Nakhla Hookah Tobacco: Carnival of the Shisha
A review of hookah tobacco offered by Nakhla.
We’ll be breaking down some tobacco reviews here on the HoBlog. This one is the tried and true: Nakhla.
Much of what hookah smoking is today is owed to Nakhla. This Egyptian company has been there from the near beginning: Almost 100 years ago they began the process of adding fragrance and flavor to shisha tobacco in order to differentiate their product. In the 1980’s they began using artificial flavoring to diversify their offering, and that’s a big part of why hookah smoking is gaining popularity world wide.
Nakhla tobacco is in many ways a standard. 9/10 hookah bars will carry Nakhla as their main tobacco. With higher resistance to humidity changes, Nakhla is much easier to use than many other tobaccos; it smokes well almost every time. The consistency is generally dryer than most other tobaccos, yet will resist drying out with the best of them.
Hookah tobaccos offered by Nakhla have their weak points though: the flavors are sometimes much more artificial than other, more nuevo tobaccos, like Al Fakher or American tobacco Tangiers. Think Jolly Rancher Grape, more than actual grapes.
One of the standout flavors of Nakhla is the powerful cappuccino flavor.
Try smoking some cappuccino Nakhla with coffee in the vase for real thick smoke and the rich aroma of being at a coffee roaster. Their other non-fruit flavors are also solid, such as pistachio, jasmine or rose. Their cherry is among the best of any brand out there (but again it’s more of a candied cherry than pitted cherry flavor). Their melon and peach are probably the most popular flavors for those taking a drag. Finally, their Double Apple (which has an anise taste) is a mainstay both in Egypt and in bars across the States.
Overall, Nakhla is an inexpensive utility tobacco, great to have around in quantities for groups, with a few favorites that can contend with the best hookah tobaccos out there.
Hookah Tobacco Review: Nakhla
Type: Utility Tobacco
Signature Flavor: Double Apple
Best Flavors: Cherry, apricot, peach, melon, cappuccino, pistachio, rose, jasmine
Worst Flavors: Mixed fruit, strawberry
Price: $5-$9 per 250 grams
Ease of Use: 8/10
Overall: 6/10
[...] will notice a little bit more “natural” flavor with this tobacco than say Nakhla, which means that when you pace the hose, the person on the receiving end won’t have to ask, [...]
June 2nd, 2008 at 5:39 pm
[...] say Blackberry from Margarita: Dark red vs yellow-green. The texture is the same oily feel as Nakhla, but perhaps a bit more. Overall, it feels like taking a tobacco like Nakhla or Al Waha and [...]
July 28th, 2008 at 4:22 am
[...] less juicy and adapts a little better to climate than Al Fakher, maybe a mix between Al Fakher and Nakhla, which is a [...]
July 30th, 2008 at 11:48 am
[...] on old Sulty. As said above, the cappuccino and double apple along with their rose are as good as Nakhla. Their jasmine is probably the best flavor they have, and probably my #1 choice in the jasmine [...]
July 30th, 2008 at 11:50 am
[...] Nakhla Cappuccino. What a beautiful flavor. In the totem pole of flavors, this one ranks right near the top for me, especially when some real cappuccino is down there in your chamber, keeping the party alive. [...]
August 21st, 2008 at 5:48 pm
my favorite Nakhla tabac is the doble apple and the pistacho,amazing tastes.
do you recomend me the jasmin tabac.
September 8th, 2008 at 10:52 am
The Jasmine is very good with Nakhla, probably one of the best Jasmine on the market since its difficult to find Sultan anymore (which surprisingly, got jasmine just right).
September 14th, 2008 at 10:46 pm