[wayner123]

Here are the results and discussion from that experiment:

First off, a big THANK YOU to each one who participated. I hope the results prove helpful to the community as a whole.

So then, on to my theories. I had thought about food and tasting for a while and I wondered if the food we eat plays a part in “how” we taste a cigar. I mean every description one has for flavors, has to of come from a previous experience with said flavor. But what if a person has not had that particular flavor? Or they may have had it, but it was not fresh or burned into their brain?

My theory was that when a flavor is not known the brain then short circuits and tries to link it up with another flavor. Most likely, one that is most prominent in the cigar or a flavor that one attributes to cigars (tobacco). I also theorized that when this short circuit happens it may sometimes link up with a flavor that is not desirable, and thus lead someone to think the cigar had a bad taste.


This is a short summary of each participant’s review of the cigar.

Volt
Beans – Pina colada, strawberry daiquiri, margarita
Flavors realized – sugary, tobacco, slight citrus

Blues Tiger
Beans – Peach, tangerine, grapefruit
Flavors realized – Peach, orange, slight grapefruit

Virginia Gent
Beans – Black pepper, cinnamon, A&W rootbeer
Flavors realized – black pepper, tobacco

Mark C
Beans – peanut butter, and 2 dove dark chocolate’s (not beans, but actual chocolate)
Flavors realized – Chocolate, woodsy taste (cedar maybe)

DennisP
Beans – watermelon, blueberry, plum, grass, dirt
Flavors realized – pepper, faint citrus, leather, nut/ burn coffee


Now for the kicker….

Each person had the same cigar. It was a 1989 Don Lino Maduro. This cigar line is brand new, so that may have accounted for the nic level (which I personally haven’t noticed). I apologize for the loose draws. The ones I have had from this batch had the same loose draw and I am talking with the makers of the cigar about it.

I proposed myself as the control (the basis for which the flavors would be measured). I would not say I can pick up more flavors than the next guy, but I have smoked enough of these to get a handle on the flavors realized. The flavors I get from these cigars are: A little spice, citrus, coffee and chocolate. The tobacco taste that is there is of a maduro pungent taste.


What does this tell us??

What I did is send each person one of the flavors I had experienced. All with the exception of DennisP (more on that later). So I had planned that each person would find that the beans given, would produce mostly that flavor. And for each one that’s mostly what happened. So what does that mean?

Well, that could mean a couple things. (I’ll give the possibilities and then my opinion as to which one I feel is correct.)

* It could be that the food item was fresh in the person’s mind. Therefore allowing the link to be made more easily.
* The person could have tasted that flavor because that is what they “thought” would be in the cigar and thus have created an imaginary link.
* It could be too that the when the beans did not help, the tobacco or spice flavor came about because that was the closest link to what they “should” be tasting.

(this list is not comprehensive, so if you feel there are some other reasons I would love to hear them)

My opinion is that number 1 is the most correct. I base that because each cigar was the same, but they experienced different flavors. And the only thing different were the food items. I also instructed them not to imagine flavors if they were not there. And everyone abided by the instructions.

Furthermore, DennisP did not receive any bean flavors which I felt would be in the cigar. This would allow him to review it and see if he could come across any of them. He did but very mildly. If he had the citrus or the chocolates, I think the link would have been much stronger.

So this to me, proves the link between tasting food and cigars. So you ask, how does that help me?

Well it has long been my assumption that people who claim they cannot taste flavors in cigars, can actually taste them, they just don’t know what they are. Or in other words the mental "links" are not there. So it does well to experience as many foods and flavors that you can and build up that rolodex of flavors.

I think this test proved my other theory as well. That when the link is not there people’s minds short circuit and they go to what taste is dominant or what they feel they should experience. When DennisP and Virginia Gent tasted only pepper and tobacco, those were two dominant flavors that they could find. I say that the other flavors were there, but they did not have the fresh link or a link at all on which to go back to. So they went with what they knew.

If you have made it this far, THANKS for reading. I hope this has proven a little bit helpful. I in no way think this is a ‘solve all’ for the tasting problems people have. My disclaimer is that everyone’s tastes are subjective. One person might find a flavor they like, while another person hates that same flavor. But I think that it would help everyone to experience more of the foods and flavors in our world in order to build up the databank in which to get the most of our cigars.

If anyone has other thoughts on the results, please post them. I know I may have missed some points that others may see. Thanks again to all who helped!!