Cornell & Diehl Three Friars

This is a blend that not only could I smoke all day but I find myself wanting to smoke all day. It's medium strength, well balanced, and very flavorful. The burley is toasty and nutty with fresh baked bread notes. The Virginia is earthy and grassy. And finally the Perique is fruity with some spice/pepper. It isn't a very complex blend but it never gets boring throughout the day. The DGT is great, no loss of flavor.

Two side notes: the tin aroma is pretty rancid. Sour and fermented smelling. But this is no indication of the taste. Also; this blend ages wonderfully. I recently opened a tin from 2007. The blend is visibly darker. Much more sugar with fruit, black pepper, and tea flavors.

Thanks to Laudante, my fellow reviewer and friend, I managed to get an 8 Oz. tin of Three Friars (among other smokeable goodies). So far, I?ve smoked around five bowls, and I certainly intend to smoke much more!

Maybe I should start by stating the obvious: this is an excellent tobacco. In fact, I find it scrumptious. It has all the piquant-sour-sweetness of most Virginia/Perique blends, plus the added Burley that provides temperance to the fiery nature of the other two components, as well as an earthy smoothness to the whole construction, rounding up its flavour nicely.

I was surprised to find the blend rather moist (which, in my experience, is unusual for a C&D tobacco), but that didn?t interfere with its excellent slow burning rate, nor did I find it difficult to light and keep lit. By no means a cool smoke, it never really got uncomfortably hot, nor did it bite.

Medium strength, with quite some nicotine, the different layers of flavour gradually developed throughout a smoke that was never boring, nor overwhelming. Though pretty well balanced, I ?m under the impression that the Perique is more pronounced than the Virginias or the Burley.

As to the inevitable comparison to its female counterpart (the bygone Three Nuns, as spun and blended by Bell?s, which I did manage to smoke in the late 70?s and early 80?s), I find there are more differences than similarities.

True, the Virginia-Perique relation is common to both. Then again, the Nuns never invited King Burley to their sorority, nor did they allow themselves, as befits their religiousness, to be rubbed up to the point of becoming ?lose?. In this context, it?s not only the Burley leaf what gives Three Friars its ?manliness?, but also a more abundant and stronger variety of Perique, and the general flavour of the blend seems to me stouter, with a density and depth that I never really found in the Nuns (as good as it used to be). It is also a more pungent blend than the Nuns!

In my opinion, this blend shares the same flavour-region as the Nuns and Escudo. It is definitely not as sweet and ?juicy? as Dorchester or Astley?s Nº2, and though slightly less powerful than Escudo, it seems to me closer to the latter than to the Nuns. If you enjoy Virginia/Perique blends, this is a must.

Having never tried any iteration of Three Nuns, consider this a purely unbiased review of Three Friars.

There is a great deal of veiled complexity present in this blend. It’s pretty mild for a C&D blend, but fairly stout otherwise. It doesn’t bite, at least not MY tongue, and it burns as clean as anyone could ask for. The base is a delicious Bright Virginia ribbon cluttered with withered balls of a strong Perique - it could even pass for a VaPer at times. The blend itself is not entirely ribbon-cut, there is a significant portion of “broken” (some even partially intact and whole) flakes mingled in the mix. It might be raw, but it’s packed with flavors. I’m finishing up a pound right now that I bought at the beginning of this year, in my Brigham 116 with a new filter, and the first half of this bowl tasted just like milk chocolate - that similitude has only just stuck me. I would have said it tasted like musky lemonade or sourdough bread last week.

I believe the review I published on the vendor’s site wasn’t entirely accurate regarding the flake in this blend - it is a Brown Virginia after all (and quite similar to Newminster no. 400.) Since I had yet to try that variety of Virginia when I wrote said review, I could only guess the flake was a white Burley that had assimilated a Virginia tang. Otherwise, I can’t taste any Burley in Three Friars - it’s totally overpowered by the Perique (as even the familiar chocolaty taste I just encountered had the fermented musk of Perique.) Granted, the Perique in my batch was covered in bloom, and quite strong. In fact, it drove my sinuses crazy and occasionally caused me headaches. But that didn’t stop me from smoking it all (haha). I’ll have to edit this review, my 2 year old won’t let me finish it, but suffice to say this is also good DGT tobacco - and one I will be ordering again for sure.

Been three months since my last review, so here goes.

I got Three Friars because the name intrigued me, and I heard about the Three Nuns comparison. As others have stated here: no idea why this comparison was made, because it is really quite different from that respected blend. But that's not to knock Three Friars one bit!

I've smoked this fresh, and aged about two weeks in the jar. First thing to note is the bag/tin note: kind of reminds me a bit of a barnyard -- mostly hay and funk -- probably from the quality VAs -- even reminding of a ripe cheese. (In this way, I'm very much reminded of C&D's excellent Habana Daydream.)

When smoking, that barnyard funk comes through as cream and butter, almost like it is lightly cased, which I don't believe was done. So there must be some quality in those VAs! The burley isn't as noticeable, but probably holds this blend down to the earth quite a bit. The perique, on the other hand, isn't particularly noticeable. Maybe it is supporting that creaminess? I mean, there is a little spice, I suppose; it also may be adding to the room note that DOES recall Three Nun's boldness, but only a little.

In summary, I'm a huge fan. I could see cellaring a good quarter or half pound of this. But fresh-out-the-bag, it's a quality, no nonsense, smooth and buttery smoke, and likely repeatable. Three and half stars.

This is my first review of a tobacco on this site, I apologize that I don't have the gift of words as others do.

A previous reviewer had stated something to the effect that he had rarely smoked a more changeling blend bowl to bowl as this one, I think that is why I really enjoy Three Friars. This blend is most definitely Virginia-forward, I can barely detect the burley, which I believe unobtrusively gives the blend some nice body. As to the changeling aspect, sometimes there is a heavy, spicy presence of the Perique, sometimes a subdued, yet sultry sweetness that really appeals to my palate. The Virginias always shine through in this one, I highly recommend it to any Virginia and/or VaPer lovers. This is the only blend I purchase by the pound, love it!

Ahhhh...One of my favorites. This is one of my desert island blends. Morning with coffee, Lunch, After work...Anytime!!!! Virginia, Brown burley- They make a Wonderful nutty sweet base- Then the perique comes if for some spice. Not too much, But enough to offset the other two. From start to finish, Its the same. It may smooth out toward the bottom- But the taste is GREAT!!!, Nicotine is there, but not overpowering. If its too dry, I throw a humidor disk in a sealed container. The virginias blossom at the right humidity. If it seems a little bitter, add some moisture, and it goes away. Try it- you'll love it!!!!! According to Mr. Tarler- This is not a clone of three nuns. Being catholic, I'd rather not smoke a nun anyway..:)

This is a delicious tobacco, and I’ve always liked it, both fresh and aged . I smoked it back to back with a 2005 vintage (aged) Three Nuns once, and I found this more interesting, with layers upon layers of flavor. It’s nothing like the Nuns.

There is sweetness and grassiness from the Virginias, nuttiness from the Burleys and a dry spiciness from the Perique. Its flavor profile is like that of a Vaper, but with the depth of burley; a Vaper-Bur, if you will.

The Virginia is the main player here and the other two sing in the background.

It is a very satisfying smoke. Nicotine strength is very high for me.

I will try some of the fresh Nuns currently in production to compare and make a judgment again.

But the friars are highly recommended, and come with my blessing ! 🙂

A thick, slightly irregular cut. Packs and smokes effortlessly.

Lights easily, smokes slow and cool, without re-lights.

A long, relaxed smoke, which is no-fuss.

I find Three Friars to be a very enjoyable smoke. A pleasantly nutty, earthy smoke. Sufficiently spicey to retain interest in a large pipe, but never becoming too strong or peppery. Not a perique bomb by any means. But perique lovers shouldn't be disappointed by this offering.

I have never smoked Three Nuns, in any of its iterations. All I know is, if you are looking for a blend of Virginia, Burley and Perique, you won't find many to better this.

The perique doesn't present itself as overly peppery, more of the figgy prune profile. The constituent tobaccos are well integrated, and remain consistent team players throughout the bowl. A thick chewy mouthfeel that never becomes cloying or overbearing.

Has quickly made it into my daily routine, usually of an evening if watching TV or reading.

A new favourite. Honest, reliable, damned tasty.

This as good as a blend can get IMO. Perfect strength. Excellent burning properties. Wonderful taste from start to finish. Seems like it gets better over time. Cellar some away for 6 to 12 months and what you got is nothing short of magical. Can't say enough about C&D. The best tobacco people in the world.