Cornell & Diehl Odessa

For me this was more of a Burley blend than an English/Balkan. Where in Red Odessa the Virginias simply provide a base, here the Burleys are an equal player with the other components. All four components are very well balanced providing a fairly complex and enjoyable smoke. My personal preference is for Red Odessa, but if you're a lover of Burley I suspect that you'll really enjoy this blend and be grateful that you tried it. Give it a shot.

The claim that this tobacco is similar to Balkan Sobranie White is somewhat true. The tin note is almost exact, but the taste is somewhat lacking. One thing for instance is that from my recollection Balkan Sobranie White was a VA based tobacco. But these are not detractions from the tobacco unless you are buying it specifically to replace Balkan Sobranie White (which goes for a pretty penny on eBay). The tobacco is a beautiful mixture of colors and is inviting to the eye as much as the nose. The tobacco burns very well and does not ever get too hot or wet. It has a very nice Latakia note that is complimented by the Turkish and Burly. I also like the added condiment of Perique it all seems to be in quite good balance. This blend is one of my new favorites, not because it is a replica of Balkan Sobranie, but because it is a good blend in its own right. If you want to have a bowl similar to Balkan Sobranie try Smokers Haven Our Best Blend.

I think I will provisionally use a new term in describing Odessa - an American Scottish. Burley used in English Latakia Balkans is often termed American English, so why not? Creamy, buttery, tasty; the high grade Burley gives legs to the sweetish Turkish Izmir and the Latakia is wisely used for spice and depth.

This could be an all day blend for me and I might in future bump the rating further. Wife likes the aroma even. Further use of positive adjectives would serve little purpose. I like this one very much.

Pouch note... ahhh... BALKAN/ENGLISH! Earthy caraway seed and cumin spice with cocoa, some honey, a little smoke, and a touch of fig/raisin. Nice and familiar territory here...

Char and initial draw has that familiar English perfume and earthy spice. Considerably less "bready" character than I typically pickup from the others in this style I've been lucky enough to try. This still has fantastic body, a savory richness. The lat in here plays second fiddle, it's ever present but mild, the orientals are taking up the bulk of the flavor with more of the caraway seed-like spice and warm rich nuttiness.

Room note, I was outdoors but still caught a waft of a rich, almost perfume character which was very nice. The lat didn't make a strong presence in it so despite the humidity outside where I smoked, I didn't feel like I had to change clothes when I came back inside.

Nic strength was agreeable. I felt it but wasn't overpowered at all.

All in all, I've had 5 or 6 English/Balkan blends including this one. This one is definately is a keeper - it's real good if you are keen on English style blends.

I've not posted any reviews of C&D blends over the past couple of years although I have nearly 100 of them in my personal tobacco log. So, I am running through them as I get time to transcribe here on my favorite place to hang out and blab with my fingers. (-;

I really didn't find any true similarities between Odessa and Balkan Sobranie White, other than it was an Oriental forward blend with the Latakia and Virginia off in the background. Also, BS never had Perique in it and you can sure taste the Perique here. It was a good, solid middle of the road Oriental forward mixture that was easy to smoke.

I bought two tins of this blend in 2012 because somebody told me that it was a Balkan Sobranie Mixture wannabe; however, they were wrong. It took me five years to find this out, as I put the tins in the back of my stash and forgot about them until recently. When I popped the tin, I was taken aback at the appearance: a very reddish brown mixture whose cut was rough and slightly shaggy and not at all the appearance of the old ribbon cut BS Mixture that I had smoked. I was equally taken aback by the tin aroma: five year-aged Burley with undertones of Latakia and Perique that, while wonderful to our pipe smoking nostrils (the tin top and bottom had begun to bulge after five years), bore no resemblance to BS Mixture. This blend is NOT Balkan Sobranie Mixture. Now that we've got that out of our systems, lets smoke this thing. I liked Odessa's smoking qualities right from the get-go. It came on rich and smokey and spicey, but in a way that didn't bite or overpower. The Burley was, clearly, in command in the top third of the bowl and I liked that. As we crossed over into the middle third, the nature of the smoke shifted toward a mellowed marrying of the four components. I thought this to be okay, but already missed the savor of that earlier smoke dominated by the Burley. Then we went into the finish third of the bowl and, here, things flattened out to a kind of tepid and tasteless tenor that is so familiar in these bottom third smokes. So, while not Balkan Sobranie Mixture, Odessa can hold it's own with many burley based blends and I have no problem rating it as Recommended with three stars.

The tobacco itself is a medium ribbon chopped at different lengths. There is a mix of colors from yellow to black with a couple of shades of brown. Pouch note is light latakia and a little earthiness. The blend came it a very good level of hydration for smoking.

Smoked, this is oriental-forward. There is a slightly herbal quality to the flavor. My daughter did not comment on incense, and she does sometimes in an oriental-forward blend. There is a slight plum from the perique every now and then, and it did not present as spice or pepper to me. The burley gives an earthy depth to the smoke, and there is less latakia in the profile than you might expect from the pouch note. You know it is there, but it is not the dominant flavor.

This is a good smoke but not too remarkable for me.I doubt I will get this again, but it is enjoyable and easy to recommend. If you are interested in orientals and want to dip your toe in the latakia waters, this would be a great one to try.

It's been a while since my sample arrived in a mild state of dehydration. Time and introduction to osmosis filtered water brought it back to life.My experience with this blend is favorable. The nutty sweet Burley is made user friendly by the Cavendish Cut, the Turkish and Perique. I find easy pleasure without being mindful of some of Burley's undesirable characteristics - excessive bite and a tendancy to turn bitter if smoked too fast. The Cyprian leaf provides counterpoint, much the same as harmonica in a blues band. Burning it to the bottom of the bowl will generate no regrets, nor fade of flavor. The typical heavy Balkan presence is not here. Letting it settle and marry with time is of great benefit, otherwise the smoke may be a bit harsh. Regge music seems to enhance the smoking of this multidimensional blend. It's worth a try to see if you can find some of the magic.

Meerschaum Man Smoking an old signed Ural

Boy, if the appearance of this blend doesn't cover the entire color spectrum of tobacco! As a few have mentioned, this blend isn't the most uniform. Some long stringy clumps of shag-type cut Burley and Orientals, but small chopped up ribbon of the Latakia. The Perique seems a mix of the two. Some veins made it through QC.

Pouch aroma is fairly Perique forward. I really dig the sour note to it. Decent smokiness, followed by a touch of bran from the Burley.

Quite a bit of spring to the packing, so be prepared to tamp a few times after lighting. It will want to escape the bowl!

First half of this bowl really showcases what C&D burleys are really all about. A semi-sweet sorghum like flavor, with rich toasty nuttiness. The Orientals fade in and out, unlike the perique constantly in the background. The Latakia seems like just a small condiment for this blend.

Second half of the bowl transforms into something different. The Perique stands out more, especially the nose exhale. The sweet nuttiness also fades away, showing a bit more of the once dim Latakia. Burns slow and cool, down to a fine, dark gray ash with no moisture. It's easy to take this one down to the heel of the pipe. Great blend for a long road trip, as it requires almost zero attention. The perique leaves a spicy fresh feeling on the palate, and wouldn't bite even if provoked. Room note is a nice toasty/sweet aroma.

3.5 stars all day long.