Home Remedies For A Slight Case Of Tongue Bite

ghostsofpompeii

I'm sure somewhere in the archives is an answer to this question but since we've got almost 70 pages to scroll through I thought it would be simpler to ask again.

Recently with the good weather I find myself either outside or in my 'garage/man cave' smoking quite a bit more than I was during the winter months. Quite a bit! Yea, I guess you could say that - I've gone for one bowl in the evening in the winter months to smoking two or three bowls in succession about three times a day. I used to do that all the time when I was working without any ill effects, so it comes as a bit of a surprise that I find myself with a slight case of tongue bite at the moment.

It's not from any one particular blend because all the aromatic blends I smoke are pretty mild, I don't huff and puff like a locomotive, religiously use the breath method, and none of the blends I've currently been smoking have ever given me tongue bite when I just have a single bowl. But it's this recent accumulation of two or three bowls one right after the other in the morning, another two or three in the afternoon, and then another bowl at night before bedtime that has caused this sudden flare-up.

I'll probably cut back and only smoke one bowl per sitting ... but in the meantime I was wondering if anyone out there has any home remedies for soothing a slight case of tongue bite before it gets too bad. 

jfreedy

One thing I've tried when I get tongue bite is to vary the types of tobacco I'm smoking. So if I've been smoking a lot of burley blends when I get tongue bite I'll switch to Virginia blends or Latakia blends. It seems to help some. However, the only sure fire cure I've found is to take a break for a day or two. It's not fun, and I really want to grab my pipe during that time, but it always works.

I'm wondering if your body chemistry may have changed some since the "old days" when you never got tongue bite. It does seem a little strange that this never used to bother you when you smoked all the time. Were you smoking aromatics back then too?

motie2

Here's an old TPL article on Tongue Bite and a .pdf (attached) from the Free Pipe Smoking Library folder.

https://thispipelife.com/tpl-article/12/

Also, a video from our friend Muttnchop Piper on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjxcUWxRoBU

ghostsofpompeii

@jfreedy Funny thing is that back when I was working I pretty much had my pipe in my mouth all the time. And back then I usually only smoked OTC blends like Captain Black Gold or Original. Eventually I discovered The Tinder Box blend North Sea ... but kind of alternated between that and the Captain Black. The majority of blends I smoke now are probably a better quality ... but I think I may have overdone things by smoking so many bowls back-to-back after the short spurts allowed to me during the winter. Kinda like a kid overdosing on chocolate bunnies during Easter, or a bad load of candy after Halloween. 

motie2

It's funny: Back in the day, at Seminary, my study partner and I would pull overnights, cramming for exams, smoking bowl after bowl of Balkan Sobranie and Escudo; maybe 5 bowls in a session. No tongue bite. Of course, we're a bit older now and it sometimes becomes a problem after the second bowl in a row, especially if we don't change pipes. (We often didn't back in the day). Also, I'm smoking aromatics now, but I don't understand why anyone would smoke a blend that immediately gives one that warning that a bite is coming. Barbados Plantation and My Melange (see ravings elsewhere here) don't bite. I usually try to limit myself to two bowls a day, one in the morning with coffee, and one with something stronger in the afternoon or evening. Again, my beer is Wehenstephaner Hefe Weissbier, and my poison of choice remains Jonah's Curse Black Spiced Rum. Either one, sipped along with smoking, helps prevent tongue burn. And remember:

ghostsofpompeii

Thankfully my tongue bite came and went like a thief in the night.

KABUL07

Hello pipe and tobacco Aficionados. I would like to state that I also have found myself during the change of the seasons (winter), smoking my pipes at a higher pace, with that being said tongue bite comes into play. This is when I switch to the Peterson P-Lip Pipe which directs the smoke to the upper parts of my mouth and for me this assist with the tongue bite to some degree. Many of you may already use this method or you may have a modified way, please share. I believe the blend of tobacco(s), smoking cadence, and maybe the type pipe being used at the time may all play a part in tongue bite. I thank you and remember, “Smoke what you like and like what you smoke.” 

motie2

Tongue Bite document, attached

Danfriedman

Tongue bite is the worst @KABUL07. I agree with you that a p-lip bit helps as well as the zen of slowing down. On the rarest occasion that I find my mouth a little irritated,  I use biotene dry mouth, mouthwash to rinse my tongue and mouth out. Prevention is the best cure for most tongue bite.

opipeman

@Danfriedman;
Thanks for the tip of Biotene for tongue bite. It really works when I don't focus on my draw pacing and smoke too fast.