Cornell & Diehl Mad Fiddler Flake

Cornell & Diehl - Mad Fiddler Flake (The Old Ones).

The title of this is missing something. It should be Mad Fiddler 'BROKEN' Flake, well broken at that! So, no rubbing's required, it can just be loaded straight away. Neither does it need any airing.

The smoke has a fairly pungent flavour. The more formidable leaf's the fragrant Kasturi. To begin with the smoke's a little more reminiscent of usual cigar leaf blends, but the fragrant note quickly gains weight, creating an inimitable character. The other tobaccos are much lighter. They give flavour, grass, spice, and sweetness, but are much further behind the cigar leaf. Mad Fiddler' burns well, giving bite free smoke.

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: pleasant.

Mad Fiddler Flake? I like it, but not enough for a full house! Three stars:

Recommended.

One thing cornell and diehl do amazingly well is creating a very broad range of different types of blends.. something for everyone. Mad fiddler flake is a very stout blend.. it reminded me of two things.. firstly, it smokes almost like a lighter version of a gawith and hoggarth rope tobacco.. but it also resembles kajun kake but with cigar leaf added and maybe a little less perique.. earthy, spicy, full almost leathery boldness.. these are all subjective but I think most would agree it's a flavorful smoke.. my first time trying this particular cigar leaf.. it sure is distinctive.. might be on the harsh side for some people.. but if you desire a big thick flavor I think this would be something to try.. I occasionally like this sort of thing.. not an all day or every day for me.. but I think I will certainly enjoy this periodically. The tin note kind of indicates a topping but hard to distinguish during the smoke.

On opening the tin I find about inch and a half long thick ribbons of medium brown tobacco. Everyone has his "experience" of the tin aroma. FWIW it's like the sweet smell of fresh bread dough and mild incense. Comes moist in the tin but smokes well without drying. Whatever you think about this tobacco it's not boring. Against a solid backround of cavendish (not too sweet) and virginia (not too sweet) is the perique just at the edges and the prominent cigar leaf which is spicy and not quite floral. A very interesting smoke. Burns fairly cool, no bite. My daily smoke is Havana Daydream, so I'm no stranger to cigar leaf based pipe tobacco, but this is in a different category. If I could only use one word it would be "spicy". Not quite a "4" yet but could see how that would be others ratings.

First off, this blend's room note will not make you any friends. It is one of the few that my wife cannot stand. With that out of the way, it is a good cigar leaf blend. The tin note is unlike anything I have smelled before. It is a touch reminiscent of deer tongue blends that I've had before, but it is still odd. It is a robust smokey blend from the beginning to the end and has quite a nic hit. Every now and again, there is a sweet, grassy flavor that weaves in and out. Mad Fiddler Flake is a perfect blend for those moments when you are craving a cigar, but don't want to drop the money on a stick. I've been enjoying it in these hot summer months when a regular Balkan or English blend seems too heavy. As always, your mileage may vary; if you are not a fan of potent blends with strong room notes, then stay clear. On the other hand, this might just be your new cigar blend if you are looking for a robust one.

Mad Fiddler Flake is an enjoyable, but unique, tobacco blend from Jeremy Reeves. I find it difficult to put it into any category. Oh, there are some categories I can definitely rule out, but it's really neither fish nor fowl. Once the tin is popped, you are greeted with a a healthy topping of something like an herbal booze, if that makes sense. Cannot put my finger on it in the slightest. The topping, however, is not overwhelming to me. The flake is quite moist and can be difficult to keep lit without some drying time. I have had my tin open for over a month and it's still quite damp.

Upon lighting the blend, I was a little surprised by the flavor. It was quite unlike any tobacco I have had before; Not bad, just different. My wife smelled it when I was smoking it and asked what smelled like cloves. I assumed that it was the Kasturi in the blend, as Kasturi is supposedly used in clove cigarette manufacture. At any rate, I do really enjoy this one. It's a solid 3.5 stars. Definitely worth a try.

I really can't add to what has been said by Jimlnks. I really love the spice notes of this blend. It was a little moist, but very manageable. It's in my rotation.

I'm not sure I agree with all the reviews of this tobacco. This is a good tobacco. It is interesting and different. But a lot of the reviews on here talk about the same old raisiny, plummy, woodsy, grassy etc etc, descriptive notes that we usually give to rich Virginia blends. Let me just say this is not like any of those rich Virginia blends. This tobacco is mellow and does not burn you, however should you accidentally inhale it you will know immediately that it has a very strong component lying underneath. It has a noticeable nick hit, more so than most. The body of it does remind you of a cigar, a little bit. My son thought it smelled a little bit like cigarettes. Not unpleasant though. 5 to 10 minutes into the bowl it starts to meld together into a very nice smooth and satisfying collection of flavors, which are either very simple or too complex to differentiate. But it works. This is a satisfying smoke with a tasty, almost savory flavor at its sweet spot. But there is some definite strength in there, that you notice when you retrohale or accidentally inhale the smoke coming off the bowl. I believe this is the cavendish. Not the traditional American Cavendish. But a more pure form from Europe. And I think you really get to taste the spectrum of the Cavendish, it's somewhat concentrated. There is a few unique flavors in there, probably from the secret ingredient. It has only the smallest amount of incensiness, that is also noticeable in the tin note. It produces a decent amount of moisture, this is especially noticeable in a falcon pipe. This is not a playful blend, but a more mature blend. The flavor is interesting and one I'm not familiar with. I can think of no other blend to compare this to. It seems a lot like an age-old custom blend that was produced for a mysterious man who knew what he liked. I like it a lot. I think as I smoke more of it I'm going to notice more nuance. I will update my review accordingly.

The note from the tin is a cinnamon, fruity, floral scent. More of ready rubbed than broken flake. I have jarred mine for six months and the flakes have broken apart under their own weight making prep pretty quick. Quite moist from the tin the time in the jar hasn't changed that yet it seems more like an oily texture to the touch rather than just moist tobacco. A small amount of drying time required however.

Packing is simple enough and the flavour of the Kasturi is forward from the charring light. I would say this is better described as an "Exotic VaPer" than a "Cigar Leaf Based" as the Perique and Kasturi compliment each other very well as there is a spicy maduro quality in the latter and the cinnamon note compliments the fruity richness of the Virginias and Perique perfectly. There's a herbal almost cedar tone throughout like a good oriental that prevents this blend being one dimensional in terms of overall profile adding the depth.

I don't think I have smoked anything quite this unique and I doubt that I will unless something pretty off the wall comes out in the next decade or so. This is a bold blend and is executed incredibly well. A full flavoured versatile smoke that goes well with a morning coffee or at the end of the day.