Cornell & Diehl Sam's Blend

(2.90)
A smooth blend of Cyprian Latakia,Perique and unsweetened black Cavendish. An all-day smoke

Details

Brand Cornell & Diehl
Blended By  
Manufactured By Cornell & Diehl
Blend Type American
Contents Black Cavendish, Latakia, Perique
Flavoring
Cut Coarse Cut
Packaging 2oz tin, 8oz tin
Country United States
Production

Profile

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

Average Rating

2.90 / 4
5

8

7

0

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 20 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 19, 2005 Medium Very Mild Medium to Full Pleasant to Tolerable
A very interesting tobacco. Stick your nose in the dark, loose flakes and you'll get a whiff of smoke and a thick sweet chocolately smell... and something else... kinda like a cherry bonbon. That makes it sound sickly sweet, but it's really not. And it's one of the easiest blends to pack and keep lit that I've come across. Lighting up produces an exceptionally thick cloud of smooth and very cool smoke. What smelled sweet in the tin now turns into a very nice roundness on the palette. The Latakia is there, but not at all overpowering, and the Perique too is rather restrained: more of a nice nose tickle than a sharp spiciness on the tongue. I haven't tried Mississippi Mud. I gather it's not what you'd call "well mannered," but this definitely is.

The tin label calls Sam's Blend "an all-day smoke," and that, I think is key. I like the taste of Latakia, but even the most refined blends (I'm thinking 965, Margate, and Schurch Onyx) often leave an ashy taste in my mouth: a couple bowls will make me feel like I need to scrub my tongue if I'm going to enjoy anything else. This doesn't do that.

If we were still on the "how often" system, I'd have to have to give this three stars, because I've become a confirmed Virginia smoker. But now that we're on a "how good" system, and can comfortably give it four: this is an excellent all-day blend for those who lean toward Latakia, and -- I would think -- a delightful change of pace for everyone else. ****/****
12 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 09, 2009 Very Mild None Detected Extremely Mild (Flat) Tolerable
There's a lot to like about this intriguing blend. Moisture levels are excellent right out of the tin, packing is easy, and the stuff has all the bite of a toothless lap dog. And if you find 'smokiness' to be a genuine virtue in a tobacco (as I do), then you can't go wrong here because Sam's Blend billows like a brush fire. The flavors are extremely mild with the figgy Perique part and the smoky-herbal Latakia part combining to produce a quiet, oddly ash-flavored whole.

So why the lowly two stars?

Well, I'm three quarters of the way through a tin and Sam hasn't yet given me a memorable smoke. To my mind, Sam's Blend is an out of touch blend, a tobacco for an earlier time when you really could have a smoldering pipe stuffed into your jaw all day and a near mute flavor intensity was desirable. Such times are passed (sadly, or not, depending on your perspective) and I submit that many pipe smokers prefer more intensity of flavor in their tobacco because the number of bowls they smoke has declined. Two or three bowls (on a good day) is all I can smoke 'All Day' and I suspect that such numbers are common--maybe even high.

If you live in one of those charming places or you have reached an age where having an 'All Day' smoke makes sense, then this quiet little blend makes sense. If you live anywhere else, then you might want to stick to something with a little more oomph.
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 26, 2016 Mild Extremely Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant
Right off, tin art is one of the best from C&D (and god knows they have some horrible offerings in that regards - see purple cow for instance...).

What distinguishes this blend in a favorable way is it's behavior: straight out of the tin or dried to a crust, I believe this is a blend manufactured for it's consistency and reliability as a smoking experience (a well behaved dog, as such). Keep a tin for years (as have I) and it won't disapoint, as long as you don't expect it to do something it's not meant to. Some dogs don't learn new tricks: you don't love'em less for it.

Asides from it's taste and quality, I believe those who love or hate this blend do so perhaps in regards to an unconscious underlying philosophy of one's smoking habit... Allow me to explain: I can't say I love this blend (part of me doesn't want to admit it for some reason), yet I have nothing bad to say about it. I own many more complex and « enjoyable » latakia-based blends. And yet... At one point I forgot I owned this Tobacco, and upon opening the tin with the relative excitement of a (re)discovery, I was surprised to find I was nearly at the bottom of it: I had smoked it entirely without effort or barely even noticing myself doing so. Some will see this as a bad sign. Other smokers can see it as a sign of it's success depending on what your looking for. What happened for me is that I immediatly wanted to buy more, urgently, even if I can think of dozen's of blends in it's category (English hybrid) which I seemingly prefer. It took me time to realize that I like this blend for qualities different than what I expected from it. It's simplicity as a blend is not it falling short of anything: it's straightforward and intentional. I really enjoy it's coarse cut (of quite small tight pieces): feels unusual for a latakia blend as it packs as easily as a cube-cut burley . It will produce volumes and volumes of smoke, and deliver confidently a rather natural flavor.

Forget the perique: I never detected it in any way (neither visualy, in the tin or in the smoke). Treat this for what it will most likely present your palate in taste and flavor: this is a jet-black blend of unflavored cavendish and latakia. Something else strange goes on here according to me when I put my nose in the tin but I never was able to put my finger on it. Not a topping, yet not the perique as I initialy tought (having aquired since I first opened it more knowledge and experience with perique blends). A « grayness for the nose ». (Go ahead, try it before you call me crazy.) Maybe it's the Cavendish presented in this fashion. Still, I would probably recognize this blend among other latakia mixtures only by smelling it's tin for that reason.

The flavorless Cavendish are interesting, as they burn easy and seem to simply act a neutral dilution method for the ''floral'' spicyness of the latakia. While most would approach a latakia blend the way they would a proper single malt, this is a straight whisky-shot in a glass of tonic water.The result is a somewhat sweet and biteless latakia experience that has yet nothing of the sugary sirupy undertones of, say, a Mccelland mild «English » nor the pepperiness of oriental-heavy mixtures. Imagine this as Mcclelland's Old Dog of which one would magically extract the goopiness in texture and the sugary molasses flavor. What's left may feel empty and dusty to some, yet the perfect no nonesense 'steak n potatoes' for others.

Underrated, most likely because it fall's short of many preconceptions and behaves as an overkill of smokey/neutrality: too tame for orential/English experts, too bland a Cavendish for the aromatic expecting-smoker, no trace of perique in spite of advertisement, little to feel in the nicotine departement. I understand why many would remain unimpress. Still, it makes for a perfect all-day latakia tease and a great to-go English. You can't always mess around with Penzance's delicacy, especially if you smoke a LOT. Easiest blend to pack and smoke in it's category, literaly. I mean...that's gotta be worth something, right?

Pipe Used: Peterson premier 307
PurchasedFrom: 4noggins
Age When Smoked: From fresh to 4 yrs old
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 09, 2019 Mild None Detected Mild to Medium Pleasant
Cornell & Diehl - Sam's Blend.

Quite coarse, but not overly so. It's very dark brown in colour and the hydration of my tin looked smack on. Unlit, the blend smells quite rich.

My initial reaction to a bowl wasn't toward the flavour, but the vast clouds of smoke Sam' produces! Big plumes, but flavoursome. The Latakia's a smoother, woody, less smoky, variety, so doesn't cause sharp ramifications to my palate! I get a scintilla of dark fruit from the Perique, it's definitely present, but doesn't come across in too spicy/sharp a fashion. The black Cavendish, although not giving a piquant flavour, forms the base and gives the smoke a pleasing moistness. How does it burn? In an exemplary way; very cool, bite-free, quite slow, needing very little maintenance.

Nicotine: mild. Room-note: pleasant.

Sam's Blend? I have no problem highly recommending this:

Four stars.
Pipe Used: Lee Van Cleef Replica Meer'
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: 10/24/17
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 31, 2011 Mild None Detected Mild Very Pleasant
First, I love the name Sam. It is simple and unassuming, easy to spell and pronounce and doesn't offend, surprise or confound. With most Sams that I know, what you see is what you get.

The above describes this C&D tobacco blend.
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 30, 2005 Mild None Detected Mild Pleasant to Tolerable
This stuff is very light on the Latakia and Perique--they barely make their presence known. The main component, then, is the Cavendish. What does unflavored Cavendish taste like? Well, it's Burley, so yeah--this tastes a lot like that. It's more subdued and very mild though, so don't look to get run over by a fat taste factor as suggested by the darkness of this blend.

In many respects, Sam's Blend manages to be both interesting and bland at the same time. You're almost forced to go looking for the subtleties of the Latakia and Perique, which can be a rewarding experience in its own right. But I'm not one for treasure hunts, so I'll pass.
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 20, 2019 Mild to Medium None Detected Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
Tin note is lovely and calm. Nothing over bearing, yet nowhere near too faint. Faint chocolate and a nutty toffee, this blend is absolutely an all day blend. Unassuming; yet a welcome addition to the daily rotation. I don’t know if it’s C & D first blend, but it’s never the one spoken about. Crying shame! The quality of this blend is akin to McClelland
Pipe Used: Peterson Sherlock Holmes Watson
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 28, 2006 Mild to Medium Extremely Mild Medium Pleasant
This tobacoo is quite an accomplishment in creating a mild tobacco that has character and depth. This is a wonderful blend when you want a milder smoke but won't settle for bland. Both the Latakia and Perique make their presence known and I'm very impressed with the unsweetened black cavendish as the base.

My first thoughts when I opened the first tin was - Oh no! This is going to be sweet candy goop. Not true at all. While the tin aroma (at first opening) reminded me of a freshly glazed creme brulee ... the first puff of the char light dispelled any rumors that this was going to be a candy pipe tobacoo nightmare. In fact, I was taken aback by the creaminess, and latakia and very subtle perique notes all in few seconds. I'm not an alchemist, but my guess is that a certain magic happens with these three tobaccos. The latakia is latakia ... it's not hard to notice nor is it grandstanding or exceptional. The perique, seems to transform into something new with the Black Cavendish. In my tastes this is interesting ... and I understand that the most incredible accomplishment of this blend is that it is not strong nor bland.

This blend is exceptional and delivers what I believed they intended. A mild blend that has interest, smokes cool, is creamy and interesting. For me it is exceptional for quite often while traveling I'm forced to cower in the corner of a hotel room that has already declared war on smokers (or go outdoors with a substantial balkan friend.) I just don't enjoy room deodorizer tobaccos and I would rather not smoke if I can only find something that has IMO no flavor. Why bother? So for me this is the quintessential crossover tobacco ... that merges mildness, with flavor and interest. The room note is mild , pleasant and doesn't take up residence. A great option.

It packs easily, pipe choice is irrelevant (bigger the better for me with this) it smokes cool and dry, very creamy thick smoke and burns completely to a gray-white ash.

Cheers, VC

*Update for the above 11/05 review - I've downgraded this because its place in my rotation - not because of any quality issues.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 13, 2013 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium to Full Tolerable
A unique tobacco - it's both mild (from the Cavendish) and interesting (from the Latakia & Perique). If you puff on it without thinking about the tobacco you might not get much out of it but with a little pondering the smokiness and tartness will come out to play.

While I don't think I'll be getting this one again I would recommend this for the "all day" smoker looking for an upgrade from a more pedestrian Cavendish blend.
PurchasedFrom: SmokingPipes
Age When Smoked: 3 months
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 24, 2011 Mild Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant
This is not a bad smoke, although for it's class of sort of milder English blends I prefer Epiphany, but it's good stuff. I would say the dominant characteristic of this blend is smoothness and for that, it's great. The perique gave it just enough of a flavor, but I would have preferred some VA's in there as well, to me the black cavendish was washed out by the latakia and did absolutely nothing for the blend. Probably not one I'll rush out and buy, but it was a good grab and smoke upon visiting a friend in Germany, he had some on his coffee table so I had a few bowls during my stay with him.
1 person found this review helpful.
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