Cornell & Diehl Mississippi Mud

I received a couple of tins of Mississippi Mud yesterday, a two-ounce to try and an eight-ounce to cellar. After two bowls I have the following to report:

On opening the can the tin note was earthy and a little sour. The loose, large pieces of tobacco were moist and spongy to the touch but the overall presentation was inviting. I aired a portion out for about 20 minutes and loaded up a small Turkish meer favorite of mine and set match to bowl. Two puffs and the ember died. I tamped and fired again, this time the light held and I was welcomed to a beautiful cloud of dense smoke and a flavor rush that was anticipated but unexpected none-the-less. The Latakia lent its creamy smokiness, the Perique tickled my fancy and the Cavendish sweetened the pot!!! The flavors round-robin'd throughout the bowl and I was too soon through the pack. The second bowl this morning was just as good if not better. I am absolutely sure MS Mud will become a regular member of my growing rotation.

I hate to say it, but I absolutely hate this tobacco. I love Latakia, I love Perique, and black cavendish is okay...but for some reason this blend of these ingredients actually gags me. It's as if I'm puffing on second-hand smoke through a dirty sock in a humid room.

It might be best described as a weak and washed out Dunhill 965.

I think it may just be a high amount of black cavendish. It washes out the body of the smoke and makes a mouthful of staleness that I just can't convince myself to like, even after smoking nearly a whole tin. I tried to like it, I really did! But I just can't.

Is it crap? No. Is it for me? Absolutely not.

A lot of smoke and smoky taste, nothing else. No flavor, no zing, could be the Cavandash and lack of Virginia. One good thing, NO BITE. I finally mixed what was left of my 2 oz can with Mac Baron Plumcake. Good mixer, really wakes up the Plumcake.

Another one of the new blends that came in at the shop.

This one was a bit more in my wheelhouse. Dark chocolate ribbons with some huge pieces mixed in. Earthy, leather, spice and dark fruity sweetness. It is a good straightforward English blend that is cav based. It packs, lights and smokes well. Has a nice solid nic content to it as well. It comes on strong in the beginning and settles in around the halfway mark in a group 3 pipe. Needs a few relights, but most do. Smokes clean and dry, with a nice sweet after taste.

I’m not sure if it was the change in weather that made this shine, but I don’t think so. It’s a good simple English that I smoked the life out of. I killed a tin in two days and will be buying more for future enjoyment.

Cornell & Diehl - Mississippi Mud.

I really like this, it ticks many boxes for my requirements. I'd guess it's just soft enough to please some aro' fans, yet has enough fervour for English fans.

In the tin there's a virtually black mixture that's just coarse enough to warrant being called Coarse Cut, but not that much coarser than many ribbon blends. It's a touch too moist, but not worth stressing about.

The smoke has a great flavour! Of the constituents the Perique is definitely the lightest, the Cav' and Lat' easily bully it out of the way. They make for a sweet, smoky, experience. Quite a straightforward flavour, but a satisfying smoke. It has a good burn, delivering a thick, bite free smoke.

For once I'll go lower than the majority on nicotine: medium. And I like the room-note: heavy, but pleasant.

Easy to rate. Highly recommended:

Four stars.

"SIIIIIMMMMBAAAAAAH!!!!"

(I have no idea what that means, but that's how it feels).

Another no horsesh*t, straight to the big-boy parlor blend for Mr. Tarler. These full-on dark blends are not for the "keep my $700 freehand polished like a billiard ball, no, don't touch it, don't even look at my pipe!" crowd, nor the "uncomplicated means unsophisticated" group.

Yeah, there's a little of this, and a little of that here, but it's pretty much one big, toasty POW!

That is my word for The Mud, "Toasty". It tastes toasty. The tin note has a lot of wang from the Perique, almost offputting. There are some bitters that cut through in the taste, not sure where from, perhaps from Lord Cavendish? Those bitters are what keeps The Mud from having any rounding to the taste.

The heavy Latakia-bomb blends that I like are all "smokey". The Mud is toasty. The L-bomb blends manage to have a small roundness in places. Not with The Mud - it's just a straight drive to Toasty Town.

Strong tobacco, proceed with caution.

For me, Cap'n Earle's Ten Russians is the dark blend constant. But having The Mud in the rotation, as a reliever, is a nice change of pace. It's exciting.

This blend is one that can only be appreciated by the smoker. The room note is strong enough to scare my kids into doing chores. The blend has a nice tin note of fermented fruit and smoky wood, but that is not the smell that comes out of the pipe. I like the cut, it is very fine and almost coffee ground in consistency. It provides a very cool smoke that lasts and lasts. It would be good cake builder in a new pipe as long as you like large amounts of Latakia and Perique. The black Cavendish is second to none, it is not the usual heavily topped weed, but more a rich undertone that balances the Latakia masterfully. This blend is an experience any lover of Latakia and Perique should try.

Being the end of the year, I decided to open up a tin that I have had since around 2004. 13 years, how time flies. It has a strong earthy smell and is jet black with specks of brown. Upon lighting up I can definitely detect the perique which seems to me to be the strongest taste of the tobacco. Smokes cool and tastes one dimensional which is not a bad thing. I have another tin dated 2009 that I will save for a rainy day.

I was gifted a generous amount of this tobacco from a friend. I received it in a bag. The smell from the bag was overpowering...lots of smokey campfire tones mixed with the sweet deep dark fermented fruit smell with lots of earth and yes, what some have called 'Mud'. The tobacco is extremely dark to black ribbons that have the perfect amount of moisture. From the smell and look of the tobacco, I can tell this is going to be a powerful, rich, and strong smoke.

Packs very easily into any of the different pipes I've smoked it in. Lights easily and remains so as long as you mind it (tamping).

The smoke is rich and full of flavor. Lots of latakia flavor, campfire, smokey wood, a few floral tones though lightly done, mixed with the deep rich flavor of the perique. Lots of earth tones mixed into the flavor with just a hint of spice. The smoke is very clearly mostly latakia and perique. The black cavendish seems to provide a slightly sweet backdrop...a canvas upon which these other two tobaccos intermingle and dance upon ones nose and tongue. Wonderfully rich and heavy smoke. There is a bit of a kick to it but not as much as one would anticipate. I find the flavor to be invigorating but not complicated. I will be picking up a tin or two of this for sure.