Cornell & Diehl Warped: The Red Hunt

Cornell & Diehl - Warped: The Red Hunt.

What a delightful blend! I had to stock up on some after a few bowls!

It isn't too broken up. Don't expect a blend reminiscent of ribbons, it's easy to see it was a flake. The tin contains pieces of flake which are chunky, very coarse, but still broken. It has a good amount of moisture, can be smoked right off, and the Perique lends the unlit aroma a slight fruity nuance.

Smoking it? Blissful! Yes, the Orientals account for the prominent flavour, but they don't, by any means, render the other additions redundant. Behind these is a VaPer support which doesn't take, me, much effort to taste the fruity, rich, Perique; delicious. The Virginia, red, increases this fruity calibre, making for a succulent support. I don't want to be too vernacular, although not a basic blend I can't think of, without making things up, anything else to say! Apart from it's a lovely smoke!

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: quite nice.

'The Red Hunt? A great smoke; IMO. Highly recommended:

Four stars.

The reviewed tin of The Red Hunt is dated 05-19-20. Tin popped, one sees well broken flake/“ribbons”, mostly red-ish brown, with scant tan, and medium to dark brown. According to C&D this reflects a range of VAs, red, brown and pale, Turkish/Orientals, and Perique. The initial tin note is swamped by a topping, something like a deep chocolate liqueur that soon settles and allows some bran muffin/brown-bready tobacco and some orange zest to come up. The ribbons are not overly moist, but I dry it a little, and it handles, loads, lights and smokes down like a champ. There seems to be a fair percentage of Turkish/Orientals; in any case, it burns pretty fast. First up at the light is the topping; very floral and fragrant, although not so much chocolate as the tin note, more vanilla, actually, then lightly woody meadow grasses, then fragrant hay and distant brown bread muffin baking, then Middle Eastern baking spices, some dark fruit leather, then fresh figs, and some cayenne at the half mark. This is a complex smoke, sweet, sour, woody, herbal, fragrant and savory, with the parts available if you want, or it’s smooth and well melded enough to carelessly puff away, if you want that. Again, I prefer it dried, and from a pot, which keeps the tobaccos on top of the topping and it also ameliorates the aftertaste from combusted toppings. The toppings and the aftertaste from them come up when I smoke it in a smaller/narrower bowl. The spices are delivered in a higher register of the sort that may make for differing opinions on how strong this blend is. As for strength, I’m not sure I’ve tried a blend like this that did/does not include Cavendish, but the tobaccos in this case are smooth enough to do without it, spicy varietals notwithstanding. Anyway, I’m saying medium strength. Tastes are over medium. Room note is better than tolerable, because of the topping. Aftertaste is a longer-than-expected trailing off of the best of the smoke.

Overall, The Red Hunt is a right nice blend, if you like significant, refined spices along with a medley of well-chosen VAs. It’s worth noting again that there is no Cavendish here to “smooth things out”, so TRH might not be everyone’s idea of smooth. Also note that this blend can be manipulated with one’s choice of pipe, which I happen to like. C&D say it will age well, and I’m betting that will be the case, in the sealed tin and in a jar, too. 4 stars.

I’ve been smoking pipe like a fiend for about 8 years. I’ve never encountered a blend quite like this. The tin note is exceptional…mulled cider and an undercurrent of chocolate erupt from the tin. What appears to be broken flakes fluff up. Perfect moisture. From the false light on, decadence. It’s challenging to differentiate the red/mahogany virginias from the perique. But I taste cider and dark stewed fruit with a trace of cinnamon spice. A chocolate sensation drifts in and out the bowl and the orientals shine on the retroinhale. It’s always amazed me how different blenders take the same component’s and create different flavors. Kyle Gellis & Jeremy Reeves knocked this one way out the park and took some stadium lights with it. This blend is going to cellar like a beast. As the bowl progresses I can only describe it as a stewed fruit champagne chocolate decadent treat. It’s astounding there is no topping. It just goes to show what a couple master blenders can do. Any avid piper needs to try this. The complexity of this blend will be deeply appreciated by serious pipers. Medium in nicotine, and medium-full in taste, the Red Hunt is a blend for the ages and pushes the envelope of creativity in blending. Kudos!

I am a big fan of VA/Oriental blends and this one is no exception, even with the addition of Perique. First things first, this is wet, real wet. Normally C&D comes at the perfect smoking moisture in my experience but this one would put Samuel Gawith to shame. Tin note is raisiny sweet, and pretty strong. Notes of honey and vanilla also come with the grassy and slightly sour tobacco aromas. The VA provide the base and the Perique is only noticeable to me on the tingle in the nose. A base of hay and mottled grass are complimented with a woody, dry, toasty dose of Orientals. There is a very sweet note to this blend. Not sure what they put on it but there is definitely some kind of sweet casing on this wet weed. It goes well with the tobacco flavors. The flavors stay consistent but become richer in the final third of the bowl. Smokes well in all pipes, but oddly enough I found this best in a Falcon (this is a first for me), close second in a meer.

Fantastic VaPerOr blend. Does smell like it has a topping of some sort even though it’s not listed. Could be the orientals that are aged putting of the aroma of a topping. Either way it’s a great blend and one that needs to be tried. Will purchase more since aging will make this blend magically delicious. Definitely leading by the orientals then Virginias with the Perique right beneath the two. Great blend.