Hey there, hookah enthusiasts! Greg Ryabtsev here, your go-to guy for all things coconut charcoal in the hookah world. 

With over two decades of experience in the heart of Indonesia, I'm not just blowing smoke when I say our charcoal factory cranks out a whopping 10 tonnes of shisha charcoal every single day. 

We're not just in the game; we're the coconut charcoal supplier to the USA, Australia, and Turkey. We're talking about big players like Naara and Platinum Plus – the heavyweights in the hookah business.

But let's cut to the chase, why does coconut charcoal for hookah sometimes have that distinctive smell when you light it up? Well, buckle up, because I'm about to spill the beans on the secret ingredient that tickles your nostrils – tapioca.

Now, tapioca might not be something you'd associate with hookah charcoal, but bear with me. It's a starch derived from cassava roots, akin to the potato starch lurking in your kitchen. In Indonesia, where potatoes play hard to get, cassava steps up to the plate. And here's the kicker – we add tapioca to our charcoal to keep it from falling apart like a house of cards.

Ever wondered why your cube of shisha coconut charcoal can't hold itself together without tapioca? It's the glue that keeps the party going. Without it, your charcoal is destined for a messy breakup, crumbling and cracking at the slightest provocation.

Now, let's dive into the juicy bits – why does tapioca sometimes make our coconut charcoal smell? It's like solving a mystery, and I've got seven suspects lined up.

First off, we've got the case of the underbaked tapioca. Picture this: coconut shells ground and roasted into a fine powder, mixed with a dash of tapioca. But if we don't give it enough heat and love during the extruder dance, that tapioca stays raw, giving us that unmistakable whiff of burnt tapioca when we fire up the charcoal.

Then there's the tapioca that's gone sour. After the extruder spectacle, the mixture needs a breather, like dough at your grandma's. But if it doesn't rest enough, your charcoal might crack, and you'll be stuck with the lingering aroma of tapioca in your kitchen.

And let's not forget the "hairy" coconut scenario. If we don't clean those coconuts properly, you might catch a whiff of some unwanted coconut hair, giving your charcoal an extra kick of fragrance.

Next up, the wrong kind of tapioca – turns out, not all tapiocas are created equal. We've done our experiments and found that only sun-dried tapioca from specific areas of Central and East Java plays well with coconut charcoal. Go figure!

Now, brace yourself for the lizard incident. Imagine a lizard or a frog getting cozy in the kiln during charcoal production, making its way into your cube of hookah charcoal. Talk about exotic flavors!

And beware of overly chemicalized charcoal. Some manufacturers go wild with the chemistry set, throwing in bleach and liquid glass. Not only can this mess with the aroma, but it might also give you a headache. No one wants that with their hookah session.

And here's a curveball – the water factor. Yep, water can mess with the odor too. We're lucky to be in Magelang, sipping on mountain spring water. But if you're using tap water, it better be purified and well-behaved, or it could throw a stinky surprise your way.

Oh, one more thing. If you're firing up coconut coal on an electric stove, keep it clean. A stinky cube once means a stinky party every time.

So, spill the beans! What's your hookah charcoal experience? Any other burning issues you want to chat about? Drop a comment, let's keep this discussion smokin'!