2017 has came and went, and with it came many new hookah products! Despite the new FDA regulations looming over the industries head, we still saw a plethora of new products emerge onto the market. I see a lot of lists doing their "top five of 2017", and while that's certainly something that I thought about doing, this year was such a weird year in releases that it just didn't seem right to pick my top five. This year, we're just going to be doing a quick recap - talking about some of the products that came out, and how the communities reacted to them. Some things you may have forgotten about, some you may have missed entirely. Without further ado, let's jump into it!
B2 Precious Cut
You're on the B2 blog - what did you expect? This year, the B2 Precious Cut was released. While the Precious Cut Collection didn't offer anything new in terms of functionality, what it did bring to the table were some absolutely stellar designs. If you were remotely thinking about buying a high end hookah this past year, the PCC was the way to go - and the communities have been absolutely in love with them. The PCC took the already stellar B2 and just took it up a notch. What did you think about the Precious Cut Collection? Which was your favorite design? Let us know in those comments below!
Zomo Tobacco
Zomo had a big year in the US. While it may not be a "new" product, per se, in 2017 we saw it come into the US market, courtesy of Zahrah hookah. Zomo is a Brazilian brand, one that has seen immense success in South America. It features two lines: the "Strong" line, the dark leaf line, and the "World Experience" line, the blonde leaf line. Zomo came into the market in a big way, and made quite a splash. While a lot of brands released new flavors, it had been a while since we saw an entirely new brand come into the American market. It received a lot of mixed reviews across the board. Many, such as myself, found it to be a
rather mediocre brand, not really doing much in the way of standing out. On the other hand, there were arguably more people that were going nuts for it - saying it was some of the best stuff they'd had in years. That said, the sales speak for themselves, and it seems as if the majority of the market enjoys Zomo. It's definitely something worth trying, and since it comes in 50g packs, you should pick some up to try for yourself if you haven't already. Did you try Zomo this year? What did you think? Let us know in the comments down below!
Alchemist Tobacco Kentucky Fire Cured (KFC)
Alchemist isn't a new name in hookah, they've established themselves in the market since late 2015. This year, they released their KFC line of tobacco. Dark leaf, with a heavy emphasis on the tobacco notes. The KFC line is called so because it utilizes a special method of curing the tobacco, one that comes from the Cigar industry called Kentucky Fire Curing. This gives the flavors a very heavy and musky smoke, making them something that I think really appeals to the more experienced smokers. The KFC line came with a lot of mixed reviews, some loving it, some not so much. KFC has a very odd place in the market, where it almost appeals more to traditional smokers more than anything else on the market. While that's not a bad thing by any means, we haven't really seen a brand come out like that in a long time. Some claimed KFC was trying to make the next big Tangiers, or something along those lines, however anyone that has tried KFC can quickly tell you that they're two completely different things. Did you try KFC this year? What did you think? Let me know what you thought!
Starbuzz Serpent
Starbuzz is still one of the biggest names in hookah - there's no doubt about that. In 2017, we finally saw them release something that they had been teasing for years - their Serpent line. The Serpent line, along the same lines as KFC, utilizes a different curing method for their tobacco, in which it's "kettle cured". Don't ask me what that means, I couldn't tell you. What I can tell you though - these flavors pack some punch. Also like KFC, this is a dark leaf line of tobacco that is catered more towards the traditional smoker. Don't get it confused with their "Vintage" line of tobacco though, these are two completely different things. While I can't tell any major differences in the flavor from the Kettle curing, these flavors are about on the same level as buzz as the Vintage line. The flavors are a little bit more ambitious though - you having things ranging from floral notes, mints, to fruit blends. It seems like Starbuzz covered all of the major bases with this new line. and they did it in a pretty good way. Serpent saw some of the most conflicted reviews on the market this year - it very much seems as though people either loved it or hated it. It was odd to see such a divide on flavors, but at the end of the day, it all boils down to personal preference. Did you get to try Serpent yet? What did you think?
New Bowls
2017 was a pretty good year for bowls. As a bowl collector, I'm always excited when new bowls come to market, and even more so when they're great bowls - which I think we saw a lot of this year.
From HookahJohn, we saw the new 80ft80 bowl - a revision of the 80ft bowl. The 80ft was one of my favorite bowls already, but it has only been collecting dust since I got the 80ft80. The bowl is a shallower iteration of the 80ft, with a wider spire, giving it great airflow, and holding the perfect amount of tobacco for dark leaf tobaccos like Black Lava and Tangiers. HJ also came out with the Tytris bowl - a red clay version of the 80ft80, making it perfect for ghosting a bowl with a specific flavor.
Alpaca bowls also released their new bowl, the "Suri" bowl, previously the No Name bowl. This bowl is everything that I personally love in a bowl - shallow, thick walls, and a wide spire. While it may not be as shallow as the 80ft80, it's still a great match for the Provost, something that I use in many of my sessions. Alpaca also came out with the Goodfella V4 - a follow up on one of the best bowls on the market. It kept everything that was great about the V3, and just added some consistency, and new glazes into the mix.
What was your favorite bowl this year?
New Flavors
A new year always means new flavors - that was something that really concerned me about the new FDA regulations. Luckily though, it didn't seem to really have any major effects. We still saw great new flavors from some of the best brands on the market, such as Pure's new FML Blue, Trifeca Tobacco's Lime, Indian Kheer, Ventura Peach, and Raspberry, Ugly Hookah's Desert Storm, Chi-Town Breeze, Rollercoaster, and tons more that I can't even begin to name. It was a good year in hookah flavors, and I'm hopeful that that trend will only continue into 2018.
The Tymber Hose
In 2016, we saw Mason hookah come to market with arguably one of the best bowls on the market - the Onyx bowl. This year, we saw them come out with their new "Tymber" hose. This hose blew every existing hose out of the water, as Mason put their signature quality into it. The hose features a soft touch silicone tubing, with a hand crafted wooden and acrylic handle. The handle is a work of pure art, with a variety of different woods available to choose from. It's far and away the best hose on the market, and it's the perfect addition to any setup that you'll find on the market. When I was thinking about writing a normal "top five" list for 2017, this hose was the first thing that came to mind, as it is, in my opinion, probably the best thing to come to market in 2017. Have you been able to try a Tymber hose yet? What did you think? Let us know in the comments!
The Lotus+
Finally, we arrive at the Louts+. Arguably the product with the most controversy surrounding it, the Lotus+ is the much anticipated improvement on the Kaloud Lotus, that changed the way we smoked in 2013 or so. The new Lotus was met with a lot of feedback, for lack of better word. It was certainly an improvement on the original Lotus, but was it the product that everyone was hoping it would be? There hasn't really been any definitive answer to that yet, and only time will tell what people think. At the end of the day, the consumers will pick the winners, and that seems to be the case with the new Lotus as well. Have you had the chance to try the new Lotus yet? What did you think? Do you want one? Let us know in the comments below!
Overall?
With 2017 in the books, it will be interesting to see what we have to look forward to in the coming year. What kind of big products do you think we'll see? Is there anything that you're excited for? What was your favorite release of 2017? Was there anything you think we missed? While it's not possible for us to cover everything that happened last year, I think this gives a pretty solid overview of what last year was like. Was it a good year? I think I'll leave that question up to you guys. As always guys, thank you so much for reading, and happy smokes!
