taste of cocaine

Michael Davis

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I searched for this topic and found nothing. It's a question for a MS I'm working. Does Cocaine have a taste or smell? Is it sweet, bitter, sour, salty, etc.

No I'm not a fed and it's not a trick question. I'm asking for anyone that has seen it on the web or heard about it or was a LE officer. Was going to put it on the "Research board" but my old eye's couldn't find it.

Appreciate any inputs.
 

john barnes on toast

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I wouldn't say it has an absolute distinct taste that you pick out in a blindfold test, but there's a definite 'yeh, that could be coke' taste.

It's bitter, and quite unpleasant.
 

john barnes on toast

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it will very quickly give you a tingling and slightly aneasthestised sensation if applied to your gums, too.
 

Willowmound

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The better it is, the number your tongue, gums, lips (wherever you put it) go.
 

Millicent M'Lady

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There is also "the drip" which travels from the back of your nose to your throat. (Apparently!) it tastes gritty and much like an ordinary tablet would. I've been told by (mental) friends that this is the best bit.

*disclaimer- I am not a crazy drug addict- I just seem to know a lot of "questionable" people!:D
 

jennontheisland

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smells like plastic when it's burning (knew people who used to add it to their weed)
 

MsGneiss

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Ok, possibly more accurate than Starsky & Hutch:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2089/why-do-cops-in-movies-taste-cocaine

"Cocaine has no flavor, in and of itself. It's possible to detect the flavors of its cutting agents, such as sugar, flour, cornstarch, or baking soda. But that's not why you would taste cocaine. Tasting is a quick-and-dirty method of cocaine identification. Like the related drugs novocaine, benzocaine, and lidocaine, cocaine is an anesthetic, so it will numb the tongue."
 

Thomas_Anderson

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Cops in movies and stuff don't lick it for taste, they lick it because it numbs their tongue and gums.

I'm pretty sure this isn't real life police protocol though. After all, it doesn't seem very smart to put a white, powdery substance that you have no idea what it is in your mouth. What if the drug guys laid a trap, and that powder was cyanide or something?
 

ChrisKelly331

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It's kind of a neutral smell. It doesn’t smell like anything in particular but the taste is very bitter kind of harsh if it's a really good grade, if it's not anything good it still takes like crap but not as bad (when it's coming up from your throat, ick.) also
If you smoke it (depending on what it's cut with) it can taste really good.

hope this helps.
 
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mscelina

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I don't know about the taste but it smells fantastic.

Wait, what?

:roll:

seriously, though--anyone who buys cocaine on the street (ie--not a drug dealer) will taste what it's primarily cut with--and that can be pretty nasty. Baking soda is used a lot to cut cocaine with and sometimes gives the drug a taste that is similar to kerosene.
 

Wayne K

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We used to cut it with milk sugar or inositol to give it a sweet taste. Or so it goes.:D
 

Michael Davis

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Wow, like of good experience here. My take from all the input: if its good its bitter, and it will numb the tongue. That's what I needed cause I have no experience at all. Thanks everyone.
 

rugcat

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Cops in movies and stuff don't lick it for taste, they lick it because it numbs their tongue and gums.

I'm pretty sure this isn't real life police protocol though. After all, it doesn't seem very smart to put a white, powdery substance that you have no idea what it is in your mouth. What if the drug guys laid a trap, and that powder was cyanide or something?
Or suppose it's LSD, and a little taste will put you on a full fledged trip.

"Tasting" an unknown drug is insanely stupid. I suppose there are cops who would do that, but they're not very bright, and no, it's absolutely not protocol. Quite the opposite.
 

dgiharris

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Or suppose it's LSD, and a little taste will put you on a full fledged trip.

"Tasting" an unknown drug is insanely stupid. I suppose there are cops who would do that, but they're not very bright, and no, it's absolutely not protocol. Quite the opposite.

Love how its par for the course in Hollywood though.

Mel...
 

smcc360

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Or suppose it's LSD, and a little taste will put you on a full fledged trip.

"Tasting" an unknown drug is insanely stupid. I suppose there are cops who would do that, but they're not very bright, and no, it's absolutely not protocol. Quite the opposite.

Or suppose that, for some bizarre reason, it's cocaine or heroin that isn't cut with anything. In which case Detective Taste-Test gets an inspector's funeral.

Rugcat is right on. If you don't know what it is, don't put it in your mouth.* They make some very nice field testing kits that work really well.

As for the OP's question, I've had the taste/smell described as 'asprin-ey'. However, that isn't from the most reliable sources in the world. I'd be more inclined to believe the Straight Dope link that sleepsheep posted.





*This is good advice for a wide range of situations, not just narcotics enforcement.
 

Stew21

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Ask the Expert forum is back, so I moved this thread into it, where it seems a better fit.

:)
 

EFCollins

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Oh man...

GOOD coke has a harsh, astringent/medicinal taste, but not like a pill. Almost a chemical taste/smell. The smell should be quite strong, like fingernail polish remover, but the smell isn't noticeable as much (note, I did say as much... you can stick your nose in a bag of coke and definitely smell it, but it's not as POW! In your face...) until you snort it. The taste is unlike anything else I've ever tasted.... and nothing in the world tastes so good as good ether-based cocaine. When you get the drain... oh my frigging god. It's such a rush. Once you snort it, your nasal passages and throat go numb and if it's the good stuff, your top teeth go numb too... and you want to talk and talk and move around and do shit just to be doing it. The numb comes back full force after the drainage starts. My husband and I used to get product that was at 92% purity... damn good coke, in other words. The drain was as good as the first sniff.

However, if you buy oil based cocaine, which isn't as good by any standards, the numb isn't as noticeable, the taste is a bit oily with nearly no smell at all and when you cut it out, oil-based coke tends to stick to the razor blade, where as ether-base coke will not. Oil-base will stick to the baggie too, and ether-base will not. It's hard to find ether-based coke in most places because of the availability of ether. Oil-base is more common now-a-days, but I wouldn't touch it if it was free. Ether-base on the other hand... oh man oh man.

ETA: Not that this means anything, but I used coke for about 2 and 1/2 years, so I'm very familiar with the taste and smell. I still crave it, still have sensory flashbacks, IE: I'll still get the taste in my mouth sometimes if I'm around something that reminds me of coke, white powder, the smell of paint thinner or fingernail polish remover.
 
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PeterL

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Cops in movies and stuff don't lick it for taste, they lick it because it numbs their tongue and gums.

I'm pretty sure this isn't real life police protocol though. After all, it doesn't seem very smart to put a white, powdery substance that you have no idea what it is in your mouth. What if the drug guys laid a trap, and that powder was cyanide or something?


I haven't read it or seen it, but there should be something about a cop licking an unknown substance and dying as a result. Unfortunately, there aren't many substances that would kill with a touch to the tongue. Cyanide might not do anything with so little, or it might cause a hallucinogenic experience.
 

StephanieFox

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I was given pure cocaine by a doctor when I had stitches inside my nose. It had no smell that I could tell but it sure did numb the tissues. It also constricts the blood vessels, which stops bleeding. Pure stuff numbs so quickly that I suspect that it kills the sense of smell and taste.

I think the characters on TV who 'taste' it are looking to feel the numbing sensation and are not looking for a certain flavor. If it were cut with something, it would taste like that.

As far as getting a buzz, I was quite unimpressed.
 

not_HarryS

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Oh man...

GOOD coke has a harsh, astringent/medicinal taste, but not like a pill. Almost a chemical taste/smell. The smell should be quite strong, like fingernail polish remover, but the smell isn't noticeable as much (note, I did say as much... you can stick your nose in a bag of coke and definitely smell it, but it's not as POW! In your face...) until you snort it. The taste is unlike anything else I've ever tasted.... and nothing in the world tastes so good as good ether-based cocaine. When you get the drain... oh my frigging god. It's such a rush. Once you snort it, your nasal passages and throat go numb and if it's the good stuff, your top teeth go numb too... and you want to talk and talk and move around and do shit just to be doing it. The numb comes back full force after the drainage starts. My husband and I used to get product that was at 92% purity... damn good coke, in other words. The drain was as good as the first sniff.

However, if you buy oil based cocaine, which isn't as good by any standards, the numb isn't as noticeable, the taste is a bit oily with nearly no smell at all and when you cut it out, oil-based coke tends to stick to the razor blade, where as ether-base coke will not. Oil-base will stick to the baggie too, and ether-base will not. It's hard to find ether-based coke in most places because of the availability of ether. Oil-base is more common now-a-days, but I wouldn't touch it if it was free. Ether-base on the other hand... oh man oh man.

ETA: Not that this means anything, but I used coke for about 2 and 1/2 years, so I'm very familiar with the taste and smell. I still crave it, still have sensory flashbacks, IE: I'll still get the taste in my mouth sometimes if I'm around something that reminds me of coke, white powder, the smell of paint thinner or fingernail polish remover.

QFT. I myself had an, erm, coke phase too, and there's no way of describing its taste other than "chemical-y". Haha. A little bit like aspirin, if you've ever let one sit on the back of your tongue -- but crisper, almost. It's not at all as unpleasant as it sounds, though, even the drips. Like EFCollins said, cocaine'll make your throat, gums and --if you've got the good shit-- teeth go numb, but the sensation goes away after about 10 minutes or so. So you gotta' keep bumping or doing "gummies" to keep it.

You really don't notice the taste so much after awhile other than loving it for nothing more than reminding you that you're on cocaine, which is wonderful.

Playing Mario Party 64 while on cocaine is highly recommended.