Cornell & Diehl Founding Fathers

(2.74)
A delightful aromatic blend of burleys and black cavendish infused with the flavor of pomegranate, an exotic fruit originally from the middle East that was a particular favorite in the 18th Century and found growing on the grounds of Mt. Vernon, Monticello and around the homes of other Founding Fathers.

Details

Brand Cornell & Diehl
Blended By Cornell & Diehl
Manufactured By Cornell & Diehl
Blend Type Aromatic
Contents Black Cavendish, Burley
Flavoring Pomegranate
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 2 ounce tin
Country United States
Production Currently available

Profile

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

Average Rating

2.74 / 4
7

12

14

1

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 34 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 26, 2013 Mild to Medium Medium Medium Very Pleasant
I ordered this blend in bulk form along with a handful of other tobaccos I had never tried. After smelling and inspecting each bag, I held the Founding Fathers blend under my nose and held it there for about ten minutes. My wife asked me to stop because it was "creepy". She said I looked like a drug addict huffing spray paint out of a bag. This stuff seriously smells and smokes amazing. I'd rather not smoke at all than smoke a sticky, sweet, aromatic blend, so I was very pleased with this tobacco. It touches that "middle ground" balance that I look for in a pipe tobacco. Also, for the very first time ever, my wife walked outside while I was smoking this and said that it smelled good. This may not seem like a big deal, but keep in mind that she's smelled the room notes of dozens of different pipe tobaccos and claimed that they all smell the same to her, like cigarettes. So just a warning: if you buy this blend your wife may want to hang out with you while you smoke.
Pipe Used: Savinelli, Viking , Cob
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: 1 day
26 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 30, 2011 Mild to Medium Medium Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
I realize to some in the pipe world, liking an aromatic is akin to someone telling a hard core foodie that they like sliders. I like a good gourmet meal, but sometimes a craving for sliders overtakes me. It's the same with me and aromatics. I get burned out on the Va-Per's and the heavy latakia blends from time to time and I want an aromatic. Founding Father's by Cornell & Diehl certainly has satisfied this urge.

When I opened the tin I was confronted with the standard burley based aromatic look. Loose ribbons in various lengths, with a couple of stems visible, with the various brown hues of the burley dominating the small ribbons of black cavendish. I could definitely smell the pomegranate topping when I opened the lid, and putting my nose to it was very satisfying. It was clean feeling to the touch, and slightly moist like most aromatics, so I let it dry out for about an hour before loading my first bowl.

An unlit sip brought a faint tartness of the pomegranate flavoring to my lips, and the initial puffs filled my mouth with the same refreshing tartness. After the biggest part of the flavor burned off I was left with a simple and uncomplicated burley/cavendish blend that delivered the occasional whiff of the topping. It did not burn too hot for me, and gave me no bite through various bowls, even when I became vigorous when I had it loaded in cobs and meerschaums. It left no residue in my mouth, burning to a gray ash, and none in my bowl. There was none of that sticky goop I often find from aromatics. The room note was very pleasant, very similar to the smell of cranberry oatmeal cookies baking.

I like this blend. It has no bite for me, the simple burley/cavendish mixture it becomes part way through the bowl was satisfying on the nicotine delivery level, and the pomegranate was a pretty refreshing flavor on these hot and humid Kentucky evenings. I would recommend this blend to anyone who likes aromatics or the flavor of pomegranates or for someone who is looking for an aromatic that doesn't deliver a scalding bite. If you are in search of a good cherry aromatic, the flavor is close enough to a tart cherry to be a nice substitute, and the room note is top notch. I will definitely be buying more.

Update: I found a 3 year, 3 month old tin in my cellar and decided to give it a go. The flavoring certainly did not hold up, and I prefer it fresh, which in hindsight is totally normal. It mostly tasted like a tart and sour top note that came in and out and the Cavendish dominated. By all means smoke it fresh, but I wouldn't recommend letting it sit at all.
15 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 19, 2012 Very Mild Mild Mild Very Pleasant
An excellent mild aromatic.

It does not smoke hot or wet and and smells great while burning. I only notice the fruity notes of pomegranate occasionally but it very nice when I can and it gives a more exotic quality than just your standard vanilla Cavendish.

Plus, you can buy it in bulk for a great price. It's hard to beat that!
13 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jun 05, 2015 Very Mild Mild Very Mild Pleasant
The burleys are a little nutty, woody, earthy and slightly sweet, but toned down, probably because at least one of the burleys is toasted. Even still, they do less than they should. The black cavendish offers a very mild sugary smoothness in the background. The pomegranate topping is mild and sweet, but doesn't have a real depth of flavor. The strength and taste levels are very mild. Has little nicotine. Won't bite or get harsh. Burns slightly fast, but clean and cool with a fairly consistent flavor. Needs few relights, and leaves little moisture in the bowl. The after taste as plain as the smoke itself. An unobtrusive all day work and play smoke.

-JimInks
12 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 11, 2014 Mild Medium to Strong Medium Pleasant
The tin note of this blend I found very interesting. A pomegranate and sweet virginia tobacco.

This blend did burn smooth, and was pretty free from tongue bite.

The room note was pleasant and different from other tobaccos. Wouldn't really know how to describe it. The taste was alright, but not as good as I would hope for. I think this blend was kind of hard to pull off, even for such a great blender such as C & D.

I wouldn't say to not try this blend, but not one I would buy again.
Pipe Used: H.I.S Egg, Peterson System (Bent), Cob
PurchasedFrom: Pipes & Cigars
Age When Smoked: New
8 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 10, 2018 Mild Strong Medium Unnoticeable
Founding Fathers is easy to smoke albeit not easy to like. It's unnaturally moist which makes filling your pipe a delicate business. There's a very fine point between packing it too loose and too tight. And because the baccy won't dry the problem persists.

I suspect it's made of crushed plastic pellets. The flavour is dubiously chemical.

Having said that it's a harmless, middle of the road, everyday, everyman smoke. The fun bit is playing word games with the name as you get increasingly bored with it. Foundering Fathers, Floundering Fathers, Fondling Fathers etc.
Pipe Used: Stanwell billiard.
PurchasedFrom: Tobacco Online
Age When Smoked: New.
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 12, 2016 Mild to Medium Mild Mild Very Pleasant
I was bummed reading all the so-so reviews on this blend, but I was really surprised when I tried it. The pouch note is sweet and bright, very pleasant. Several folks commented that this was the high point of the tobacco, opening it, but it's really a well-balanced note. Not sickening sweet, more of a fruity sweet with tang. On the light I noticed that exact same sweet tangy-ness then it subsided a bit... You have to pay attention to the flavor in this one, its not obvious enough to be in your face, but its also very present if you are dialed into it. Overall I really liked this, it lights easy, is not super wet and sticky, has a great flavor and easy to smoke. I smoked this in a small Calabash pipe and it was delightful.
Pipe Used: Calabash
PurchasedFrom: Pipes and Cigars
Age When Smoked: out of the tin
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 27, 2014 Mild to Medium Very Mild Extremely Mild (Flat) Very Pleasant
Let me start by saying, Cornell & Diehl are the best at what they do. So much respect it owed to them for the hundreds of fantastic blends. However, this blend was a bit of a let down. I've been on the hunt for a good aromatic as a break from my steady diet of heavy English, Virginia and Deer Tongue blends. This blend was yet another one I can check off the list of candidates. For the positives it is very well cased. Didn't leave a pool of aromatic goo as most cased blends seem to do. It also burned very cool with no tongue bite and gave a fantastic room note. On the down side there is no noticeable flavor to the smoke. The cavendish is bland while the burleys go unnoticed. The pomegranate casing is also not very noticeable in the flavor. Its was there but you really have to do some searching to find it. I enjoy strong bold flavors in my tobacco and this blend just did not cut if for me. However if all you are looking for is a blend with a fantastic room note for smoking around non smokers then this would be a suitable choice. For me though, my hunt for a suitable aromatic continues.
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 05, 2018 Mild Medium Mild to Medium Pleasant
Cornell & Diehl - Founding Fathers.

This morning I stumbled around sleepily wanting an English. I saw the loose pouch of Founding Fathers in my cupboard, wrongly thought 'English', and filled my morning bowl. An English it is not. A middle ground, somewhat boring, aromatic, it is.

Burley accounts for a higher proportion of F.F., black Cavendish takes credit for less than a quarter. Because I bought this bulk the moisture's decent, albeit that's a useless fact should you buy a full 2oz tin.

As expected the Burley outweighs the black Cavendish, but has a pleasant flavour: sweet, nutty, and toasty. The topping doesn't warrant as much applause, though: quite sharp and sour. The vanilla from the small amount of black cavendish removes some of the causticity, but not enough. The burn from it's a better feature as it's relatively cool.

Nicotine: mild. Room-note: pleasant.

Founding Fathers? Two stars:

Somewhat recommended.

Pipe Used: Caminetto
PurchasedFrom: Cup O' Joes
Age When Smoked: Two months
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 09, 2014 Mild to Medium Medium Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
This is a good aromatic blend. It does have the right amount of Burley and cav. to allow you to taste the tobacco and still burn evenly all the way to the bottom of the bowl, clean and dry. The topping is pomegranate and while sweet has that slight bitterness to it as well. It is always present throughout the bowl but at times is stronger than others. This is not a bad blend I would be good from time to time as a change of pace. However, the wife did not care for the room note and as I near the end of the tin I find it harder to go back to. I doubt I will order another soon.
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: Tin was 6 months old
4 people found this review helpful.
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