Cornell & Diehl Old Joe Krantz Blue Label

(3.17)
Dark and white cube cut burley combine to form a classic, medium-bodied burley blend, sure to provide a slow-burning, rich smoking experience.

Details

Brand Cornell & Diehl
Series Old Joe
Blended By  
Manufactured By Cornell & Diehl
Blend Type Burley Based
Contents Burley, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Cube
Packaging 2 ounce tin, 8 ounce tin, bulk
Country United States
Production Currently available

Profile

Strength
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
None Detected
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.17 / 4
5

5

1

1

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 12 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 10, 2017 Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant
The burleys are very nutty, earthy, woody, rather toasty with light molasses, and slightly bitter cocoa hit. The grassy, citrusy Virginia is a tad more than a background player. The nic-hit is just shy of being in the center of mild to medium. The strength and taste levels are medium. Won’t bite, and you’ll only get a harsh note if you puff like you’re walking the last mile to the gas chamber. It does sport a mild sharp, rough edge at times from the white burley. The cube cut seems a little smaller than the earlier version I smoked. Burns slightly slow, cool and clean with a very consistent sweet and mildly rugged, savory, toasty flavor that translates to the lightly lingering, pleasant after taste, and room note. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires a few relights. Can be an all day smoke, and can be used as a mixer if you desire it.

-JimInks
35 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 01, 2018 Medium None Detected Medium Tolerable
Cornell & Diehl - Old Joe Krantz Blue Label.

The pouch (I bought from bulk) contains both ribbons and cubes. The hydration's too little but I put that down to it breathing in the pouch and not necessarily Cornell & Diehl. The prominent note to the unlit aroma's sweet.

I get nowhere near as much Virginia as I do Burley. The smoke has a nuttiness, a mild sort of treacle sweetness, and a spicy ruggedness. The Virginia gives the mix a touch of sprightliness, but is easily outweighed by the Burleys; easily. My only issue is caused by the packaging: it burns hot and fast.

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: not good.

Old Joe Krantz Blue Label? Because of the dryness raising a few issues I only rate this batch at two stars, but have every confidence in the tins from Cornell & Diehl. Recommended:

Three stars.
Pipe Used: Altinok Meerschaum
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com (bulk)
Age When Smoked: One month
13 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 13, 2018 Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
I got 2oz. of this along with my Big 'n' Burley baggie and was suprised, that the "Cube-Cut Blend" is rather ribbons with rather tiny cubes in it.. some are bigger, but most of the cubes are quite small. Still an appealing texture and look. Red, brown and some bright tobacco is awaiting me in the bag.

The unburnt aroma is very good. Most natural, very nutty, spicy and a little sweet. By times I even get a hint of what reminds me of roasted coffee beans and few fruity nuances. Perfect condition, packs, lights and burns excellent.

The bowl begins with a pleasant spicy and sweet aroma and has a decent toasty and somewhat roasted quality to it. Quickly the Burleys develop a deep earthy, tart-nutty and woodsy taste and overtakes the sweet & spicy note - which then balances the boldness of the Burleys excellently - from the start just a tad. Spicy, tart and sweet. Earthy, nutty, woodsy and toasty...tasty! Not too much comlexity, but honest, natural and charming Virginia/Burley blend with plenty of Burley to satisfy a Burley-Aficionado.

Great blend, 3.5 stars for me - not an instant "jeez I love this weed", but close to it and definetly a blend I'll reach for regularely as long as I have some in stock. Reminds me of a sweeter, less spicy version of the Haunted Bookshop.

*Update:* This blend really grew on me after several bowls and I find it to be an easy going All-Day Burley, nothing fancy, but really solid and tasty blend which I reach for every now and then. Favorited! *Update#2:* Re-Visiting this blends now that a few months have passed without me opening the jar and: Still solid and smooth, gained a bit nuttiness and the sweetness aided some of the "rough edges" of the burleys. Would smoke again by times, but nothing I'd have to buy in larger quantities! Yet: Solid as rock!
11 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 24, 2019 Medium to Strong None Detected Medium Pleasant
You would never expect bright Virginia leaf to go well with a burley profile, but it does. As a matter of fact, Old Joe Krantz Blue is not the only blend Cornell & Diehl uses bright leaf in. Morley's Best, for instance, contains Bright Virginia Flake, or Pegasus, to quote a few. This creates a nutty smoking experience that evolves against a citric backdrop. I am finding Old Joe Krantz quite balanced and not as strong or full bodied as Old Joe Krantz Original, which, in my personal opinion, is a little bit out of whack. This blue label blend is totally harmless in terms of biting power, but can pack a little bit of a wallop or nicotine hit. Also, it is very important to mention that the flavour profile is rather achieved by combining different tobaccos as no casing or flavouring have been added to the blend. Overall, this is a medium body burley blend with medium to strong strength all burley lovers should try.
8 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 16, 2018 Mild to Medium None Detected Mild to Medium Pleasant
First third of the bowl offers a preview of what's coming. It's mostly earth and dry grass at the beginning, which is nice, but if you're not careful and let your pipe burn hotter for a second, you can feel aromas of cocoa. The rest of the bowl is just an enhancement of those flavors, with some hits of the sweet Virginia. This is a simple, light, nice burley blend, which doesn't work for me: I like my pipe tobacco heavy and complex, as I smoke so rarely. Yet, I could definitely see a smoker smoke this blend all day as it's light and has no bite, and it's flavorful. About the cube cut – I had almost no cubes at my tin. As I was smoking, I thought I would love this blend as a flake – but I guess the cubes were supposed to act as a depth enhancer for this one, only I didn't have any… This is a slow burner, yet hot – so smoke it in a thick wall pipe. All in all, a nice experience, but not one of my favorite Vapers….
Pipe Used: Peterson Shamrock
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: 1 year
8 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 29, 2020 Medium Extremely Mild Medium Pleasant
A funny thing happened to me on the way to review Old Joe Krantz Blue Label: It turns out I’ve liked this blend better and better with each successive smoke! Though I’m having a hard time zeroing in on why this is so, it’s so, and it’s been going on for some time now. The reason I’m surprised is that OJKBL seemed “good but not great” to me initially, certainly not up to original OJK, which IMO is a classic, not to mention a favorite of mine. In fact, when I looked for some original OJK to compare to this upstart, I found I’ve blown through my stash of original OJK… again, and now it looks like the OJKBL won’t last very long, either!

OJKBL is a classic, fairly sophisticated rendition of an Olde Tyme style VA/Bur, heavy on the Burley, light on the VA. Tin note is woody, leathery, floral, sour-dough- bready and old hay-ish, and these scents herald the tastes. Short ribbons and small chunks range from golden brown to mid red-brown and medium brown. It handles, loads, lights and burns all the way down with no relights for a comfortable (for codgers, at any rate…), slow, dry smoke. Again, combusting scents are a more voluminous version of the tin notes, and tastes follow along, adding nuts and super mild, very smooth, savory cigar-type spices. It’s consistent from top to bottom, except, like I said earlier, it just keeps getting better and better, once it takes over a dedicated pipe. It makes plenty of dry, fragrant, delicious, creamy smoke. Strength is a couple of ticks over medium, also the nicotine, also the tastes. Room note is fairly pleasant. The lingering aftertaste continues the best of the smoke, only it’s much sweeter.

OJKBL does not exactly strike me as Original OJK without Perique, but in any case it’s a swell, satisfying, modern codger blend that’s easy-peasy, and it might be an everyday smoke for many experienced pipers. Basically, I have no problems with this one, and nice to have it around when “I’m not sure what I want”, but it’s not Latakia, and it still needs to be a 4 star blend.

Update, 08-08-21: Jarred some of this around the time of my original review, and I'm sure glad I did! What a great, classic smoke. Still not the smoothest, but smoother, and very fragrant, tasty, satisfying and relaxing. Definitely a blend to keep always on hand.
Pipe Used: dedicated briars
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 04, 2020 Medium to Strong None Detected Very Full Strong
I’ve been looking for an all day VA/Bur and I seem to have found it. For me, I do really enjoy the original Old Joe Krantz, but it’s a bit too much for a daily smoke. The high percentage of perique makes original OJK over the top in my experience. I bought about four ounces in bulk after reading some reviews of it and I have a deep respect for Jeremy Reeves as a blender, so I gave it a shot.

I have been enjoying this daily for about two weeks now. When I put my nose in the bag, I was a little disappointed at first, as it reminded me of fermented pencil shavings. Now I just love the stuff.

Burley in the forefront and throughout the smoke, the Virginias are included to dull the edges of a straight Burley blend. To my taste, I get a lot of nutty, earthiness in the smoke and a hint of cocoa. This is one of the better Virginia/Burleys out there and certainly is satisfying in the nicotine department. Want something complex with an ever-changing flavor while smoking? Well, you’ll have to look elsewhere for that. If you enjoy Burleys, however, this may be for you. I am looking forward to trying it with a few months age on it, so I’ll have to buy more soon. Highly recommended.
Pipe Used: An old Pete X105 and a few Tinskys I own.
Age When Smoked: Straight from bulk
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 02, 2020 Medium None Detected Medium Unnoticeable
I received my 2oz sample in bulk and it was quite dry but rehydrated fine . OJK blue is a nutty , earthy , very natural tasting burley with a little N- kick to it . I get no cocoa at all . There are some red and bright Virginias that give it a tiny bit of sweetness. If you like your tobacco in a natural state then you will probably like this . I like it ok but won’t buy again . 2 1/2 star blend for me .
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 25, 2022 Mild to Medium None Detected Mild to Medium Unnoticeable
A fellow pipe club member and a good all-around guy brought this in. He has gone over to the dark side and is on a Burley Quest. Nothing wrong with that. Upon opening the tin, I first comment was I thought this was cubed. All I saw for the most part was ribbon. Anyway, I do not smoke a lot of Burley unless it is the dark fired variety. I found this amazingly mild and it reminded me of the Over the Counter Burleys, only of course better. Did get to smoke much but a very smooth blend. I had some of the regular Old Joe Krantz back in 2019 so it has been way too long to compare the two. Not that I could anyway. Thanks “E” and it is always good to see you at the club meetings.
Pipe Used: Corn Cob
3 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 12, 2021 Medium None Detected Medium Strong
Summary: modified from the original, this uses more Burley and bright Virginias, aiming for an old school OTC vibe.

"Old Joe Krantz" the original delights because it balances a great deal of rough dark Burley flavor against the deep sweetness of red Virginias paired with white Burley, given a little jam-and-pepper flavor from a moderate amount of Burley. "Old Joe Krantz Blue" changes the formula by adding more white Burley and replacing most of the red Virginia with bright Virginia; this makes sense when you realize that bright Virginia and white Burley are processed quickly, therefore are more cost-effective in terms of labor than dark Burley or red Virginia. The result tastes like "Haunted Bookshop" or "Sir Walter Raleigh" in that most of what you taste is a nutty Burley like a roast walnut, with a little acidic and lemony sugar floating around the edges. While this is not bad, it is not particularly compelling, either, compared to the range of flavors that "Old Joe Krantz" original and "Haunted Bookshop" offer. Mine came as a ribbon cut, and if they pressed the Virginias and worked in a little more Maryland or red Virginia, would be a heck of a smoke.
2 people found this review helpful.
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