Hookah Catering Content

Alternative ways to light a coal: How do you light your coals?

2010-01-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had the dilemma of inadequate heat source available, to light that CocoNara or Al Fakher coconut cube? Well, there are some really creative tools that can do the job.

Using a lighter to ignite a coconut charcoal is like dragging a whale with a riding lawn mower (...possibly a stretch). It's difficult, time consuming, and wasteful. You'd go through 2 lighters before getting one side lit. Below is a list of cost effective ways to light those damn inconvenient, however lovable, coals. I mean, how could you not love the long burn, absence of odor, and intense heat? They may not be as reliable as instant lights, but they sure are worth the tender care of a hookah enthusiast!

Portable Butane Stove:
A portable gas stove has been my number one mobile heat source. The initial investment is pretty low cost and the gas canisters last quite a while. Each canister lasts about 2 hours straight! Considering you only really need it on for 5 to 10 minutes, it can be seen why this is a great choice. Cans of butane gas (the fuel) can be purchased for about $2-$4 a can. The stove itself is between $20-$50... Not bad at all.

Heat Gun:
You thought a heat gun was just for drying paint or making toast when the oven breaks (... why not). Well you clearly underestimated the greatness and profoundness of this nifty hand gadget. Please don't confuse heat gun with blow dryer, they are very different =P. They come with multiple power settings. Make sure your model is at least 1500w, as this is enough to get those little bricks going in no time flat! If you take it somewhere, also get an extension cord - the cords on these units are never very long.

Electric stove:
I never thought they got hot enough, however I was wrong. An electric stove works pretty good. It's certainly not portable, unless you bring an arsenal of car batteries and a hell of an AC/DC transformer. But the consistency of lighting is phenomenal! From one corner to the next, the light is perfect. This is not so with the open flame style lighting techniques, which can very greatly due to the "wandering flame".
NOTE: Glass top, though it works, can be damaged from the intense heat of the coconut charcoals. As long as you don't mind some finely singed outlines on your (or someone else's ;D) glass top, you'll be fine. Coiled stoves work flawlessly.

If anyone has any other ideas for lighting charcoal, please post them! Also, I guess I should tell you to keep safe and not burn your house down while testing these great methods.

Methods yet untested:
Microwave (doubt it would work)
Laser (Not sure where to get a laser big enough)
Focused Sunlight (I'd like to see this gigantic freaking magnifying glass!)
Arc Welder (Possibly dangerous, I don't recommend, also might be a bit of an overkill)
Toaster?

Unbeatable Deal!

2010-01-19T19:35:00.001-08:00

Get a tall 26" hookah with some coal and shisha thrown in for only $85!
http://ping.fm/E7Dzy
You won't find a better deal anywhere! You get to pick the four flavors of shisha you will get with this package. The vase of the hookah can come in blue, silver, and green - once again, you choose. Most vendors act like it's a huge deal when they sell a tall hookah for under a $100. This is $85, and you get a whole starter pack - tobacco, coals, tongues... The whole 9 yards. Think about it.

Flavor Diaries: "Exotic" Blue Mist

2010-01-07T05:47:00.000-08:00

Flavor: Exotic Blue Mist
Brand: Starbuzz
Container: 100g Tin
Fuel: x2 Al-Fakher Coconut Charcoals
Bowl: Pyrex 10g bowl
Pipe: Acrylic Hookah 27"

Packaging / Properties: 5/5
Starbuzz brand shisha typically comes in a tin which is very handy to use.
Cut: Shredded
Liquid Concentration: Medium, Not Sticky, Not Dry

Scent/Flavor: 4.8/5
Flavor: The actual sent of the tobacco is that of blueberry pie. It smells very strong and fragrant.

Endurance: 5/5
The sample lasted about 70 minutes. This could be expected considering the bowl size. 6g of tobacco was used, when the standard bowl size is about 15g. The Pyrex glass bowls carry high surface area and low bowl depth. These bowls are perfect for trials, when little product is desired to be used. The only downfall is that with such little shisha you have a greater chance of overheating, creating a harsh taste. With a larger bowl which holds more tobacco you have less that can go wrong. This bowl is best in the hands of a hookah enthusiast whom doesn't mind shuffling the coal around in search of a "sweet spot" (i.e. The perfect volume of smoke, releasing the greatest flavor.)

The taste could be compared with mixing .75g of grape w/ 1.5g melon, .75g of mint, 3g blueberry. I believe mixing these flavors could emulate the experience.

Emulate:
4 parts Blueberry
2 parts Sweet Melon
1 part Mint
1 part Grape
(untested)

I would give this shisha a 4.6. To enjoy this flavor you you will need to enjoy the coolness of the menthol.

4.6/5

Perfect time to book a party!

2010-01-06T11:10:00.001-08:00

Now is the perfect time to book a party - getting hookahs catered to your next event is impressive to your guests & convenient to you! Birthdays, Spring Break celebrations, Graduations, House Parties, you name it... Hookah Catering, LLC will gladly service your next party by setting up beautiful tall hookahs, maintaining the coals, providing shisha flavors of your choice, and cleaning up afterward. Tons of flavors of tobacco to choose from! Let your guests sit back and enjoy cappuccino, banana strawberry, pina colada, or cola shisha. And that's just the beginning! Enhance the social experience of a party or event by letting people gather around a beautiful water pipe (or eight) with party lights. More info on www.hookah-catering.com - also check us out for unbeatable deals on hookahs, shisha, charcoal, and accessories! Got questions? Call the business line at (804)991-5550, we'll be more than happy to assist you. We are licensed with the Commonwealth of Virginia and not affected by the tobacco ban due to Hookah Catering, LLC being a mobile service.

Flavor Diaries: Citrus Mint

2009-12-28T16:46:00.001-08:00

Citrus Mint by Fusion is definitely an interesting flavor combination.

Flavor: Citrus Mint

Brand: Fusion

Fusion regards itself as a premium hookah flavored tobacco producer. The price is more modest than that of Starbuzz, while still maintaining respectable quality.

Packaging / Properties: 4.5/5

The sample received was a 50g hexagonal box with a small bag in it. Apparently people think hexagons are "in" now. I see no pluses for the awkward shape besides just being different. They really only stack in a honey comb fashion (which is entertaining for about 30 seconds) making them annoying to store. They're also quick to lose that shape and just be awkward squished cartons. Anyways, the bags seem leak proof and clean.

The tobacco itself is extra sticky and gooey and maintains a nice lemony aroma; a very refreshing and invigorating scent. The chop is very fine and the entire mix almost has the texture of toothpaste. Although the juiciness is nice and appetizing, shisha is rather difficult to break up because of its gelatinous properties. You could practically spread it with a knife. Because of this texture, you would require to use almost the entire bag in a 30g bowl.

Scent/Flavor: 4.7/5

With the use of 2 hot coconut charcoals I begin the experiment. I added about 6 drops of lemon juice to the base, in order to add more of a citrus kick. The bowl used was a 30g Mya bowl: slightly larger than the standard 25g bowl. After about 2 minutes of heat, we were getting great smoke. The flavor was very familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it, at first. Imagine a lemony-orange minty smell; strong and fragrant.... I realized that it tasted exactly to how pine-sol smells. Yes, this was floor cleaner flavored! At first it was strange, however it grew on me and actually was very delicious. The mint is rather subtle in the beginning, but as time passes, it becomes more and more pronounced.

Endurance: 4/5

The endurance of the smoke was very long, potent, and resilient. The bowl smoked for about 90 minutes with 4 people dragging on it. There were no complications with the heat destroying the flavor. Strong flavor maintained until the end of the smoking session.

Overall: 4.2/5

Citrus Mint is truly a strong flavor. It lasts a very long time and maintains a durable flavor. The long duration could come from the fact we used the entire 50g in the experiment. I would recommend getting a 250g box and experiencing it yourself. Citrus Mint has the freshest most invigorating taste I have ever had. Unless you hate or are sensitive to citrusy flavors, you will love Citrus Mint!

Flavor Diaries: S'mores

2009-12-21T23:33:00.000-08:00

Flavor: S'Mores

Brand: JM Tobacco

JM Tobacco produces not only hookah tobacco products, they also produce a wide variety of flavored cigars.

Packaging / Properties: 4.5/5

The sample we received was a 100g "tin" of finely diced tobacco. The tin gives the package a nice sturdy feel. After "popping" the top you will realize that you get the shisha bagged, of course, and an extra little JM Tobacco reseal-able plastic baggy. The baggy nicely stores all of the remaining unused portions. It's such a simple idea yet very few companies use it!

Examining the cut you will notice most shisha comes in shreds of leaves however this was cut quite finely. The shisha does not particularly look juicy and the smell is quite mild. The scent of the tobacco is more similar to hot cocoa mix. The tobacco is rather dry and not gooey. As I pack the bowl I notice I can fill the bowl while using very little product.

Scent / Flavor: 2/5

Setting the coal on top of the foil, I hear the "sizzle" sound, indicating that there is adequate heat to begin smoking. It took about 5 minutes for it to get a decent volume of smoke. After about 30 minutes, the flavor hit its peak and then declined slowly for another 30 minutes. At its peak, the flavor was still not particularly strong, I can describe it as mild hot cocoa flavor. As the night grew later, the flavor dissipated and was replaced by the standard "tobacco flavor" which can be found in many other tobacco products. At first I thought I was being rather rash, and wanted to just dismiss the findings. I decided to try the experiment again, except this time with more tobacco, as this may be explain the weakness of the flavor. Alas, the second smoking session 2 days later yielded the same results as before, and everyone participating in the "tasting" shared my opinion. In the second experiment, I used the same charcoals, hookah, and setup as with the first experiment. I added about 3 times as much shisha, however, to make sure that I am really giving it a fair chance to taste like rich S'mores. I noticed the flavored was more like eating flaming marshmallows than melty.

Endurance: 2/5

The flavor reaches a peak of at about 20-30 minutes and then declines. Another fact to note is that the flavor is rather sensitive to heat. Adding too much heat can really cripple the taste. Most fruity shishas are relatively resistant to overheating; I dare say resilient.

Overall: 3/5

S'mores could use some further engineering. I personally would enjoy a stronger chocolate flavor. The marshmallow is definitely there, but it is very very subtle. The airiness (somehow) is captured in the flavor, quite an impressive characteristic. It is a very original flavor, and although not terribly flavorful, the smoke is still very smooth. S'mores flavored shisha is definitely worth trying.

Smoking is smoking

2009-12-15T20:31:00.001-08:00

Just read a good article on smoking hookah. Thought I'd share my thoughts on it with you all.

I only wish other sites would be moderate and not shaking the “Hookah can be worse than cigarettes” card. That’s like saying stabbing someone can be more deadly than shooting someone. The relativity is absolute. Smoking a hookah is relative… It certainly isn’t “idiot proof” as cigarettes are. When preparing a hookah it is important to know the safest ingredients. Although the world health association can say that smoking hookah does X, They certainly don’t mention that some products are more harmful than others. Hookah smoking relies on all of the fallowing:

Charcoal selection: The most important ingredient which health choice can play into effect is the charcoal selection. Instant lights, sadly, have become the popular commodities for getting the bowls hot. Instant light charcoals contain a metal film which gets ultra hot when ignited from another flame source such as a lighter. The foil contains heavy metals and other toxins that should not be smoked. Instant lights also carry a nasty stench, habitual smokers may not notice the smell (taste). Of all charcoals, coconut coals are BY FAR THE BEST COALS IN THE WORLD. They burn tasteless abd smooth with no bad odor. They also burn longer than any other coal and leave only 5%, by volume, ash.

Temperature Control: The temperature which the shisha “bakes” at can prevent the oxidation of the shisha. Generally “smoking” a hookah does not turn the tobacco to ash, it merely bakes the tobacco. As with baking with an oven, too much temperature can singe and make the flavor not nearly as enjoyable. Lower temperatures produce less oxidation and thus less carcinogens. Ideally for health concerns one would use a hookah as a vaporizer more than say a tobacco pipe where the tobacco is directly lit by open flame. Not only is the type of charcoal important so is the airflow control.

Airflow Control: The airflow control simply means controlling how much air flows passed the charcoal (further heating the charcoal) carrying the heat through the shisha (flavored tobacco) and drawing the smoke through the water due to atmospheric pressure rising through the water, stem, hose and into the mouth

As for addiction… Hookah smoking is nothing like lighting a cigarette. There is by no means a convenient way to prepare a hookah in less than a few minutes. The preparation of a hookah takes time and care. It is certainly a ritual which, because of the lack of convenience, occurs on occasion.

Flavor diaries ;D

2009-11-26T15:11:00.001-08:00

Today, I decided to finally begin blogging about my shisha flavor experiments. I have been experimenting for some time, mixing various shishas together to see how the flavor would come out. So far, I have mixed strawberry and banana, blackberry and raspberry, chocolate and cappuccino, cherry and cola, and many others I can't recall at the moment. I usually tweet the results of my experiments, and tell all my friends in real life, but I realize that perhaps I need to write a more detailed account of each in a blog format. Tomorrow, I will be trying watermelon and sex on the beach together. I will let you all know how that went. I am always in pursuit of novelty and yumminess.

SCENTED or FLAVORED Charcoals!?

2009-11-08T02:05:00.002-08:00

REVIEW: SHISHA-LITE APPLE SCENTED CHARCOALS

(33 mm, 40 mm, and Japanese Style)

I will be examining this product under 4 categories on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 being poor and 5 being great।

Appearance: Do they have notable quality?
Ignition: How instantaneous are they, really?
Scent: Do they actually taste or smell like apples?
Endurance: How long will they burn? How well do they smoke?

I just got my hands on a new interesting product. This product is brand new to the market. I have yet to find these on the shelves, or online for that matter. As of today they are unavailable to the general public. I am officially claiming to be the first to review these products! These charcoals are similar to regular instant light ones, except they are "SCENTED" or "FLAVORED". The 3 products being examined are made by the Shisha-Lite Brand based out of China.

Charcoals in wrappers (We just so happen to have a table cloth with apples on it.)

We used 3 different Hookahs to compare each type of charcoal.

#1. Appearance/Properties:

33 mm

40 mm

Japanese Style (Broken into 3 pieces)

(4.6/5) Appearance

#2. Ignition: How Instant? How Safe? How Much Ignition Smoke?

How instant are they? Some instant light charcoals take diligent lighting from all sides. Other charcoals will spew fireworks or even spray fiery shards across the room! As I light the 33 mm and 40 mm I notice that they need no assistance and they burn PERFECTLY. No gaps between sparks. From left to right these charcoals are truly instant.

40 mm after 10 minutes

33 mm after 10 minutes.

As for ignition smoke there was a good amount of smoke but no more than any other instant light charcoals. The smoke did have the apple scent expected. The smoke seemed to disappear quicker than most which was nice.

The Japanese style charcoals didn't take off or anything, as I found out, they apparently are not instant. I lit each corner and waited about 10 minutes. This seemed to do the trick.

This was taken after about 20 minutes.

(4.4/5) Ignition

#3. Scent: Apples?

The next thing we should compare is the smell of the actual product once already lit and "ready". They are ready when they have a nice coating of light gray on the outside rim while advancing towards the middle of the charcoal. Waiting this long is important as at this point all of the fuels used to make instant light charcoals instant has been oxidized

Do they smell like apples, as labeled, and do they actually add apple flavor to the flavored tobacco? I have chosen to use a milder flavor of shisha today as too see if we could pick out apple in the flavor. The flavor used was Layalina, Pear flavored tobacco, a very, mildly, sweet flavored tobacco, subtle but still good nevertheless.

Opening the package I noticed a delightful apple scent, not the usual stench of other instant light charcoals.

After the first few puffs I could taste it. They actually do have a have an appley sent. The smell/scent/taste isn't terribly strong but it is evident.

Picture shows all 3 lit for about 30 minutes

(5/5) Scent

#4. Endurance

Because smoking is an enduring processing we will also compare the burns of each charcoal

The production of this product is quite exact. These charcoals burn perfectly symmetrical and evenly.

Shisha-Lite 33 mm Apple Scented:

Has what is expected from an instant light coal, lasting about 25-30 minutes. At this point one could have added another coal to maintain the experience.

Shisha-Lite 40 mm Apple Scented:

Lasted about 50 minutes without any problems. Smoke was excellent and viscous from start to finish.

Shisha-Lite, Japanese Style, Apple Scented, Finger Charcoals:

Last surprisingly past an hour and a half! These finger style coals put off an amazing amount of heat. I used 1 full bar and broke it into 3 pieces however you could probably use 1-2 pieces and get plenty of heat.

(Remember, the amount of flavored tobacco and bowl used, both affect the heat distribution. 15g, as used in this test, is generally the appropriate portion for a session.)

(4.5/5) Endurance

No, the house is NOT on fire. This was from a drag I took.

Overall Satisfaction:

All three smell exactly like apple right out of the pack, before even lighting them! Using the pear flavored shisha I got a nice nicotine buzz fairly quickly. The apple scent adds a nice hint of flavor. This would be excellent to use with cinnamon flavor, or blueberry muffin flavored tobacco (Yes that is a real flavor).

I am very pleased with the quality of these instant lights. These are so much better than my first impression hinted me to assume. I was assuming these were going to be like the majority of instant lights, tasting of petroleum and harsh chemicals. What I got was a fragrant, EXTREMELY fast lighting heat source. I would recommend these over most other instant lights.

I look forward to this product to be available to the general public.

If I had to choose which one of these three I would buy the 33mm. The 33 mm size is just enough heat for the amounts of tobacco and the thickness I desire of my smoke. If you use a larger head I would suggest the 40 mm charcoals.

Overall Score: (18.5/20)

You owe it to yourself to at least look at it!

2009-11-07T08:57:00.001-08:00

You absolutely cannot beat this deal:
http://ping.fm/S2b35
I have seen many many stores, both brick and mortar and online, and you simply will not find a deal better than this. You get a large hookah, brand new and shiny acrylic, with tons of shisha, coals, tongues, etc... What more could you possibly need? Well, maybe some cleaning solution, but when buying a new hookah, soapy water will work the first couple of times washing it, before you get some hard core resin residue... And when that happens, I've got the solution: I will be listing it on my website tonight, a gentle biodegradable cleaning solution for hookahs and all accessories. It smells fresh and fruity, it is non-irrtating to skin, it gets all the grime out, and it will not corrode hookah parts like some other alcohol-based cleaning solutions can. Stay tuned!

Critique

2009-11-05T02:06:00.001-08:00

Today, I put up sweet buttons on my site, anyone wanna volunteer (constructive) criticism? www.hookahatyourhome.com
I designed the buttons myself, from scratch. I used Paintshop Pro. And since I was not sure how to make each half of the graphic link to a different part of my site, I used One Note screen clipping function to separately save each half of my graphic as a .png image and then uploaded both images onto my zencart based website, using a special code to line them up exactly. Phew. :) Now the navigation is super clear AND I get to show off my art skills.

Wonderful event on Halloween

2009-11-03T11:14:00.000-08:00

Hookah Catering LLC would like to thank each and every one of you who made it out to Murphy's Law II on Halloween. We had a blast serving you all hookah and answering your many questions. I believe, we went through almost my whole box of business cards. I had 250 at the beginning of the night and only made it home with about 50. That means 200 cards are now distributed among my Richmond/Chesterfield/Midlothian fans. And, mind you, I did not force my cards upon anyone, people kept asking me for them.

Now the pressure's on to REALLY perfect my website, since so many people will be looking at it. I am ashamed to admit that not even all the items in my inventory are listed for sale on my website yet. -_- That is because I was working on so many projects lately... But nonetheless, the products will go up tonight. Tomorrow afternoon the latest. :) If you have any feedback whatsoever about my website (http://www.hookahatyourhome.com) or this blog, PLEASE, do not hesitate to comment. I am all for constructive criticism. I really need a fresh point of view. I look at my website so many times a day, I get desensitized to any errors on it... If you look at something enough times, it begins to look all right, even when it's not. :D

2009-10-30T16:23:00.001-07:00

Don't forget: ROCK/CAR SHOW W/COSTUME CONTEST at Murphy's Law II tomorrow!! www.shotgunbluesentertainment.com/

Wanna do something cool this Halloween?

2009-10-26T22:21:00.001-07:00

What are your plans for this Halloween? Don't miss the ROCK / CAR SHOW WITH COSTUME CONTEST at Murphy's Law II! See the hottest cars in Richmond 5-8pm with a rock band performing live, then enjoy drinks as you listen to four live rock bands perform. Hookah Catering, LLC will be in the scene, in full costume, serving hookah to the band members and the crowd. For more info, visit http://ping.fm/BbMHO

Hey, Richmond locals!

2009-10-22T21:49:00.000-07:00

Hookah At Your Home is here to bring the good word and flavor of hookah to your party. The tobacco waterpipe is something very special to us, we take it seriously. We know its history and all the best ways to utilize it. Hookah smoking is a popular hobby, although sometimes misrepresented.

We are a licensed caterer who provides and sets up hookah for house parties, birthday bashes, graduation celebrations, and other events. We are not just people with hookahs - we're experts. With more than 60 flavors of shisha available, you're bound to find something that pleases you. We dress to impress - from tuxedos to casual - we've got your back. We set it up, maintain the coals while you just sit back and enjoy, and clean up any hookah related mess after.

We also sell hookahs and products. We're local, so you get your stuff in 2-3 days, tops. We can even personally deliver it to you if you are within our range of service. To view our service map, please refer to our website at www.hookahatyourhome.com. For party catering orders, we serve the entire Virginia area, DC, and Maryland.