First Attempt With Tangiers

[Yasseah]

Tried some Tangiers Peach in the Crown micro Phunnel last night. It got harsh after 15 minutes but damn, the flavor and buzz were intense, so I've definitely seen the light. Now just need some advice for how to get the technique down. Here's what I did, tried to go by the books according to what I've read online and the instructions in the packaging:

[i]Out of the bag the shisha smelled really good. Smelled mostly like peaches, and just barely like soy sauce, so I spread it out on a big plate and let it sit for a couple hours.

Then loaded it up into the micro phunnel, a little more densely than usual and packed it to where some of the tobacco was sticking a little higher than the rim. 2 layers of HD foil.

2 CoCo nara halves.

After a few minutes I was getting small but tasty clouds and got so buzzed I had to sit down, lol. And after 15 minutes or so it just got really harsh.[/i]

Think I'll let it sit out for another few hours tonight before smoking again and see if that helps. Any other ideas? Edited February 17, 2011 by Yasseah

[jorlyfish]

Others might disagree with me here (Travis, I'm looking at you), but try packing even tighter. I'm not sure what "a little more densely than usual" is for you (pics?), but I pack Tangiers very tightly. Your amount of coal sounds right - same as what I use on my Crown micro, although I've been doing 4 1/4ths more often now when I'm not being lazy.

[agunn1231]

yeah, i always use 4 1/4 pieces co a coconara coal and get good flavor and big clouds for a long time...the coals usually last about 45 minutes then i light the second round and so on, usually get a 2-3 hour session before getting tired of smoking of what ever.

[ezxen]

low heat tight pack

[Yasseah]

Tried again afgter letting it sit out for a few more hours. Packed it as tight as I know how, then used 4 1/4 coco's, got harsh, moved down to 2, still un-smokeable. :-/

[agunn1231]

man i dunno what to tell ya?

[Sychosis Dragon]

I, personally, just use two Coco Naras with a large vortex bowl, but I only pack it about halfway up, fairly tightly, it still gets slightly harsh but it's no more unbearable than any Al Fakher tobacco. It seems to work for me.

[Chaz1337]

You may be over packing it. Pack it the same consistency that it came in the package. Then pack it to where its slightly below the foil rim. Poke a LOT of holes, as many as you can fit on the foil and go to town. Try that and see if it helps. Sometimes I have noticed with tangiers that you need more heat. If you are getting flavor but a tickle in the back of your throat then move the coals more towards the middle of the phunnel opening and/or throw on a windcover. Its insane how much this slight change can improve the smoke volume, harshness, and taste!

[king_lunchb0x]

I ran into the same problem with my Hj alien. Could never get noir to not be right balance. either good smoke but super harsh, or thin/no smoke but ok flavor. So i just use my tang phunnel for noir. It's easy for packing and heat management

[Rani]

[quote name='king_lunchb0x' timestamp='1298062424' post='498358']
I ran into the same problem with my Hj alien. Could never get noir to not be right balance. either good smoke but super harsh, or thin/no smoke but ok flavor. So i just use my tang phunnel for noir. It's easy for packing and heat management
[/quote]

Harshness almost always means too much heat, but remember heat is a variable. Depending on the ceramic used in the bowls, thickness of foil, etc., all kinds of things can effect heat transfer - not just what we most commonly think of, the coals. The more holes you have in the foil the less heat can build up under it. After several years of smoking, for high heat tobaccos like Fantasia, I automatically cut the number of holes in half or even more. For Tangiers the foil should almost look like lace it's got so many good sized holes in it. And again, there's the ceramic of the bowl and how it transfers heat. The reason Tangiers phunnels work so well on Tangiers is because they're literally made for the stuff. Though I don't smoke Tangiers exclusively out of phunnels. I can get a great smoke out of an Egyptian with Tangiers, so it's really a trial and error process. The very first moment you catch that first hint of harshness, you need to back off the heat immediately. Mid-smoke the only way to do that is to take off a coal bit or two.

'Rani

[king_lunchb0x]

[quote name='Rani' timestamp='1298080478' post='498382']
[quote name='king_lunchb0x' timestamp='1298062424' post='498358']
I ran into the same problem with my Hj alien. Could never get noir to not be right balance. either good smoke but super harsh, or thin/no smoke but ok flavor. So i just use my tang phunnel for noir. It's easy for packing and heat management
[/quote]

Harshness almost always means too much heat, but remember heat is a variable. Depending on the ceramic used in the bowls, thickness of foil, etc., all kinds of things can effect heat transfer - not just what we most commonly think of, the coals. The more holes you have in the foil the less heat can build up under it. After several years of smoking, for high heat tobaccos like Fantasia, I automatically cut the number of holes in half or even more. For Tangiers the foil should almost look like lace it's got so many good sized holes in it. And again, there's the ceramic of the bowl and how it transfers heat. The reason Tangiers phunnels work so well on Tangiers is because they're literally made for the stuff. Though I don't smoke Tangiers exclusively out of phunnels. I can get a great smoke out of an Egyptian with Tangiers, so it's really a trial and error process. The very first moment you catch that first hint of harshness, you need to back off the heat immediately. Mid-smoke the only way to do that is to take off a coal bit or two.

'Rani
[/quote]

willing to try it again when new shipment comes in..

[rahl071]

pack it really tight. Three rings of holes. use three halves, suicide style (hanging half off) to heat, 120 degrees apart. if it starts to tickle your throat, take the coals off.

[cotsi95]

[quote name='rahl071' timestamp='1298104845' post='498427']
pack it really tight. Three rings of holes. use three halves, suicide style (hanging half off) to heat, 120 degrees apart. if it starts to tickle your throat, take the coals off.
[/quote]

Actually a tickle in the back of the throat usually means its not acclimated. just fyi.....but my advise...pack tighter.

[Travis]

Before you question what I'm going to say, try it first, then call me a fool.

Start with 1 CCN half, then after 5-10 minutes throw the second half on if needed. With a smaller bowl like that you need to gradually increase the heat on the bowl, otherwise your going to torch it....like you've already done a few times now. If you have a windcover that would be useful as well. Throw the windcover on along with the SINGLE CCN half and see where that gets you.

Tangiers is tricky with higher heat output coals, such as CCN, CH,...mostly the coconut variety. But still very possible to make do with them.





Side note, Jordan: I'm keeping my windows covered from now on to keep you from being such a peeping tom.

[Yasseah]

[quote name='Travis' timestamp='1298114268' post='498437']
Before you question what I'm going to say, try it first, then call me a fool.

Start with 1 CCN half, then after 5-10 minutes throw the second half on if needed. With a smaller bowl like that you need to gradually increase the heat on the bowl, otherwise your going to torch it....like you've already done a few times now. If you have a windcover that would be useful as well. Throw the windcover on along with the SINGLE CCN half and see where that gets you.

Tangiers is tricky with higher heat output coals, such as CCN, CH,...mostly the coconut variety. But still very possible to make do with them.[/quote]


Makes sense. Cool, I'll try that, with the windcover. If I still can't get it I'll start over and try with the tangiers bowl. Thanks for the replies, guys

[jorlyfish]

[quote name='Travis' timestamp='1298114268' post='498437']
Side note, Jordan: I'm keeping my windows covered from now on to keep you from being such a peeping tom.
[/quote]

<3

[Yasseah]

Still no success.

How much should the shisha be touching the foil? Just a little or should I overpack? Should the foil be basically sitting on the shisha?

And should I poke holes all the way to the bottom with this or will that mess with the dense pack?

[IainUM]

pack it pretty full if it is noir. if lucid, it is a little less finicky. i always have tobacco touching foil, but it couldn't hurt to poke through all the way to the bottom of the bowl.

if you look for it, chris (incubusratm) has some nice videos that im sure he would love to show you (that he filmed with his new camera) showing how to pack tangiers into phunnels and whatnot.

hope this helps and i hope you get good results

[Yasseah]

How is this hole pattern?
[IMG]http://i53.tinypic.com/iqljrr.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i52.tinypic.com/2mnpwlc.jpg[/IMG]

[joytron]

Did you intentionally slip brave new world into the pic?

[Yasseah]

[quote name='joytron' timestamp='1298580015' post='499299']
Did you intentionally slip brave new world into the pic?
[/quote]

Lol nah, that's next to my bed so it was just sitting on the floor next to the hookah from the night before. Anyway, that's the hole pattern I always use with the Micro, works great for everything else- wonder if I should do something different for Tangiers maybe?

[king_lunchb0x]

[quote name='Yasseah' timestamp='1298581315' post='499302']
[quote name='joytron' timestamp='1298580015' post='499299']
Did you intentionally slip brave new world into the pic?
[/quote]

Lol nah, that's next to my bed so it was just sitting on the floor next to the hookah from the night before. Anyway, that's the hole pattern I always use with the Micro, works great for everything else- wonder if I should do something different for Tangiers maybe?
[/quote]

have you tried using more holes? or adding shisha as you go. this is what the maker Eric says to try:
First, the most common problem for new Tangiers smokers is not enough tobacco. The second most common problem is too much charcoal. We'll work through it and find the happy medium for both.

We're going to get the amount of tobacco right and then the amount of charcoal.

In terms of th correct amount of Quicklight charcoal to use:Based on a 33mm quicklight coal, for a large Tangiers bowl, use all four pieces. For a medium or a small, use 3/4 of a 33mm...or three pieces. for a mini, between 1/2 and 3/4 of a 33mm. If you are using Japanese style coal, substitute one quarter of a bar for each quarter of a 33mm quicklight coal. We'll work our way up to using that much...but we'll take it easy for a little while.

First, put the amount of Tangiers you think is the right amount in the bowl. Put foil on it and add holes to the foil in whatever way you like to put holes in the foil.

Now add about 1/3 to 1/2 the amount of charcoal you would normally put on the bowl. We're going to start with a little coal and get the amount of tobacco right and then add more charcoal later. If you like to use gunpowder disks, break them into four pieces before you light them.

How does it smoke? Give it five or ten minutes. Even if its the right amount of tobacco, it may take a little while to smooth out. If its satisfactory, but light, add another lit charcoal...if it gets harsher, remove the charcoal.

If the smoke is very thin and harsh, you don't have enough tobacco in the bowl. Take the charcoal off, carefully remove the foil and add a glob of tobacco about the size of a peanut M&M...or a pinch. For this, use tobacco from the bottom of your tub...don;t just take it off the top of the tub. Add this amount to the bowl, use the same foil, put the same amount of charcoal back on. Did it improve? Good. Repaet this, adding pinches of tobacco until the smoke stops getting thicker and more flavorful...i.e. it stops getting better. Then add a little more coal and see how its smoking then. If it gets harsh, take the coal back off. If the smoke gets thicker and better tasting, then try a little more and a little more until you find the hrashness point and then back off some on the charcoal. This is the right amount of tobacco and charcoal to use.

[Yasseah]

^Sweet, I'm going to try that tonight. I get harsh smoke with with 2 quarters of a coco nara which must mean that I need to pack it even fuller/denser.