8/31/07

Pimp Your Hookah order

Well, I finally got my order from Pimp your hookah yesterday. Ordered on the 16, it was shipped out the 20, arrived on the 29th and sat at the post office until the 30th.

I feel bad for making such a small order (and uninvertently taking advangae of his free shipping deal), but I wanted to see how good he was (reopening his shop) and I wanted some SB & Layalina.

Starbuzz 100g Sample pack w/ 1k Starbuzz Coals
(White Peach, X on the Beach, and Marlette)
Blue Med Base Protector
Layalina Blueberry (250g)

Went to pick up the box, the ladies there had a good giggle over the "Pimp Your Hookah" sticker on the top/bottom of the box (which I suggest NOT doing in the future). The tapes up edges were coated in a "dark grainy" material from the inside, but otherwise the box was intact.

Opened, was surprised at the 100g tins of the SB, got 2 Base Protectors (ordered and a red one) and the Layalina was good too. The SB coals where in a box, that was stuck in the outer box - i ripped it trying to get it out. Found out the coal dust was from the ripped inner plastic bag, but there wasn't much he could have done about that.

SB smells great. So does the Layalina Blueberry... the coal is standard NATURAL lump coal, but some of the chuncks are freaking HUGE - as big as my hand! I've got to find a container for it.

Other that the coal dust everywhere and the lack of tracking number (which an email took care of), it was a good experience. I'll probably order from him again in the future - his prices for Layalina and Al Fakher are great, plus he offers various great deals!

Also got a package from Sambooka of Hookah Pro - he just sent back the hose covers I made too short, but enlcosed a 250g box of Nahkla Peach - which was very good, although not a true peach taste, more of a necturine or apricot, but tastie never the less. Video reviews this weekend.

Mahir from Nazar Hookah will be back from his vacation soon, so I'll get my Nammors and AW Orange Cream very soon - :) me so happy!

8/20/07

Pharaoh Exotic Peach Review

Brand and Flavor: Pharaoh Exotic Peach

Shisha Cut: med w/ stems, light to med brown in color. Drippy (when mixed).

Hookah Type: 27" Syrian, 17" Modern, 22" Egyptian

Duration: 1hr to 2hr

Bowl: glass, standard clay, deep clay

Foil / Screen: foil (all)

Coal / Amount: (2) 33m goldens (broken), (2) 1-1.5" Dinamite Natural Fingers

Smoke: thick

Buzz: med to heavy (don't chimney)

Smell / Flavor: Smell was awesome! Sweet yummie peachy goodness. Mouthwatering! Taste was the same - peachy goodness. Alittle on the sweet side, but not overpoweringly so. Very good and long lasting taste.

Rating (1 to 10): 9.5-10

Possibly my Absolute number 1 shisha flavor I've smoked yet. This even out ranked SB White Peach, but only due to price rather than any flaw w/ the shisha itself. Wonderful yummie peach smell & taste - well worth the 10$ price tag.

This can easily be smoked for and hour plus, even if you "smoke the hell out of it". The taste lasts till the last minuet and by the time it goes "burnt" you know it's done and over with.

One thing of note - do not underpack the bowl. For best results, do a normal packing (atleast 3/4'er of the bowl) to get the best life and smoke out of the shisha. Too little will give you less smoke and start to burn early.

Starbuzz Lemon Mint Review

Brand and Flavor: Starbuzz Lemon Mint

Shisha Cut: med, stems, dark green in color. Drippy.

Hookah Type: 22" Egyptian

Duration: 1hr 15min +

Bowl: standard clay

Foil / Screen: foil

Coal / Amount: 2" dinamite natural coal

Smoke: med to thick

Buzz: none

Smell / Flavor: Smell was a light lemon, with an undercurrent of mint. Taste was mint w/ a exhale of Lemon. Refreshing.

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFjndqq-hho

Rating (1 to 10): 7-8

I was very surprised with this flavor, I did expect alittle more Lemon flavor, but it was a good refreshing and relaxing smoke. Thankfully it doesn't seem to suffer the typical SB heat issues, but it could be I know SB has this issue and handled right.

Wish i had enough for a 2nd bowl, as I would have done a video review. I may even consider purchasing this flavor by itself, if it could be found at a decent price.

Recommended if located at a good price.

Nahkla Tropicania Review

Brand and Flavor: Nahkla Tropicania

Shisha Cut: typical nahkla, course and oil, dark brown in color.

Hookah Type: 22" Eypgtian

Duration: 15 min

Bowl: standard clay

Foil / Screen: foil

Coal / Amount: 2" dinamite natural coal finger

Smoke: thick

Buzz: heavy

Smell / Flavor: Smell was strong; overly fruity and heavy on the citrus. Taste was gross; sickenly sweet taste, mix-mash of fruit and lemon. Very strong and overpowering.

Rating (1 to 10): 2

I am glad I only bought a 50g pack of this flavor as the smell & taste (most importantly) was horrible. The smell was strong, the taste even worse - it was a horrible mix/mash of fruit + lemon, overpowering and somewhat nauseating. After 15 min of fighting w/ it I gave up and tossed the whole thing (even the unused).

Perhaps mixed (lightly) with mint it may have been smokable, but as it was, I considered unsmokable.

8/17/07

Hookah Pro Prize!


Well, I finally got my hookah - turns out the post office has it since the 6th and NOBODY told me! I even went there and picked up another package on the 8th and they said NOTHING! Damn it people!

But anyways, it's a nice steel 22" Eypgtian style hookah. Blue glass base, blue hose (non-washable) and a clay bowl. Bowl wouldn't stay on the stop (mouth was too narrow for the stem top) but I have several other bowls that fit fine.

Smoked him already - it's great! Hits like a champ! Nice and stable as well, works wonderfull!

Many thanks to Mahir from Nazar Hookah for the prize, was well as SamBooka, Admin of HookahPro!

I'll work on a new video for him once my PC it back up and running - it's refusing to Boot into Winsucks anymore... so I give, Linux here we come!

Nakhla Pistachio Review

Nakhla Pistachio

Shisha Cut: Typical Nakhla; medium, some stems. Medium to dark brown in color. Oily.

Hookah Type: 2-hose Syrian

Duration: 45-50min, 1hr 15min

Bowl: standard clay

Foil / Screen: 2 layers of thin foil, 1 sheet of thick coal

Coal / Amount: (3) 2” Dyinmite fingers, Windcover, (2) 33m Goldens (whole)

Smoke: Medium to Thick

Buzz: Nakhla typical – it will floor you if you aren’t careful

Smell / Flavor: Smell = Similar to unmade pistachio pudding mix. Taste = strange, hard to pin-point. Not a full “nutty” taste, not a pudding, a strange mix w/ a undertone of Almonds.

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYaI8TZmcWw

Rating (1 to 10): 6

The only reason for the middle-grade score is the strange taste. It’s not a bad taste, just very different. At first I wasn’t sure if I liked it, but now that I smoked it a second time, it seems to be growing on me.

May be good mixed with some Vanilla or Mint.

If you want a new experience, I highly recommend picking some up. For the price, even if you dislike it – you haven’t wasted too much money.

StarBuzz Chocolate Mint Review

StarBuzz Chocolate Mint

Shisha Cut: Medium, flaky, too many stems. Dark green in color. Drippy.

Hookah Type: 17” Modern, 27” Syrian

Duration: 1-1.5 hours

Bowl: glass bowl

Foil / Screen: pre-cut foil

Coal / Amount: Japanese silver tabs: 2 @ a time, 4 total

Smoke: Thick

Buzz: Mild to None

Smell / Flavor: Smell = a mild mint, with a slight undercurrent of chocolate, similar to a tootsie roll. Taste = the same, mild mint w/ barely any chocolate taste.

Rating (1 to 10): 7

This is a weak version of Chocolate Mint – Al Waha and Nakhla’s versions are considerably better. For a SB shisha, which is supposed to be a premium tobacco, I was slightly disappointed – both in taste, cut, and over all heat sensitivity.

I don’t recommend buying this shisha at it’s full price, but if you can get some for less, it’s still a decent smoke.

Video Review Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijvWDa9am24

8/3/07

Hookah-Hookah Pumpkin Pie Review

Brand and Flavor: Hookah-Hookah Pumpkin Pie

Shisha Cut: fine, no stems. Wet and slightly sticky. Brown in color.

Hookah Type: 30" Syrian

Duration: 35min

Bowl: standard clay

Foil / Screen: foil

Coal / Amount: (2) 1-1.25" finger coals

Smoke: light to med

Buzz: none

Smell / Flavor: Smell was very similar to Pumpkin Pie spices. Taste was similar, but not quite - had a strange incense like taste, but not unpleaseant.

Rating (1 to 10): 4

Although the taste was good, other issues destroyed this smoke. This HH flavor requires more heat than normal to get going, but due to the increased heat - the shisha BURNS faster, thus shortening the length of time BEFORE the shisha burns. Also, without the extra heat - I got almost NO smoke. Flavor, yes, but smoke - nope.

Starbuzz X on the Beach Review

Brand and Flavor: Starbuzz X on the Beach

Shisha Cut: choppy, med cut. Brown in color. Wet. Stems, but less than other SB.

Hookah Type: 17" Modern

Duration: 1hr 15min (becasue I was tired and stopped)

Bowl: mini-clay

Foil / Screen: foil, thin

Coal / Amount: 33m Goldens, broken in half. 2.5 used in total, 2 pieces at a time. W/ windcover.

Smoke: thick

Buzz: mild to med - did give me a slight headache

Smell / Flavor: Smell wasn't like the drink, but a sweet fruity smell. Yummie, but I couldn't pin-point it down. Taste was basically the same, but that didn't detract from the smoke - taste was very good and not overly sweet.

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iXHWEtsLuU

Rating (1 to 10): 9

This shisha is one of the better SB's I've smoked - Peach was the best so far. Less stems than the others, good taste, although was hard to pin-point what it really was. More heat tolerant than most SB. The only downfall was a slight headache it gave me, probably more my fault than the shisha.