Cornell & Diehl Red Carpet

I basically feel the same way about Sunday Picnic as I do Red Carpet. This is not surprising as the blends are in fact the same proportions of Virginia/Turkish/Perique with the only difference being that Sunday Picnic uses golden Virginia, whereas... Red Carpet uses (you guessed it) red Virginia. For many years the blends that make up the Simply Elegant series have been a favorites of mine and are well-represented in my cellar. Both Sunday Picnic and Red Carpet are medium-strong and full of flavor. A dedicated Virginia smoker could probably make due with just these two blends! Strength, spice, salty-sweetness and cool burn. I tend to appreciate Sunday Picnic during the day (or during the warmer months), and Red Carpet in the evenings after dinner due to the slightly richer flavor profile. To my tastes Sunday Picnic is (of course) brighter and the Turkish shines with the Perique in the supporting role, whereas it is pretty much all about the Perique in Red Carpet, with the Turkish adding enough to keep the blend from being “just another VA/Per”. Both blends are must-haves and age incredibly! I do not believe that this blends gets the attention it deserves.

To me, this is the answer to the question "What do you get when you cross a Kajun Kake with a Riverboat Gambler?". This is a small flake of deep mottled brown with a tin aroma that only C&D can produce... an earthy, toasty blend of dirt and old books with an underlying smell of baked bread. Smoked from a 15 month old tin I've been working on for a few months.

This lacks the sweetness of KK and the bravura of RG but it is still a rather powerful batch of nicotine. The flavor never wavers, which is good and bad. It has only slightly more complexity than RG (not much) and tastes more tangy and earthy than sweet. In fact, I got almost no sweetness from this but the Izmir lent a kind of sourish essence that worked well to offset the grainy mouthfeel. The perique is there but is far to the rear. Red VA's are my favorite but I can't help thinking that a bit of bright VA wouldn't have hurt. This is a fine blend but that cross between KK and RG keeps spinning through my head. I smoke and prefer those two. This one, while good, seems like a compromise. Then again, a lot of folks might prefer a settled down version of those two, so this is recommended for those people. Frankly, this is better than I'm giving credit for it - I just prefer not to mix the strengths of KK and RG... I'd rather smoke them full bore.

Since McClelland has discontinued production of their very fine blends, I have been searching for some suitable replacements and this may be one. The tin note reminds me of the smell of a sweet vinegar with some tomato accents. It is kind of like the McC catsup essence, but not as pronounced. The flakes are moist, but they light straight from the tin. Some drying time may improve the ignition. I've had to relight several times. I rub out the flakes and then stuff them mainly because I am impatient. The red Virginia is sugary good to the palate and there is just enough Perique to give it some fruitiness with a spicy accent. It is a keeper as for as I am concerned. C&D will probably help me with my desire to replace some of my missing McC favorites.

Cornell & Diehl - Red Carpet (Simply Elegant Series).

More of a broken flake than a solid flake. The blend's kept the length of a flake but there isn't one piece in there that has the width of a flake: tobacco strips. The amount of moisture's good and the aroma's almost rustic.

As the expected rubbing of a flake isn't needed, I just take a pinch and stuff it in. It lights easily and burns without the need for re-lights, but the problem with the burn's the speed: it's over too quickly. The flavour's pretty good from R.C.: I get quite a balanced amount of fruit and hay, with a touch of spice. I get no tongue bite and the temperature's medium.

The nicotine's medium and I'm indifferent towards the note.

Red Carpet? A nice smoke, but not a great smoke.

Recommended.

Tin date 5/10/07

Nice presentation on the Simply Elegant series. Cool artwork. Unusual smell. Not offensive, not really attractive, just different. The flakes pulled apart like a pot roast with a fork. RC smokes beautifully for me, offering loads of tang and copious amounts of mature smoke that brings a smile to my face. The perique is nice and not overdone. There is enough there to feel the sharpness of it and some strength. Izmir adds seasoning. They all word together like the Three Stooges, playing off each other. Unique is the word that keeps popping into my head. Unique and good with coffee. I like this smoke in the morning.

Three stars based on aging beautifully, availability, character and price.

Red carpet differs from typical Va/per blends not only due to the addition of izmir orientals.when the tin opens a tense smell of vinegar notes and spicy earthy notes comes out.the flakes are dark brown,moist and seem to be aged.rubbing is easy and i do not recommend the folding method.while smoking the flavours differ from what might expected from the tin aromas..the virginias are dominant being tangy and sour mostly.dark fruits and some citruses are present.the perique is following being spicy,with plum and vinegar notes.also some fig notes come out rarelly.the interesting addition of izmir orientals offer sweet spices and some earth notes.generally the flavours are pleasant and complex.burns cool and slow without chance of tongue bite.the nicotine level is medium and the room note tolerable.not an all day smoke.i recommend it for va/per lovers who wanna try something different.not an ideal blend to insert the va/per world.

Nothing very surprising about this blend, but in this case, that wasn't a bad thing. It was tinned just this past January, so I probably opened it too soon. If you've smoked much Red VA, you know how this basically tastes, as it is a nice standard example, perhaps a tad more sour than usual. The Perique adds a bit of peppery middle to the blend, but there is a bit of a cigarette aftertaste.

This particular tin was all broken flakes, easy to pack, light, and keep going. Moderate burning, no tongue bite, a nice solid blend. The first half of a bowl usually seemed a bit light on N, but it caught up to just past medium by the end.

Back again after another hiatus. Not going to be in buying and trying as much I was before, but more of a stashing back my favorites for aging. This is one I've wanted to try for a while.

Judging from the tin note, I was almost certain this was going to be similar to C&D Interlude since they both have that same red va aroma that reminds me of tomato sauce / stewed fruit but it's totally different.

My tin is only 2 months old but tastes like it's 10 years old. Flavors are very smooth and mature sugary bread notes with a dark tone to it. Also has a powdery quality throughout the bowl. The perique isn't very noticeable but helps add the aged quality to the blend and with the deepness of the flavors. Burns cool with no bite.

To compare this blend with anything, it would be Dunhill dark flake and Robert McConnell black flake. Though I prefer black flake over dark flake, Red Carpet is a very nice substitute for both.

The tin I received came with a broken flake cut with some slightly more whole chunks forming some half flake. The smell is slightly sweet vinegar. The humidity is very correct to immediately load the pipe directly from the tin, although there will be those who prefer a little drying time. Once the pipe is lit, a rich, smooth va / per appears, which performs very well in the pipe, with a flavor profile a notch darker than the average of most va / per, with some subtle notes of wine. Fruity, sometimes sweet, other times sour and even a touch salty. It generates good amounts of smoke, providing a relaxed and pleasant smoke.

I think it could be a perfect tobacco for starters, due to its blend of smoothness, good taste and friendliness to the mouth, as it doesn't bite the tongue at all. The only thing that could oppose this recommendation for beginners is that it should be smoked at a slow pace so that the flavor is not lost.