Cornell & Diehl -- Pirate Kake

Brand: Cornell & Diehl
Blend: Pirate Kake
Style: English
Pipe Used: No-Name Apple
Price: $27.60/16oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 9
Room Note: 7
Value: 10
Overall: 9

Recently I ordered a pound of Cornell & Diehl's Pirate Kake purely on a whim. I had never so much as tried the blend before but at such a low price I decided I might as well get an entire brick of the stuff and hope for the best.

The tobacco arrived as one large pressed kake sealed in plastic and was dated just four days prior to when my order was placed so this was one young blend to be sure. The kake was soft and pliable and a tad on the moist side and was composed of jet black tobacco with a few brown flecks mixed in. The aroma reminded me of a campfire log that had burned to coals overnight and been dampened by the morning dew. To many folks that is not a pleasant smell but to me it's pure bliss which probably explains why I'm such a fan of these strong latakia blends.

To give it a try I broke off a nugget of the kake, dropped it into my pipe, and sprinkled a bit of rubbed out tobacco on top to act as tinder. The stuff lit right up and once that piece of kake got a nice ember going it refused to go out. I never had to relight the pipe and only tamped it a bit more out of habit than necessity. The pipe was even left on the workbench for minutes at a time while I changed the wiper blades on my car and still it wouldn't stop smoldering. At the end there was only ash and a wee bit of soggy tobacco leftover which isn't bad considering how damp the blend was to start with.

So it burned perfectly which counts for something but how did it taste? C&D defines Pirate Kake as a blend with lots of Latakia accompanied by Turkish and Cavendish cut Burley so the dominant flavor, not surprisingly, is the Latakia which reminded me of the leaf that's used in Count Pulaski. Since that ranks as one of my favorite tobaccos I knew I was in for a treat.

Taste and smell go hand in hand and I can't fully describe one without the other so when I say that this blend reminded me of a well-oiled baseball glove or the seats in a vintage roadster I'm not implying that I've tasted either one but when I smoke this blend those are the images that come to my mind.

I could happily puff all day long on a pipe that offered nothing more than that but with this blend there's the addition of the Turkish and Burley tobaccos to consider. The Oriental leaf added a nice, underlying hint of spice and a bit of robust cigar flavor to the blend while the stoved Burley brought a nutty richness that kept the flavors nicely balanced.

The room aroma was about what once would expect from a heavy Latakia blend. I enjoyed it immensely but I'm not daft enough to think anyone else would so for me this is a blend best enjoyed in solitary comfort where a man can revel in the smell of burning gym socks if he so chooses.

It was a risky move buying a full pound of this stuff on a whim but in this day and age it's often best to get while the gettin's good and in this instance the bet paid off handsomely indeed. With excellent flavor and perfect burning characteristics, Pirate Kake stands as my favorite Cornell & Diehl blend to date. It's certainly not a tobacco for everybody but is highly recommended for all Latakia fans and those with fond memories of standing out in center field chewing the leather laces off their mitts. OK, I admit it, I have tasted a baseball glove before so sue me.

Cornell & Diehl -- Bayou Morning

Brand: Cornell & Diehl
Blend: Bayou Morning
Style: Virginia/Perique
Pipe Used: Savinelli #313 Prince
Price: $18.59/8 oz.

Appearance: 8
Taste: 8
Room Note: 7
Value: 10
Overall: 8

Cornell & Diehl's Bayou Morning is one of their many VA/Per offerings that can be had at a ridiculously low price in bulk form so I decided to try some out with my latest tobacco order. The blend is a ribbon-cut mixture of medium to dark brown tobacco with streaks of black Perique. The aroma is that of tangy sweet Virginia leaf with hints of cocoa and black pepper.

Once my pipe was loaded I gave it a charring light, tamped, and then gave it a relight whereupon I was immediately met with a very strong spicy taste which forcefully announced the presence of the Perique. This almost overwhelming jolt of flavor lasted until the first embers began to smolder and the flames from the initial light dampened a bit. Whew, I thought I was in trouble for a while there!

After that first smack across the face the blend then began to blossom and the sweet Virginia flavors emerged to temper the Perique a bit. But at no point did that spicy leaf ever fade into the background and any heavy-handed puffing soon brought it back to the fore with a vengeance.

The hint of bittersweet chocolate that was evident in the pouch aroma also played out upon the palate and offered up the perfect contrast to the zesty Perique. This combination of spiciness and sweetness put me in mind of such Latin fare as mole sauce or even the fresh melon sprinkled with hot chili powder found at many a roadside stand.

Bayou Morning provided that classic VA/Per flavor profile but it teetered right on the edge of being a flat-out spice-bomb. That's not a knock against the blend but it certainly does make it stand out among its peers.

The room aroma was fairly pleasant but the mustiness from the strong Perique presence provided a bit too much funk to the smoke to be truly enjoyable.

The blend was well-behaved in the pipe and only required a few relights. As mentioned, fast smoking is a no-no with this one unless you typically order your Thai food at level 5.

Cornell & Diehl's Bayou Morning is one VA/Per that isn't afraid to fly its Perique flag high and proud. It's far and away the spiciest blend I've yet had and provides more flavor in one small bowl than should be legal. At C&D's typically insane low price this is a blend well worth stocking up on and I can't wait to see what a few years will do to meld and temper the extreme flavors a bit.

If I wasn't already slavishly devoted to Haddo's Delight as my morning with coffee blend then Bayou Morning would be a prime candidate to take its place. I guess the name really does fit the blend in this case.

Cornell & Diehl -- Three Friars

Brand: Cornell & Diehl
Blend: Three Friars
Style: Virginia, Burley & Perique
Pipe Used: 1/8 Bent Acorn
Price: $18.59/8oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 9
Room Note: 8
Value: 10
Overall: 9

Cornell & Diehl's Three Friars is advertised as a light VA/Per with Burley and I decided to add some to a recent tobacco order. The blend is a light brown ribbon-cut with sparse flecks of black Perique sprinkled throughout. The aroma is lightly sweet and sour with a hint of raisins and the tobacco arrived at the perfect moisture level for immediate smoking.

Upon lighting my no-name acorn I immediately tasted the nutty, tart sweetness typical of quality Burley and Virginia and this was to remain the dominant taste throughout the smoke. The Perique added a nice bit of zesty spice and mustiness but was very much in the background. Three was also a very faint hint of citrus that nicely offset the spiciness. If I had to sum up Three Friars in a few words I would say it's like a top-shelf Carter Hall with pizazz.

The room aroma was fairly benign even though the blend produced lots of smoke.

The tobacco burned clean and dry right down to the bottom of the bowl with only a few relights. There was a noticeable nicotine kick but nothing too overpowering.

C&D's Three Friars is a fine tobacco but I would classify it as a Burley blend rather than a VA/Per since the Perique was so subdued. Considered as a Burley it certainly shines and features much higher quality tobaccos than what is found in most OTC blends. And the crazy part is that it is even cheaper than those classic drugstore tubs. Three Friars might not break into my VA/Per rotation but it will certainly kick those lesser Burley blends to the curb.

The combination of light taste, stellar burn characteristics, and low price make Three Friars one of those much sought after all-day smokes and on that front it comes very highly recommended.

Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. -- Sweet Rum Twist

Brand: Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.
Blend: Sweet Rum Twist
Style: Twist
Pipe Used: No-name Apple
Price: $6.89/1oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 8
Room Note: 6
Value: 6
Overall: 7

When you embark upon the hobby that is pipe smoking it's with the understanding that you're venturing into a world rich in history. And nothing harkens back to the days of old quite like classic rope or twist tobacco. This is the stuff that was chewed, snuffed, and smoked before the days of our relatively modern tobacco mixtures and flakes.

I've always been intrigued by the gnarly looking ropes of tobacco featured on many a tobacconist's shelves -- virtual or otherwise -- but was scared off by the notoriously strong flavor and high nicotine content typically found in this style of tobacco. But in my latest order I finally worked up the courage to add in a sample of Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.'s Sweet Rum Twist.

When the tobacco arrived I was greeted with about a seven inch long tobacco rope (thanks for the generous extra amount smokingpipes.com!) that was fairly moist and had that rich tobacco aroma I typically find in my cigar humidors -- what a great scent! I sliced off three thin coins of the stuff, rubbed it out into ribbon form, and then set it aside to dry overnight.

When I went to load up my no-name apple-shaped pipe this afternoon the tobacco was still a bit moist but I still forged ahead. It took a few extra charring lights to get it going but soon I had a lit pipe and an insanely great volume of deep, rich tobacco smoke swirling about my head.

Sweet Rum Twist is supposedly made up of full-leaf Virginia tobacco that's topped with a sugar and rum mixture before being twisted into ropes and cold-pressed. So what you have here is a pipe tobacco blend that is created in much the same way as a rudimentary cigar so perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise that the flavors reminded me very much of a good cigar while at the same time tasting nothing like a cigar -- if that makes any sense.

The taste was very full and strong but still pleasant with the natural Virginia sweetness combining with the added sugars to bring out a robust flavor similar to a mild cigar but without the complexity that comes with the addition of the wrapper and binder leaves. And the faint presence of rum also reminded my palate of Esoterica's Stonehaven to some extent although the Rum Twist was much stronger.

Make no mistake, this blend is very heavy as the lack of stoving or heat-treating of any kind makes for a very raw and powerful tobacco flavor and punch.

As mentioned, this blend produced scads of smoke and it was pretty heady stuff as well so it isn't likely to win any prizes in the room note department.

Since the tobacco was moist I had to relight the pipe frequently but that actually helped in a way by causing me to slow down and not smoke as fast as I usually do which is probably why I encountered no ill effects from the heavy nicotine content. Since I tend to be very sensitive to the vitamin N this is probably the smoking cadence I'll stick to with this blend.

Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.'s Sweet Rum Twist is true tobacco classic and I'm glad I finally worked up the nerve to give it a try. What I found was a strong tobacco loaded with heavy flavors and lots of smoke that should be smoked slowly and savored while the mind harkens back to the time of tall ships and tobacco-loving sailors.

This certainly won't become a part of my regular rotation but as an occasional treat Sweet Rum Twist fits in nicely between typical pipe blends and cigars on the tobacco strength continuum.

Oliva Serie V Maduro Especial

Brand: Oliva
Cigar: Serie V Maduro Especial
Shape: Torpedo
Size: 6.5" x 52
Wrapper: Connecticut
Filler: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Price: $11.99

Appearance: 8
Construction: 8
Taste: 8
Value: 7
Overall: 8

While most of my smoking these days has focused on pipes I still have a hankering for a cigar from time to time and with a fridgador full of singles there's always something new to try. I'm a big fan of Oliva cigars and decided to fire up a limited production Serie V maduro torpedo this afternoon.

The torpedo is 6.5 inches long with a ring gauge of 52 and features a dark brown maduro wrapper. Construction was perfect with a nice tight wrapper and well-rolled tobacco evident from examining the foot of the cigar.

I snipped the tip off with my Palio cutter, toasted the foot, and started smoking.

The flavor of this cigar was very complex while still remaining mild to medium on the palate. The predominant flavor was cedar-like and it took me a few minutes to realize that what I was tasting was more akin to smoldering mesquite chips on a BBQ grill. There was a bit of spice as well but the maduro wrapper tempered it with creamy unsweetened cocoa and coffee flavors. As the smoke progressed these savory elements really took hold and made for an enjoyable cigar experience.

The Serie V torpedo burned well and required only a few touch ups to keep the burn line even. Smoke output was fairly subdued and non-obtrusive for such a large cigar and the nicotine hit was fairly strong. The cigar lasted for well over an hour until all that was left was a pile of rough gray ash.

The Oliva Serie V Maduro Especial is a great cigar featuring the Oliva family's standard fine attention to detail. As a limited edition it is pricier than their typical offerings but is well worth the added investment.

McClelland -- Beacon

Brand: McClelland
Blend: Beacon
Style: Virginia/Perique
Pipe Used: Cob
Price: Free Sample

Appearance: 8
Taste: 9
Room Note: 8
Value: 8
Overall: 8

McClelland's Beacon is a blend that was originally part of the Pipe Collectors Club of America (PCCA) line of tobaccos. Since it has always been blended and tinned by McClelland it's likely that the newer batches follow the same formula as the older incarnation. Since I've only ever smoked the newer stuff that's what this review will cover.

Beacon is a Virginia/Perique blend made up of lemon yellow and orange Virginia leaf combined with a touch of Louisiana Perique. The tobacco arrives in a broken flake and is medium brown in color with obvious flecks of those bright Virginias peeking through. The tin aroma is slightly sweet and full of that classic McClelland tang.

The sample I was given dates from 2007 but was obviously well cared for as the flakes were still pliable and a bit moist. To get started I grabbed a pinch of the broken flakes and stuffed them into my Missouri Pride natural cob. It took a few charring lights to really get things going but after that the blend burned nicely even with a heavy dose of ambient humidity.

Beacon started off with a light, sugary taste that had none of the heavier molasses overtones often found in darker VA flakes. The lemon and orange Virginias lived up to their names and delivered a delightfully astringent citrus zing that reminded me a bit of kaffir lime leaves. And rounding out the flavor profile was just enough Perique to add some much-needed depth and a jolt of pepper to the mix. To my taste buds this was essentially Thai lemongrass soup in a pipe and provided a perfect balance of tangy, sweet, and spicy.

The room aroma was fairly light as well but there was a bit of mustiness evident from the Perique and the tobacco gave off a constant wisp of smoke as it smoldered in the pipe.

I'm a bit of a fast smoker but had no problems with tongue bite as the blend burned down to the bottom of the bowl leaving nothing but dry ash. I did have to relight the pipe regularly but that's the norm for me and flakes.

As a big fan of VA/Pers I had been looking forward to giving this well-regarded McClelland creation a try for quite some time and all I can say is that I was not disappointed. Beacon's bright Virginias added a lighter dimension than is typical for this genre and it proved to be the perfect smoke for a hot summer night. This is a truly remarkable blend and I fully intend to add some more tins to my tobacco cellar post haste.

G.L. Pease -- Haddo's Delight

Brand: G.L. Pease
Blend: Haddo's Delight
Style: Virginia/Perique
Pipe Used: Mario Grandi Poker
Price: Free Sample

Appearance: 8
Taste: 9
Room Note: 7
Value: 7
Overall: 8

Haddo's Delight is a blend I've heard much about and which was on my "to try" list for a long while before a tobacco trade finally netted me a nice sample. There is a lengthy and ongoing online argument over whether or not this tobacco should be classified as a Virginia/Perique blend since it also contains Burley and a quite obvious topping of some sort. For me the proof is in the pudding and ancillary flavors aside this one sure tastes like a stout VA/Per to me.

One thing I've always appreciated about Greg Pease's blends is that he takes the naming of his fine creations seriously and a cursory investigation of this particular concoction reveals some very interesting tidbits that portend what a pipeful of this weed has in store for the smoker.

Aleister Crowley was an infamous English occultist of the early 20th century and among his many passions was a love for smoking straight Perique tobacco. Even the most ardent fans of this unique leaf would be hard-pressed to stomach such a full-on onslaught of this typically condimental tobacco.

Oliver Haddo was a character featured in W. Somerset Maugham's novel "The Magician" and was loosely based on the occultist. Crowley was none too pleased with this skewering of his character and later adopted the Oliver Haddo nom de plume to write a scathing rebuttal in which he pointed out Maugham's plagiaristic tendencies.

So from this bit of literary history one can assume that a tobacco named Haddo's Delight will likely be a Perique-laden blend filled with a cutting sharpness.

The tobacco itself is a Virgina/Perique blend with some added Cavendish and Burley to flesh out the flavors. The tobacco is a mixture of ribbon and cross-cut tobaccos that span the range from almost white to jet black in color. The tin aroma is lusciously sweet and smells to me like rum raisin. And here we run into yet another controversy regarding Haddo's Delight, namely does it feature a topping of some sort or not. While many claim that the aroma is due strictly to the melange of tobaccos my nose detects alcohol, namely dark rum, so until proven wrong I'm convinced that there is in fact a liquor topping used here and I have absolutely no problem with that.

Over the past few days I've tried this tobacco in cobs as well as my dedicated Va/Per pipe, a stubby Mario Grandi poker shape. The tobacco loaded easily, lit right up, and was a snap to smoke as it burned well and required no fussing to keep the pipe going.

Haddo's Delight provided a wonderful flavor range as the various types of tobacco made their presences known on the palate. The dominant tastes were sweet, savory, and meaty, akin almost to the umami flavor of Japanese teriyaki. This was accompanied by a spicy tingle and rounded out with a delightful caramelized sugar aftertaste. It was a bit less sweet than most Va/Pers but certainly spicier.

Perique is a peculiar tobacco that can be both spicy and savory depending on its use and in this blend we get the best of both attributes as it adds a background hint of Szechuan mushrooms to the mix. Some folks find even the smallest dose of Perique intolerable and while I love the stuff I can readily tell it's present in a blend as I get a tingling sensation on my lips and face while smoking. In Haddo's Delight the Perique is a force to be reckoned with as I was hit with not only that pleasant prickling sensation but also a bit of numbness as well. For those who can't abide this leaf you should stay far away from this blend!

The pipe aroma was both sharp and sweet and the voluminous clouds of smoke made for a pungent smell in the room.

As mentioned, the blend burned well and left nothing but a very fine gray ash in the bowl. The ash was so fine in fact that even the slightest bit of puffing back into the pipe resulted in a mini eruption of ash onto my shirt.

Haddo's Delight is yet another masterpiece from G.L. Pease. And while its very forceful nature won't appeal to every pipe smoker I found it to be a perfect morning blend as it goes great with a cup of coffee and provides enough zest to help get my day started. Whether Aleister Crowley would approve is another matter entirely but I dare say that he wouldn't feel compelled to adopt his Oliver Haddo persona in order to take Mr. Pease to task.