Cornell & Diehl Carolina Red Flake w/Perique 2020

I saw that my local B&M had tins of the new Carolina Red Flake with the 18 year old perique and quickly called them to confirm. I am a big fan of the original Carolina Red Flake from 2015, so I had to try this. I drove over to the B&M and picked up one tin for myself and one for my friend at $25 each, along with two packs of tapered pipe cleaners. The price did not bother me, because I like supporting local small businesses in a time like this, especially tobacco shops. Because of this virus fiasco I had to wait outside their front door for them to bring the tins out. No problem at all, and great service.

Today was supposed to have rain, but instead brought partly cloudy skies, with a rare deep blue sky since the traffic (pollution) in Los Angeles County has been nonexistent with the shutdown. It was quite a sight to see such a hue of blue, along with some warm sunshine. This did make for some great Virginia weather, which was perfect as I originally planned on smoking Bothy Flake all week.

Upon opening the tin I saw neatly organized dark flakes, with a tin note of tea and raisins. The smell reminded me of a tea shop in San Francisco. Some sort of hippy, heavily incense-laden tea shop (if those even still exist in the San Francisco I once knew more than a decade ago). The tea smell was one of authentic Chinese tea, perhaps with jasmine floral-like characteristics. If you think of tea when smelling this tobacco, you will smell tea. If you think of raisins, you will smell raisins. It was about a 50/50 split.

I got the tobacco to a perfect moisture level: Dry yet with good spring still left in the tobacco when squeezed. I loaded up one of my old Barling EXEXELs, and as the sun went down I stepped outside in my Patagonia fleece sweater.

Once lit, I knew that this was going to be a smooth, quality smoke. The taste had not yet settled, but I could tell that there was quality tobacco present. Immediately I was reminded of a Vegas casino, in a good way. Memories of the West Coast Pipe Show, gambling, and Vegas Golden Knights games. Now this is likely because I have smoked a lot of 2015 Carolina Red Flake while gambling in Vegas. It brings back good memories, and this tobacco shared that quality, although it was from a different crop. This is what I imagine Vegas casinos smelled like in the 50s and 60s - with good cigars and lit pipes. The second thing I noticed was a bready taste. I did not detect bread on the tin note, but did when smoking. There were also subtle notes of chocolate which were even further back than the bread.

The blend is smooth, but spicy. The perique is definitely there and in-your-face. If you are not a fan of perique, this will not be your blend. I am not even sure if I am a fan of perique, because at times this blend made me want to go home to my 2015 Carolina Red Flake. However, the perique is high quality and well aged. You can taste the quality and beauty of soft, aged, smooth tobacco. It is both smooth yet spicy. A strange interplay of extremes.

I then paused my smoke to talk to a neighbor that walked by. This talk lasted maybe five to seven minutes. Now, after this conversation was where the tobacco showed its potential. When re-lit, the tobacco took on a sweeter flavor, and the hints of chocolate were accentuated. The tobacco showed its aging potential here, because the sweetness will only be increased with time.

The blend stays lit perfectly with a normal cadence, and burns at a slower rate. In regards to this, I never listen to advice on cadence. If I am enjoying a tobacco at a slow rate, then I will smoke it at a slow rate. But some tobaccos do well with a fairly fast pace. With the original 2015 Carolina Red Flake I load up my pipe, stick it in my mouth, and puff away using a combination of normal puffing and the breath method. Contrary to what many will tell you, I like Carolina Red Flake when smoked at a faster, hard puffing pace. Not a chimney pace, but faster than what many will say you should smoke a Virginia blend at. I do not sip that blend. With Carolina Red Flake w/ Perique, I found that it needs a slower cadence. Let it hit your tongue and taste the interplay of flavors.

Although I am still deciding how I like the tastes this tobacco gives off, the room note on it is great. It gives off a true, vintage tobacco smell. When intentionally smelled it stings your nose. This is likely from the perique. I would rate the strength on this tobacco a high medium. I usually smoke standing up, and the nicotine hit me hard. I had to stop about 70% of the way through, whereas I smoke other blends in this bowl all the way through. The tobacco left a jasmine tea aftertaste in my mouth.

All-in-all, I have mixed feelings about this blend. I need to give it a second chance, but if I am still not feeling it I will likely jar it up and cellar it. The main thing here is whether I like the amount of perique or not. I like Va/Per blends, but this particular blend is an undecided for me as it seems to be more spicy than other blends in its class. I also have a hunch that the Virginias need some time to age to reduce their slightly rough edges. I feel this way about the XX Flake series as well. There is an absolutely beautiful quality to this blend, but an also average quality at the same time that could leave you frustrated while smoking.

Another winner in the Small Batch series, although I think this will be a 5 star blend with some age on it. Sun Bear and Sansapolco were not my favorites, but this one is top notch. The fresh tin note smells like Parliment cigarettes (my friend growing up smoked them) and really smells like the American Spirit cigarettes, I got for free (for some reason) with an order from an online retailer.. This should be received as a positive attribute as I find the note nostalgic and comforting. Despite the age on the VA and Perique, this still has a "young" flavor to it. I think this is attributed to the unstoved Red VA, but that should mellow with time. There is a sharpness to the blend that I attribute to that same "young" issue. The flavor is earthy, and bready from the VA's and there is also some earth and plenty of white pepper coming from the Perique. The VA sweetness coupled with the figgy / pruney Perique is very nice and compliments the other flavors nicely. Occasionally I get some grassy, lemony notes as well. The nose tingle and tannic tingle on the tongue is all from the top quality Perique. This has a bit of a nicotine punch so, be mindful of that. I also love the C&D flakes: easy to work with and beautiful to look at.

I purposely have not bought any tobacco for over a month until now. Since the virus brooha we no longer have a physical place to have our meetings so I was reading some fellow pipers’ emails at home and noticed that several of the guys have bought this. So, with just a slight case of cabin fever going on I ordered some too. I hope the tobacco store where we meet does not suffer too bad as they are limited to take out. Of course, the Gov out here in CA declared the pot shops as necessary businesses so it is okay for people to go in and linger in line to buy weed but do not congregate in a tobacco shop. Go figure. Once this blows over, I will make a point to buy something from the store which I normally due anyhow. Long story short I followed the email chain and decided to get some as I am on sick leave with nothing to do. I guess I picked a good time to have surgery and go on sick leave with this mess out there as I have to stay home on light duty anyhow. On to the review. The tin I opened #08604 of 10,000 was dated 031820, hot off the presses. When I first opened it, I was greeted with a mild pleasant sweet hay smell along with the visual inspection of some nice flakes. Actual flakes and some broken. My first task was to tear off the double paper lids on the tin as I just find it irritating. I lit it up in my poker Meerschaum and was greeted with a smooth VA flavor. I really did not notice much Perique until about a third of the way down, at least I think it was the Perique. Later I went to a cob with filter and the flavor and taste was really muted. A few bowls later I took the filter out and some flavor returned. Day 2: Back with the Meerschaum, mild VA taste, the 18-year Perique must have really mellowed out as I did not really detect it too much. Day 3: I smoked this in another Meerschaum, my Altnay, small bowl, Bent Dublin shape or something like it and this blend smoked pretty good. I really wanted to give this one a 4 star but I wish the VA was a little older and maybe 18 years of aging on the Perique mellowed it out too much. Just because something is really old does not always make it good, trust me I am a prime example. Ha. I also have stated this before but I am 60 and to be quite honest my taste buds and sense of smell ain’t what it used to be. I do like it but not a 4-star nominee. Just having a blend with 18-year-old Saint James Perique makes me glad I bought a few tins though. Wow, a huge paragraph to say that it was good but not highly recommended.

Going into this blend, I was curious how it would compare to the 20th Ann. XX Dark Flake put out by Smokingpipes and C&D, as their makeup and components are very similar.

Upfront, the Perique stood out in its pepperiness. I agree with others that the Perique seems to be stronger in this blend than in the XX Dark Flake. The red Virginas were certainly evident however (especially at mid bowl till the end), bringing forth dark fruity and earthy notes. The fermented character I assume comes from both elements.

If you are a lover of Perique, this blend will definitely satisfy. Their age and quality is evident. The Virginas are enjoyable, though age is needed I believe, to bring them forward and pull the Perique back a bit. Not a top VaPer for me and it settled slightly below my expectations, but it is still a solid blend that I will pull out of the cellar from time to time.

I would give XX Dark Flake a 9/10 and this blend a 7/10 (though age will no doubt boost the rating up)

As common with C&D, this came more as a broken flake than in whole flakes. If you like straight red VAs with a touch of the raisin/spice of Perique and nothing more, then this is one you should try. The red VAs are forefront, with a little extra structure from the Perique. The smoke can be a little rough after the halfway point, but young red VAs should be more about flavor than sophistication. Of course that may change with some aging.

This isn't a strong blend; it's medium in most aspects, more satisfying/solid than impressive.

This is one I picked up a few years ago during the heart of the Pandemic and I've had it sitting in my cellar for a while. I love VaPer's, they're pretty much my go to so I thought this would be good with a little age. This is a small batch release that comes out every year as far as I know. This particular blend had Perique from 2002.

Opening up the tin there was a soft row of flakes, dark brown in color. The smell is rich. Deep bready, velvety Red Virginias, and very dark fruity, musty Perique. The flakes rub out very easily and pack well. It is a near perfect moisture and only requires a few minutes of dry time.

Once I light up the Virginias are up front and center: soft and very velvety, they are bready, with the lightest touch of citrus. The Perique is noticeable with dark fruit, a deep musty curb to the natural sweetness of the Virginias. This a very flavorful and enjoyable smoke.

The taste is a solid medium. It fills your mouth and has a pleasant mouth feel. The strength is is middle of the road. All in all this is a pleasant VaPer, and a pretty unique one at that. It's very easy to puff on. I'm sad I only bought 1 tin.

Happy Piping!

Sweet, spicy and a little earthy. Don't know how this fairs against the standard red flake, don't have too many of those tins to spare unfortunately. This is pretty wet out of the tin, even a year later, but it's easy to pack and light. Not an all day smoke, but I can see myself smoking a couple of bowls consecutively. Only bites if provoked. Leaves a nice creamy after taste.