The order on Monday morning arrived on a Wednesday afternoon via US Priority Mail. The sample packaging was in heavy duty ziplock bags with a Cornell and Diehl label, see uploaded photo.

I gave this tobacco it's first firing in a good sized meerschaum that was well cleaned prior to smoking, to attempt to narrow down the flavor, etc. to this blend alone. (this is what I prefer, for a first go with any new tobac)

The taste was decent, the smoke appealing, and like the other quality tobaccos I've used the ash was fine and gray. Tongue bite for me was noticeably absent at my standard relaxed pace, though I did not attempt to mindlessly huff it to see if I could get the bite.

The aroma was certainly tolerable, the taste was decent to my palate. I have no experience with either of the two variants that inspired this blend. I will continue with this blend . . .

I'm finding an affinity for light "American English" blends these days. In this one, the latakia is used as a spice while the burleys and VA's rule the show. The perique is almost undetectable but it shows itself enough to indicate that this blend would be less harmonious without it. This blends strongest attribute is its balance. Nothing stands out but everything melds into a united whole. Nice nicotine hit too, for those who hold that in high esteem.

Ridiculously cheap in bulk, my 1 oz sample is being parlayed into a 2 pound purchase. Tarler and Runowski have outdone themselves! And outdone many others as well!

The cut of the blend is a nice chunky cut that is low on moisture in the tin which I certainly prefer over being quite wet. I pulled the contents out of the tin and removed a couple of stems as well as pulled apart a couple of large leaves. I promptly loaded up my Peterson 102 Army mount and put the contents back in the tin to air out a bit and then in a Mason Jar the next day.

Upon lighting up the room note struck me as one from my child hood when my dad would smoke Revelation. The taste wasn't one of individual leaves weaving in and out in taste but of a united front of burley, an English mixture and a very slight fruit like topping. It was an extremely pleasant combination which I haven't ever tasted before. The smoke remained united through the whole bowl and took on a toasty taste towards the end of the bowl that reminded me a little bit of Squadron Leader. I did experience some gurgle in my pipe but I place this squarely on the pipe being brand new and not having been broken in.

The smoke had something that I've always felt is missing from a lot of English blends: body. I enjoy burley so much precisely because it seems to have more substantial smoke than a lot of "thin" English blends. Believe me I do enjoy English blends but always come back to burleys as my baseline. This blend has a nice solid base of burley that interplays perfectly with the English components. If that wasn't enough the very slight topping adds a subtle and sweet touch that balances everything out. If you're a latakia fiend don't expect to find a huge amount of it in this blend. It's there and you can certainly taste it but just like all the other components it works well with every other leaf to make a sum greater than the whole.

I do believe that C&D hit a home run with this blend. There is something for everyone to enjoy and if I were to pick a blend that is a perfect Americanized English this would be the blend. Enjoy!

No problem at all packing and burning. This particular sample was quite dry, and because it was a gift I don't know if it came from a tin or bulk, but my guess is bulk. Makes me happy since I plan to buy a pound for aging. Seems to me this blend will only improve with some time in the cellar.

The first word that comes to mind is earthy. It starts off mild, as the description suggests. Earthy and warm, it makes for a perfect autumn outdoor morning smoke, with a mug of Starbucks at my side. I'm thinking it's the Burley that gives that earthy note, and it works perfectly in this particular blend of leaves. I'm literally tasting what I hear rustling in the branches above my head - autumn, dried leaves, fall colors. The Latakia is very mild and serves only to provide some flavoring and richness. All the ingredients meld so well that the overall end result is all that comes through. This is perhaps one of the best balanced combination of tobaccos I've had in a while.

Sweet Virginias make an occasional appearance, but most of the time it's that consistent blend of flavors that create what is in my experience a unique combination. Yes, it's a mild English, but it gains a bit of strength during the smoke to push it toward the medium part of the spectrum. About half way though I notice a toastiness that lasts the rest of the bowl. This is where it really gets good. The occasional hint of a very light topping comes through, but I can't honestly tell whether that's just natural sweetness of if they added something. For those of you who don't prefer toppings, there's nothing to fear as it's so light as to make me question whether or not it's just the natural tobacco flavors.

Yes, I will certainly acquire more of this. It's a keeper and easily earns four stars.

Several copy cat blends have popped up, and Epiphany remains the most referenced. It's supposedly a take on Revelation thirty years back, probably implying that the components were of a higher quality, with greater strength in body. I can't speak for the blend of that time, but of the more recent variety, I see little semblance.

Epiphany is its own blend. It's more tart and peppery than sweet and smokey. And it is certainly not mild, or fruity. The Latakia is evident, but muted. I can taste the Perique and I find that Burley exhibits an almost ubiquitous front. So call it an American English, I guess, which seems to designate these days the added presence of that leaf.

The type of idea that Epiphany conjures up appears the result of a sharp jolt to the head, like a giant book dropping on your skull rather than a soft reflection demanding greater thought to flesh out the details. It's more of a Richard Dawkins than an Albert Einstein. I can't say whether you'd favor Epiphany to Revelation, though I suppose it depends on your way of thinking.

Three of Five.

There is a very slight sweetness indicative of a very light topping. This is not an Aromatic blend. I found it pleasant and pleasing from pouch to the bottom of the bowl. I have a pound on hand and will smoke it because it is good.

Epiphany is a premium quality blend for those who desire just a spattering of Latakia (barely noticeable) and just a touch of sweetness in a tobacco that could easily be an all day smoke. Another winner from C&D. I give it four stars.

Nice rich, smooth smoking blend. It has just enough Latakia to notice and enjoy, a touch of VA for sweetness, some Perique to balance that sweetness out and Burley to round the whole thing out. The Burley provides a nice rich nutty flavor that works well with the Latakia, and IMO the VA and Perique are subtle background notes.

Overall this is a great blend. There is nothing I can say bad about it. Will stay in my rotation and my cellar. 4 stars for sure.

It is a slow burning blend, bite free unless pushed too hard, then it would bark a little. But sipped, it had a very peasant sweet smooth smoke that I enjoyed a lot. It burned down to a grey ash with just a little dottle. It was a little moister than most C and D blends I have received and this might account for that as most of Craigs blends burn to a fine ash. While I did enjoy this blend very much, i can't give it four stars as it required too many relites. But I do recommend trying it.

Epiphany is pleasing to the eye, a mixture of different sizes and colors of tan to dark brown flakes and chop-cuts. Packed well. Lit easily and stayed lit to the bottom of the bowl, leaving a clean light gray ash. No real bite. The flavor when smoking? Unimpressive. Toward the end of the bowl, like "hot-boxing" a strong cigarette or a cheap cigar. Peppery. I wouldn't call it sweet. Creamy? Fruity topping? Didn't detect any of that.

Maybe it was the pipe I used, a Savinelli Punto Oro Corallo KS. Toward the very end of the bowl, the nicotine level made my head spin. Oh well. I'll try it again sometime and post an update if I notice any improvement.

UPDATE: 03/23/2013 - Well, it's been almost four years since I left the 4 oz. bag sitting in a big glass jar humidor, next to some Dunhill bulk "My Mixture." Wow. What a difference some aging makes! This stuff has vastly improved. Maybe it picked up some aroma from the Dunhill's by osmosis, who knows? No more ketchupy smell. Smokes and tastes like a true English blend. Still do not detect any "fruity topping", thank God. A wonderful smoke. IMPROVED RATING: 3.5 stars.