Cornell & Diehl Morley's Best

It seems that C&D are known for their burley blends, and American-style English blends in particular. This seems more bitter than the others they make. I prefer Old College, Consolation, and Big 'n' Burley because they are less bitter to me.

Govern Yourself Accordingly!

This is a pretty good blend, perfectly balanced and possessed of great burning characteristics (it's almost as easy to keep lit as Carter Hall or Prince Albert). I don't feel I can add much to the numerous reviews already posted, other than to say that it seems to taste much better in a cob than in a briar and it should probably be aged a few months before smoking.

There was a brief time when I thought this was my holy grail. I have a deep and abiding love of American-Englsh blends that goes back to when I first picked up a pipe. The flavor is top-notch: you obviously taste a lot of burley, but there is also a significant amount of latakia. The VAs are used sparingly here, which means this is a fairly "bitter" smoke (think of black coffee). Most mixtures of this type use some type of casing or topping to introduce some sweetness to the mix, but Morley's Best eschews all that and instead embraces an "all natural" approach.

The first few batches were notable for how east they were on the tongue, but subsequent ones have given me serious tongue bite. I wonder if a different crop of burlies or VAs is to blame here. I initially had this ranked at four stars, but the bottom line is that this blend is well-night unsmokable to me now. I do, however recommend it if you have any interest whatsoever in exploring what can be done with burley. Tongue bite is often due to personal chemistry, and you may have better luck!

Morley's Best is an average blend through and through. No high notes, nothing that really stands out as being a reason not to smoke it. The burley is the leading player with earth, nuttiness, maybe a hint of sorghum? and they also have a little spice and can be slightly rough around the edges. The Lat. comes next and it is smokey and slightly sweet. The VA's are way in the background and have notes of hay and citrus. This all sounds good but the overall effect left me initially saying to myself there is something odd here. I think it may be a topping perhaps licorice root extra and something else coffee maybe. In any case there was just an overall wrongness to the smoke that I could not get away from. That aside I also get a little bored with it in the end.

Burley based with a strong Latakia touch. I really didn't taste the Virginia. Lights well and stays lit. Makes plenty of smoke. A decent smoke I'll let it rest for a while and see if the Latakia mellows out.

Morley's Best is a Burley blend with small portions of virginia and latakia. Burley is all over in my opinion, and a bit hot and harsh. Only a touch of latakia comes through after the middle of a bowl. It does not get good first impression from me.

For folks who like a little aromatic burley with their latakia. Simple, quaint even, and best smoked at a slow smolder. It is harsh if heated up, and remarkably not sweet to the taste buds however much the top note might signal something sweeter.

2 stars because it is good, not to be avoided, but nothing special.

A very American English blend. Nutty in flavor. The Virginias are there for a wee bit of flavor.The Latakia is generous and compliments the Burley nicely. A creamy smoke. Good after a Pizza or something else spicy. Not a race horse,but a good Kleidsdale that plods along nicely and is very reliable.It will get you to where you want to be . It is like driving with a quiet friend. You know he is there and doesn't need to say much. At the end you had a nice road trip.2 of 4 stars I am finding that C & D Bulk blends are really not up to par. I say that with a note of sadness.

I like distinguishedgentleman's review: A quiet friend who you know is there but isn't saying much. This is so much like all the other C & D stuff, but again, there's that oh so subtle tweaking of this and that on which you are unable to put your finger. I'm getting a bit weary of all this tobacco whoring I'm doing, and I'm trying to settle on about 1/2 dozen to 10 things I really could not live without. Thus, I'm glad I tried this, but I'm not running back for more. There's so many good C & Ds out there that for me, at least, this is just another way of saying the same thing a thousand different ways.

Three of five stars

Morley?s Best is first and foremost, a Burley Blend.

The pouch aroma suggests a greater presence of Latakia than what I found in the smoke. The Va was virtually non-existent. The appearance is medium brown with some highlights here and there, very little dark leaf. MB packed well, and lit easily. Once lit, it stayed lit with virtually no effort.

The flavor upon first light was a bitter/sour rush of Burley. After a few minutes, the Latakia kicked in, but not in a major way. It quickly receded into the background and just got weaker from there. The Va never really made itself known.

Progressing through the bowl, I found this to be a very monochromatic smoke. It had a dry type of flavor that I hoped would be punctuated by the Va, but it never really was. The Latakia, being of the Cyprian variety, didn?t do anything to help either.

I understand that MB is a copy of Blue Boar ? which I have never had, so I cannot say how well the duplication was done. If it weren?t for the fact that this is a copy, I would suggest using a more robust Va, and a fuller Latakia ? but then it wouldn?t be a faithful representation of the original.

MB is too light of a blend, bordering on bland, for me to smoke with any regularity. I can possibly see this as a blend to enjoy when it?s 95 in the shade and humid, but you just have to get some yard work done.