Cornell & Diehl Black Frigate

Get your knife out for this one, comes in pressed flake just like they did it a hundred years ago. Cut off a piece and rub it out good, lightly pack it in one of your briers and put a match to it. Absolutely old English navy at its best. Latakia is very present in this fine blend along with a tad of unsweetened black cavendish and zesty turkish, rounding out a somewhat of a medium bodied but tangeful and delighting smoke. This reminds me of London Blend but without the campfire taste that lingers all through your tastebuds, very refined Latakia with just a tad of sweetened goodness along with a noticeable nicotine kick that makes this blend very different and surprisingly delicious. I will have to order some more of this solely as an aromatic escape route.

I can't taste any rum here. True, my tin is a rusty Ebay acquisition most likely from the end of the last century. The tobacco has held up in the little sealed plastic bag C&D used to use, but it's pretty dry. The Latakia stands out so much that I can't really tell what the nature of the cavendish is. Is there any burley in here? Or is it Virginia cavendish? Maybe I will have a better idea when I have smoked a few more bowls. This is to me a full yet not overwhelming English. My first samplings have left the roof of my mouth a little roasted, but I have been hitting the pipe rather hard in the last few days. It may be that when I cut down on smoking and smoke a small bowl of this-slowly, it will be more kind to me.

That said, it did not torture me too much, and has a nice flavor. I get more complexity from Dunhill Durbar (new version; that's all I've tried), but when I have had time to experiment with different pipes and techniques for smoking this particular weed, I will update with any further epiphanies. Presentation is perfect: while C&D has some trouble with flakes (consistency), their crumble cakes are marvelous. I wish they would use the classic-style tins which age so well for their products-seems they could afford to given the prices they charge, because their old metal tins don't seal well and the cat-food type containers don't quite cut it as well. Oh well.

I smoked the first bowl in a Marxman Jumbo, and that was a bit over the top, though this tobacco could work in a large bowl. I had more success in my little Jobey Stromboli 200, as this pipe calmed down the mouth-bite. I really sensed more of the Turkish in the Jobey as well. I still can't taste the rum, but the cavendish must be Virginia based, not burley. As the first reviewer of this blend noted back in 2002, flavors are not complex at first, but "build to a crescendo" in the last third of the bowl.

An early review of a blend I have not quite decided on…..

I love the taste, mouth feel is pretty good and it has not bitten me yet.

The Latakia is not overpowering and the components gel pretty well. The rum casing is a little overpowering and I hope it will take a back seat with some cellaring.

Going to have to give this one some time before I can fairly give an opinion.

Worth a smoke, yes.

I get rum and latakia upon opening the tin. Both are evident upon lighting, as well as a mild floral from the oriental in the background. The Cavendish and rum, with the latakia give this a sweet English quality and the rum flavor is there throughout the smoke. The oriental seems to come and go as I smoke (might have more to do with how I broke apart the kake). Occasionally I would get a little harshness towards the latter half of the bowl, but overall it's really enjoyable. Recommended for any English pipers, or for aromatic fans looking to try some English blends.

This and its cousin GLP'S sextant are both wonderful blends. I find that greg's handling of the rum better than on this blend by C&D. The first half of the bowl is a wonderful navy rum smoke and than it turns into a sweet english blend. I prefer sextant but dont get me wrong, this genre buster is quite tasty and one i will buy again at some point.

This is what I thought I was getting when I bought some Skiff from Samuel Gawith when I was looking for an older sibling to Squadron Leader. Not to crazy about the tin as it leaves s sharp edge with the pop top on it. Nor is it a pocket shaped tin but I've other ways to carry it. The tin scent was something like soy sauce or BBQ in there. One of the 5th taste flavors that involve complex amino acids.

Felt a little dry in the tin versus what I'm used to but crumbled the cake and packet right out of the tin and after a charring light it was a little tamper now and then to the bottom of the bowl. Ash was light and little to no wattle.

Some aftertaste lingering with it that I'm unaccustomed to from my regular Squadron Leader.

Pipe used was meerschaum, bent.

I'm a once or twice a week type pipe guy, I don't have an all day smoke. It's my treat to sit and read the weekly paper and enjoy my pipe on a weekend morning. If this is your style and you like a heavier uncased flavor give it a crack, you'll enjoy. Seems a bit much for more regular consumption, and in that case I'd stay with something lighter.

While this is not one of my favorites, it is still a pretty yummy blend. My tin was dated 1-03 so it has some age to it. Upon opening the tin, you are greeted by a small dark brick. The tin aroma is of a navy cavendish with rum , of course, but you can also smell latakia and a wee bit o' turkish. Moisture is pretty dry for this type of blend. Packing must be done with care to get the most of this blend. I have found that you must crumble well (I use the tin lid for this) and then lightly sprinkle in the bowl (bigger bowls are better for this blend), then lightly tamp. If you do that, lighting is a breeze and you probably can smoke it to the bottom with a few gentle tamps along the way. Initial flavor is sweet and rummy. It changes to a sweet, smoky, and mellow flavor about mid-bowl. The turkish raises its head at the last third of the bowl. This blend is really not that complex, but it gives you a predictable smooth ride to the end, good for when putterring around the garage or backyard. With that in mind, you may enjoy this blend (I sure do).Also, keep in mind that the nic is a little higher in this blend, but it doesn't kick you all of a sudden, rather, it creeps up on you (eat first!).Rating 3 out of 5 points. Enjoy...

Another one I've been wondering about and finally got around to trying. I had heard that it was a strong blend in terms of the nic hit, but I have to say that I certainly did not find that to be the case.

In terms of taste, it is basically a Latakia blend with rum flavouring/notes. In that regard, it is similar to things like Bengal Slices, Frog Morton's Cellar and other such "crossover" blends. Smoky meets sweet. If you like the profile of thee type of blends, you'll quite likely enjoy this one as well. I think I likely prefer some of the other choices over this one, but this is a close second.

Tin note of tart wine, mild smoky, and spices. The Krumble Kake is yellowish-brown, tan with a little black. It breaks and rubs out easily. Tobacco is moist and may need a little drying. Burns slow with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. Flavoring is mild, with notes of rum. Taste is medium to full and a little consistent, with notes of mildly smoky, very woody, spices, dry earth, mild lemon, floral, musty herbs, mildly spicy, and a mildly sweet grassy background note and a mildly peppery retro. Cavendish is leading with Turkish supporting, Latakia supports when it wants too, and the flavoring jumped ship at first opportunity. Room note is tolerable, and aftertaste is great.