So guys...as you should all expect this is a noob question...(I think) I have been smoking some cigars...but I'm running into a real problem here. I can't taste anything :-) I mean I really can't...I can taste harsh SMOKE...I can't taste the flavors ...and yes..I'm even letting the smoke go through my nose..I just taste nothing...other than smoke..I mean..I had one that tasted kinda..leathery (don't like the taste of leather..its blah) but for the most part it just tasted like plain smoke...but I let my bud try them and he's tasting all kinds of flavors :-)he even bought one of them swisher sweet packed with flavor cigarillo's to see if I could taste the peach...nuthin...just smoke....is it possible some people just can't pick up on the tastes?:-)
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Do you enjoy smoking? If so keep it up, if not quit.... the more you smoke the more you will be able to detect differences in cigars...
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Two things come to mind;

1) Everyone has different tastes. There is no existential proof that what I taste=what you taste.

2) Early on, distinguishing flavors is difficult at best. Smoking more will tend to bring out more sensations.

If you'd like to practice, do this trick that young wine tasters use: Put some of the things you see others tasting in a narrow rimmed glass. Let's take pepper. Put some pepper in such a glass (a wine glass works great for this as long as it's not a huge goblet type). Cover the glass for five minutes or so, then, remove the cover and immediately breathe in (but don't inhale the aroma). Now, slowly blow it out your nose and mouth using your tongue in a tasting motion as you do. After a few such attempts, you should have your pepper taste delineated. Try this with other descriptors you see in cigar reviews (yes, even "weird" things like leather, toast, charcoal, etc.). Before you know it, you'll be a champ. :-) :-)
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Oh I enjoy smoking...its just HARD to enjoy it when it feels like every timeyou lite up your smoking a camp fire or something.
:-)

Thanks Zanaspus...I will make sure to try that out.
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The flavors described in cigar reviews sometimes ring a bell for me and sometimes they don't. I don't worry about it very much.

The only thing to do is try a lot of different cigars and experience all of the different flavors they offer. Don't worry about which cigars everyone else seems to like. Smoke the ones that you like.

If you smoke a cigar and it tastes like a camp fire, and you don't like the taste of that particular camp fire, try a different cigar next time. Experiment.
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If you are really new to smoking, you probably aren't going to taste much more than just smoke for a while. After a while, you'll start to pickup flavors.
Scott
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Once you taste the "leather", you will be surprised. It doesn't taste like leather flavored air freshener, or like a brand new Cadillac. It's a thick, dark, robust, heavy flavor that can' be described any other way. :-) . It's also much tastier than it sounds!

Harshness in the smoke usually has to do with smoking too fast, a bad light, or just a bad stick!
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Dont worry about picking our particular flavors at this point. The flavors are ver subtle and will come with time and experience. Try to find the differences between one cigar and the next. You may or may not notice that one is spicier or smoother than the other. Smoke slowly, one puff a minute is a good gauge.
Drink something neutral like water when smoking. Some drinks can overpower your palate. If you are a cigarette smoker this can also affect your taste.
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...t=flavor+wheel
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Just like Bob says, it takes awhile to start actually noticing the flavors. I recommend you write down whatever you can about the cigar you smoke, and do some comparisons. This may not help you taste the cigars better but it will remind you what you've smoke and what you liked.

Also if you drink while you smoke, try pairing tht smoke with water.
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Silly thought... are you inhaling?
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What cigars are you finding this nasty harshness in? It may be that your palate is getting used to the smoke, but it might also just be that the cigars you are smoking simply taste bad. It took me a while as a newb to realize, wow, not all cigars taste sour and nasty, some of these things are delicious! A lot of NC cigars simply don't have any good flavor to them, so you might be looking for something that isn't there. The key is taking recommendations from knowledgeable BOTLs and trying a wide variety. You WILL find cigars that you like, and in which you can pick up interesting flavors, but it will take time and experimentation to find out what you look for in a cigar.
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Your palette really develops with time and smoking different cigars.
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:-)

Also you should try to pay attention to everything when you eat or drink. I don't know if you cook a lot but the rack of spice is a very nice start, anyway worked for me. If you cook, try to find in your cooked food the spice youve been adding and you will see your palate will devellop quick. But as many mentionned It takes time. Also there are association that need to be made between scent and taste, I never tasted oak wood or cedar but I have a pretty good idea of the taste due to the scent, hope this help

Frenchie
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The other possibility is that maybe cigars just aren't for you. :-)
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Based on the description, that sounds like a distinct possibility.
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What kind of cigars are you smoking? There are some really bad ones out there after all.
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18 years, you've smoked a hanful of different cigars and you can't distingush any flavours other than harsh. No biggee, thats a start.
I've been smoking cigars for longer than you've been alive & I can't distingush certain flavours either.
Some people have a delicate pallet & give Martha Stewart type reviews, taste of nutmeg, vanilla, chocolate etc. Others have a simpler method, it sucks, it didn't suck, and wow that works for me.
Keep asking questions, listen to the advice, use what works for you disregard the rest. Taste is subjective, what one person likes another won't.

One day you'll smoke that one cigar that makes ya go, Hey I get it. Then yur f***ed!
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