I use both the Bacote and the walnut stems, and they are both awesome. They are so much better than the glass stems and I don’t keep breaking them. I prefer the flavor of the walnut or actually lack there of. It seemed like the Bacote had its own flavor profile. It wasn’t bad at all. It just had its own signature. A secondary aspect of the stems, but equally as awesome, the walnut stem looks amazing in the unit. It matches the wood of my particular tiny might perfectly. Ed Has contacted me personally to resolve an issue and it was fixed immediately. He has earned my business forever.