Cornell & Diehl Crowley's Best

I don't get this one. Tastes an awful lot like a relit cigar to me. Bitter and rough.

Someone said the latakia overwhelms. Huh. I can barely detect it.

I don't find this to be an "English" blend either American or otherwise. Tastes much more like a cigar than some actual cigar blends I've smoked.

I can understand how some might like this one as a dark ruffian of sorts, thus I'm "somewhat" recommending.

But for me blehck.

This struck me as being a fairly middle-of-the-road English blend. The latakia overwhelmed most everything else, as I could barely taste either the burley or perique. This really isn't all that bad, but I can think of much better tobaccos in this genre. It does burn well, doesn't pose an extreme bite risk and is clearly appreciated by many -- this just wasn't something I enjoyed all that much.

This is a most pleasant and entertaining blend for all to enjoy. I'm surprised that others have not taken the time to investigate this delightful medley of familiar leaves. The aroma from the tin makes promises of rich and full flavor that are kept with the smoking expreience. Complex and rewarding, it burns easily with a nutty taste that does not bite. The combination of Perique and Latakia has made many a blend softer and this one is no exception. I like Burley, which can have some bite and bitterness - neither of which did I find here. This all-day mixture is like an old companion that is soft spoken yet true to it's nature. If you like Burley, Pirique and Cyrian Latikia then this is a blend for you, with my highest recommedation. The only suggestion I'd offer would be to use a coarser cut with the Burley.

Meerschaum Man Smoking a Gezer Flying Dragon

Another fine burley mixture from C&D. This one is kind of a sleeper though, as I hadn't heard much about it.

Nice ribbon cut tobacco that burns evenly, without much attention, to the bottom of the bowl. Full bodied flavor with copious amounts of smoke. The burley is definitely in the lead, but is a "darker" tasting burley than is used in many of the other C&D blends. A musty, dark burley taste with some zing and tangy flavor. Flavor characteristics remind me somewhat of Adagio, although a little less so.

The tobacco does not bite, and is not harsh in any way, a very good all day tobacco. This may well supplant Morley's as my "go to" tobacco.

This blend has been produced for some time by Cornell and Diehl. I thought I'd give it a try for I believed it'd be simular to the 100 numbered blends that have been made over the last year. It is a blend consisting of burley, latakia, and perique and was departure from the a formetioned 100s in the C&D line. I believe it contains more latakia and perique and thus is more of a light English.

I found the tobaccos coming through nicely and enjoyed relaxing with a bowl of this after a hard day's work. It is cool smoking and for a smoker like me a good way to step up and experiance more latakia.

I do not smoke many English/Balkan blends so I hope others more familure with those blends will give this a try. I suppose they would call it a mild/medium english than an "American blend" that seem to have more nuttiness of the burley, and less of a condiment leaf emphasis. Crowley's Best appears to be an English blend that is simply made with Burley instead of Virginia.

This tobacco is pretty much in line with such blends as Epiphany, Bayou Night, and other Perique/Latakia/Burley tobaccos in this category. The main difference is in the ratios and the addition of Virginia and other components. I personally do not see them as either Balkan or Oriental forward blends, but something in between. In these blends, Latakia is only used sparingly to add some spiciness to the formula. As for Crowley's Best, this is a medium-strength blend with spicy undernotes and a mild to medium taste profile. Without the addition of any topping, Cornell & Diehl has achieved an uncanny sweetness that won't bite and is quite consistent throughout the bowl. Your smoking experience will progress from mild to medium, and the room note seems rather friendly for an uncased blend of these characteristics. Because of these features, it can be smoked all day without causing fatigue to your palate. Even if you do not like any of these components separately, this blend is worth a try as it might take you by surprise. This tobacco resonates quite well with me, so 4 stars this time.

Edit: 08 July 2021

Something that I forgot to mention and that is quite apparent to me now is that this tobacco contains sweetened black cavendish.

Update: This is gone from my rotation, more or less. The seemingly new cut (finer more uniform) seems to have toned down the Latakia taste. I just find there are more interesting C&D blends, but if you're looking for a set it and forget it burley based English, this is it. Good in the summer.

I like a lot of the more powerful C&D blends, especially Bayou Night, which has been my go to smoke for years. If you don't consider Bayou Night a burley based English, a matter of debate, then Crowley's Best is the best burley based English (call it an American) I've had.

However, smoking Crowley's Best is not a spectacular or life changing experience. There is no "English Depth" so to speak. It is more a comfort blend. Smooth, medium Latakia and rich Burley (not the light stuff !) with a very small amount of Perique.

I should note that CB does burn rather quickly.

Because of the large rich burley content, this has to be smoked at a rather low temp or it will get bitter. Leaving it overnight will also result in the typical burley hangover experience.

I also agree that smoking CB is quite a cigar-like experience, despite there being no cigar leaf involved. Not a $15 cigar mind you. So perhaps, if you find Billy Budd too much, this is very similar, without the cigar leaf yet retaining many cigar like qualities.

Nice stuff, it's growing on me...

Decided to try tobacco, because named in honor of Aleister Crowley. At least I thought so. I like this tobacco is not the first time, but now I smoke it nearly every day.

This is a very nice mixture for a change of pace from traditional English blends. You have that English or Balkan flavor and some strength of taste here. Burns cool and does not bite. The first and last of the bowl, to me, seems just a little rough around the edges or I would have given it 4 stars.