Cornell & Diehl Epiphany

Revised 2016-7/24- I finally bought a TIN of this and there is a big difference in the amount of topping noticeable over the bulk. The topping reminds me of a Chocolate cherry liqueur. I actually like the bulk better . This should improve as the topping dissipates.

Revised 2016-6-3 I've been trying to get my hands on a TIN of this for months , so instead I just order some more Bulk. I've actually grown quite fond of this, yes, it's still old school American and no, I still can't find much topping, but, it's smooth, with just enough flavor to make it interesting and can be smoked all day long. If it's ok with Einstein, it's 3 stars bye me.

Original review- I'm having reservations about making this review as I don't agree with anyone of the previous "helpfulness" reviewers ??? I bought this in bulk and I'm thinking they sent me "Old Joe Krantz" . I don't get ANY citrus or topping, the strength is strong and it's boring, no way near the 4 stars.

Has anyone else had this problem with the BULK ?

Epiphany is one of the few English/American style tobaccos that are enjoyable. The cut is very strange, undefined type. In the tin it smells bad, the smell reminds of Esoterica And So To Bed. But similarities with Esoterica's ASTB go for the first third of the bowl, and stop there. I don't like scented English blends, and here it's not an exception. First third of the bowl the flavoring is present and pretty much plays the main role. Some reviewers claim that the flavoring stays throughout the whole pipe, but in my case I never noticed it past the first third, sometimes even earlier. It fades away and disappears completely very soon, which is a good thing. And when is present it's subtle and although bothers a little, it's bearable. Virginias give body to the smoke, but aren't distinguish, at least not to me. There are too many other spicy condiments and flavoring, so sweet Virginia isn't something that can be distinguished easily. Latakia never plays the main role, and it's presence comes to mind somewhere when the aromatic flavoring goes away. At that point the smoke shapes as a decent English. Perique is notable all the time, maybe it's too much, the peppery thing pinches your nose all the time from the first puff to the last one. Perique gives sharpness to the smoke and creates an impression of strength. Flavor and aroma pattern changes dramatically, and is totally different at different stages of the pipe. Whether it is a good or bad thing, everyone decides for themselves. At least it doesn't get boring. It's not too complex, resembles a bit to the 4noggins nutty professor, but it's deeper and more Periquish if I may say so. Room note doesn't do perpetual damages unlike some Latakia loaded blends. I smoke it often in my office for that reason. If it wasn't for the flavoring, I'd give it 4 stars.

I have an English style palate. This runs somewhat sweet for my taste, Even smoking, this might be a good smoke for someone who wants to try something that has an English feel to it, I like other blends much more.

On the other hand, this is a dependable smoke, that most will find pleasant.

Upon discovering this C&D blend, I sadly learned of the passing of Craig Tarler. All of us have lost a friend, in the REAL sense. We might not like everything a friend has to offer, but we always respect him and always know his heart is in the right place.

Blended with the assistance of the late Bob Runowski, Epiphany is touted to be like the ORIGINAL Revelation Mixture. It isn't. The original Revelation, created by Phillip Morris, had a delightful dollop of deer tongue. Epiphany doesn't. In fact, it has none at all.

However, it has much in its own right to recommend it. Epiphany is an honest, quite smokeable old-style American natural blend that, interestingly, gets tastier the longer the can is left open.

Well worth a try.

This is great stuff if executed correctly. I have no experience with HoW or PM Revelation, so Im judging Epiphany on its own merits. I first tried this in a larger bowl Cavicchi and it was the wrong choice. The fruit topping was all I tasted initially, followed by a peppery Perique overdrive, then a wet burley sourness at end of bowl. No Latakia tasted whatsoever.

The second and all subsequent bowls have been from a 3/4" chamber diam. Peterson system pipe. Totally different experience and amazing. The fruity aroma gives way to a delightful interplay of Latakia smokiness and Perique stewed fruit sitting on the shoulders of a meaty burley.Peppery on the nasal exhale. Sipped slowly and carefully it stays in this zone awhile. Stays lit. Can be harsher than most tobaccos near the end, progressive relights in an effort to consume all this tobacco will yield no returns.

Ample Nicotine. Best on full stomach. Pairs well with hot tea or a cold Root beer. Unique and enjoyable. Craving it now. Quality components and flavors. Plan to age and revisit. 3 stars.

Not much to say about this one. No drama, no outlying features. Just a very satisfying tobacco. I wish I could pick up a pouch of this at the supermarket every week. If this is what the original Revelation was like, then the pipe smokers of the previous generation had it good indeed.

Edit: 7/24/13

I just purchased some more Epiphany and this time I'm struck by the strength. I originally had "mild to medium" but now I'm definitely feeling it as medium to strong. Also, it mixes beautifully with a pinch of heavy latakia blends, and the resultant mixture is reminiscent of Dunhill's Nightcap.

*Update*

I have smoked multiple bowls of the stuff now. It does seem to have improved in my estimation. I don't know if I have just gotten more used to the vitamin-N. I smoke mostly more mild aromatics like Sillems Copenhagen, and C&D's Founding Fathers. But I also smoke Billy Budd on occasion. This blend fits somewhere in the middle. Still has a nice room note when lit, but has a more "manly" taste to it.

I would give this a higher rating if it didn't have a such a strong nicotine hit! I've smoked 3 or 4 bowls and even if I slowly sip this thing I am light headed within minutes. If I puff it somewhat aggressively my I feel like my head is spinning!

It has a bit of a pungent smell before lit but it smokes more like an aromatic during the smoke. Kind of interesting really.

I don't like anything that messes with my head though.

But, if you like a nice kick then you will probably enjoy this.

This is my second offering from C&D and I find that this seems to be a really good all around blend. I find all the different tobaccos in this blend really come together nicely. The cut seems more of a coarse cut than ribbon as is listed in the description. Not that this really matters in the grand scheme of things. The strength of Vitamin N is right about in the middle of the road. It lit and stayed lit quite easily without much ado. There seems to be a nice amount of smoke from this as well. There is not any gurgle if you don't push it too hard. I would say this is in the pleasant to tolerable range of room note, because of the latakia content. The wife was not too impressed with the aroma, althought no pigeons dropped off the roof. It smokes down to a nice ash in the bottom of the bowl. I would recommend this to other smokers wanting to try the English genre.

I opened up the tin on New Years day in celebration of the new year. The tin note was one of both burley and an English blend with an extremely faint smell of some type of fruity topping. I remember my dad smoking Revelation when I was a kid but I don't remember if it was the Philip Morris version or the House of Windsor version. Most probably the HOW version since I'm not that old.

The cut of the blend is a nice chunky cut that is low on moisture in the tin which I certainly prefer over being quite wet. I pulled the contents out of the tin and removed a couple of stems as well as pulled apart a couple of large leaves. I promptly loaded up my Peterson 102 Army mount and put the contents back in the tin to air out a bit and then in a Mason Jar the next day.

Upon lighting up the room note struck me as one from my child hood when my dad would smoke Revelation. The taste wasn't one of individual leaves weaving in and out in taste but of a united front of burley, an English mixture and a very slight fruit like topping. It was an extremely pleasant combination which I haven't ever tasted before. The smoke remained united through the whole bowl and took on a toasty taste towards the end of the bowl that reminded me a little bit of Squadron Leader. I did experience some gurgle in my pipe but I place this squarely on the pipe being brand new and not having been broken in.

The smoke had something that I've always felt is missing from a lot of English blends: body. I enjoy burley so much precisely because it seems to have more substantial smoke than a lot of "thin" English blends. Believe me I do enjoy English blends but always come back to burleys as my baseline. This blend has a nice solid base of burley that interplays perfectly with the English components. If that wasn't enough the very slight topping adds a subtle and sweet touch that balances everything out. If you're a latakia fiend don't expect to find a huge amount of it in this blend. It's there and you can certainly taste it but just like all the other components it works well with every other leaf to make a sum greater than the whole.

I do believe that C&D hit a home run with this blend. There is something for everyone to enjoy and if I were to pick a blend that is a perfect Americanized English this would be the blend. Enjoy!