Nakhla Mizo Lychee Shisha Review

When this flavor was announced on the official Nakhla website, I was surprised by how many people on the forums had no idea what a lychee was. Maybe I am a bit of a foodie and a Japanophile, but I have been a fan of lychee and the foods based around this odd fruit for a long time. Would the unique flavors of lychee translate well to hookah tobacco? Only one way to find out.

This bizarre fruit, which looks like a raspberry and an armadillo didn’t care what their families thought about there love, is a lychee. A little info first. Lychee is the fruit of an evergreen tree that is the sole member of the litchi genus in the family of soapberry. They are cultivated in many of the eastern Asian countries and are most widely known as a part of Japanese cuisine, but are also common in China, Thailand, northern India and Bangladesh.

The painful looking skin of the fruit is inedible and must be peeled off to allow access to the soft, milky colored and jelly like flesh of the actual fruit. The flavor is hard to describe. It’s moderately floral with a distinct sourness that is surprisingly refreshing. My mouth is watering just thinking about a way to describe this one. I love lychee.

So, how is the tobacco?

When I opened up the box, the only container that this Nakhla Mizo flavor is available in thus far, the smell was amazingly accurate to the fruit. Once the air really hit the tobacco, there was an odd scent that took over. I found this scent similar to artificial buttered popcorn and fake caramel flavoring. This was really off putting.

The smoke is what I expected from Mizo. Very heat resistant tobacco that produces good clouds and smooth smoke. Nothing wrong here.

The flavor was great and very accurate to the flavor of a Japanese lychee flavored candy. Though I found the strength to be on the lighter side of medium, this makes sense for a lychee flavored tobacco. The flavor of lychee is naturally light and subtle. That artificial caramel and buttery note that I found in the scent came through a little bit in the flavor the first time I smoked this one. Airing this tobacco out a bit helped to reduce this note that I found a little unpleasant.

8 out of 10 I really like this tobacco and I think it is going to find a place in my normal rotation. I do think that the trouble of that weird scent and flavor will put some people off, but I really suggest trying this tobacco. If it were not for that one problem I would have rated it higher. I will say that lychee is a hit or miss flavor. People seem to love or hate this tobacco and I am tending toward love. If the flavor was a little cleaner I would definitely be in love.