Cornell & Diehl Super Balkan

When I received this tobacco, I was surprised by its harshness. It didn't live up to the high rating on this site.

After two years of sitting in a Mason jar, the Super Balkan became sublime in smoothness and taste. If you try this and aren't impressed, give it some age. You'll be glad you did.

I ordered this one in an effort to expand my latakia blends for the winter months. I generally enjoy C&D latakia blends so I figured this one was worth a shot-I'm very glad I did! Initially the appearance and aroma was promising, leathery, smokey, and rich scents were what I got first so I grabbed a briar and headed out to the porch. The first few minutes I was actually a bit disappointed, the richness I smelled when I opened the bag was not really showing up in the smoke, then about a third of the way through the bowl the flavors came through strong and were very well balanced. The latakia was there but was not overpowering which was what I was hoping for here (if I want serious latakia I will fill my pipe with pirate kake!) I found the smoke to be rich and woody enough to go well with a chilly winter afternoon and plan to add it to my tobacco cellar for many winters to come.

Total Revision 2016-8-10 - I've had my little stash of Super Balkan cellared for almost 2 years and this has really become a great blend. Nice flavor, buttery, balkan, not overly sweet but smooth. My initial reaction , two years ago was that the Burley in this blend gave ME some harshness, as I'm very sensitive to Burley, but now, I don't find any harshness and not much, if any, spice. Mostly a creamy, flavorful blend, without much Perique spice.

I think reviewer, " Gentleman Zombie 2013-12-27" did an excellent job at describing a newer batch.

But now,the blend is very smooth and nice Oriental/latakia forward flavor. Will be buying more

Before I opened the tin I expected to get bowled over by latakia. Super Balkan had me expecting somthing very heavy and was supprised by the light color and aroma that greeted me. The pipe packed very nicely and at the light of the match I was soon in pipe smoker heaven! Wonderfull flavor and the latakia is held at a very usable level allowing the experiance of the other tobaccos to be enjoyed. My wife and daughter, both in the room and having no idea I was lighting a Balkan, did not utter one word of complaint and when I asked what they thought they acted as though they didn't even notice I was smoking. Very, very enjoyable blend. I can't even compare it to another blend I have smoked in the past. It is an 8 oz tin and I very well may not smoke anything else until it is all gone. Great job Craig!

An excellent mixture in the perfect proportions. One of the most important ways I judge a tobacco is the feel and taste sensations I get when exhaling it out of my nose and this one is sensational. I get differing flavors especially from the orientals and a good spike of spice and pepper from the perique. It's like a different taste from each and every puff as all the different tobaccos take their turn to present themselves. I love the tangy "bite" and aftertaste I get on the tongue. This is becoming one of my favorite smokes. If you like this type of blend this one is sure to please.

This is an awesome take on a Balkan blend. There is a solid base of earthy Bright Virginias, followed by non-dominating amount of smokey Cyprian Latakia. The Perique content is low but adds some spice to the blend. Now if the blend was finished here it would be a good English. But the inclusion of the spicy, sour Turkish Izmir and the chocolatey Burley is what makes this a complex and unique Balkan. The strength is medium, the room note is enjoyable, and it smokes well in every pipe. Another great bulk offering from C&D.

This blend has a relatively small amount of latakia; it is a lighter type of blend in that sense. Aside from the small smoky notes, I taste grains/oats, hay and a touch of spice. This is very well balanced, and if I don't quite know what I want to light up, I tend to favor this mix. I like it for its versatility and condimental use of latakia. Quality tobacco leaf, too. See JimInks' review for a bit more detail; his review pretty much sums it up. Govern Yourself Accordingly!

I have tried several blends from Cornell & Diehl of the English/Balken variety and haven't found a bad one yet so I took a chance and ordered 80z of their Super Balken. I wish I'd ordered a pound. This stuff is good, very good. The batch I got is kind of chunky so I fill the bowl tap the pipe to let it settle and tamp it lightly and keep doing this till the pipe is full. Room note is great, the wife never complains so that's good. Highly recommended.

After conducting a comparative “Balkanalia” of four bulk Balkans this last weekend, this came close enough to four stars that I’m going to go ahead and give it top marks. Yes, 4 out 5 times I prefer the flavor profile of Arango Balkan Supreme, but somebody else may prefer the flavor profile of C&D Super Balkan. The important thing here is that they are clearly quite distinctive from one another, and both are made from top-quality tobaccos. Arango is the darker richer style, C&D has the pinch of Perique, and offers high-toned incense, juniper, and pronounced sunflower seed. If this had been a blind tasting I probably would have guessed that Syrian Latakia was used. The only giveaway that it wasn’t is that the blend doesn’t taste old enough to have Syrian in it. In fact, I think this blend has potential for aging in the cellar. Since I divided my initial supply from 2020 into two jars, I’m going to wrap the untouched jar in Saran Wrap (just to be sure it remains airtight), and let it sit for another five years. Meanwhile, I might have to buy some more for some short-term cellaring.