Cornell & Diehl Walter Franklin

I bought this single tin from an Ebay seller (Remember when we could do this?) in the fall of 2017 and had it on my NASPC table in 2018 and 2019. No one payed any attention to it and I put it in my personal stash last year. Now, in my Covid 19 semi-isolation, I'm opening it. Slightly bulged out top and bottom, it had a nice whoosh on opening and showed a mixture of tobaccos that read as a reddish-brown color. The tin aroma identified Burley and Red Virginia with something else in the background. Both Latakia and Black Cavendish are in the formula, with the Latakia being more noticeable than the Black Cavendish. I guess we have to say that Walter Franklin is an English blend. Mild as an English, it is stronger in a VaBur way and not to be underestimated. Every bowl smoked identically in the same pattern; no matter the size or shape of the chamber. The top third of every bowl was a pipe smoking joy at four solid stars. The marrying of the Burley and Red Virginia was masterful and as enjoyable as any other C&D Burley-containing blend I have tried. With the middle third, things slowed down some to a normal VaBur smoke of three star quality. The bottom thirds dropped into that gray and ashy type smoke that I find so common in most blends. All in all, a good solid three star Burley/Virgina-based American English that I would like to have in the future. Unfortunately, it appears to be out of production and I've never succeeded in finding a second tin to buy. Good luck trying to find it.