The French have a word for that. Terroir. It's used primarily for wine/ grapes, but applicable here too.
I've no experience with Chestnut, but it sounds like it has the smell of Cottonwood. I can't stand the stuff. It may burn clean but the smell of the barnyard is not what I nor any of my neighbors need in our lives.
I have cottonwood here, not a lot but its enough for the shoulders. Id rather not burn it so much. Just a split or two below hardwood. Locals here know it stinks when burned. But folks still don’t let it dry out properly so maybe that’s the problem. The wood im explaining here is a different animal. Unpleasant isn’t quite enough... My experience with cottonwood is that yes it does smell like urine. Mostly when its first split green. Someone dropped off a fresh amount of it at my parents and I split it even more. These were huge splits. Dennis could put one of these in his Fireview and be golden for the night. That is if he can fit it. This summer I just reloaded the firewood in the rack. Some felt really light(incredibly so..) others not so much. Down at the ocean its much more prevalent on the beach and burning it in outdoor pits are common but you bet it gets smoky for the first 15-20 mins but after that its so dammed hot, it’s practically having a chimney fire every day we have fires there. Great wood to have, makes a really hot quick fire and its great to throw on coals if we just got back from clamming. Definitely spends itself quick though.
I can not imagine a smell worse than unseasoned Cottonwood. What you are speaking of, as I've said, is completely foreign to me. Good luck to you sir.
