Cornell & Diehl Billy Budd

I'm fond of Lat bombs so it will come as no surprise that I like Billy Budd. The cigar leaf is noticeable but for me it's only a hint not the forward flavour. In this blend that forward note would be the latakia, influenced by but not over powered by the cigar leaf.

It is a good full flavoured tobacco blend, not for the faint of heart or those who don't like Latakia.

However, if you are a cigar smoker looking for a cigar like pipe blend, you will likely be disappointed. I think cigar smokers should avoid pipe blends with some cigar qualities because expectations will probably not be met.

I was given a sample of this at this year's Chicago show by Chris Tarler. I have been wanting to try it for a while, but it had always slipped my mind when ordering. Anyway, I was able to get about five or six bowls of this one out of the sample.

The blend, like many of the C & D blends, is stout. The cigar, burley and lat dominate this one. It is very cigar like; moreso than Habana Daydream and I enjoyed it more than that one as well. It seems the heavy handed latakia did well to tame those earthy burleys giving a nice cool and smooth smoke.

I will definitely be ordering more of this and will leave it with three stars at present as I feel I need to smoke more to give it a fourth star.

I find the consistency of the reviews of Billy Budd to be notable. And I agree with the overwhelming trend in them: BB is very flavorful, with the nutty and pleasantly bitter burley augmented by the very forthright cigar leaf and further enhanced by plenty of smokey latakia. There's nothing subtle going on here, just a rich tapestry of powerful flavors, but they are well balanced. There's real artistry in combining all those flavors without them clashing and without any one seeming to win. And accompanying all that flavor is a pleasant wallop of nicotine. You're not going to make any friends with the room note, unless there's a cigar lover nearby. But I've never dared smoke this indoors!

BB is a fine way to start the day, accompanied by a big mug of strong coffee. I've found that it works just fine in any sized bowl, it packs easily and (of course) is best if a bit on the dry side. BB doesn't demand much from you--pack it, light it, smoke it, and enjoy.

My expectations for this one were as follows; a burley dominant blend with some cigar leaf and a smidgin of latakia. At least that's how others presented BB to me. Really, I like to think of this wonderful blend as an English blend; the latakia (the same leaf as used in Pirate Kake?) really shined here. Honestly, both the burley and cigar leaf lurked in the background a bit, and the latakia spiked especially on the snork. This blend is wonderful. It evoked taste bud memories of a handful of other blends, Chipman Hill, Bald Headed Teacher and Pirate Kake. There's a lot of nuance in Billy Bud—verging on complex.

Billy Bud is a solid performer, a great snorker! and I loved its overall taste profile. I wish it wasn't as strong as it is, but, nevertheless, I wholeheartedly recommend this one. A solid 3.75 stars (I always round down).

Keep on Pipin'!

This is a solid blend, but in my opinion the experience I had was a far cry from the hype surrounding it. Billy Budd is a rich, bold, no nonsense smoke that'll bite ya if you're not careful, so take it easy!

I like bold and intense things, so I was eager to try Billy Budd. However, I felt that the over-all experience of this blend left me with a lot to be desired. I'm a novice pipe smoker so I was expecting this stuff to kick me in the teeth, but while I was smoking it I kinda had a thought like: "is that it?..."

I can't quite put my finger on what exactly I was expecting from this blend, but I guess I just wanted more richness to the smoke and taste. And as far as the nicotine hit is concerned, Old Joe Krantz packed more of a punch even though it is rated as more of a medium strength.

I do not have a lot of experience with cigar leaf blends, but I am a cigar smoker. I was looking forward to trying this one after having heard many good things. Out of the tin it is a little dry with strong cigar and latakia notes. You can see large pieces of cigar leaf and chunks of cubed burley. It smokes a little wetter than you would think being so dry in the tin. Strong cigar leaf and latakia dominate the flavor of the smoke. The burley gives it a full nicotine kick, which is great. A powerful blend not for the weak at heart. It is a permanent addition to my rotation but I could never smoke it all day long, let alone on an empty stomach. Worth a try for anyone looking for a good strong blend and enjoys the flavor of a bold cigar.

I still remember my first bowl of Billy Budd. I was still almost exclusively a cigar smoker, but had been playing around with a pipe on occasion for a few months. I honestly don't remember now what I had tried and what I hadn't up to that point, but I do recall thinking that almost everything I had tried seemed wimpy and bland compared to cigars. Then I tried Billy Budd. It was my first go with a big latakia blend, and I was blown away. Love at first puff. A true watershed moment for me. I remember standing in my driveway, taking a puff, staring at the pipe in disbelief, and thinking "WOW! That's FANTASTIC!!"

How our tastes change

I smoked a *lot* of Billy Budd over the coming weeks/months after that, and eventually got a little tired of it as I started foraying into other things. I revisited it a few months ago....and though I wasn't floored, I certainly questioned the wisdom of going so long without it, and immediately ordered myself another 4 ounces.

So, anyway....on to the review.

BB is ready rubbed, I'd call it rough cut, I guess. C&D tobaccos are often a bit on the dry side, certainly never goopy, and BB is no exception to that. Packs easy, takes a flame quick, and is well behaved in the pipe. Nicotine is on the strong-ish side.

Latakia is definitely up front. I detect a lot of burley. I guess there is Virginia there, since C&D's description say there is....but it's certainly not at the forefront. My taste buds really zone in on the cigar leaf....and here's where things get weird. Mostly, the cigar leaf seems to meld quite well (though still easily distinguishable), and complement the other components. Occasionally, though.....BB just tastes like a cheap cigar to me. I haven't zeroed in on what the issue is. I always smoke it in a cob....so I don't think it's my choice of pipe. I guess it's just me. Kinda like corn flakes taste better in the morning and beer tastes better in the evening and desert tastes better at the end of a meal. There's some time of day or circumstance or something that occasionally makes this blend just not taste good at all to me. Thankfully, that unpleasant "cheap cigar" taste doesn't crop up very often.

Unfortunately, even when it's good, BB just doesn't excite me like it used to. I still smoke cigars occasionally, and when I want a cigar, I want a cigar, not a pipe that tastes like a cigar. When I want a pipe, I want a pipe that tastes like a pipe. As much as I want to like BB because of the nostalgia it holds for me, it just doesn't rock my world anymore.

I really hate the way this review is written. It makes it sound like I don't like BB at all...and that's not true! Objectively, I think it's really great at what it is, a burley-lat-cigar blend. And I still think it's a fantastic transitional tobacco for cigar smokers who are pipe curious, and will continue to recommend it as such. Mostly, I think, I've just smoked so much of it in the last year that it has begun to lose it's novelty for me.

originally reviewed 10/4/2012

I am also fond of the occasional cigar and i like English blends.

I am not too fond of mild English blends as I dont find them too rewarding.

For me Billy Budd Is what I consider my "go to " English blend as the cigar leaf adds enough to keep things interesting. Other leafs provide medium + level of Nicotine . Does not smoke too hot but it does seem to smoke fast so I like with large bowl pipes. Ages well so I keep in bulk mason jar. Low maintenance smoke.

I find this to be a nice blend when I am in the mood for Latakia but do not want a typical English blend. The cigar an burley leaf combine to give this blend some real depth in the low end of the taste spectrum. When I first smoked this I did not know the blend had cigar leaf in it but I could not figure out where the low notes of flavor were coming from. At first I thought the burleys in this blend were just really deep. When I found out this blend had cigar leaf it made sense to me. The blend smokes cool and has some nicotine strength although not at all overpowering. I recommend this blend to those wanting a Latakia blend with a nice little twist.