Easy to smoke blend with funny name (maybe because of its black colour?) needs full stomach and proper attention otherwise it would kick you down.

My rate: 5.0

Though my reviews so far may not do justice to my liking of Latakia, here goes.

Opening the tin, it's very dark browns and blacks: mud colours. The tin note shows off the Latakia pretty thoroughly. My tin contained leaf that was rather dry for what I am used to from C&D so far; still smokeable from the tin though, especially since I am used to C&D blends being rather on the moist side.

The cut lends itself to the medium-sized bowls; fills easily, lights easily, and from the beginning, there is the full Latakia taste and typical Latakia "aroma" (my GF qualifies it as "stink"...). The real surprise is the taste, which is much more mellow than the usual LA/Per combination; the Cavendish really comes through the longer the smoke lasts. Beautiful. This is one of the blends that, after a long absence, has got me back on to Latakia blends.

As another reviewer said, it is a bit scary in the tin, both in smell and even look. All black, with some very dark brown bits from the Unflavored Black Cavendish.

Anyone that says Unflavored Black Cavendish doesn't have flavor is full of poop. It is rich and smooth, a bit cigarish. The combination of this with Latakia is just phenomenal. The two in these proportions just play off of each other so well. I don't notice the Perique per-say, but I'm sure it it doing wonderful things to this blend.

Overall, I absolutely love this blend. It is smooth, creamy and rich. I get hints of chocolate and coffee when I smoke it, and I love it in the morning with a nice strong cup of joe. 4 stars all day long.

Edit: The above was written 4 tins ago. A pound arrived today. This is the first tobacco I liked well enough to order a pound. The tobacco in the 1 lb tin is no different than in the 2 oz tin.

This blend is not for the faint of heart. Loving Latakia helps here in that it is almost as full as Old Ironsides with added Perique for a slight peppery flavor. Latakia in general has a low nicotine content, but this blend has a bit of a kick to it. I can see smoking it after a big meal, not on an empty stomach.

The flavor is Latakia right up front with the Perique making a nice compliment and a little cavendish to mellow things out. The smoke is fragrant, and enjoyable with large white plumes, assuming you like the smell of burning Latakia. Room note is tolerable to those around me, but probably best smoked outside, or in a well ventilated area. My Oreck air purifier does a nice job at ameliorating just about any tobacco smoke in my home office!

The taste is a very creamy, cool leathery taste with a gentle Perique aftertaste.

I would recommend this blend to anyone who loves Latakia, and wishes for a slightly stronger blend. It smokes cool all the way down to the bottom of the bowl with a dry,white ash.

As a side note, I have seen several reviewers on this website say that they have a perique allergy. Until I smoked MM, I always thought that comment was strange. Now I understand! It made me sneeze, and left me with a frog in my throat. Not a deal breaker if I like the blend in other ways, but that definitely added to the negative experience of smoking this.

The only C&D blend I haven't tried but want to is Bow-Legged Bear. Other than that, this brand as a whole has almost always been disappointing and I'm about to say goodbye to it.

Update: Be warned the cavendish will flavor your pipe for at least the next several smokes.

I really like the middle of the bowl to the end. Like many reviews state the taste is somewhat one sided but that side is steady and deep.

An issue I must differ though is in regards to its strength, it did not seem all that strong.

Enjoyed it through my Peterson System. It burns wonderfully from beginning to end, with nary a moment from bag to pipe to ignition.

Put any strength concerns aside and try some. Sit outside, on a porch or a stonewall with only two matches (one should do) and a tamper and relax.

Upon opening the tin, you're greeted with some very dark tobacco. It's also a little moist, so some drying out is necessary, as is almost without exception the case. The smell in the tin is rather strong, and the appearance would cause a non-smoking co-worker of mine to liken it to "worm dirt."

The tin smell is very indicitave of this blend's flavor. Some pipe tobacco can be inhaled relatively safely; this is not one of them. It is rather strong, but quite flavorful. The Cavendish seems to take some of the Latakia edge away, and the Perique does a nice job of imparting its spiciness. Like Smoking247 below me, I find it a bit difficult to pack, but practice makes perfect, right?

This blend is probably a bit too heavy to be al all-day smoke, but it's a nice day-ender. My first Cornell and Diehl blend most definitely will not be my last!

It makes my mouth water, and I swear I taste chocolate. This makes a good end-of-the day smoke, because I think once you've smoked a bowl, you won't be able to taste other blend for a while.

I've loaded up my Savinelli and smoked it about half-way down without so far experiencing any of the sense alterations others have mentioned, so I don't think it's...WAIT! What was that? Did you see that? Oh, wow! I'd better sign orf now while I cang sdtill typrr.

UPDATE: 4/9/06

I'd say I enjoy it: since my first review, I've had to buy another tin, as I've already smoked the whole 2 oz. This blend is very satisfying.

To my taste, the Black Cavendish just seems to clash with the Latakia.

Mississippi Mud brought about a first: My wife, who usually likes Latakia, asked me to dump the bowl at about the halfway mark the first time I smoked it around her.

What I did find was a nice tobacco, that gives a good representation of a latakia and perique blend. It stays the same from start to finish, and is enjoyable enough. I'd have to call it pretty tame, and would suggest this to anyone who has never tried an "English", and wants to know what it's about. It'll get you started, and there will be no surprises along the way. You'll either like it or not....

I'll smoke this tin, and enjoy it, but will not go out of my way to buy it again. There are blends I like much better.

I will admit that I haven?t had the nerve to sample no more than a half dozen bowls or so. Frankly, I just can't get past the tin aroma. It smells like canned pig farts.

Regarding the smoking qualities of the blend, the best thing I can say is that it packs easliy and stays lit well. The taste is all goopy topping seasoned with a very large dose of perique and little to no flavor emerging from the latakia and other tobaccos. I like perique, and a little Louisiana leaf is a good thing. But this "mud" is like being served a 2 oz. steak covered w/ 8 oz. of cracked pepper and smothered in sweet & sour sauce. Try this tobacco at your own risk.

Side note: This had been refered to as a "Blue collar smoke" dont knock it because of that! It does fill a certian void. I guess most of my favorite blends are blue collar, but that dosen't make 'em bad!!

Five of five stars

I found it to be a unique taste and very different from my normal blend made up locally of the same varitiles. It packed easily, burned clean and cool from start to finish and had zero tounge bite. That's where it's positives ended for me.

This blend was not strong at all, sense altering, nor was it "too much". CAO's Old Ironsides or G.L. Peace Abington is much stronger as far as Latakia goes and after a whole tin, I never noticed the perique at all. The unflavored Cavendish did not add nor take away, it was just there. In short, it was a very monochromatic flavor like the original Frog Morton only with more Latakia.

I have one more tin that after some time in the cellar, I will most likely break out for a second go around. Will update review if some age helps this blend out.

On the positive site, Mud packs and smokes easily and requires few re-lights. Even this could be construed as a negative though since it doesn?t force you to take enough oxygen breaks. By the last third of the bowl, anyone with any sensitivity to nicotine (myself included) should be looking for a fallout shelter; this stuff will send your head reeling. Perhaps it shows my relative inexperience with a briar, but I do not wish to try another bowl of this. I?ll relegate it to the same bin of evil as Blue Note and Erinmore.

I actually rather enjoyed Mississippi Mud when Uptown's had it. I am not sure why, but under the C&D label, it tastes different. It is a little rough around the edges and contains a stronger Latakia and Perique presence.

I can see where this blend might be enjoyed as an occasional smoke, but cannot fathom consuming it on a consistant basis. It's too blue collar for me.

Reading the other reviews, I thought that this blend would knock me out, but it didn't. After getting through the bowl I was satisfied with the strength of the smoke, but I did not get any sense that this was in anyway overwhelming or heavy.

I tend to blend this in with other additional perique or latakia to offset the cavendish and add a bit more complexity.

Overall, I enjoy this blend, but it is not one of my favorites. It is a nice bedtime smoke a few hours after dinner.

With the claims of sense altering potency and mysteriously flavorful ingredients, this was a must try for me.

Within the black, finely cut ribbons I found at first - a deceivingly cool, easy and sweet smoke. Then the earthy flavors and strength build. The nicotine, while not overwhelming, seems to augment the strangely sweet and spicey tastes of this blend.

The description claims it is a flavor unlike any other. I concur. A comparision to Nightcap is inevitable. It does not seem to have *quite* the astringency and nuttiness of Nightcap but it also loses that bitterness that Nightcap seems to always produce. It also seems to dull the palate less than Nightcap.

The cavendish and latakia are oddly at home with the perique. Which I have not yet found to become at all unpleasant through out the smoke. A bowl lasted me nearly two hours. Smoke it slow and even; it is rewarding.

This is certainly a special occasion tobacco. It is rich like liquor soaked chocolate. The can I have just sampled is fresh, with only about two weeks "breathing" time. I have two more cans stowed away. I can only imagine the depth and potency will increase with age.

If I smoked the in the house my wife would kill me. I wouldn't blame her.

It packs nicely in a medium or large bowl, and burns very well to a gray ash. The pipe is very clean after. No gunk to clean up.

Put this on your rack. You'll know when the mood is right.

It's a strong, full flavored smoke with a latakia/perique kick that says to the smoker, "Ok, boy. It's time to stop smoking candy tobacco".

Packs well, stays lit and is an excellent smoke for the latakia/perique lover.

I can see myself smoking a lot of this in the future

This has a strong, "peppery" taste, which lacks fullness, so the flavor would be one dimensional for some. Adding some oriental would fix that, but this brand filled my desire for a strong latakia/perique blend that tasted strong, but would overwhelm me if I smoked it more than once a day. In other words, a strong blend with a taste to my liking, that I can almost treat as an all day blend (which one can't of course, but close).

It packs nicely, lights up well, and stays lit easily. The initial puffs are on the medium side, but the latakia/perique begin to assert in a few minutes, and by the middle of the bowl are in full play. However, it's a flavor like a hot sauce as opposed to a gravy, and it burns well without bite. As you get to the end of the bowl, it can get very srong. Smoked once, you don't notice, but if you try to smoke it again too soon, you do.

I smoked it in a variety of contexts, and it's a good relaxation smoke, as it's not a good one to use when working or engaging in any type of activity that increases heart beat. Unlike some, I like a strong blend in the morning and to relax to at night, so that's mainly when I smoke it, and after meals of course. If I'm working on a project (putting something together or walking about) I smoke something lighter if the need to smoke arises.

It's a nice change of pace for those who smoke the traditional English blends, but I doubt it would become a regular smoke. Those who like burley/latakia mixes who want more punch might find this one more to their liking.

Not a smoke for beginners, but for anyone who's been around, worth a try, especially if you're a perique fan.

Yes, folks, this is some strong tobaccy!

Appearance: Dark ribbon only, hence the name:MM

Tin Aroma: Reminds me of strong fudge and prunes.

Moisture: a little moist, but not overly.

Packing: easy.

Lighting: Two vestas, easy.

Initial Flavor: whoa! The cavendish and perique dominate with the latakia slightly behind. The cavendish is not overly sweet or cloying though.

Mid-Bowl: intensifying with my throat telling me that there is lots o' perique.

Bottom of Bowl: The world is spinning, my stomach is turning, get me a bed quick! The flavor of this blend will stay with you the rest of the day. You will not be able to taste anything else.

Overall: this is a very strong flavored blend, but ironically, I could not distinguish the latakia very well. I knew it was there, but the other leaves overwhelmed it. The flavor is very monochromatic, at least to me, with it just intensifying until all you have left is a dry, dark mottled ash left. Due to the high quantities of perique, my allergies were triggered with a vengeance. The nicotine in this blend is also very high, too much for me. It left me sick for the rest of the day. I know that there are some of you who like this kind of "in your face" blend, more power to you. The quality of leaf is unquestionable, but this just was not my style. After 1.25 oz's, gave the rest away.

Rating: 2 out of 5 Points