Cornell & Diehl Bayou Morning

Note: this review applies to the ribbon-cut version. I will post my impression of the flake version once I finish my current tin. It is a comforting thing to find an "all-day" blend, especially as one who's tastes tend to run towards extremes. Although Chenet's Cake is my holy grail of VaPers, this is just a hair below it for quality. The fact that it is available in bulk is a godsend, as I smoke it by the fistful. Be it known, this is not a gentle, laid-back smoke that one can simply let fall into the background. It is spicy, it is complex, and it WILL NOT BE IGNORED. However, if you smoke heavy blends on a regular basis, this could become your best friend. As far as flavor, this falls to the drier side of VaPers; with the right pipe, the right cadence, and the right celestial alignment, you may get the odd sweet note. More commonly, it is buttery, toasty, grassy, and black-pepper spicy, with back beats of lemon and orange peel. Moisture is perfect-to-slightly-dry; a more exacting soul may wish to rehydrate it slightly, but I find it smokes perfectly as-is. Burns a touch fast, but still cool and biteless. Room note isn't the best, but far from noxious. Typical VaPer, I guess. This falls to the milder end of my favored blends, which makes it a solid medium-body to most pipers. Pairs well with UNSWEETENED iced tea, rye whiskey, or IPAs. In summary, a faithful companion to the grizzled and the mad. Everyone needs a friend. Update 09/20/21. Not much to add to the above; I don't think a day goes by that I don't smoke at least one bowl of BM. I juiced my remaining supply with an additional 25% (by weight) of C&D's long cut Perique, for just a bit more oomph; considering that makes it 50% Perique, actually quite a bit of oomph. However, it works with Bayou Night... Surprisingly, the original character of it does not get lost. It does add deeper bass notes and a "Baker's Chocolate" note without searing my calloused sinuses. Try it if you want. It's fantastic in any form.

I smoked several pounds of this amazing blend about four years ago. It was so good that I chose it for just about every bowl of the day. Then I continued my adventures with other blends, focusing mostly on Gawith and Hoggarth or Samuel Gawith. It's hard to get Laleland tobbacos now, they are always sold out. So I returned to the C&D blends that for so many years been dependable.

Working my way through my first pound of Bayou Morning in after years without it, I am remembering why I was so crazy about it. I have smoked a lot of different vapers. and this is by far the greatest. It's got sweetness of just the right kind, creamy and smooth. The whispers of fruity tartness are just enough to keep the palette fresh, without getting overwhelmed by the sugars. You would expect a lot of pepper with such a heavy proportion of perique, but it's very subtle. The scent of the pouch is kind of like an earthy red wine. I don't know if any alcohol is generated by the fermentation of the perique but it almost seems like it is present in the aroma. Pure tobacco goodness with notes of fruit and wine cask.

The nicotine level must be pretty stout, since I am content to sip the smoke slowly. I have the nicotine tolerance of an elephant, and I like its effects, so I smoke weaker tobacco too fast. This stuff is easy to smoke slowly, so it stays cool and sweet.

I enjoy it the most in a smooth Peterson 302. For some reason it is just wonderful to let the pipe hang in my mouth as I work, slowly enjoying the unique sweetness of this amazing tobacco.

I should probably save this stuff for smoking just a few times a week, so I that I don't get pallette fatigue and lose the ability to really appreciate this fine tobacco.

I am told that the room note is like gunpowder tea with hints of fig.

This review is for the bulk version, if that makes a difference. The name is a little misleading for me. When I see "morning" I think of a light-medium blend and waking to sunlight peeking through the window (at the crack of noon in my case). This is more like being wakened by the sound of a big metal spoon being slammed around in a steel pot. It's not as sweet as other Va/Pers I've smoked, and the peppery perique is dominant. The Virginias are just enough to smooth it out a little, but there's a slight bite. The smoke is creamy and buttery. There's a fair amount of nicotine...I'm smoking it now before eating breakfast, and I had to set the pipe down before things went south. Overall a very good blend, but it's not the smoothest Va/Per out there. You'll like Bayou Morning if you enjoy the kick of "rustic" blends as opposed to the more refined character of something like Dunhill Elizabethan.

First review but this stuff is so good I had to chime in. This has quickly become my everyday smoke. (Bought a pound) It’s a mixture of both sweet and spicy. There is, I think, 25% perique in this blend and the cut is fairly fine. Because the perique is so high it seems like on occasion you run into pockets of spice where you’re getting more perique than at other parts of the bowl. The same is true for the Virginia. Some might not like this inconsistency but I love it. It makes each bowl an adventure and I like the variety it provides in a single bowl. And when they both hit at the same time....wow.

This is one that also seems to better as the bowl ends. I am disappointed each time I finish a bowl and often find myself loading up another. I often smoke it without eating anything and while I am fairly NIC tolerant it does pack a punch especially at the end.

This one really won me over with time. I didn't think too much of my first tin but I was intrigued enough to buy some more in bulk form. This is a major player in the VaPer scene and it's gaining popularity for good reason. I hear some say that C&D do not have high grade VA's but I think this blend in of itself disproves that theory. The VA's are full of depth and richness, full flavored and absolutely satisfy my VA cravings. The perique used (%25) adds a whole other dimension to this blend that really takes it up a notch compared to the majority of the VaPers that are on the market today. If you are sensitive to Perique, please stay far away from this blend, Those of you who enjoy it and can't seem to get enough of it, look no further as this will definitely satisfy. An all day smoke in my book and the nicotine satiates my cravings and I constantly need nicotine flowing through these veins.

Essential.

Edit* 4-14-18. This stuff just gets phenomenal with a bit of age on it! Everytime I smoke, I ask myself why I don’t have at least 20 pounds of it in my cellar... well, I’m working on it. This last smoke just totally blew my mind and this jar only has a year and a half of age on it, imagine what 5 to 10 years will do? The fermentation of VA’s really reveals itself in the smoke.

I am a lover of perique and smoke a lot of vapers. I bought this five years ago when I was trying new vaper blends as it recieved excellent reviews. When I first lit a bowl, I found it to be very green and harsh and not really enjoyable at all. I love strong perique blends, I am a big fan of Frenchy's SunzaBitches. But to me this blend was like lighting up a strong harsh cigar. I thought at the time that I would put it up for a few years and let it age. Hopefully it would age and become more mellow. It is five years later now, and it is still harsh, in your face strong, and like smoking a harsh strong cigar. I like the perique flavor but the va tobaccos here add very little to the blend, none of the sweetness of other vaper blends.

This blend has a nice musty pouch note and the tobacco is a ribbon cut running through the shades of brown from like khaki up to a dark brown. Being a C and D blend, is has a nice drier moisture content, packs easily, and lights up and burns steady all the way down leaving a steely grey ash. I does smoke dry and all the way down with little dottle in the bottom of the bowl. I do enjoy the perique flavor, but it lacks the sweetness of good vaper blends. The room note is tolerable, but will not make friends.

There are many fans of this blend. It is just not for me. It is worth a try but there are in my opinion, much better vaper blends out there.

i recently bought this because i started really liker Vapers. the taste is very very nice, burns great and love the room note. BUT damn the perique is spicy, i like spicy stuff but this is abit too much. if you smoke it with a filter, its very very enjoyable. i'm gonna let this blend age abit and then try it again without filter. i would really recommend this with a filter or to spicy stuff lover.

19/1/2015 i have let this blend age a bit. and good god it's delicious. the over spicy(peppery fleeing) died down and now gives a really nice musty(fermented) cool smoke. very enjoyable. if i had to compare between MCClelland 2015: virginia+perique and this blend. i would choose bayou morning. i find taste the perique taste far stronger/better and the price difference is great.

What a great tobacco this is! There is a slight sweetness of stoved Virginia with just the right amount of Perique. Wow! This is one of my favorites! It seems to do everything just right. It lights and burns well all the way down the bowl - never bites. It has a very nice but mild complexity to it and is always smooth and smokes cool. I can't seem to smoke this one too much. One word of caution. Keep this bag of tobacco away from your cat. One of ours went crazy over the bag and would not leave it alone. She insisted on rubbing and laying on it! The bag had to be placed in a closet to keep it away from her. I must say that I do not detect any catnip! Mr. Tarler of C&D says he has not experienced this dilemma at his shop. Highly Recommended!!

This has a good hefty dose of perique. It lets itself be known. Even still the Virginias still manage to be heard. Not really for beginners because of the intents spiciness of the perique. For me it was Very enjoyable in the morning. The best way to control the spiciness is slow puffs. When it gets to spicy just slow down on you draw and it should mellow out. I'm a lover of VaPer's but for me it a little over Perique. I've noticed lately more and more blends are, if a little is good more is better. More is just more. So highly recommend for anyone that want intense perique. But if you like Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture my want to try something different.