Good afternoon all. I just wanted to let you know that I have a bunch of Japanese style coals that I am blowing out on eBay this weekend. 160 coals for a starting bid of $4.44 plus shipping. These are some excellent coals that I use daily. Are they Coco’s…no. But they also don’t cost what Coco’s cost. They last quite a while, usually around an hour and a half for me. I use three sets of two coals each on my large bowl on my rig, and that is pretty hot. They don’t have an odor and they ash pretty cleanly as long as you aren’t in a direct heavy wind.

I definitely like these, so give them a try. You can’t beat the price. By the way, I also have some hookahs on eBay this weekend at auction starting at $48 for a 28-31 inch rig. Check them out.

Until next time, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha!

Good afternoon all!

As you may have noticed lately, I have been expanding my view of shishas. I have decided that there must be other brands out there that I have tried, but not enough to get a good taste for their overall product. Fantasia is a perfect example of this. I have been such a snob over the years that I discount the shisha that I believe is of a lesser quality. Once again, Fantasia is a perfect example of this.

For some reason, I have it in my head that this is not as high quality of product as say StarBuzz, Al Fakher, or Social Smoke. Maybe it is because of the fact that it can be purchased at cigarette stores, I am not sure. What I do know is that I have not been fair to this brand.

This weekend I tried the Cuban Mojito. Wow! This has an amazing flavor to it. Very Limey and you can almost taste the alcohol, it is such a good match! There is an ever so slight mint hit at the very end, making the finish quite unique. The cut is a very small clean cut, and the moistness of the tobacco is fabulous. I think it may be a bit too moist, but I think they package it this way knowing it may be sitting on a shelf in a cigarette store for quite some time. Having said that, I have never had any of the fantasia that I have bought be dry in any way.

This is a really good flavor and I recommend you give it a go. Until next time, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha!

Good morning all.

Okay, I admit it. I am a shisha snob! I love Al Fakher and I have a hard time smoking anything else. I want to address this issue today by talking about my latest Jewels experience.

So, I picked up some more Jewels to review, this time Peach. This stuff smells great! It has a great aroma even with the packaging and the box still surrounding it. When you open it up, you see its weakness. This shisha is just too dry. When you smoke a bowl and clean it out later, it becomes evident. You know how normal shisha may have a little charring around the edges or on top? This whole bowl is charred and black, which can lead to a really harsh smoke. Since this isn’t my first rodeo, I am able to avert this with good heat management. But for the newbie who buys Jewels because it is cheap, they are in for a horrible smoking experience and probably will think the rest of us are nuts for enjoying this pastime.

So make sure when you are introducing hookah to someone, that you smoke good stuff and let them know some of the ins and outs so that they can replicate there experience with you, with others.

As always, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha!

Good Morning All!

As my colleague, Jonathan, looked at his ThinkGeek calender this morning he noticed that it is Star Wars Day. I asked, “Why today?”. “May the Fourth?”, was his snide reply. So, to all of you Star Wars freaks out there, myself included enthusiastically, Happy Star Wars Day! And May The Fourth, be with you!

Photo: Courtesy kevindooley

Good afternoon all!

I just wanted to let you know about a site that you may have seen me mention before. It is BuyHookah.com. It is not only a great retail site, with all of your shisha, hookahs and accessories. It also has a great blog and a couple other areas to check out. Especially the Wiki Project. This is an informational section on the hookah lifestyle and world. Be sure to give it a look when you get a chance.

More reviews to come from me, so keep visiting. Thanks a bunch.

Until next time, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha!

Good Morning All!

In honor of Saint Patrick’s Day, I wanted to post a video review that was at least, green! So, I looked back at some of these videos I did a few months ago and that I haven’t yet posted here, and I got excited all over again. Social Smoke Lime, Faith and Begorrah, this is good stuff! Look at the golden tobacco in there! This is a very natural tobacco and I am a pretty big fan of most of their flavors. This is a citrus, so you know I love it! I hope you enjoy the video.

Check it out for yourself. If you like citrus, I know you will love this.

Until next time, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha, and may the “Luck of the Irish” be with you!

Many historians believe that the ancient Sumerians and Mesopotamians were brewing as early back as 10,000 B.C. Even though this product would have been different from the bottles varieties of today, it would have still been recognizable. The ancient Egyptians and the Chinese brewed their beer, as did civilizations in America, where they used corn instead of barley. Back then, thousands of years ago, microbrews were very popular and on their way to what we now know and love today. In the middle ages, European monks were the guardians of literature and science, as well as the art of making beer. They refined the process to perfection, and even institutionalized the use of hops as both flavoring and a preservative. It wasn’t however, until Louis Pasteur came along that a final, important development was determined. Until this time, brewers had to depend on the wild yet airborne yeast for fermentation. By establishing that yeast is actually a living organism, he opened the gates for controlling the conversion of sugar into alcohol. Grapes grow well in warmer climates, while barley grows better in cool climates. This is how the northern areas of Germany and England first became famous for their beers. Beer in America Everything in America went dim until the dark day of 1920, when prohibition took effect. A lot of breweries went out of business or switched their production to soda pop. Not everyone stopped drinking, but gangster related products weren’t known for high quality. When Franklin D. Roosevelt became president, he quickly repealed the very unpopular law. The new breeds of now famous beer came after World War2 were generally mass produced and very bland.

If you adore lager and have an interest in starting your house brewing system, then there are one or two important things that you are likely to need to be aware of here. Beginning your own home beer brewing system is really not all that difficult, but it is important to follow the given steps so that you know that you are going to be doing it correctly.

To start your own home brewing system, the 1st thing that you wish to do is work out what kind of beer you have got an interest in brewing in your house. Maybe you like a few different types and want to have some variety, or you know that there is one specific type of beer that you would prefer to brew. Whatever the reality, the point is that you will likely need to get this worked out before you’ll be able to start brewing lager in your house.

Also for your home brewing system, of course you are going to need to equip yourself with all the necessary supplies. Chances are that you do not have the equipment and ingredients that you are going to need to brew beer in your home, and there are a few that are particularly important here.

For your house brewing system, you will need some brewpots and kettles. These are what are going to be used in the actual brewing process of the beer. You can’t use your ordinary saucepans because for one thing they don’t seem to be going to be huge enough, and also because you don’t wish to have lager residue left on the saucepans and then go to utilize them for cooking again later on.

To start a home brewing system, you really want to stick with a budget but at the same time ensure that you are getting the highest quality supplies possible so that they are going to be durable and last.

You also want to make sure, before you start with a home brewing system that you’re analyzed and know what you’re doing before you attempt to get going here. This way you are going to know what you are doing and will be a lot more understanding and less likely to have problems. Brewing your own lager at home can truly be plenty of fun but you only need to make sure you are correctly prepared first.

Before you begin your first batch of wine, it is a good idea to understand something of the background of wine and the basics of winemaking. Today there are certainly many kits which can be purchased which will walk you step by step through the process of winemaking. Even so, you may find that you enjoy and appreciate the results all the more for understanding the background of each step. Wine is produced by fermenting grapes that have been freshly harvested. While many people today have taken up an interest in winemaking, the actual process of making wine has remained relatively unchanged over the years. As we all know, yeast is essential to the fermentation process as part of making wine. Yeast actually grows on grape skins and then begins to automatically ferment the grape juice as the grapes are crushed. This begins the process of turning the grapes into wine. The combination of grape skins and grape juice is known as the must. When the mixture is in this phase of immersion it is known as maceration. This is one of the most important stages of winemaking, especially when making red wines. The actual color of red wine is obtained not from the juice inside the grapes but from the color of the grape skins. The juice inside all grapes, regardless of the skin color of the grape, is actually clear. In order for red wines to obtain their dark color they must extract the color from the skin of the grape. This is why black grapes are commonly used for the production of red wines. Conversely, light colored grapes are used for the production of white wines. During the actual fermentation process, the natural fruit sugar that is contained within the grapes undergoes a conversion process into equal parts of carbon dioxide and alcohol. As this process continues, heat is released. It is for this reason that stainless steel fermenters that can be temperature controlled are commonly used for the production of rather delicate white wines. This prevents the wine from ‘cooking.’ The ripeness of the grapes and the sugar content contributes to the level of alcohol that is produced during the fermentation process. The time at which the fermentation process is stopped can also contribute to the alcohol level as well. The dusty look of grapes, frequently referred to as their bloom, is produced by yeasts. The skins of grapes contain what is known as vinegar bacteria. Once exposed to air, vinegar bacteria can spoil new wine quite quickly. As a result, it is necessary to eliminate wild yeasts in order to avoid ruining the taste and the aroma of the wine. Winemakers use a centuries old process of utilizing sulfur dioxide to kill the vinegar bacteria as well as slow the growth of other bacteria and molds in the wine. Sulfites can also help to cease the browning or oxidation of wine as well as preserve its flavor. Generally, the amount of sulfur dioxide that is used in the winemaking process is quite small. Typically, only between 60 and 125 parts per million are used. It is important to understand that even if no sulfur dioxide is added to the wine, there will still be some sulfites present in the wine due to the fact that they will be produced from fermenting yeasts. This is why all wines that are purchased in the United States contain the label “Contains Sulfites” on the bottle.

Good afternoon all!

Well, I guess it is time for another contest here at Hookahwhisperer.com. This weeks contest is really cool in my opinion! The company I work for sells these scripted words on our Webstore, Sales-Happen.com. You can find them under Word Decorations in the home Decor tab, or just click on the link. Who wants the same boring old poster on your wall when you can personalize your space with a meaningful word instead! All Eco-Friendly by the way since they’re made from recycled material & then painted with a high quality finish. These Scripted Words are provided to us for this contest by a most excellent company called ASAP. They are a really great company and are the fastest order shippers we work with. Gillian, who is our contact there, is also truly awesome, and the best at customer service.

Anyway, as you can see by the picture above, the word decoration we are giving away is “BREATHE”. How appropriate for us hookah-holics! So, here is what you have to do to enter.

All you need to do to enter is to leave a comment below. For extra entries do any or all of the following:

Subscribe to this blog
Follow my blog
Post this contest on your blog
Post this contest on Twitter
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Stumble this post
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The more extra entries you do, the better your chances are to win this great word decoration! Be sure to leave a comment for each extra that you do. Don’t forget to leave your email address so I can contact you if you win! Contest closes on Friday March 11th, 2011, so start posting! Good luck!

Now, we also sell hundreds of other word decorations from ASAP on our site, Sales-Happen.com. So go check them out and see if there are others you like.

Until next time, remember: Life is too short to smoke cheap shisha!