JESS
About Me:
Puffing on a pipe since 2016. Husband and father of 3. Campus ministry.
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G. L. Pease - Sixpence 2oz
Dark Fired Keeps the Spice On
I began my tobacco aging journey 6 years ago in earnest. One discovery that I made along the way is that Perique (especially the 31 Farms Perique) smooths out and loses much of it spiciness over time, converting its flavors instead to dark fruits, sometimes almost a candied cherry note. This might be exactly what some smokers are looking for, but I found with some of the VaPer blends that I cellared, I was disappointed to no longer have the expected pepperiness that I got when the blends were younger. If you are like me, then Sixpence is a great solution. It seems that dark fired Kentucky does not lose its spiciness over time, and while the perique in this blend does soften and deepen just like the others, because of the dark fired content, there is still plenty of spice. Thus, after 4 years, I have found this blend even better than when it's young. There is a deep dark fruitiness from the perique and red Virginia combined with some tang still from the bright virginias, some remaining breadiness and delicious funk also from the perique, and still plenty of spice still maintained by the addition of some faithful dark fired. If you like VaPers, but you don't want to sacrifice spice as the years go on with aging, this along with C&D Speakeasy are great to have in your cellar!

Cornell & Diehl - Haunted Bookshop 2oz
HOT AIR
I like C&D blends. I have more of their tobacco in my cellar than any other brand. I also love Burley. HH Burley Flake and C&D Eight State Burley are favorites of mine, as is Low Country Virginia & Burley. I CANNOT understand the hype around this one. The first time I tried it, I tasted almost nothing. So I threw it in a jar and aged it for several years. I tried it again. Nothing. I gave it three more years. NOTHING. It has almost NO flavor. The best thing about this blend for me is the cool name. I really wanted to like a blend called Haunted Bookshop. I even read the book by Morley. Nothing works. This blend tastes like hot air to me no matter what I do.

G. L. Pease - Horizons Flake 2oz
Creamy +BBQ
Latakia generally has somewhat of a creamy mouth feel to it. This Latakia blend has more of it than most. It's also got that sweet mesquite BBQ more than most (are we sure there isn't dark fired in here?) Anyway. It was love at first puff. The flavors don't develop much as you smoke down the bowl, it's just consistent awesomeness the whole way. Mondays are usually in English day for me, and my other English blends (very good ones, by the way) have grown very resentful of this new kid on the block. Every Monday they hope they'll get some attention from me, but over and over again I reach for Horizons. Poor other blends! I can't quite explain it, but this for me has been giving me English Nirvana for about a year now. I only have one small gripe. It doesn't pack very nicely. I don't smoke my flakes as flakes, because I've never had a good experience that way. I always rub flakes out, but in the case of Horizons, even when I rub it out, it doesn't pack very nicely. The smoked Ash on top just becomes a sort of rigid gray ash rather than soft gray ash, and every 30 minutes or so, I wind up scraping a little bit off the top so that my flame can get to the fresh tobacco underneath. No big deal, it's worth it for English Nirvana!

Low Country - Carolina Christmas 2oz
Fascinating
I'm so glad that C&D has stepped into the ring with what promises to be a yearly tradition. I think it's also great that they have not simply copied the McClelland Christmas cheer tradition, but begun with something completely original, involving Burley. This blend is very complex, and I have yet to wrap my head around it, but complexity is nearly always an excellent thing in my book. I like blends that keep me guessing, and I anticipate this one will continue to keep me guessing as it ages. As of now, it reminds me of a bowl full of mixed nuts mixed with cranberries. The perique content is not strong, but it does deepen the intrigue. I only got two tins this time, but next year I expect I will be placing a larger order!

Cornell & Diehl - Speakeasy Navy Blend 2oz
Excellent
A VaPer navy flake. Nobody beats C&D in this department, in my opinion. They have the earthiest, most natural tasting Virginias, and their Perique is the darkest and fruitiest. The addition of dark fired, some orientals and some rum make this one even more complex. I like it so much I got myself a lifetime supply! (And since I only smoke about four bowls a week and I rotate blends a lot, that means about 10 tins). I'm looking forward to all of the nuance that this will deliver as the years go on!

Cornell & Diehl - Palmetto Balkan 8oz
Delicate, Flavorful, Interesting
This is well worth your money. It is the most interesting and exciting English that I have smoked in quite a while. My typical experience of Balkan blends is that they are very bold, and while this does have plenty of flavor, I pick up a lot of sweetness and delicate floral notes in this blend that I don't notice in most other Balkans. It also is delivered to you in a perfect ribbon cut that is dry enough to smoke right out of the tin, which is rare for me, since I have a pretty sensitive tongue and I often need to dry out my blends a bit so the steam doesn't burn me. I understand that the price tag is a big commitment for first-time buyers, but hopefully USEFUL reviews where people actually talk about their experience rather than griping about availability and other matters will help others know if this is a good blend for them to try. For as labor intensive as this blend is to make, the $44ish dollars that I spent in the spring of '24 for it is very reasonable considering that there are 8 oz of it here, it is fairly dry, and you are getting a good deal considering what 4 2 oz tins would cost you. If you like Balkan blends, if you like English blends that are nuanced, and sweet without venturing into aromatic territory, I think you will like this.

Cornell & Diehl - Bayou Morning
Better than Escudo
I know that's an ambitious statement, but hear me out: Escudo is very good and a classic. It has a very clean and deep stone fruit Perique flavor. HOWEVER, The Virginia is not very distinct in Escudo. C&D's Virginia has a very earthy, natural taste that I don't find in other Virginias from other companies. Additionally, the perique that they use is very well sourced, and they have access to Perique that other blending houses do not. That means that with them, you get VaPers that have a nice earthy, grassy, and yes, that stone fruit flavor from the perique, but there is something earthier ans wonderfully funkier about the perique as well. Specifically, with most other places perique peppery flavor is something that I experience more towards the front of my pallet, and that means that it actually is reminiscent of tongue bite, even though it's not the same thing. THIS Perique pepperiness is something I experience in the back of my pallet, the back of my mouth, the back of my throat, and that is much, much more pleasant. So, I still like Escudo, I just like this VaPer, or really any C&D VaPer better than any of those of any other blending houses. Theirs just taste more, well, REAL to me. As Brian Levine says, I am the leading expert in my own opinion, so the title of this review is really just my opinion, but I stand by it.

Low Country - Edisto 2oz
Wonderful!
If you like Carolina Red Flake, you'll probably like this. It's got more brightness than CRF, while still having plenty of body and VA depth. For me, that means I MIGHT like it even more than CRF, which is awesome, because it's a little cheaper and a LOT more available!

Lighters - Kiribi Pipe Lighter - Kabuto Mizo Black Matte
Excellent
It's hard to imagine a more reliable lighter than this one. It rarely fails to strike, it has the best wind resistance you can ask for in a butane lighter, the hardware works well, on top of making a very pleasing sound when you open and close it, it's heavy in the hand and feels very premium. I personally think these lighters are a better choice than an old boy because they have a 30% larger tank. The pipe tool that comes in an old boy lighter is an inferior one to pretty much any other pipe tool you can find, so there's no significant value added there. Kiribi makes a muc better choice and gives you a larger tank, which means you are far less likely to run out of fuel on a trip or something like that. AND it's it's about half the price of the cheapest Old Boy. I rest my case.

Cornell & Diehl - Five O'Clock Shadow 2oz
If you like Perique...
I meant to give it three stars, but once you input a certain number of stars, you can't change it. (That might explain why I sometimes see raving reviews with only three stars). Anyway, this blend is good if you like perique, but if you are more on the Virginia side of the VaPer spectrum, I would suggest something else. I basically taste almost all perique with a touch of Virginia, and the burly is barely perceptible at all. It's not bad, but it's not one I'm going to be reaching for, since I generally like my VaPers with a moderate to mild amount of perique.

Mac Baren - Vanilla Roll Cake 3.5oz
Yum!
There are different kinds of vanilla. There is the cheap vanilla ice cream type, then there is the fresh baked cookie just taken out of the oven kind of vanilla. That is what this kind is. The vanilla is strong in the tin and light when smoked, and I wouldn't mind if it were a little bit stronger when smoked, but the other tobaccos that are here are of such high quality that I don't mind! Also, quite a few Mac Been (non-HH line) tobaccos bite me, but not this one. I could hardly GET it to bite me!

Cornell & Diehl - Cordial
My All-Time Favorite English
This was the blend that really got me interested in English blends. It has plenty of thatLatakia spice to it, but also quite a bit of sweetness underneath all of that. What is more I've gotten plenty of positive comments on the room note! Buttery, sweet, savory, smokey. Very full on the pallet. There is definitely NOT enough buzz about this blend. Smokes cool, and I can't believe that something this good is in bulk!

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Blog's Commented on

10 Blends for the Spring Season
  • ► What is a French inhale? (From the description of watchman's reach).
Best-Selling English Aromatics
  • ► One blend I think deserves to be on this list but just doesn't get the buzz it merits is C&D Cordial. Designed to occupy a similar space to Dunhill's Aperitif (and also similar to Robert Lewis Tree Mixture), it offers a delightful juxtaposition between creamy subtle sweetness and Latakia spice like no other I've smoked!
  • ► Hey Kitsy, it makes me so happy to hear this! I've heard from a number of cigarette smokers with similar experiences! They also describe feeling much better physically after making the shift! Thanks for sharing! Feel free to look for me on FB or insta! Happy puffing!
Famous Pipe Smokers and their Preferred Tobacco
  • ► Maybe next time do this but include modern blends that are reminiscent of those blends in case we want to try them?
  • ► I'm especially curious about Edgeworth Executive!
How to Start Your Own Pipe Club
  • ► I've only just gotten started this year (so I'm only three meetings in), but I've actually been pretty successful so far getting people to come to my house. The nearest B&M is in another town 45 minutes away, and their closing time is before when I'd need our start time to be, so it makes sense to do something like this. Anyway, I believe the reason it worked is because I started with people I already knew, so they didn't have any issue coming to my house, and once you have a group of people coming, it's not awkward to invite strangers to your gathering. I've generally had between four and seven people, and we are pulling from a pool of about 14 people. It also helps if you buy a handful of fresh corn cobs and have tobacco to share, that way no equipment or experience is necessary, and I send new people home with whatever corn cob they used and a sample of tobacco! We plan to meet again next Saturday, and if you live anywhere near Berea, Kentucky, you're invited!
Introducing Rivertown Tobacco: Value Tobacco, Bold Flavor
  • ► I would love to know this as well!
Microwaves, Coffee Grinders, and Pipe Tobacco
  • ► Interesting. If I need to dry tobaccos in a hurry, or I just need some extra help, as in the case of traditional aromatics, I either puts a small amount on a plate in front of a space heater for 20 seconds or so, or, especially in the case of aromatics, I'll put it in a toaster oven for a few seconds. Those are much more traditional forms of heat, and I like the results!