Cornell & Diehl Captain Bob's Blend

I had read about this blend coming and was excited to try it out.

I got a small sample of it and here is my take: First impressions are very nice. I love the smell of the tobacco, you can smell its english just underneath the sweet smell of a fruit tree field. It makes me thinks of a Grape Nehi soda mixed with apricots.

It packed well in my pipe and lit just as easy. The smoking was very very pleasant. Smoke was abundant and thick, and hints of a fruity flavor mixed with a fine leather were clear.It was refreshing to smoke. The room note made my wife want to try it as well. She said that this blend was her favorite since it made the room smell so good. I had no tounge bite and I have been known to be a super puffer. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I will be buying more.

EDIT*

I smoked about 1.5 ounces of this blend. I have come to the realization that I just dont get along well with the heavy flavor casing on it. The three pipes i smoked it out of have such a ghosted flavor to them that I canot smoke anything else without tasting Grape. Each to their own. I will go somewhere else.

EDIT** 12/30/2011 I found my old stash of this. Man what a goober I was. This stuff is actually a great smoke. I am not real sure what i had going on when I made the previous edit. I think I was smoking way to many blends and just got "burned out" I would recommend this tobacco to almost anyone wanting a great smoke.

C&D Captain Bob's Blend is a good tobacco but not my cup of tea. The tin aroma is invitingly fruity and sweet, but it tastes entirely different than it smells. It is more of a rough cut than a broken flake, so it packs and lights easily. The moisture content is perfect. However, it does need a few relights to keep it burning.

So how does it taste? Well, that depends. To start, the flavoring is overwhelming and, IMO, not good. It reminded me of Dove soap. Fortunately, the top dressing quickly fades and the perique comes to the fore -- raisin and figs -- quite nice. By mid bowl, the Virginias make their presence known and predominate through most of the rest of the smoke -- nicely sweet. At the very end, one can taste the molasses of the burleys. I never tasted any latakia.

I give CBB credit for being an interesting tobacco. Few tobaccos that I have smoked have the range of flavors of CBB. I'm glad I tried it, but I don't intend to purchase again. It you are into non-traditional aromatics, you may like it more than I did.

UPDATE: The unlit tobacco smells strongly of grape soda. I've smoked this a few more times in a large Stanwell and, in the larger pipe, the Latakia is noticeable. Flavor-wise, CBB reminds me of Mac Baren Plum Cake. I like it much more in the larger pipe, so I've raised by rating to Recommended.

ANOTHER UPDATE: The more I smoke CBB, the more I like it. The secret is to retrohale frequently. This unlocks the full range of flavors and aromas of the tobacco, from the top dressing (which now reminds me of Juicy Fruit gum) for the first half of the smoke to the rich burley at mid-smoke to the Latakia at the end. Three-and-a-half stars.

As I write this review, please take into consideration that I am a new pipe smoker (of about only three months) and have transitioned over from cigarettes. Because of this, I have to be quite careful when smoking a pipe, as it is a habit for me to burn my tongue if I'm not paying attention.

Also, as my senses of taste and smell aren't as sensitive as most pipe smokers out there, I have had to smoke the more potent brands to get a "true" experience. I also prefer blends with a high nicotine content.

With all of this having been said, I have found CBB to be quite a wonderful and aromatic experience.

When I first opened up the package, the strong scent of grape assaulted my nostrils. It reminded me of either grape bubble gum or grape cool-aid. As I actually enjoy grape, this was not a big concern for me. I was somewhat concerned though that the grape flavoring would overpower the tobacco. This is not the case.

It lights well, and the aroma of grape is most assuredly there, yet it does not overpower the taste. There is also a strong underlining aroma of hay which I find compliments the fruitiness of this blend.

I have not had much tongue burn with this blend, and found that I can smoke it faster then most others. For me, this is a wonderful experience as the surrounding air soon fills with the sweet aroma of grape.

Personally, I have had trouble keeping it lit, though I contribute this to my own inexperience. Also, it is a wetter tobacco then I am used to, and must keep a pipe cleaner handy while smoking. I do plan on letting it air out for a few hours and will update my findings after that.

The smoke is full bodied, yet not overwhelming. I have found that I instinctively inhale through my nose quite often with this blend. It enhances the experience for me.

The nicotine content isn't as high as I prefer in my normal rotation, yet I find that this blend is a perfect nightcap for me, as I settle down into my favorite easy chair and delve into a good book.

In the end, I am forced to rate this as a three on the scale here, though it rates an 8.5 on my personal scale. The reasons being are that I do not normally smoke aromatics and the nicotine content is a bit less then I prefer. However, I do plan on keeping a constant stock of Captain Bob's Blend on hand as it always fills the spot when I simply need to relax.

I do indeed recommend it!

Upgrading to 3 stars. This stuff is addictive.

OK. I'm upgrading this to 2 stars. It's not that bad, you just have to smoke a little more. The topping is unusual, and some may just love it.

I will have to say that I enjoy Captain Bob's posts and have taken some tobacco recommendations from him in the past and he has not led me astray. However, I found this tobacco to be awful. It smelled like bubble gum. It had some weird taste that I just could not take.

This is a light English topped with several essences, most notable of which is grape. Nothing like it. I'm glad I found it and added it to my rotation. I found the topping a bit strong at first, but after a few weeks and a bit of airing it settled down to be a welcome alternative to the vapers and va's I normally smoke. I've noticed that most C&D blends benefit from a little aging and this blend is no exception.

Love the aroma in the tin, in the pouch, and in the pipe. Grapey, yes, but with other components. Smells stronger than it tastes; does not mask the underlying quality tobacco.

VERY pleasant note - not offensive to passers-by; indeed, intriguing and inviting ("What IS that?"). Highly recommended if you tend to smoke in, say, public parks and the like.

Flavoring stays to the end (unlike many other aromatics). That said, one caveat: this seems to burn hot and has bitten once or twice or thrice when puffing too fast. I have taken to blending it with a little burley to try and cool things down a bit. Conversely--given that this blend lights easy and stays lit--I sometimes add it to other, finickier blends as an accelerant!

So: very pleasing--and I am very pleased. Recommended. Thanks Cap'n Bob!

I enjoyed everything about this blend. To me, it resembles London Dock, from the 1960s Kentucky Club selections. Very refreshing.

This is a somewhat sweet fruity blend that has a pleasant flavor and room note. My other blends are tolerated by the wife, this is one she likes.

Probably the most unique tasting pipe tobacco I have ever smoked. That is mostly a good thing. I like grape. It has a great grape aroma and a very unique taste.