Cornell & Diehl Crowley's Best

Crowley's Best is a good enough blend. I would really place it at 2.5 stars (3 or more would mean I would buy it again hence the 2 star rating here). The burley is nutty and earthy, the lat is woody, smoky, and sweet. the Perique is way in the background and adds some depth with a slight sweetness and a very faint spicy note. There seems to be a detectable top note (licorice would be my best guess). While this is a good blend it really lacks a depth found in others and in the end it is a little boring. What I get with the first puff is all I get throughout the bowl. On the one hand this can be a good thing if a blend is complex, on the other if it is straightforward like this one and offers nothing really unique it becomes boring. Certainly recommended for those who enjoy American style English blends or of those looking to try one.

I was digging through my cellar "armoire" today doing my annual spring cleaning when I picked up an 8oz tin of Crowley's dated 4/2006 and the price sticker of $16.00 had me stunned! Cup O Joe's is where I purchased it from and it made me think of how much prices have changed, I used to buy 8oz bulk blends for $16 from Cup O Joe's, now every blend by C&D regardless of blend is $25.00. Anyways I had tried CB years ago and while I did enjoy my sample, I understood even as a newbie that the tobacco from C&D at that time was shipped green and needed aging, fast forward ten years and my tin literally exploded when I cracked the seal as the fermentation doing its magical stuff puffed out the tin. The Burleys are slightly bitter and strong, the Latakia adds its spice and the Perique gives me the nasal exhale tingle I love. CB is unique in that it doesn't contain Virginia's like Shandygaff which is another blend I love but the Latakia and Perique take this blend down a different path and it really works here. For those that like their American English blends on the drier side (like wine) then give CB a try since even if you do not like its lack of sweetness, one can add black Cavendish or a pinch of Virginia due to the simple 3 ingredient recipe. A great blend for working outside IMO since the flavor is so intense it does not get lost like a weaker blend would outside and does not bite one bit due to the lack of Virginia's so I intend to reserve CB for dog walks and mowing the lawn etc. And lastly the nicotine kick is above average as two of the three ingredients are known to contain high levels of it so a medium sized bowl is enough to satisfy me!

I have been trying a lot of Cornell & Diehl blends, looking for some new-to-me blends to add to the rotation. I tried Crowley's Best, and I'm not really a fan. I like American Englishes (burley & Latikia). I really didn't detect the sweetness some have noted, and this hit me a bit harder than I like. Other people seemed to like it more than I did. Bottom line - this isn't going into the rotation.

Perfect moisture level, packed well, perfect charring light (didn't need a relight, but I always do one) and took off wonderfully! Nice salt/pepper ash, very fluffy. Over all, not a bad smoke. Nothing to get excited over, but a decent experience. I don't know about calling it "Best". Perhaps Mr. Crowley should refine it a bit more. It was, well, boring. Nothing to keep me smoking it, but as I said, nothing really bad about it either.

I wouldn't recommend this to someone unless what they said they were looking for was this specific type of smoke, but I wouldn't NOT recommend it either, if that makes sense.

I got this in a blind test, and guessed that it was a Balkan or English mixture of classical cut. Even when smoking it I thought that the sweetness in this came from stoved and aged VA, not Burley which is the case...

Also, not being accustomed to what/how Perique can shapeshift due to its environment, I didn't suspect anyu trace of it, but rather thought that it was Orientals peeking through...

Well, well. I know better now, and I must say that this is a real winner, especially if you like Dunhills English line or Rattray's RR or ... well any English/Balkan I guess!

Close your eyes and think Balkan, it will be chillingly close!

If Nightcap were made with burley instead of Virginia, it would be a lot like Crowley's Best. This is a truly fabulous American English; indeed, it is one of the very best.

Rich, pungent, flavorful, easy burning and easy to pack, CB will not bite a bit, even after repeated bowls. I love the earthy, stout burley and the intermingling of the latakia and perique. This should be much more popular than it seems to be.

Wonderful stuff!

I have an old Sasieni 2 dot full bent billiard that sought the right tobacco as its complement. For years, the pipe just did not seem to be at its potential, as I tried one commercial blend after the other. C&D burley offerings helped considerably, but there was always a missing piece of the puzzle. Fortuitous gesture and I received some of Crowley's Best to sample, even though it is not a new offering, Craig Tarler thought that I might enjoy this blend. How right he was, and how happy that pipe is. Crowley's is an outstanding blend, mostly ribbon rather than broken flake, with a strong burley base and latakia and perique for flavor. Many blends, the components will exert themselves at different times during the smoke. Here, in Crowley's, the approach is a simpler harmony of flavors throughout the smoke, a dynamic in which the burley exerts a balancing to the pungent latakia and the musty qualities of perique. This is, unreservedly, a fine all-day blend, a little quicker burning than I am used to, but steady.

Honestly, from the time I opened the pouch to transfer it to the jar, until the first time I packed a pipe. I procrastinated. Judging by the pouch aroma, I had feelings of early disappointment. This blend just smelled off. A sour mustiness that stood out against the smoky Latakia. Rough chopped up ribbon at the perfect moisture level. Some flake of compressed burley remain in the pouch.

Initial lighting brings forth a majority of dry, ashy burley. Near cigar-like, with a bit of smokiness from the Latakia. The further down you get, the worse the ashy flavor compounds. Its just not my cup of tea.

Ill give it another go in a few months. I know C&D's burley can be young, with little to no age. But for now I do not recommend.

Still trying to figure out which Crowley this is named after. Aleister Crowley?? IDK. What I do know is that this is outstanding tobacco, and I love it! Along with Morley's Best. I can't decide which one is better. Maybe they are equally outstanding. 5 Stars for Crowley's Best.

Upon further review. I can say this is my favorite. Hands down. I know longer have a rotation. I smoke this solely. This must have be made by some evil genius or something. It is that good.