Cloudy Social 2023 Recap

In case you missed it, we just hosted the first shisha-focused event in Hong Kong!

On June 25th, 2023, in collaboration with three lounges from the Island side – @lounge.hakuba, @hedonic.exit and @alma.soulounge, we got together with the goal of gathering shisha-lovers from across the city and celebrating our passion for shisha.

There was delectable food, cooling drinks, and of course, fresh shisha mixes served by the legendary packers Phil, KZ, and Joyin. The boys tirelessly packed and served close to one hundred mixes during the event!

Music provided by @iamfazad set the party mood, with flowing EDM and Hip Hop music party-goers could chill to with their shisha.

On top of all this, Cloudy Social also featured a number of highlights never attempted before, including a Shisha Battle, a tasting booth hosted by yours truly, and a shisha-focused marketplace.

Tasting Corner

Inspired by the shisha messe hosted in Germany and John Calliano Festival in Russia, our tasting corner had the express purpose of showcasing the latest and coolest shisha technology and flavours first-hand in an “all-you-can-shi” style to newcomers of shisha and those that have been on the fence about getting a pipe to use at home.

With intriguing shisha combos like ‘Moon Knight’, and ‘Sweet Poison’ (Recipe at the bottom), our mixes put the spotlight on new and unique flavours like the Sober x Chabacco collaboration exclusive – White Tea, highlighting its versatile flavour profile with notes of cucumber, apricot and cantaloupe melon. 

We also got to show-off the latest models of AEON Edition 5 by @aeon.shisha and AMOTION Flash Bang by @amotionshisha, displaying the fun possibilities of shisha pipe technology.

Left Side: AMOTION’s Flash Bang’s visually striking design is made of over 30 parts! Along with the flashbang centrepiece that gives it its name, the pipe’s aesthetic is enhanced by an ingenious vertical venting mechanism that releases smoke from the sleeve up towards the bowl.

Right Side: The AEON 5 Lounge Plus is designed for users with simple yet modern tastes. It is characterised by its angular contours and a unique feature: the ability to dial up or down the strength of your draw via the hose connector. Ideal for those looking to optimise their smoking experience.

Our tasting corner featured a sales booth on the side, where for the first time, we offered special shisha starter bundles for AMOTION ROAM, the most trendy portable Shisha pipe in the market to date, and half-price sales of phunnel bowls from brands OBLAKO x DOOSHA, FORMA, and KOLOS. Discounts on other accessories and tools needed to set up a private shisha session were also offered. 

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Shisha Battle

The Shisha Battle, first of its kind to be attempted in Hong Kong, was a competition to settle the friendly rivalry between the three legendary packers as to which among them could make the best mix! 

Packers had 15 minutes to prepare a flavour mix to follow the theme of ‘Spring & Summer’ using identical UPG Killer bowls. To match the themes of spring and summer, packers used similar categories like fruits and floral flavours to evoke the feelings of the seasons, but in different combinations and with different accompaniments that reflected each packer’s personality.

For example, KZ’s mix was citrus-focused through the use of kumquat and yuzu, with an added ‘fresh’ taste through the use of aloe and cucumber as a simple and straightforward way to represent the seasons. This is in contrast to Joyin’s mix, in which he attempted to layer many more delicate flavours like cucunade, watermelon, pinkman and cola deep yet balanced mix.

After the mixes were ready, the pipes were sorted randomly and labelled so that attendees could try each anonymous mix and vote for their favourite one on Instagram. The preparation period was intense, with all the packers furiously completing their mixes in under 10 minutes. Onlookers watched them with just as much intensity and enthusiasm, cheering on their favourite packer while watching them deftly perform their art. With the mixes ready, attendees clamoured to have their first taste of the fresh mixes during the voting period afterwards. Shisha connoisseurs could be overheard analysing the mixes with fiery passion, while newbies gingerly took small puffs with excited anticipation. In the end, the competition was a lot closer than anyone would have guessed. Phil won by a narrow margin of just two votes, proving just how skilled each of the packers were in their own right.

Shisha Marketplace

A shisha event would not be complete without artisans and craftsmen marketing the results of their creativity and skills, and so, Cloudy Social 2023 also gave the spotlight to local artisans The Silly Thought and Verona.

The Silly Thought

The Silly Thought offered a sneak-peak of their latest work, a very unique-looking portable shisha pipe, at their booth during Cloudy Social 2023. 

This shisha pipe was meticulously handcrafted from brass and copper, and wrapped in genuine leather to enhance both its aesthetic appeal and durability. Notably, the pipe features a specially-designed mechanism that addresses a common "purging issue" to significantly enhance airflow, facilitating a smooth and enjoyable smoking experience. 

Brass and copper are renowned for their ability to dissipate heat quickly, which helps this pipe maintain a consistently low water temperature to preserve the flavour profile of the mix. The Silly Thought mentioned to us that more details about this exciting new product will be released in the future, so stay tuned to our website and Silly Thought’s IG page @thesillythought!

Verona

Verona is an arts student that was inspired to combine her passion for pottery-work with her love of shisha, resulting in her brand new series of shisha bowls that she showcased at Cloudy Social 2023. 

Named “Noir” and “Nude”, these two lines of shisha bowls focused on mimicking the natural, grainy texture of granite and letting the natural curves of the bowl stand out. These bowls, while heftier, also offered better heat retention than most commercial bowls, a benefit of using Japanese Granite Clay to handcraft. This allows the pack to retain heat more efficiently over a longer period of time with fewer coals.

Check out her IG page @v_erona.hk for more details!

Final Thoughts

Cloudy Social began as a wish to draw the shisha community together to celebrate one of our favourite weeknight activities. We pushed forward feeling both excited and nervous, not knowing how receptive people would be to an event like this.

From planning to execution, marketing to logistics, we faced many challenges in preparing for the event and spreading the word. In the process we learned a great deal about hosting an event of this scale, and our team got to know each other a lot more. Overall, this event has been a valuable learning experience, which we will take towards greatly improving the next event.

Finally, we'd like to genuinely thank all the attendees for showing their support by coming. Their enthusiasm and energy was what really gave life to the party, and validated the blood, sweat and tears we and our partners poured into the event. 

Here's hoping that someday we can host a true large-scale messe, inviting lounges from all over Hong Kong to showcase their skill, and shisha packing competitions worthy enough to truly be called a spectacular highlight of the summer!

SOBER’s Tasting Booth Mixes