slow down it gave me no satisfactory results. I lit it up in my garage before going out and when I got home the whole garage reeked of burnt tobacco, so the room note was far from the heavenly smell that I was promised.

I will probably give it another try tomorrow, as first impressions usually are a little bit deceiving, but I'm rather sceptical.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Slow down... it is still just an aromatic, just one that most people rave about. But, still, it is just as tastable as the rest. But, you'll want to slow way down, so that you can get the taste of the heated leaf surrounding the cherry. When it actually just combusts, there is no taste in any aromatic. But, if you'll let it burn just at the edge of going out, you'll get surrounding leaf to heat up and give off their oils as a flavor.

Smell is your friend also, in helping you taste.

But, it is not easy for one to smell just their own pipe as they smoke. It takes a lot of practice and slowing down.

Some might suggest the retrohale, but for me that burns out my sinuses, but it could be an option.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

Slow down... it is still just an aromatic, just one that most people rave about. But, still, it is just as tastable as the rest. But, you'll want to slow way down, so that you can get the taste of the heated leaf surrounding the cherry. When it actually just combusts, there is no taste in any aromatic. But, if you'll let it burn just at the edge of going out, you'll get surrounding leaf to heat up and give off their oils as a flavor.

Smell is your friend also, in helping you taste.

But, it is not easy for one to smell just their own pipe as they smoke. It takes a lot of practice and slowing down.

Some might suggest the retrohale, but for me that burns out my sinuses, but it could be an option.

Maybe smoking inside with a glass of brandy is what it takes for people like me to calm down and smoke slow, but outside in the cold Swedish temperature I just can't prevail for such a long time, which is part of the reason why I've temporarily gotten back to Cuban cigarillos (Montecristo Puritos and Cohiba Shorts, to be exact).

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Maybe smoking inside with a glass of brandy is what it takes for people like me to calm down and smoke slow, but outside in the cold Swedish temperature I just can't prevail for such a long time, which is part of the reason why I've temporarily gotten back to Cuban cigarillos (Montecristo Puritos and Cohiba Shorts, to be exact).

Cold inhibits most of my taste and smelling capacity. So, I would agree.
I don't smoke this often, but when I do, what I like is the nicotine content. Maybe just smoke it for that nic hit for now.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

But, you can still practice slowing down. I used to go on walks while I smoked to regulate my breath to my pace of steps... as a way to prep myself for slow smoking contests. Worth a try.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

But, you can still practice slowing down. I used to go on walks while I smoked to regulate my breath to my pace of steps... as a way to prep myself for slow smoking contests. Worth a try.

Ok, I will try that!

 

[kcghost]

Don't pack your pipe so tight and slow your puffing way down and pray you don't have Covid.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

Don't pack your pipe so tight and slow your puffing way down and pray you don't have Covid.

That could be the reason, too, and explains why I couldn't aste Peterson Sweet Killarney, either, in the same pipe. Or maybe my aromatic pipe is f*d up somehow.

 

[Architeuthis]

An alternative explanation is that it is a weak aromatic that smells great in the jar, but doesn't deliver much else. I enjoy several aromatics on occasion, including Scotty's Trout Stream, Rattray's Exotic Passion, and Stanwell Melange. However, I found Autumn Evening to be a dud. If you are smoking outside in sub-freezing temperatures, it will certainly be more difficult to slow down your cadence and relax. At least it is for me. Right now I rarely get the urge for a pipe since it is quite cold and windy. If you smoke inside, well that changes everything...

Maybe try something with a bit more body and bold flavor. One where a small/short bowl would satisfy. Many Gawith and Hoggarth blends would fit this description.

 

[Servant King]

Autumn Evening was a total dud for me as well. It tasted like I was smoking roof tar with a little Torani syrup sprinkled on top. Cadence, packing, drying...nothing made one iota of difference. Fortunately, it was a sample, so I just moved on.

Peterson's aromatics, for me, mostly fell right in that middle range of C+ average. I found Mac Baren's aromatics to be much more consistent, although I cannot understate the importance of adequately drying these beforehand. Otherwise, you'll find out why they've earned the moniker "MacBite" amongst certain pipe smokers. Original Choice gets my recommendation of a good place to start with their aros. Vanilla Roll Cake is my favorite of the genre, however.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I've been smoking this while playing golf. I think it has quite a bit of excellent flavors.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

So today I went out with what I consider a lightly packed pipe that I lit inside of my garage with a typical butane lighter instead of my zippo, in the hope of not tainting the flavor, and I made sure to puff less frequently. Aside from some minor improvements in taste, I couldn't notice any difference. It still tasted like hot ash with maybe some maple in the background. This leaves me with two conclusions: Either something is horribly wrong with my taste buds, or everyone is exaggerating. Perhaps the catch is that, while it certainly tastes like it smells, it doesn't taste that much. Perhaps it was wrong of me to assume that this would be a great flavorbomb.

My verdict is officialy the same as ''The Prancing Piper'':

 

[Chasing Embers]

Autumn Evening is a maple bomb but unlike many aromatics, it's a Virginia tobacco versus a burley. Can't get it very hit or you lose all of the flavor.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

Autumn Evening is a maple bomb but unlike many aromatics, it's a Virginia tobacco versus a burley. Can't get it very hit or you lose all of the flavor.

So how am I supposed to enjoy the flavor without scorching the tobacco?

 

[Chasing Embers]

So how am I supposed to enjoy the flavor without scorching the tobacco?

That's just it. You're not tasting the smoke when smoking, the smoke is carrying the flavor of the warm tobacco around the ember. Keep the ember just at the point of going out and you'll be able to taste more of any tobacco you smoke. Some even get to the point of producing very little visible smoke.

 

[Tobacco-Taco]

That's just it. You're not tasting the smoke when smoking, the smoke is carrying the flavor of the warm tobacco around the ember. Keep the ember just at the point of going out and you'll be able to taste more of any tobacco you smoke. Some even get to the point of producing very little visible smoke.

So basically for this specific blend I should just ignore all the typical lighting and tampering methods and just glaze the top of the tobacco for a second or two. False light and true light are one in the same when it comes to this blend, I guess? Or did I misunderstand you?

 

[solideogloria86]

So basically for this specific blend I should just ignore all the typical lighting and tampering methods and just glaze the top of the tobacco for a second or two. False light and true light are one in the same when it comes to this blend, I guess? Or did I misunderstand you?

Light as you normally would, but don't draw on the pipe. Just clench it in your teeth and breath in and out through your nose. Every third or fourth draw, exhale the smoke from your mouth. Never speed up or draw on the pipe. If it goes out, relight.
This is the key for me and many others to getting the most flavor out of any blend.

 

[STP]

Don't pack your pipe so tight and slow your puffing way down and pray you don't have Covid.

I was thinking the same ?

 

[Chasing Embers]

So basically for this specific blend I should just ignore all the typical lighting and tampering methods and just glaze the top of the tobacco for a second or two. False light and true light are one in the same when it comes to this blend, I guess? Or did I misunderstand you?

You can light it as per your usual style, just keep the smoking part slow and easy. Produce wisps instead of clouds.

 

[anotherbob]

I am going to get out my dead horse again. Don't slow down! Sip! Sip! don't worry about time between puffs worry about sipping. Here is an experiment for you just to give an idea of how effective sipping is over puffing. Get your pipe going. Then stick it in your mouth for a few seconds, while it's in there don't draw on it at all. Just stick it in your mouth for a couple of breaths take it out and then blow out the smoke. If that much smoke goes through whatever magic or physics are involved you can understand how little effort actually has to be put into drawing smoke from a pipe. Gentle over slow. Or at least that's my two cents on it. You'll get a lot more flavor and all that your pipes will last longer you won't burn your tongue....