Cornell & Diehl Autumn Evening

Tin note very sweet maple , Vanilla and butterscotch. short ribbon cut. Very moist from a fresh tin. From what I read I packed this a bit on the tight side as it burns quickly. The main flavor is butterscotch but there are others, too many to discern. Not much tobacco flavor just a hint of Virginia way in the background. Very mild smoke and a full blown aromatic. No chemical flavor. Nic hit is very mild. For people just starting out on their pipe journey this would be a really good starter aromatic. No bite and quite smooth. 3.5 stars

Wow! This is really, really maple. I was surprised by the amount of flavor packed in my bowl and I found myself puffing over and over again. The flavor is sweet, genuine and above all else - maple! If you don't like maple and sweet baccy this isn't for you. Probably not an all day smoke, but with the appropriate coffee or with desert it would be fantastic.

This one seems to be a love it or hate blend, which means it is probably pushing the boundaries in some regard, edging smokers who love a full-throttle flavor-fest toward ecstasy, while putting off those who want something more toned down that doesn’t draw attention to itself. Obviously from the rating here, I’m in the “love it” camp.

What I like about Autumn Evening is that while the maple is obvious there are also other flavors that give it some complexity. Besides maple, a deep whiff of the jar reveals cocoa, chocolate and coffee. In terms of flavor, maple is to the fore, but one can also find caramel, mocha, and even a couple hits of sweet peach. I think it is the special red Virginia Cavendish that I respond most favorably to, and that’s one thing that sets this apart from other full-throttle aromatics.

Negatives? Well, two nitpicks: Puffed quickly I do get some of that canned green bean taste that I often get with Cavendish tobaccos. Unless a Cavendish is toasted or flavored very heavily, this is just a natural by-product of steaming a leaf and releasing compounds that would otherwise burn off and go unnoticed. So, no freight train puffing. Secondly, although I get wonderful flavor from beginning to end of the bowl, if you do sit down that pipe and return at a later time, you will discover that some of the flavor has faded. So allocate time enough that you can finish a bowl in one session. That’s it for the negatives, everything else is just pure enjoyment!

Although I'm not a smoker of aromatics, I don't miss the opportunity to try some that I think I might like enough for a change of pace, although very occasionally. Since this is one of C&D's best-selling tobaccos, I couldn't miss the chance to try it.

In its tin it gives off a strong aroma, which I identify above all as coffee. Once the pipe is lit its general flavor is somewhat confusing, with a taste that resembles a mixture of coffee and vanilla. I can't identify the component tobaccos below the couverture, although in a mixture like this I don't think that's the blender's goal either.

I understand why some like it so much, but for me the flavor is quite overwhelming and I can't find a trace of the underlying tobaccos under the coating. For this reason I keep it on the side and every time I go to my cellar to look for a tobacco to smoke, it never calls me.

Tin note - divine, sweet maple. Bowl begins with the maple note dominant complimented by sweet tobacco on retrohale. Develops into a predominately artificially sweet vanilla/maple/nondescript overripe fruit. Throughout the bowl the maple presence occasionally rises to the forefront, and I can say that when it does that's when I enjoy it the most (keep it burning cool for best results). I can see why this is such a popular aromatic because there's a fair amount of complexity in the flavours and they work well together. The tobacco is not overly wet or gloopy and I can see the quality in the blend. It's a decent and well-executed pop song, I guess, but I prefer garage rock.

NOT REVIEWED YET Our proprietary red Virginia cavendish is lightly cased with a delicate maple flavor resulting in our best selling aromatic blend. The smoker will appreciate the taste of Virginias while those around will flock to the warm, inviting fragrance.

Yes! The maple is very intense. After only one bowl of this I dont know if it is to intense? I get nothing of the citrus but the sugar and rum is there. Its like smoking a bowl of maple candy and not necessarily in a good way. Ill get back to this but right now, this is a two star blend for me.

First of all, I'm not an aromatics smoker. I started pipe smoking with aros and aros were what almost put me off pipe smoking. I didn't like the lack of taste and sometimes very artifical tasting aroma and when I discovered virginias/vaper and english, I never looked back.

But still from time to time, I tried some aromatic tobacco just to again assure myself that aros aren't for me at all. Then I got the tin of this blend and I really wanted to try, because of all the hype it gets. So does this one change my opinion about aromatics?

Right after opening the tin, I was welcomed by very pleasant maple sweet aroma. The moisture was really spot on, my tin was opened about half a year after production, based on the date label.

Getting this tobacco lit was super easy. First puffs were super fragrant, with the smell of maple, sugar, butter and cream. Not really much actual taste (as usual for aros), but still the taste matched the tin notes, which isn't that usual. Also the aroma itself feels really nice and natural, no weird artificial tones as with some other tobaccos I've tried.

What I really enjoyed about this tobacco is that the aroma stayed present until the really end of the bowl. Also it burns really nice, but one must be careful not to smoke too fast, it doesn't heat the bowl that much, but in such case it starts to taste ashy. So keep it slow and you'll be rewarded by really pleasant smoke from top to the bottom of the bowl. Also this tobacco burns easily into white ashes, no leftover tobacco left on the bottom of the bowl, no unpleasant tastes or gurgling even during the last few puffs.

So was I happy with this tobacco? Yes, and I say that as non-aro smoker. Would I smoke this every day? No, maybe once a week to satisfy my sweet tooth. But still, if you're like me, non-aro smoker who'd like to find some nice aromatic, give this one a try.

Here comes an unpopular review…this is a good blend for those looking for a lighter flavor and more pronounced tobacco flavor. That’s what I feel C&D do best. The tin note is strong with maple but that disappears when lit. I tasted no maple or topping. Even the room note was weak. Not my favorite maple aromatic.