Cornell & Diehl Bayou Morning Flake

Cornell & Diehl - Bayou Morning Flake.

This is another blend I received in a recent trade with Gentleman Zombie; it's absolutely fabulous!

As a few other folks have said, the tin-note is sublime; it just beseeches you to fill and light! The flakes aren't too broken, and are at the smaller end of the scale where length and width are concerned, however they lean more towards the larger end regarding the thickness. I'm not sure whether the moisture content may vary from tin to tin, but mines very good.

Once it's been crumbled, loaded, and lit, I'm blown away; it's EXACTLY what I want from a pipe tobacco: I wouldn't recommend it to those who aren't keen on Perique though; it has a very clear taste of it, but the dark fruitiness outweighs the sharpness; it's not as formidable as I often find many VaPer's can be. The Virginia offers some flavour: mild hay, and a little wood, but it isn't in the same league where the strength of flavour is concerned. As a few other's have said, it can pack a hefty punch of nicotine, but to tell the truth, unless the smoke's deliberately inhaled in big puffs, I don't find it to be anymore than strong. To finish, everything else about Bayou is impeccable: a great burn, lovely note, and no tongue-bite.

Thanks Franck, highly, highly, highly recommended! 😉

Four stars.

I was expecting something similar to BM here and was pleasantly surprised to find something completely different. No point trying to compare the two. This is a fine flake and a bit of a powerhouse. This is for Perique lovers. The Virginia just gives a little support and roundness. Here you get the full flavor of Perique along with a nice dose of spice and...yeah...a boatload of nicotine. It's also very smooth with no harshness or sharpness. Very easy on the retrohale. Very satisfying.

Medium to strong in body. No added flavorings. Medium in taste. Burns very well after some drying time.

Holy buckets! This stuff is fantastic... the first American va/per I've tried that gives the Europeans a serious run for their money.. the tin aroma first of all- wow! In your face dried fruit... intense flavorful kick in the face. It smokes just as well... beautiful cool flavorful. Lots of perique... yet somehow the Virginias are able to stand up and hold things together. I have got to get my hands on more of this.. it's proved itself in a way I never expected. It is bold but don t be fooled... you can find nuance.

TOP-NOTCH-VA/PER! This is like a holy grail in terms of Va/Pers to my personal preference! Not most complex, but just very refined taste that flatters my palate like no other Virginia/Perique blend.

We were ordering in the US with friends and by accident they bought me the Bayou Flake, instead of the Ribbon-Cut - and thank god for that! From the lovely tin art, that makes me wallow in fantasies about a man rowing down a Bayou on his boat, thinking of home, the lovely scent of frehsly baked bread, the sparkling eyes of his children and a relieved wife that's happy to have her man back at home. Keeping the pipe in the corner of his mouth, while the few shafts of sun tickle his tired eyes.

The tin note is wonderful and appetising. Fruit bread, stoved, dark fruits and lots of pepper. Very distinctive aroma. Perfectly manufactured flakes, mostly broken, but some are still in tact are waiting inside, that are a joy to handle and break apart quite easily. Still they can be folded to little "balls" and stuffed in the pipe like that, which I prefer.

In the smoke you instantly get lots of pepper and spice. The tin-note pretty much transposes one-to-one into the smoke aroma. Dark bread, stoved and dark fruits create a distinctive aroma, that is unlike any Va/Per I had before. Rather "dark" in flavours, this isn't grassy to me at all. Fruity, bready, peppery, spicy. The 25% of Perique result in a good nicotine punch, that gets you going in the morning. Only little sweetness to it, yet noticeable. I like that, most Va/Pers are sugary-sweet. I don't consider this an All-Day smoke due to the rather high strenght, but for some it may be!

I absolutely love this blend, too bad it ain't available in bulk, because ordering tins from the US to Germany isn't quite convenient tbqh. But it's totally worth the effort and cash! This is some very unique Va/Per blend with its very own merits and aroma. If you like Va/Pers with decent strenght and dark-toned arom - try it, it's heavenly!

Opening the tin reveals a very familiar, fruity, fermented, figgy aroma that is characteristic of Perique-heavy C&D blends. I love this smell. I also noted some chocolate and acetic notes at times. No indication of a top dressing, just complex, delicious Virginia and Perique.

Smoking this blend is a real treat if you love VA/Per blends. The bowl shows a nice progression from fruity and sweet on light down to deep and savory aromas at the end.

I found this blend to have more nicotine than expected, perhaps due to the high Perique content.

I bought this blend over six years ago, and just tried it for the first time. Now I wish I had bought more, because I would love to see how it further develops with more age.

This soft and broken flake is very handy to stuff the pipe, providing a slow, cool burn. I used to smoke the “regular” Bayou Morning, the Ribbon Cut, and I find them very different, although they have the same name, which normally implies being the same mixture. Check my other review of the BM Ribbon Cut and compare it with this one.

BM Flake is deep, dark, matured, harmonious, without any peaks and edges. Excellent choice of Virginias and they are the star of the show here. There is a healthy dose of Perique, but it has been gagged in a sense, as there are almost no typical Perique flavours around. Perique is there to enhance the Virginias, donating some power and strength to this mixture, what I appreciate a lot. Soft, pleasant nose-tingle on retro-hale. No tongue-burn at all. I cannot tell which one I prefer, the BM Ribbon Cut, or the BM Flake, They are very different to me, both very tasty four star blends. Get a tin of each and find out for yourself which one YOU prefer.

I opened a 9 year old tin of this flake . The brick of tobacco was wrapped in paper which felt moist and had turned brown . The tobacco itself was moist also and not easy to pack . The tin note was amazing , strong and delicate at the same time . Packing and lighting was a little difficult , a loose pack is best with this flake . I was bowled over by the taste , deep prunes and smoldering , fragrant wood . This is what I smoke perique for . After savoring the can I bought a bunch of new tins but I have no idea how they taste without aging . If you can buy this as a vintage tobacco with a little age on it do it .

Ever since I crossed paths with Voodoo Queen, I have been a Perique freak!

This tobacco is actually quite eye pleasing. Nice shades of brown and red.

The bag aroma was very much like Voodoo Queen minus the Latkia and mocha flavoring.

The texture is amazing, supple flakes that crumble nice and easy, pack well, light excitedly all while delivering the anticipated reaction!

WHOOOA MOMMA! This is a spicy one! I smiled nice and broadly as I puffed away in bliss. Although its initial spice calms down after a bit, the VA gives its tasty elements over and then plays musical chairs with the Perique.

It's a tilt-a-whirl for your mouth!

To me, Perique is to pipes as Habano Ligero is to cigars. Perfect!

I have found myself another one. Great flavor, great taste, the nicotine is probably pretty strong, but I can't tell. I'm too conditioned to it. I didn't feel sick though, so it's not enough, but I will settle.

American style pop-top tin with a plastic lid with a nice little evocative water color illustration. Messy presentation of beautiful thick broken flake inside. The flakes are somewhat loose and I don't give them much besides a quick break to size to pack. The aroma is nice, some spicy molasses, wood, light smoke, leather, tobacco, stewed fruits, and apple cider vinegar. This blend favors a loose pack and occasion light tamping to squeeze out a little air.

I find this difficult to review and have held off doing so because I have a hard time rembering all the sensations of the smoke. That said, it is easy to rate, it's a bases clearing 4 star review. The C&D base flavor profile is there, kind of a strong malt. All the aroma components described above pop in an out through the bowl, but malt, straight tobacco, and leather are the most obvious. The Perique is always around sometimes flaring up. The flavor profile of this Perique is very good and it's the tangy type fermented type, not particularly spicy and not earthy. Despite so many flavors they blend well and that is why it's hard to describe.

As with almost every tobacco a little drying is beneficial. The first third of the bowl is pretty bold and has that kind of unrefined signature I find with C&D. However, once it more fully ignites the burn slows and the flavors open up. This blend is greatly benefited by smoking in a churchwarden that tames some of the rough edges. I'm sure some age would do the same. My current favor and growing.