Not getting the taste...diabetes?

[grumpybaldy]

So... ('cos everyone seems to start whoever they say now with 'so...'(!)) - I'm really not getting much taste from the cigars I'm trying. I'm a newbie so it could be my palate has yet to adjust to pick-up all the subtle nuances of cedar, pepper, leather, chocolate, grass, old girls friends etc which you more experienced types so easily discern. However, it's increasingly true of curries and other flavorsome dishes too and I'm wondering if it's another drawback of the Type 2 diabetes which I sleep-walked into a few years back. Does this chime with anyone else? If I'm never going to get the full experience, I'm starting to think I should give up on CC and go for NC (or even give-up completely as, let's face it, diabetes and cigars aren't the best mix!), or does it improve?

[cj121]

If you can pick up all of those 'flavours' and tastes, you'll be doing bloody well GB, so go easy on yourself and your buds. Is your sense of smell ok as that's closely connected to taste.

If you've not seen it before, there is the cigar or flavour wheel which can prompt the memory into 'recognising' flavours. Might be worth having a peek and see if you can improve on identifying a few things. You know, pencil lead, flip-flop or lady garden

[Kwak Rider]

So........ As another Newb I am probably the same regarding nuances, I am at the stage of "nice smoke", "nice strong smoke" or "mmm...not sure I like that" so I'm not sure how much your Type 2 plays a part in that .
As an "avid" drinker of whisky for many years I don't really get some of the subtle nuances some other drinkers speak of either so I think you can probably train your palate to a degree but I'm not sure how far, I think you either get it or not. I've yet to taste a "droplet of dew dripping from a newly emerged oak leaf" in anything I've smoked or drank yet . I believe the joy is in smoking/drinking what you enjoy and don't get too hung up on looking for the subtleties.

I'm sure those who are further on the journey may have a different take on this.
Kev

[Bigboned]

Mate I'm a type 2 diabetic also AND have been smoking cigars for several years, if I've had a break off them for a few months which happens for me then it takes a few before I pic up the tastes. I also find that for some sticks they are just bland and do nothing for me-I assume my palette isn't that hot yet!
I do make a point tho of not having strong flavored drink with a cigar I don't know to help with the tasting and often have water with a little lemon juice. Basically since becoming type 2 a few years ago my tastes or ability to distinguish hasn't altered much but my experience levels have altered my palette 10 fold. Don't loose heart. Once Deano pulls his finger out and gives me pm back I can drop you a line if you want to discuss offline

[cj121]

Might have to wait a while so that grumpy can get them too. He's only posted three times since last November

[Emaresee]

FWIW if i simply stop drinking diet coke for a week my taste buds change... for the better and then urge to have a cold blast of caffeinated loveliness takes over again..

But more seriously, i am happy to stake my eyes on a blast of apricot in the middle of a stick... so much so that I thought i must have accidentally dabbed it against something... anyway.... where i am going is that I am constantly surprised by what i can and cannot taste... my wife wont sit with me if i am smoking a partagas... she absolutely cant stand the smell of the blend.... and has yet to blink anything else...

hang in there as long as its fun

[dvickery]

I believe the joy is in smoking/drinking what you enjoy and don't get too hung up on looking for the subtleties.

This is wisdom

derrek

[jimmy_g32]

I agree entirely that picking out seven varieties of leather scent in a cigar is asking a lot! Nonetheless, type 2 diabetes has been linked to affecting taste BUT, as others say, it's all about the enjoyment, regardless of quite how sharp (or, in my case, dull) your taste buds are!


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[Shaun]

Has anyone ever eaten leather to know what it tastes like?

Seriously though, I just tend to think... this is nice or..... this isnt nice. I cant pick out tiny nuances of flavour, my last cigar didnt taste like shortbread dipped in chocolate either

[WDave40]

It's taken me quite a while to get to the point where I can say "this tastes of chocolate" or "this is earthy", but as several people above have said: all that matters is that you're enjoying the taste.

If you can't taste anything then it would maybe be time to take a break. No point wasting smokes if you're not getting any enjoyment

[Gus Fring]

My wife's amazing at picking out flavours and scents. She'll come into my man cave, have a couple of puffs of whatever I'm herfing and she'll sometimes rhyme off a full list of different flavours, leaving me gobsmacked. I've seen me refer to online reviews of cigars to see if she's bluffing but no; she nails it almost every time. I've only just arrived at the point where I've identified that nuts and marzipan usually start appearing around the half way mark just after I've tipped my ash but even that's touch-and-go.

I've no idea how she does it.

[Harvey Spectre]

In a previous job many moons ago I was trained as a wine taster. My job was to taste wine that had travelled from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc in tankers to the UK where it would be bottled. The 50,000 litre tanker would arrive, I'd have a taste and if it was what we were expecting I'd give the OK to offload.

The training was quite intense and had me tasting hundreds of different wines over a short period of time where you were told what to expect. This allowed me to learn over time what the tastes were that I was experiencing. For most people its hard to distinguish something particular among many different flavours until someone says "that's apple" or "that's grass". Some people just find it quite easy.

I assume cigars are the same however I don't smoke enough or as regularly to do direct comparisons and don't have someone to tell me what to expect or pick out. The one thing I learned from wine tasting and has been mentioned in this thread is "if it tastes good - its good!"

Harvey

[Bigboned]

Might have to wait a while so that grumpy can get them too. He's only posted three times since last November

yea must admit i didnt check the original date, like a twat

[the pondering moose]

*stops chewing on belt for a second* mmm leathery (but with a hint of waistband)

But seriously...

I'm just starting to pick out certain flavours and tastes in smokes. I've had one or two true "whoa chocolate!" moments which have been great, and I think I'm good at picking out almonds...but on the whole it's a yum/not yum experience. IMHO, give it time and don't chalk it necessarily to reduced sensation due to diabetes.

As an aside. I'm getting good at nose and taste of whisky, but that's taken a lot of practice, and I think a lot of taste notes generally are written by so called super tasters (which it sounds like Se?ora Fring might be). They've got a genetic advantage...

[grumpybaldy]

Thanks, all, for your wise words. I'll definitely persist, happy to be at the 'do I like this particular cigar?' stage rather than worrying about finding the pepper-leather-almonds!