Cornell & Diehl Engine 99

I just recently purchased this in bulk, so this review is based on a blend that has not had a chance to age. I find this very one dimensional heavy Latakia blend. If you like latakia, as I do, I think you should try this as the price is right. Right now it is spicy and harsh, but I will update after 9 months of cellaring as I feel it will improve. I also tried this back to back against Pirate Kake (3 months age) and PK is much smoother and also allows some of the Orientals to play ( PK is my choice).

Updated 6/11/12 I'm now torn between, Nightcap, and this for my Latakia blast. I'm keeping at 3 stars. I think Odyssey & 3 Oaks Syrian are more complex and have nicer Oriental backgrounds, and Nightcap burns so well? choices , choices.

Updated 8/10/12 I've just tried, Engine 99, back to back with, Pirate Kake, both bulks, and I find PK better . You had better have a liking for Latakia with both of these blends, more so with PK that gives an almost oily taste. E99 is not as sweet and doesn't bring much Oriental, is not as creamy and is very one dimensional. I've decided to give it 2 1/2 stars but I would rather put my money towards PK.

I passed by this blend many times while shopping for interesting English styles. I read and reread the numerous reviews many times thinking this might be one to try sooner or later. I have to say that it was Briarpatchs' review that made my interest pique. As with all things consumable, you tend to find people who have like tastes, never identical, but similar. His reverence for Standard Mixture Medium was one of the indicators that we could share some flavor profile interest. I have to say that I was correct, at least on this blend.

To begin, I agree with the assessment that this is a very solid blend. Plenty rich and full flavored with a solid English profile with one very overt exception. Perique. Now don't get me wrong, I really am a perique fan, and like it alot when it works in a blend. Here is the exception to that rule. The perique content is very, very low. But, the flavor is there. It is detectable. And that is where the rub is, because it just doesn't work in this blend. It would be a solid four star blend if it didn't have any perique. It would be even better if there was just a breathe more Turkish. Maybe replace the perique with a like proportion of Turkish.

Having said all that, this is a tasty tobacco. The flavor of the perique here just holds it back alittle. It doesn't ruin it. I would recommend this to anyone who likes the English genre and doesn't mind a pinch of perique flavor in the mix.

The burn rate is good, not exceptional. The vitamin N content is on the low side of medium and picks up to just short of a solid medium level at end of bowl. Packing was a breeze, although I rarely have problems packing any tobacco. No bite detected even when pushed a bit. A slight bitterness detected if you heat it up though, so go slow and take your time with this one. The complexity level should keep most smokers interest throughout the bowl. A good one to smoke while I write at the computer, and equally good for moments of quiet contemplation.

Verdict: three stars...will keep a good supply on hand to cellar...perique haters need not apply...otherwise, give it a try. Cheers!

Excellent! One of the best English style mixtures I've smoked in a while, with rich earthy and woodsy flavors and gentle nuances of sweetness and spice. A glimpse of perfection.

What briars are made for.

I find the balance of this to be spot on.

A luscious English blend with all the right components. Nothing over done, nothing lacking.

Cool, dry smoker, with flavour and complexity...it’s what you dream you’ll one day be smoking when you start off enjoying a pipe.

Produces a luscious smoke with a mouthfeel that just left me quietly smiling.

Easy to tame in the bowl, minimal lights, zero tongue bite...just about the most enjoyable smoke I’ve had in quite awhile.

It is gentler/smoother/richer than I recall some of my older Dunhill blends...just as robust, but with a subtle refinement...the best of old with the hard edges burnished in all the right ways.

I highly recommend this blend with absolute confidence in your enjoyment with it.

The lat leads the way from the start. It is smokey and sweet. Unfortunately, for me, it takes over at just after the half way point and is too dominate crushing the other components. This keeps it from the fourth star for me. Otherwise it is a great smoke. Behind the lat is burley which is nutty and earthy with notes of molasses and a very faint cocoa nuance once in a while. The orientals are there as well, they are woody, slightly sweet with a nice sourness that I associate with them. I also get a creamy flavor that may be from them as well. They also have a slight musty note on occasion when they move forward. The VA always stays in the background for me but they do have a tangy dark fruit note that I find in red VA's. There is also a very vegetative note that comes and goes and I am not at all sure which variety this is coming from. The perique is almost unnoticeable. I do get a faint pepper note here and there and perhaps a raisin like note that comes and goes but is also rather faint. The nic is really closer to mild it will not satisfy a craving but it could be someones all day lat blend if the lat does not overwhelm the palate like it did for me. Still for those of you who love higher percentage of lat without heavy nic this would be a good one to try.

Damn fine blend that can be had for cheap in bulk, which is how I came to a 4 Oz purchase. Bought exclusively on aroma alone and was tickled it was a mix of Pirate Kake and Odessa. Really is a buttery smooth Balkan and I find no fault in it whatsoever. Fantastic in a shorter pipe. Some may find the room aroma offensive as there’s a fair whack of Latakia present. A worthy investment.

*Edit* This is becoming a my defacto house blend. Terrific.

I don't have a lot to say other than I really like this and it's great value. I just wanted to vote it up and you can't do that without commenting. I bought both C&D's Star of the East and Engine 99. Perhaps they're different things ... I dunno, Balkan, English, Oriental ... I don't know! All I know is I like tobacco with latakia and with some ooomph. SOTE doesn't do it for me, while Engine 99 is a great, full, flavourful tobacco! And they're both cheap. So, if you're like me and want to buy a reasonably priced tobacco in bulk that has an authentic English taste, get yourself a couple of ounces of this and skip the SOTE. Wish I'd bought more of this.

This is one of three recent C&D blends I purchased, the other two being Star of the East and Mountain Camp. After much research, I felt confident in buying 8 ounces of each, hoping I would not be disappointed. Engine 99, by strength, is in the middle of the pack and, to me, seems to be fairly close to what I consider to be my definition of a standard English mixture (even with the Cavendish and Burley). It does get a bit heavy towards the end of the bowl though. The basic components are there, the sweet/sour aroma of the Virginia along with the heaviness of the latakia. I can't detect much of the Perique it contains (but not really an expert though) but does have a somewhat "nutty" flavor to it. I assume this is the Burley tobacco. I'll say you can't go wrong with this blend. It's a very middle-of-the-road English (not great but not bad at all), readily available from C&D direct or from several on-line stores and very reasonably priced as most of the C&D bulk blends seem to be.

I am on my ninth bowl of this new purchase - ninth in 36 hours, which is a long time for me to smoke one blend only (ever since Finck's English changed). This is a sleeper, and a surprise for me. It's been on the shelf at El Fumador -Sewickley, PA- every time I've been in over the last six months and I just passed it over (maybe the name of the blend did not resonate for me). However I finally bought 4 ounces last Wednesday afternoon on way into work. I cleaned out a still-warm partial bowl of a McClelland Grand Oriental in order to give this an immediate test; this was the wrong thing to do as my first taste might be ghosted by the Classic Samsun (as indeed it was). At lunch at tried another bowl to better effect. On way home yet another, followed by yet another two hours later. If one gets the impression that I was impressed with this blend then one would be correct. Obviously Engine 99 is an evolutionary blend of two other C&D blends one of which itself is a variation of yet another. But is works well. The blend is poised with no one component fighting any other, but all complementing each other. Contrary to smoke other opinions I find this to be a complex experience with a lot happening in the bowl and all of that is just plain good and tasty. It is also what I call a thinking man's smoke- extremely pleasant without being distracting. Perfect smoke for times of other tasks such as creative writing or programming...or just thinking (if indeed that is what I do). I've only had one bowl of Balkan Sobraine in my life - traded with my college roommate for a bowl of my Dunhill #965 and hence I have virtually no experience with which to liken this to any other. For Room Note, I had to guess as Tester (wife) was not within nose range this morning and made no unsolicited comment.

Temporary rating of 3 stars - might go to four later.

Update: OK, after 17 bowls, this gets kicked up a notch to 4 stars.