Cornell & Diehl Sunday Picnic

I like Sunday Picnic a lot. It is dry tasting with hay-like golden Virginias in nice interplay with quite abundant, sour-tasting and tangy Izmir. Perique adds a well proportioned white pepper spiciness and although the tin note has the typical plum/figgy Perique fruitiness I do not sense any in the smoke. As I said it tastes dry, sour and spicy, has that sort of dusty taste of the Oriental tobacco with only traces of sweetness. Moreover if you sip a nice nuttiness comes through at times. Very good tobacco to use the "delayed gratification technique". Still I thought it would not appeal to so many smokers but I am surprised to see that it has – deservedly – very good reviews. I just did not think that so many people would like such a hard-core Oriental blend.

The flakes are soft and pliable, a little on the dry side but ready to just squeeze into the bowl for a nice, slow, cool, dry and natural tobacco tasting smoke to a powdery grey ash to the last shred. Room note is a little cigaretty, as is the taste admittedly. Really nice blend!

At first glance, I was attracted to the name Sunday Picnic, the sound of it, and also to the picture on the tin that seems to convey a jolly mood and a merry tune. And I bought it. I expected some gorgeousness in taste and note, but nothing gorgeous strikes me. SP failed my images. Yet, I was not disappointed with its contents.

The first kick is a rather sourish taste that asserts itself on the palate and a piquant smell that attacks the nostrils. Himalayan lemon and Penja black pepper. A nice mélange of Perique and Izmir. By the mid-bowl, the smoke gets silky mild, and the first arrogant sourness goes away, leaving a slightly stinging sensations in the nostrils and on the palate. I love this sharp tangy taste and high-key in note that SP provides. I am ready to buy one more tin. Next time I get one, I will leave it for a while as I think I need to let it age to relish its full-bodied SP, as some reviewers suggested (TX for Info).

This didn't strike me as anything special...As mentioned in other reviews, it carries the taste of hay. I can't really see myself purchasing or smoking this again.

Flat slices to rub out. Nothing special to my palate. Notes of hay.

This blend is very similar to a blend my Grandfather smoked years ago. The room note is sweet and tangy, with a linger of campfire mixed with prunes (very subtle). Im used to lots of stinkier tobacco blends and this was nice for me, my car mate today though didn't seem to like it (shes a non-smoker).

The flavor is very well blended, the VA poked its head out halfway through the bowl, after the second lighting. The flake was well humidified, and straight after opening I lit up, and was in love.

This is a VAPER that you will love, and its not terribly over bearing.

I hear a lot of the slight Nic kick people are getting, I wasn't affected.

Its about 85 deg and 90% humidity out today, and even so the blend still was calming and peaceful. I will be smoking this often and enjoying every bit of it. As soon as I let the tobacco age a bit and breathe, Ill update for sure.

The tin note is Prune/ Plum sweet with a bit of smoke.

Please note though! I was a bit weary of trying this blend after reading the reviews. I didn't want to have a Nic headache at work. Boy am I glad I tried it!

Please, never be afraid of trying something new. The worst that can happen is you don't like it, store it up and try again later down the road. Tobacco does change over time and who knows, maybe the once broken relationship flowers to be a wonderful romance.

Happy Smoking everyone!

I like the flavor. Not very strong, about medium or less. A little bit of a nic kick that i did not enjoy, but other than that it was enjoyable

Destined to be a HOF tobacco. Tin aroma is sweet and sour, with a slight mustiness. I opened this tin in 6/07 to age, and smoked a few bowls since. This flake is only getting better.

Packing and lighting can test your patience, however you will be rewarded with a sweet and tangy flavor that always pleases. The perique and Turkish add just the right undertones to this near perfect blend.

My advice: Stock up and cellar. 4 years of age has done this right.

Ahhh, Sunday afternoon. You in your pink sun hat and dress, me in my shirtsleeves, braces, and my floppy white hat. A lovely picnic is spread before us: fruit, a nice bottle of Sancerre, olives and cheese. Tenderly you feed me an olive as I smoke my pipe and we let the day go by sans souci.

"Do you like my orange roadster?" I ask.

"It's very sporty, dear," she replies, "although I didn't think you liked high- impact colors like orange."

"I've changed. You've changed me. I feel....so alive!"

Other reviewers have extolled the wonderful tin aroma of figs and grass; the room note is nothing to write home about; but the taste, while a little strong for a Sunday afternoon picnic in June, is delightfully spicy with a full mouth of tobacco flavor and is highly recommended.

"More wine, my dear?"

I don't care for this stuff. It's too spicy for me. I think I'm tasting some orientals? Whatever it is, it doesn't agree with me. Makes me sneeze like crazy and is just not what I look for in a tobacco. Tin smells like spicy Mexican candies when first opened, which is pretty cool. Too bad I didn't like it. I traded it to a friend for some Reiner Long Golden Flake (#71) which I very much prefer. The only person I would recommend this to is one who enjoys a SPICY smoke. Not for me. Try Reiner LGF instead, it's a superior VaPer.