Cornell & Diehl Burley Flake #1

I got the Burley Flake #1, #2, and #3 tins. First C&D I ever bought. They sat in my tobacco closet for a year before I got to them. All three cans were a bit out of shape, with #1 being the most so. I just thought I had banged them around a bit until I opened the first one recently - KABOOM! The stuff had fermented quite a bit in the can and exploded like a cherry bomb. I opened the other two under a towel to prevent my hand from getting scraped again from the blown back lid and keep bits of tobacco from exploding outward. The odor was enough to make my eyes water - very sharp and peculiar. And the tobacco was way too damp. I've been airing it out off and on for a month and its still too damp, though the smell has toned down a bit.

I enjoyed the honest-to-goodness tobacco taste and smell initially. Lots of smoke. But the more I smoked it the more irritating I found it. Needs frequent relights. A very strong burley, and kinda rough. I thought I liked burley till I found out what too much burley was like. The nicotine is also a bit much for me.

I got through about two-thirds of the can and almost threw the rest away. Thought better of that (I hate to waste tobacco) and mixed in virginia ribbons about 50/50. Much better now.

If you age yours as long as I did and your cans are bulging, be careful - that lid is sharp and the explosion is enough to make your heart stop.

3rdguy

Just finished a full tin. Strong on the burley, can pick up the red virginia at tins but they come and and go. Perique is light. Uneventful retrohale. Once lit never required a relight. Burns easy to a fine ash. Available in bulk which is nice if you find this blend to your liking. Found it a bit harsh at times however and many burleys out there that I would rather reach for. Nothing I would cellar. If you enjoy burley I would highly recommend a try none the less.

Presentation is typical C&D flakes - thickly cut, loosely pressed, perfect moisture. I like C&D flakes, as they are very easy to prep - they fall apart into thin broken strips with just the slightest touch, so there's basically no prep at all, just pinch some out of the jar and stuff it in the bowl. The tin note is a vinegary tang and strong nutty burley. The date on the tin indicates this tin is 10 months old.

Strong nutty burley is first and foremost in the flavor profile, and is nearly overwhelming if you aren't prepared for it. As you smoke, the Virginias and perique come in to play. Soon, the flavor settles and melds - the best I can describe it is a light and balanced VaPer with a big burley backbone. Smoked very slowly and coolly, the Virginias come a little more to the forefront. The perique component is well balanced - subtle and fruity on the tongue when smoked slowly, bright spice and pepper when puffed a bit faster and/or snorked. Upon tamping and relighting, perique makes itself more obvious and the burley jumps out front again...not that it ever left the picture.

Easy to smoke, requiring a fewer than average number of relights for a flake. I find that it needs no drying time straight from the tin.

first i must say i like Cornell & Diehl´s blends. this blend though was a bit of a disapointment, when i opened the tin it smelled ok but after a week or so it started to smell like old swetty socks... The taste of the first bowl was ok, nothing exiting or special, and the deeper into the tin i went the tobacco taste was worse and worse. maybe i got a bad tin or maybe my tastebuds was spoiled by my last burley tin (Solani- Aged burley flake, a really good blend), but due to my ecperience with this tin i don´t think i´ll buy another one and i can´t really give it more than 2 stars.

This blend has G.L. Pease's signature full body, bold flavor(s), and great clarity. A somewhat nutty Kentucky melds with a woody, papery Burley with a taste like bark, or the pithy interior (endocarp) of a walnut. In the background, one can sense the sweet Virginias just barely managing to rescue the experience. This may very well be Pease's recipe for Barbary Coast, just not cube cut and topped with brandy -- it's that close!

I rate this at 2 stars because I think it's just OK, but not for everybody. You have to tolerate a bitter edge and some astringency. It would probably appeal to cigar smokers transitioning to the pipe -- which is not to say that it tastes anything like a cigar.

The flake, if rubbed out, has an odd membranous, parchment-like texture; but that doesn't seem to interfere with anything.

Prominent perique fruitiness in the tin aroma that is more subdued in the smoke; Seems promising. Dry, light flavor however, the burley is harsh and somewhat bitter which is characteristic of C&D's stronger burley varieties. The high nicotine of perique probably just reinforces this harshness. On the other hand, the aroma had a nice toasty, air cured aroma aproaching a dutch cigar. The burley is simply too crude and unrefined for a credible smoke for me; A weak two stars.

I bought this tin last May and is dated 021221. This has a lightly sweet tin note with a medium –strong taste and maybe medium in the nicotine department but really hard to say. Let’s just say this does not knock my socks off like Picayune would. Sort of a slight cigar taste with virtually no sweetness in the blend. I detected mostly the Burley with I would say the Perique coming in second. I guess the Red Virginia is there to maybe tone and smooth out the blend. The mechanics of the blend is well made but honestly, I just want to finish the tin and move on. A friend of mine is a big Burley-phile and probably likes this but no repeats on #1.

Bag note is a bit sweet and quite nutty and earthy. The flakes are quite small can be packed directly. My sample was a bit dry. It tastes very much like it smells. Lots of earth notes and nuttiness. Don't be fooled this is a strong tobacco and starts out a bit harsh. It smooths out a bit but it stays strong in Nicotine and flavor. I would consider this a full bodied burley blend with Virginia and perique to give some complexity. For the full Burley smokers this is going to be a hit. Not sure I would consider it an all day smoke but its a nice change when looking for something full flavored. I would suggest a full meal first.

Sorry, just not for me. While the presentation is fine (soft slices easy to rub out) the tin aroma is just awful and it doesn't improve much by airing. Lighting is fine and burns well, but wow what a blast of nicotine! Better eat with this. I found it very strong. Gives a big dose of tobacco taste, but there are countless other blends that offer great tobacco flavor and pleasant tin aroma. I'll pass on this.