Cornell & Diehl Captain Bob's Blend

From the blending hangar of the great Cornell & Diehl comes the irreverent and brash aromatic mixture Captain Bob’s Blend. Calling this enlivened combination an “original” would a most critical understatement. A proper endeavor of skilled carpet-bombing, more aptly, unfolds from within the burning bowl that keeps one guessing as to what in “h…” is going on! Unruly and decidedly eccentric to be spot on, so lower the googles and grab on to that control stick.

Soaring upward with magnum thrust, this bizarre specimen contrives to keep you barrel-rolling in glazed stupor with just a plethora of compounded ingredients. Featuring a base mix of stark Burley, strong Virginia, and modest amounts of Latakia and Acadian Perique, the toothy disjointed tobacco throws an awe-inspiring display of disheveled broken flake, ribbon, and rough-cut chunks.

In dire need of a buzz and shave, Captain Bob presents a shaggy mug of dense tan-brown tones, reddish-gold and racy ebon delight. The interminable list of additive flavorings for this hairy recipe includes a lively swirl of caramel, maple, grape, orange/citrus, passive vanilla, walnut, miscellaneous other unmentionables clustered in shameless abandon.

Frankly, the pouch nose on Captain Bob was more than a little off-putting with the initial encounter. More specifically a boisterous acrid aroma emanating from the unopened bag zapped my olfactory mellow unmercifully. Upon it’s unsealing, a wave of dungy bitterness churned with the overtly sweet influence of candied grape, sugary citrus, buttery caramel, as they flushed preeminently over some definitive pungent funk, resolute woodiness, and tart grass. Effectually repelling, yet I felt compelled to see what’s up despite this one’s apparent peculiarity.

Onward to the taste profile, where should I start? Complex and elusive, Captain Bob’s standard character, if you want to call it that, starts with individualizing the featured flavorings with impressive clarity, a virtual buffet of moving tastefully sweet seasonings. At the same time the blend extends ample notability to the base native varietals, giving the overall flavor a balanced and rounded complexion, which is no small feat considering the intricacy of the challenge presented with this curious recipe.

Initially the grape and orange additives fight for controlling dominance bringing a meld that was quite pleasing. Hm? Ultimately the grape pulls forward as the prominent lead component for most of the session. Mid-range accents come in the form of light caramel and buttery maple as they cavort randomly in the distant finishing note, double yum! Some misty vanilla and bright lemon tones pop in occasionally to add some additional colorization to the registration. Finally witness of sugary walnut highlights advances along with an unusual seltzer-carbonated soda type affluence; quite strange. And so is this random pattern unfolds making Captain Bob somewhat baffling but fun aromatic excursion.

As I alluded to the native tobaccos are given proper equity lending the mixture vital depth in lieu of the rancorous commotion happening with the aforenoted additive. Essentially the Virginias and Burley confluence provides a base line flavor that is characteristically heady and woody in temperament.

Mainly a band of zesty wood and tart grassy hay emerge from the Virginia as the principal bottom spirit. This was steadily embellished by a gingerly sweet, dense Burley toasted nut-wood earthiness reminiscent of the horse-kicking gentility of a Five Brothers. Fleeting smoked leathery undertones projected by the passive Latakia intertwine gracefully with restrained Perique tinges of dark musty fruit and piquant spice. Whew that was a mouthful! And yes, my friends, so was the smoking believe me.

Captain Bob imparts a sweetly brooding mood within the immediate room of consumption, well at least for some. As expected, the vivid sour-sweet essence of concord grapes/citrusy fruit enfolding native earthen pungency infiltrates the room’s perimeter leaving a thick cloud marked with permanence and savory entertaining vapor. Sugary roughness at its finest. Personally, I appreciated the blend’s pretentiously bold and crass fragrance, the wife unmistakably did not, however.

Never thought I’d find favor in a heavily grape-infused wonder, but this blend is so sophisticatedly left of center and abnormal, one must appreciate its unique novelty. Again, for aromatic it brings consider weight to the natural tobacco experience, I can’t poo-poo that at all. Burns cool and evenly with absolutely no disrespect to the palate. So, climb aboard and buckle in if you dare to take a flight with Captain Bob. A truly unusual yet enjoyable pipe smoking adventure to say the least. 2.9 pipes.