Cornell & Diehl Sunday Picnic

I recently popped a 2018 tin that I found at a local B&M to give it a try.

There was a nice woosh from the tin when opening as well as a pleasant tin aroma. The moisture content was just a smidge high (I like tobacco on the dry side) so I took out some of the typical C&D broken flakes and let them sit out for probably 4 hours or so.

I picked a Nording Hunter Crocodile which is horn shape and have been smoking the bowls through it. The broken flake makes loading a breeze. I give it a good charring light, let it rest a few minutes and then give it a good light to get going.

I feel that the Golden VA leads the way along with the hints of the orientals which poke through in the background. The perique is there but does not overwhelm the other tobaccos. It's a consistent smoke which burns cool if not pushed and I'd rate at slightly lower than medium nicotine level. If I smoke bowls back to back then I def can feel it.

I read from Shane Ireland's review where Red Carpet is the same blend with Red VA subbed or the Golden, so I'm hoping to find a tin with some age on it to compare it to.

I picked up a couple more tins of picnic on sale and will forget about them for a few years in the C&D cellar tote until they get age on them which makes this one so good.

Bright earth, hay, soft wood, sugar. A very pleasant, high quality Virginia flake that burns clean down to ash with no fuss. A good option if one wants to add Virginia’s to their rotation. Also good for someone who is new to the art of pipe smoking.

Eccoci qui con un nuovo tabacco nato dalla sapienza di Craig Tarler.

Aperta la latta si è avvolti dal Virginia, quasi fosse un tabacco puro, poi escono in sottofondo i toni del tabacco orientale.

Un bel flake, giustamente umido che permette una carica immediata. Il top lo ottiene invecchiato in Bormioli per almeno sei mesi. Lo so che è tanto, ma così i vari tipi di tabacco possono esprimere al meglio le loro essenze.

L’accensione è lenta ma appena la brace si forma non c’è più paura di spegnare la pipa. I sentori sono un gran mix fra il pizzicore fruttato del Virginia all’aspro pepato del Turco, in una varietà sempre dinamica per tutto il tempo della fumata.

La forza media permette poi di ricaricare la pipa non appena la prima fumata è volta al termine.

A chi lo consiglio? a tutti coloro che desiderano un fumata ottima di gusti, ma non cerebrale, quando lavorano o studiano e desiderano un accompagnamento davvero superiore.

Conclusione 4,9/5

Similar to my experience with Bayou Morning: the special spice is too strong. In the case of Sunday Picnic, it's the Izmir. It's still a great flake but sometimes I wish it was toned down a bit. Recommended if you like turkish forward flakes!

A friend of mine gave me a nice sample of this at the last club meeting I attended. There is a spiciness in the tin note that reminds me of apple/cinnamon/clove potpourri. Not saying it is flavored with it but that is the closest smell my vocabulary can associate it with. This is a nice broken brown flake and smokes smooth and with a sweetness that I am not sure is the Izmir or if there is a top note on this one even though it says no flavoring. One other reviewer thought the same. If the sweetness in the smoke is Izmir then for me that is the dominant tobacco that I can make out with the rest in the background. The smoothness of this smoke is a real testimony to what I believe is quality leaf, maybe not on the McClelland scale but up there. I smoked all bowls of this in my CAO Meerschaum throughout the day and never got tired of it.

Sunday Picnic is one of the tastiest VA/Per & Oriental infused tobaccos I've ever tried. The combination of tobaccos meld together very well after the first 1/3 burns off to deliver one of the tastiest smokes of this genre. The apportionment of the various types of tobaccos seem to be just right to create a remarkable, well rounded flavor. If Yenidje, rather than Izmir leaf were used, it would taste similar to McClelland's Tudor Castle... another extremely tasty oriental blend that is "Gone With The Wind." Well, "That's The Way Love Goes."

It doesn't get much better than this & the oriental adds an extra dimension that creates a unique, well rounded flavor that will leave most pipers craving for more. This mixture smokes cool & won't bite. Although not overly abundant, there is enough Lady N in this mix to add plenty of extra pleasure to an after picnic dinner. Needless to say, C & D are "crafty" blenders. Many fine blends circulating & this Simply Elegant series is aptly named. This stuff will keep calling you back for more... especially if you're not too nitpicky & enjoy "picnicking," especially with a pretty young lady who knows how to "cook."

Back in 2010, Craig Tarler responded to an email I sent him shortly after this blend hit the market & thanked me for complimenting C & D on this Sunday Picnic blend & appreciated that I left a good review. I smoked both of my tins in less than a week and went back for more. I still love it to this day. I think it's a great value... around thirty $$ for 1/2 lb. I think I became more addicted to the flavor than the tobacco itself. Try it! You'll like it. I couldn't possibly comprehend why a piper wouldn't like it.

Sunday Picnic is one of the tastiest VA/Per & Oriental infused tobaccos I've ever tried. The combination of tobaccos meld together very well after the first 1/3 burns off to deliver one of the tastiest smokes of this genre. The apportionment of the various types of tobaccos seem to be just right to create a remarkable, well rounded flavor. It doesn't get much better than this & the oriental adds an extra dimension that creates a unique, well rounded flavor that will leave most pipers craving for more.

This mixture smokes cool & won't bite. Although not overly abundant, there is enough Lady N in this mix to add plenty of extra pleasure to an after picnic dinner. Needless to say, C & D are "crafty" blenders. Many fine blends circulating & this Simply Elegant series is aptly named. This stuff will keep calling you back for more... especially if you're not too nitpicky & enjoy "picnicking," especially with a pretty young lady who knows how to "cook."

Craig Tarler responded to an email I sent him back in 2010 & thanked me for complimenting C & D on this Sunday Picnic blend & appreciated that I left a good review. I smoked both of my tins in less than a week. I think I became more addicted to the flavor than the tobacco itself. Try it! You'll like it. I couldn't possibly comprehend why a piper wouldn't like it.

I think this is one of the best VA/PER you can find in the market. Excellent taste, medium strength and a perfect nicotine content. No defects with a pleasant, satisfying and harmonious taste. Really enjoyable. Without any doubt this is a four stars blend but I give it only three stars because, in a hypothetical preference scale among VA/PER mixtures, in my opinion Robert McConnell - Old London Pebble Cut and Dunhill - De Luxe Navy Rolls are one step ahead. Anyway a great Perique mixture. So, in my personal rating system (from 1 to 10) my score is more than 9 and three and a half stars.

Perfection in a tin - McCelland-quality virginias. Golden, yellow pressed tobacco with orange fruit notes for a perfect Sunday afternoon smoke.

Will be stocking up on this one, along with Opening Night and Exhausted Rooster - all scratch that McCelland virginia itch.