Tobaccos Cornell & Diehl - Black Frigate

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2013-10-25		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Rummy and Yummy. A very tasty blend. Complex and satisfying. There aren't many blends that contain Black Cavendish that I like, but this is one of them. Must be the rum. Yum.

UPDATE: 10/30/2013 Upgrading from 3 to 4 stars. This flavor has really grown on me. So much so that it has almost become a necessity. I love this blend.

45 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3048)	2018-04-14		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

The lightly smoky, rather woody, musty sweet Cyprian Latakia plays an important support role at times, and other times, almost leads the sweet, smooth rum soaked, dark fruity, earthy, light grassy, lightly citrusy Virginia cavendish. The rum Virginias lead the experience. The floral, woody, earthy, herbal, dry, sour Turkish almost reaches secondary status. The rum does tone down the tobaccos, and mutes the smokiness one usually expects from the Latakia and Turkish. The strength barely hits the medium threshold, while the taste is a step past the medium mark. The nic-hit is a little closer to medium than it is to mild. No chance of bite, and has no rough edges or harshness. I do suggest a light dry time for this blend. Being a krumble kake, it burns slow, cool, and clean with a small inconsistency in its rich, sweet and mildly savory flavor. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires some relights. Has a lingering after taste that matches the aforementioned flavors. Not an all day smoke, but the veteran smoker will repeat it more than once if fits that person’s personal preference. It tends to be a product that grows on you. Three and a half stars.

-JimInks

39 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2016-03-05		Medium	Mild to Medium	Full	Pleasant

Cornell & Diehl - Black Frigate. One of the most satisfying smoke's I've ever had.

The tin contains one big chunk of krumble kake, slightly moist but smokeable straight away. The aroma from the tin, to me, is suggestive of a large amount of Latakia and Oriental's with very little topping. That, however, is a point that'll require smoking for verification.

The kake is easy to crumble (as you'd expect) but there's about a pipe full in a freshly opened tin that's already broken away from the kake. I just used that for my first bowl; first of many!

I knew this was one for me the moment I took my first puff; the smoke met with the aroma's suggestion of taste perfectly; there seems to be only a small amount of rum, and a tiny amount of Black Cavendish. The majority of the flavour is taken up by the Orientals and Latakia. The Latakia isn't really smoky, it's quite woody and earthy. I get none of the 'harshness' that I often get from Latakia; it has a great smoothness to it.

As I said, the rum seems to have been added lightly. That doesn't mean it goes by unnoticed, I can easily identify it but it's not over the top with gloop or too alcoholic. Mild to medium would seem fair, but to become medium necessitates quite big puffs.

The nicotine sits at dead on medium. I get along with this quantity perfectly.

Black Frigate is a definite four star blend:

Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Savinelli Fuoco 320 KS

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Gauntleys

33 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2002-11-29		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Despite its name, this is not an overwhelming Latakia blend. Rather than a smoky Latakia flavor, you will receive a Navy Cavandish taste that makes its presence known early on. This blend exhibits signs of being a krumble cake as you withdraw it from the tin, but the chunks are larger than most of the same genre tobaccos.

Black Frigate has a huge range of flavors and it is easy to see why this one remains a favorite and big seller in the C&D line-up after all these years.

31 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	The good Rev. Rizzo (36)	2014-05-07		Medium to Strong	Mild	Very Full	Tolerable

Is there really this much going on there? Yes, yes and yes!

The tin note is deceptive. Sweet yet still possessing that real English tang. It's a very comforting warm kind of smell. It breaks nicely and is easy enough to load in a large bowl pipe. I found the blend amazingly complex. The taste almost seems to tweak a bit with each tamp. It has a nutty and creamy base but takes on more. I can't really describe it well enough. But whatever it is I absolutely love it. I will be ordering this in a serious quantity. I'd love to age a bundle of this stuff and be assured I'll have plenty for the long haul. If you like a very outside the box smoking experience please give this a try.

Pipe Used: Peterson Meerschaum 106 P-Lip

Age When Smoked: 3 years

Purchased From: Allegheny Smokeworks

24 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jimyfafy (10)	2017-02-17		Strong	Medium to Strong	Very Full	Very Strong

Not much to add.Mr Tarler created a tobacco for the ages! Old woman HATES the smell.This confirms that I,m going to keep her out of the garage for the forseable future. I can,t stop smoking this blend!

Pipe Used: Brigham 2005 pipe of the year

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes

Similar Blends: Stands alone.

18 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jedibastard (37)	2015-09-21		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I really am impressed, and really enjoy this blend! I had no clue what to think when i popped that tin. I got a whiff of burnt wood with some sweetness, what i imagined smelt like if smoke could catch fire, and 3 week old socks. I had no clue what to think. When i lit it, i was greeted with this really enjoyable sweet aroma with quite a bit of leathery tanginess. I was really really impressed. Flavor stayed the same throughout the bowl, which i really liked. But every here and there, a little bit of vitamin N says hi! Nothing major, but it can get strong if pushed/puffed to hard. I still cant detect or notice any rum in there. Maybe thats why its a tad sweet? I dont really know what else to say about this tobacco. Its really good. But easily forgetable. Which is kinda rad, because ill be deciding what to smoke and this guy is hiding way in the back, and ill realize i forgot i had this for over a year just sitting there. Time does this blend some good. I forgot about this for almost 3yrs, due to buying and trying new stuff. And noticed every flavor profile has just balanced out and gets along with each other. Grab a tin or 2 for yourself.....you wont be upset, especially if you let one sit for a few years.

Pipe Used: Ben Wade poker

Age When Smoked: Fresh from the tin/5yrs

14 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MarkTheLad (46)	2016-03-14		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Upon receiving this tin, I opened it up straight away. Tin Note is delicious, sweet, rummy, leathery and smoky. I thought if it smokes as well as it smells, then I'm in for a real treat. Charring light, I tasted the rum and smokiness of the latakia, plus a hint of some sweetness. Further down, the rum and the sweetness stayed with me until the last 1/4 of the bowl and then the smokiness prevailed. It smoked nice and smooth throughout the first 3/4, the rum was very light, but definitely present. It also had a nutty creaminess to it that was very nice. The nic hit was about medium, right where I like it to be and the bowl seemed to get stronger towards the bottom. This was a beautiful smoke. I will continue to smoke this blend in probably in a few different pipes, just to see how it behaves. This blend definitely makes it into my regular rotation. Overall this was a great smoke, I'm a fan!

Pipe Used: Big Ben Olympic 542 Bent Ball

Age When Smoked: Just received

Purchased From: P&C

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrumsAndBeer (217)	2017-01-31		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Sweet through and through, with a palpable rum flavor that imbues the entire pipeful. The rum adds plenty of nuance as well as a powerful musty aroma that easily matches the heady scent of the Latakia. The spicy Turkish creates a layer complexity that arrives once the bowl gets going. The Virginia Cavendish is mild and adds support to the overall gentle sweetness of the smoke. The taste of Black Frigate is substantial, and the smoke it produces is smooth, full in body and fairly pungent to the senses. Mid to end bowl flavors are sturdy and rich and are pretty much on par with any of Cornell & Diehl’s bigger English mixtures. Unique and well crafted.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DenizBeck (323)	2018-03-22		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Gentleman Zombie's description is very aptly expressed: "Rummy and Yummy!". In the tin, whose design I find very well done, a 2oz brick of fine tobacco awaits you. The tin note is rummy, fruity and sweet. But also smoky and spicy - really intriguing! The Kake consists of lively colored tobaccos, ranging from bright to reddish and brown to pitch-black. The amount of Latakia is moderate and doesn't dominate the smoke too much.

Easy handling, and after a short drying period the tobacco burns excellently.

From the first puff on there's rummy, spicy and smoky aroma dominating the smoking experience. The rum has a mildly and natural alcoholic taste to it, without being obtrusive. It has this slight fruit and hot spices tenor to it. I'm not the biggest fan of Cavendish, but this 'Navy Cavendish' is very appealing and feels like its made with natural components and no artificial flavors. I don't drink alcoholic drinks, but it pairs so darn well with tobacco! The Latakia offers its signature smokiness, as well as some woodsy and leathery and butter-creamy notes. The Orientals have a pleasantly dry, sharp edge to it and add a charming ethereal component to the smoke that pairs excellently with the other components.

A very balanced and well-thought-out blend. It just works! From the intriguing tin design, over the well crafted Kake to the excellent flavors...Black Frigate truly is a special treat for both the lover of Navy-styled tobaccos and Latakia blends. Using real rum instead of artificial flavorings makes for a natural blend. This isn't a Lat-Bomb, it's in perfect harmony and each component gets its share of the cake.. or shall I say KAKE?! ;-)

Update: This is becoming one of my most favorite blends... can't get enough of it! I just wish C&D blends were easier obtainable in Europe and Germany...I can't put this down, I'll order more asap! Update2: My 2nd tin also went empty in record-time...just super-love this tobacco, one of the best, if not THE best blend for my personal taste, this is superb!

Pipe Used: Clays, Cobs, Briars, Morta, Meerschaum

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Robykeys82 (25)	2020-06-04		Medium	Mild	Full	Tolerable to Strong

As an avid English Mixture smoker, from time to time I like to research about other types of tobaccos. This one caught my eye, partly due to the tin art, partly due to its composition and cut, which sounded very interesting and promising. So, on my trip to Dubini, I got one tin. I have to say I didn't regret my choice. This tobacco is simply a bomb of flavor, with the quality navy cavendish and orientals playing a great game, with the right amount of rum topping. Nicotine is on the medium range, taste is full, IMHO. The crumble cake cut makes it very easy to pack your pipe. Rub just the right amount of tobacco et voilà. Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Ardor, Castello

Age When Smoked: 3 months

Purchased From: Dubini, Chiasso (CH)

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr. Dunhill 23 (39)	2019-12-05		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Upon peeling back the aluminum pop top, there is a prevalent note of vinegar presumably given off by the Virginia's. Delicious! This is followed by a nice hit of Latakia, then Orientals. Is that an alcohol topping I smell? This blend is very pleasant on my olfactory senses. The tin note continues. I smell old-school canvas, like WW2 canvas in an Army Surplus store and rich oiled saddle leather, along with a bit of the permanent markers we used to sniff in grade school. I loved that smell..... It's mouth watering.

After the char light and relight, you can immediately taste the rich smokiness of the Latakia and the rum. The Orientals round out the experience with a very creamy finish. I couldn't help not wanting to smell it as much as smoke it. There is a sweetness from the Virginia as well as a tickle in the nose. There's plenty of vitamin N but not so much as to make one dizzy. The blend behaved very well in the pipe and I can sip a Group 4 pipe for 70 minutes. 70 minutes of excellence.

I give this a solid 4 stars

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Philo Beddoe (221)	2016-11-02		Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Meh...I just taste a flat sub-par very Latakia forward blend, with a whisper of rum. I wish that I could find the joy in this that so many others seem to, but it tasted so one dimensionally of Cyrprian Latakia to me, that I lost interest less than halfway into my first bowlful. I smoked...or rather made myself smoke half of the tin that I had purchased, trying to find this glorious flavor that many others have found, but Black Frigate just isn't for me. G.L. Peases' Sextant is much, much better in the rum topped/Navy English category for those looking for something with actual complexity and body.

Pipe Used: Various

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2013-12-10		Strong	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I got to go against the crowd on this one , or maybe agree with reviewer, " Haredawg ,2007-03-09". I just can't get into a strong Latakia with a topping, even Rum. To me, it just ruins the natural smokiness of the Latakia and produces a very strange taste. I can't even distinguish the other tobaccos in this blend and it ends up tasting like a topped drug store Burley. Yes, it's strong, but not in a good way. Reminds me of smoking a "Wolf Brothers Rum soaked "Crooks" cigar" from thirty years ago!

Pipe Used: cob

Age When Smoked: one year

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigSwede (93)	2007-01-02		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Full	Strong

What an interesting tobacco!! When I opened the little tin and saw a small black brick of tobacco, my first thought was: "oh-oh, what I am I gonna do with this?" Well after some playing around I loaded up one of my latakia pipes, opened several windows and put the phone within reach, in case I needed to call 911. It is always a little tough to get lit, taking several lighting and tampings. Once lit, however, the actual smoking was less dramatic than expected. It's a full, rich smoke and yet I don't feel overpowered with flavor. Even though I have moments of latakia phobia, I found this to be just mellow enough (probably the cavendish) to make it work. I can't imagine this being a daily smoke, but as an occasional change of pace, it's an enjoyable, relaxing and fun smoke. Worth a look.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FreePancakesForAll (10)	2018-04-01		Medium	Medium to Strong	Full	Tolerable

Odds are good this one will become a regular.

Black Frigate is a rum-soaked, virginia-based cavendish with a perfect balance of latakia and turkish tobaccos added. There’s a lot of flavors going on in this blend, from the up-front rum and cavendish to a light floral smokiness and sweet earthiness.

Like most C&D blends, moisture content is ready to smoke from the moment you crack the seal. If you like how C&D blends and presses then there’s no reason why you wouldn’t enjoy this!

Pipe Used: Nording Freehand

Age When Smoked: 8 months

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Chris TC (2)	2017-05-16		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

The best blend I have tried to date. A little hard to get going but I closed my eyes and the smell took me to the gun deck of HMS Victory, old rope, tar and a feint whiff of rum. The taste is complex with nutty notes and an almost smoky meaty after taste. I felt it was quite a strong smoke and very relaxing after a stressful day. I married it with special reserve ale.

Pipe Used: Dagner Black Dublin

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-06-14		Medium to Strong	Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is another fine product from C&D. When I first opened the tin I was greeted by a sweet but rich tin aroma. I did some reasearch to find out what the sweet smell was and discovered it was from the navy cavendish. Apparently navy cavendish is soaked in rum for a period of time before final processing. Well, I find pipe tobacco is educational as well as relaxing!

It was a 2oz tin I ordered, and the presentaion was a single pressed cake of tobacco. I imeadiately broke a piece off, let it air a bit, loaded it in the pipe, and smoked away. This blend is very pleasing, it is easy to smoke and has a great flavor. I would suggest anyone who enjoys heavy Latikia blends give this a try. It's quite a treat.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	haredawg (47)	2007-03-09		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I didn?t dislike this tobacco and will probably eventually smoke the whole tin, but I was expecting something more, well, refined. Opening the tin it smells like a Mars Bar thrown into a bonfire. I don?t think I?ve smoked a heavy latakia that was so sweet. It?s not really a good combination. I think this is a well made tobacco with quality components and tastes exactly how C&D intended it too, I just don?t agree with the taste. If I were to compare it to one of my regular latakia smokes, Penzance or Germains Special latakia flake, it would pale by comparison; in fact it?s not really a fair comparison as Black Frigate is closer to an aromatic. However, the price on the tin was premium, in fact spendier than either the Esoterica or the Germains. I?ll give it two stars for effort and respect for Cornell and Diehl and I won?t toss it in with the coffee grounds and eggshells, but I?m thinking it?s going to take a while to smoke it and I might cuss a bit doing it.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Brunello (166)	2020-05-16		Medium	Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Gentleman Zombie summed it up best when he said: "Rummy and Yummy!" I'll just add to the chorus of fans here and emphasize that for lovers of all things rum: Dis da bomb!

You can probably skip Seattle Pipe Club's pricey Rum Barrel Aged Mississippi River with its teasing wafts of rum vapor, skip the various goopy rum creations from Sutliff, and you'll definitely want to avoid Gawith Hoggarth's Rum Flake with its funky Lakeland undertones.

All that said, you will have to like a solid medium-strength Latakia-based blend as a foundation for all the "rummy and yummy." This is a deeply flavored crumble cake packed with flavor from start to finish. So much flavor you probably won't need to draw deep to get satisfaction. No harsh notes at all and leaves a pleasant and slightly muted aftertaste; nothing ashy or like you've just smoked a Lat-bomb. One of my favorites for sure!

Pipe Used: Peterson Meerschaum, Bednarczyk 9 mm.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Seanv (35)	2019-12-22		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Tin arrived a bit moist. After breaking some off I let it dry for a few minutes. I found that this performed better with a bit of moisture as opposed to crispy. The tin notes are excellent. Rum and latakia are dominant but neither one is overwhelming. Packing and lighting are easy. A few more relights than usual due to the moisture content. Initial flavors are rum and latakia. The latakia is soft and smoky. The rum soaked Virginia's are smooth and sweet. The body is medium and well balanced. The sweetness is not overpowering and the latakia is only a bit more than a condiment. Overall this is a fantastic blend that is balanced and cool smoking. Nicotine is mild plus, maybe hits medium based on your sensitivity. Not an all day smoke for me but I have smoked it multiple times in a day.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CarolinaEsquire (13)	2018-03-24		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

This was an interesting one.

I don't usually gravitate to the rum flavored blends. They are often over the top with flavoring. Not that I don't like aromatics, but rum isn't always for me. But this one promised something different -- especially since it had Latakia and other leaves. And different it was.

The rum flavoring was present, but not over the top. Not by a long shot. It added a certain sweetness to the blend. If I didn't know it was there, I'm not even sure I would have known it was supposed to be rum. Just a nice sweetness. However, I found the rest of the experience to be lacking a bit. While the smoke was full, to say that it was harsh is not correct, but it also wasn't smooth either. Had some definite rough edges to it. I'm letting it age a bit more in a pint jar, but that has some concerns too because this one was already really dry. Normally, I like my pipe tobacco on the dryer side, but this was brittle dry and crumbling from the cake. Now, I know this is supposed to be a crumble cake, but I want to be in control of how it crumbles and not just have it falling apart on me because it's so brittle. I'm hoping that this was just an odd tin because I bought a few more to cellar as part of this purchase. Either way, it was a decent smoke, just not great for me.

I bet age will help round out those edges. If it does, I'll come back and update it to bump it up to 3 stars. It's close now, but just a hair under.

Age When Smoked: 2 months and then a month after being jarred.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JP Pipe (4)	2018-03-11		Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Black Frigate is a special blend for me. It's the first C&D blend that I can stand to smoke under their own label. I've given up on the number of C&D blends I've tried and never finished the bowl! This was a pleasant surprise!

BF is a "change-of-pace" blend. It's a good and interesting bridge from a morning VA to something heavier in the afternoon/evening. That said there's a LOT going on in the flavor department.

Not a blend to relax with, it's something that kept my interest with changing flavors, latakia, virginia with notes of rum. It's never ever boring with something always going on, and changing throughout the bowl.

Interesting yes, but I'm not sold on getting my own tin, as my trial tin was gifted to me by a fellow pipe-club member.

Certainly worth a try, but it helps to be in a mood for a flavor bonanza, so it's not a blend for me to relax with after a hard day.

Pipe Used: Corncob, PS Studio Briar, Ashton Billiard

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: Gift

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ATW (110)	2015-11-24		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Not a fan of this. The rum topping just makes it smell and taste rotten. I would give it away if I could. Just not for me

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CoolPilot (69)	2014-01-18		Medium	Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Extremely tasteful smoke, the navy cavendish is soaked in the same rum used by C&D also for other memorable blends (like in the Simply Elegants serie). Crumble cake easy to cut, and the smoke is perfect to ashes with not a single relight. Lastful, complex smoke, quite strong for me and tends to bite a little bit also. I cant feel much latakia (but I am used to smoke 50% blends like Da Vinci with latakia, so no surprise), and whatever is inside does blend wonderfully. I am not using the pipe for latakias, nor the pipe for virginias : I feel this one deserves its own bowl. The only problem with this blend is that there is too much rum in my opinion, and the result is quite overwhelming. The samuel gawith's Navy Flake is just much better.

Update: just too much rum, the tobacco is literally soaked into it.

Pipe Used: Peterson St Patrick's day 6

Age When Smoked: unknown

Purchased From: Dubini, Chiasso Switzerland

Similar Blends: SG Navy Flake.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2013-08-17		Strong	Strong	Very Full	Tolerable to Strong

A great compilation of latakia, with rum added. The latakia flavor is the strongest, but the rum buttresses the blend and is always present. A top choice.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	bence (34)	2013-03-06		Medium	Extremely Mild	Full	Tolerable

A must try for the latakia lovers. Very complex baccy.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-09-15		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm a smoker of latakia blends mostly, and have a briar that I was never able to get a good smoke out of. Decided to try something a little sweeter to correct the problem, and I went with this due to the rum-soaked cavendish business.

I chose wisely. This is the only thing that has ever tasted good in that particular pipe. The latakia I love is ever-present, and there is a beatiful nutty sweetness throughout the smoke. Amazing how the right blend can fix a dud of a pipe.

Also smokes very well in a meer.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	juvat (36)	2012-03-19		Strong	Strong	Full	Pleasant

Black Frigate is easily in my "top 5" of favorite blends. In addition to the usual smokiness one gets from the latakia, it has a wonderfully "sharp" almost salty taste to the smoke that I can't get enough of. You can definitely pick up the rum in the tin note as well.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	troyniss (38)	2019-11-20		Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Presentation: A mottled crumble cake with an arrangement of brights, browns and dark tobaccos with no uniform pattern. The same form factor as many of C&D crumble cakes. Pinch off less than you need as most of the time it expands out into a decent amount.

Palate: As one might assume of it being a lat bomb, it most certainly is not. The initial aroma is definitely oriental and latakia forward, but offers a unique experience. I have never smelled a blend this entrancing. The latakia is not super heavy but provides a nice smokiness, more an oiled leather, musk smoke than a toasty campfire. The Turkish and orientals allow the semi sour and dry, woody aromatic features to shine. What really sets this blend apart is the navy cavendish that offers such a smooth and creamy quality to bring the whole blend together. You'll definitely smell the rum on the blend and taste it, but it doesn't take away from the character, just adds a little class. It's tangy, rustic, sweet and smoky all in one. Not going to win any air freshener contests, but for some like me, I could stick my nose in this all day.

Performance: Like most crumble cakes I smoke, I like to leave some of the pieces in larger chunks and then top it with more rubbed out cake. I feel this provides an effortless smoke that prevents tobacco from reaching your mouth. Burns at a more than moderate pace and tamps down easily. Leaves most of the time no moisture and a lovely grey ash. Mild nicotine hit. Not quite an all day blend, but can be smoked more than once. This was the only blend I have smoked four bowls in a row. The flavor lingers on the roof of your mouth and your clothes and your hair and... well, you get the picture.

Conclusion: I recommend dedicating a pipe to this blend, as you may find that your other pipes could get a slight ghost. This blend is like no tobacco I have had. When you smell Virginia blends, you know what it is. When you smell an English blend, you know what it is. When you smell this blend, your nose runs wild. It's admirable and mysterious but isn't something to be afraid of. Some say that Black Frigate is intimidating, and at first it is, but once you light it up, you will start to understand why this blend is something that you should have tried sooner. I love smoking this on cold rainy days the most.

Pipe Used: Morgan Zulu Dog, Thick Bulldog

Age When Smoked: Less than 1 year.

Purchased From: SP

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Voyaging (80)	2019-09-28		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Strong

My tin came in a neat cake. The smell was very alcoholic. I always wonder what brands C&D uses for these alcoholic toppings and flavorings.

The cake comes moist and I preferred to do some drying to reduce the heat in the smoke.

Time in a jar, or in the tin, helped this one, in my opinion. The smoke is kind of alcoholic, tangy and juicy and woody, with the hint of leather and smoke one might expect. Its really an interesting flavor. It's a pretty strong taste towards the end of the bowl, and I enjoyed this most in a smaller bowl.

Strength is medium, maybe even strong. Nicotine is the same.

I would recommend this to the adventurous piper. I highly recommend this for its uniqueness in this genre of blends.

Pipe Used: Bent pot, pot

Age When Smoked: Fresh and aged

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2017-09-16		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A most unusual and delightful krumble kake, BF offers a joyous combination of orientals, cavendish and latakia admirably sustained by a casing of dark rum that tickles my old sea dog's fancy! Even though Virginia is not listed among the components, it is possible that there might be a very small pourcentage. Despite being at the right moisture level and the kake easy to break, BF can sometimes prove difficult to keep lit. This annoying aspect does not prevent BF from being an enjoyable and different English cross over blend. I say it's an ideal tobacco for those that would like to venture into this genre but are hesitant because it contains latakia.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2016-06-29		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

Very nice Lat & Or blend with a nice twist. The krumble kake format makes it a slow burner. Smoky, spicy and the rum is present without being a detriment. It's not as strong nicotine wise as I expected; but not for mic whimps either. Black Frigate is a Latakia aromatic that works.

Similar Blends: GL Pease Sextant.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	natibo (169)	2016-04-02		Strong	Very Mild	Full	Tolerable to Strong

Very much licked this one. Some, or more, perique would held. It reminds a little of Seattle Pipe club plum pudding. Overall, very nice. The smoke is very creamy.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-07-07		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I was a little intimidated by this tobacco, a nice chunk of cake was a surprise to me. I failed to notice anywhere that this was a crumble cake. Ooops.

Anyway, I broke off a nice chunk and got it all rubbed and ready to burn in my new Brigham Voyageur Rhodesian.

Upon lighting I noticed that I should have broken it up a bit more than I had, there was one chuink that just kept expanding, like the blob, it was crazy.

Anyway, I wasn't too sure what too expect from this, but I wasn't disappointed.

I did notice that the nicotine content was relatively low, but the flavor was sky high. For some reason I wasn't getting heavy Latakia from this, which was one thing I did expect.

So far, I have smoked two bowls of it. One in the Brigham and one in my Dr. Grabow Omega and I found that this seems to smoke better and has more flavor in a smaller bowl, which is probably obvious, but hell, I'm still pretty new to this.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2011-12-31		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This one tasted great. I like cavendish, I like latakia, I like turkish... Black Frigate, perfect. This is very sweet tasting with that big latakia smoke, earthy taste. I liked it a lot. It is definitely "rough" around the edges but a very tasty smoke and I did not get any tongue bite.

This is a special occasion smoke for me. Friends around a fire type of thing.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-10-26		Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

It was brought to me as a gift from my friend karg at the pipeclub.gr meeting in June 2010 and I WOULK LIKE TO THANK HIM FOR THAT...

A mixture of Black Cavendish, Latakia and Turkish Oriental. A pure Navy blend a cube flake. Beautiful smoke which I would describe as American type since my favorite Latakia very noticeable. Heavy smoke with intense flavors from the beginning to the end of the bowl. It burns and leaves a fine white powder at the end. It needs little effort to start, because it does not light easily. Its scent can be rather annoying to non-smokers.

Generally, it has the sweetness that I look for in the latakioriental tobaccos.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-09-09		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Get your knife out for this one, comes in pressed flake just like they did it a hundred years ago. Cut off a piece and rub it out good, lightly pack it in one of your briers and put a match to it. Absolutely old English navy at its best. Latakia is very present in this fine blend along with a tad of unsweetened black cavendish and zesty turkish, rounding out a somewhat of a medium bodied but tangeful and delighting smoke. This reminds me of London Blend but without the campfire taste that lingers all through your tastebuds, very refined Latakia with just a tad of sweetened goodness along with a noticeable nicotine kick that makes this blend very different and surprisingly delicious. I will have to order some more of this solely as an aromatic escape route.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kilmarnock Piper (251)	2010-01-19		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I can't taste any rum here. True, my tin is a rusty Ebay acquisition most likely from the end of the last century. The tobacco has held up in the little sealed plastic bag C&D used to use, but it's pretty dry. The Latakia stands out so much that I can't really tell what the nature of the cavendish is. Is there any burley in here? Or is it Virginia cavendish? Maybe I will have a better idea when I have smoked a few more bowls. This is to me a full yet not overwhelming English. My first samplings have left the roof of my mouth a little roasted, but I have been hitting the pipe rather hard in the last few days. It may be that when I cut down on smoking and smoke a small bowl of this-slowly, it will be more kind to me.

That said, it did not torture me too much, and has a nice flavor. I get more complexity from Dunhill Durbar (new version; that's all I've tried), but when I have had time to experiment with different pipes and techniques for smoking this particular weed, I will update with any further epiphanies. Presentation is perfect: while C&D has some trouble with flakes (consistency), their crumble cakes are marvelous. I wish they would use the classic-style tins which age so well for their products-seems they could afford to given the prices they charge, because their old metal tins don't seal well and the cat-food type containers don't quite cut it as well. Oh well.

I smoked the first bowl in a Marxman Jumbo, and that was a bit over the top, though this tobacco could work in a large bowl. I had more success in my little Jobey Stromboli 200, as this pipe calmed down the mouth-bite. I really sensed more of the Turkish in the Jobey as well. I still can't taste the rum, but the cavendish must be Virginia based, not burley. As the first reviewer of this blend noted back in 2002, flavors are not complex at first, but "build to a crescendo" in the last third of the bowl.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RonR (85)	2022-06-24		Very Mild	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Strong

3rdGuy

This is one of those blends that I would smoke every other year for something different. While it didnt grab me like many others it is different enough to stand strong in the flavor department. My tin was 2 years old the the latakia I presume had mellowed just enough to give a very mild on latakia, very light on rum taste which I did enjoy. Just not enough that I would want this on a regular basis. Worth a try if you enjot latakia and also a mild rum taste in the side car.

Pipe Used: cobs only

Age When Smoked: 2 years

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HuffPuff (6)	2021-08-09		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

An early review of a blend I have not quite decided on…..

I love the taste, mouth feel is pretty good and it has not bitten me yet.

The Latakia is not overpowering and the components gel pretty well. The rum casing is a little overpowering and I hope it will take a back seat with some cellaring.

Going to have to give this one some time before I can fairly give an opinion.

Worth a smoke, yes.

Pipe Used: Cobs and Braiers

Age When Smoked: New and 3 weeks

Purchased From: 4Noggins

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Karam (59)	2021-06-15		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Tolerable to Strong

Smells great from the tin, contents promise a lot: light application of Latakia, Oriental, Virginia, rum. What's not to like?

The lack of taste is not to like, sadly. The higher you rise the harder you fall, and what fell hard were my overblown expectations.

I smoked it almost back to back with another great disappointment from C&D/GLP: Haddo's Delight.

This one has more flavour for sure, on account of the Orientals and Latakia. The Latakia is very well done, exactly condimental. You may not taste it, but you'll get an aftertaste, and there's a hint of it from the tin. Other than that, not a lot there sadly. I don't know what C&D do to their tobaccos, I am genuinely puzzled. I've only liked two blends from C&D/GLP, all the rest I found tasteless so I put the issue with the blending technique, and how it may differ from European blenders, not faulting the leaf they use. Clearly my tastebuds are more receptive to European blending. To be sure, I've had my share of European tobaccos I didn't like for one reason or other, but NO TASTE only hit me with Capstan blue.

The weird thing is, the room note is pretty bad.

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Greybeard (66)	2021-02-15		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

I get rum and latakia upon opening the tin. Both are evident upon lighting, as well as a mild floral from the oriental in the background. The Cavendish and rum, with the latakia give this a sweet English quality and the rum flavor is there throughout the smoke. The oriental seems to come and go as I smoke (might have more to do with how I broke apart the kake). Occasionally I would get a little harshness towards the latter half of the bowl, but overall it's really enjoyable. Recommended for any English pipers, or for aromatic fans looking to try some English blends.

Pipe Used: Benton Select & MM Corn Cobs

Age When Smoked: 6-1-19 tag on the tin

Purchased From: Barclay Pipe, Tobacco, & Cigar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	KingDuncan83 (25)	2019-05-14		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This and its cousin GLP'S sextant are both wonderful blends. I find that greg's handling of the rum better than on this blend by C&D. The first half of the bowl is a wonderful navy rum smoke and than it turns into a sweet english blend. I prefer sextant but dont get me wrong, this genre buster is quite tasty and one i will buy again at some point.

Pipe Used: cobbs and briars

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: glp sextant.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2009-03-31		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is what I thought I was getting when I bought some Skiff from Samuel Gawith when I was looking for an older sibling to Squadron Leader. Not to crazy about the tin as it leaves s sharp edge with the pop top on it. Nor is it a pocket shaped tin but I've other ways to carry it. The tin scent was something like soy sauce or BBQ in there. One of the 5th taste flavors that involve complex amino acids.

Felt a little dry in the tin versus what I'm used to but crumbled the cake and packet right out of the tin and after a charring light it was a little tamper now and then to the bottom of the bowl. Ash was light and little to no wattle.

Some aftertaste lingering with it that I'm unaccustomed to from my regular Squadron Leader.

Pipe used was meerschaum, bent.

I'm a once or twice a week type pipe guy, I don't have an all day smoke. It's my treat to sit and read the weekly paper and enjoy my pipe on a weekend morning. If this is your style and you like a heavier uncased flavor give it a crack, you'll enjoy. Seems a bit much for more regular consumption, and in that case I'd stay with something lighter.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2007-05-28		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This was a fun tin to open, what awaits you is a large chunk of pressed tobacco with a strangely sweet tin aroma. The tobacco lights with a fair bit of care, and did require a relight which is not a huge deal. The tobacco did start out a bit sweet which is not always the best thing with latakia. About one third of the way down the bowl after relight, it got more smoky and smooth more the way I like my tobacco. Why I will not give this unique tobacco more stars is the fact that it just was not anything special, it had good flavor but nothing that I would call great. And the whole idea of it not being for the faint of heart, is a sales gimmick. Glad I tried it but if I in the future want to try something not for the faint of heart i will stick with 1792 flake.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RCUSElder (244)	2004-03-10		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Full	Tolerable

While this is not one of my favorites, it is still a pretty yummy blend. My tin was dated 1-03 so it has some age to it. Upon opening the tin, you are greeted by a small dark brick. The tin aroma is of a navy cavendish with rum , of course, but you can also smell latakia and a wee bit o' turkish. Moisture is pretty dry for this type of blend. Packing must be done with care to get the most of this blend. I have found that you must crumble well (I use the tin lid for this) and then lightly sprinkle in the bowl (bigger bowls are better for this blend), then lightly tamp. If you do that, lighting is a breeze and you probably can smoke it to the bottom with a few gentle tamps along the way. Initial flavor is sweet and rummy. It changes to a sweet, smoky, and mellow flavor about mid-bowl. The turkish raises its head at the last third of the bowl. This blend is really not that complex, but it gives you a predictable smooth ride to the end, good for when putterring around the garage or backyard. With that in mind, you may enjoy this blend (I sure do).Also, keep in mind that the nic is a little higher in this blend, but it doesn't kick you all of a sudden, rather, it creeps up on you (eat first!).Rating 3 out of 5 points. Enjoy...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (566)	2022-11-29		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Tin note of tart wine, mild smoky, and spices. The Krumble Kake is yellowish-brown, tan with a little black. It breaks and rubs out easily. Tobacco is moist and may need a little drying. Burns slow with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. Flavoring is mild, with notes of rum. Taste is medium to full and a little consistent, with notes of mildly smoky, very woody, spices, dry earth, mild lemon, floral, musty herbs, mildly spicy, and a mildly sweet grassy background note and a mildly peppery retro. Cavendish is leading with Turkish supporting, Latakia supports when it wants too, and the flavoring jumped ship at first opportunity. Room note is tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: Peterson Bard Rusticated 221 Fishtail

Age When Smoked: 3 years

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-08-30		Medium	None Detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Smoked in the right pipe this is an interesting tobacco. I tried a variety of pipes ranging from a meer, a morta and various briars. When you hit the right combination Black Frigate is a really good smoke. A Viggo Nielsen plateau briar cracked the code and brought out the fantastic sweet cavendish which was not overpowered by the latakia and the turkish played in the background. My tobacco was rather dry in the tin, but this does not detract in any way and probably enhances it as I found it not to burn hot or bite. I had no problem getting it lit or keeping it burning. Nicotine content is present but not aggressive. Good stuff! Solid three stars!

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2006-01-06		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I found this blend to be somewhere between Penzance and Pirate Kake.

Full of smoky flavor, and as mentioned before, not for someone just crossing over from aromatics!

Like others, I thought I remembered something about rum, but I re-checked, nope, no mention of it on the tin. Guess that could be why I never tasted it.

There is really nothing wrong with this tobacco, it's wonderful stuff. Not an everyday smoke though. Nice in the evening. Very relaxing.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2006-01-02		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Strong

This was a good smoke, though not what I imagined. I think everyone needs to settle on an official definition of a Navy Cavendish. No rum note, no Va. (though to C&D's credit-Its not advertised...) That said- Once I put my expectations aside- Great smoke. Very smooth and creamy- Strong and commanding taste- Has that Cigar taste that can sometimes be perfect for the moment... Don't give this to someone just getting off aromatics or Drug store swill... Makes you want to raise a flag and become a Privateer....

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2005-11-08		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This has the cut and consistency of Pirate Kake, but not as luscious and nougatine. It?s a navy cavendish cake with the traditional Jamaican rum thrown in. Again, C & D uses liquor without sacrificing true tobacco taste. It?s mellower and less aggressive than Pirate Kake and not as sweet and chewy as Mississippi Mud. It?s a less memorable cross between those two laudable blends. It?s enjoyable, and I might bum a brick off a buddy now and again. Perhaps I?ll like it more after a few more tastes, though when I want a latakia overload, I?d rather turn to PK or MM.

Two and a half of five stars ------------------------- november 05 update

Yes, I tried it again. Yes, I like it more. It hits the back of the throat a little, probably due to the rum, but it's still a rich, latakia indulgence. It reminds me a little of Penzance, though not as smokey & oily as Germain's treatment. This needs to be tasted several times to be appreciated. It won't be part of my regular rotation, but I think I might keep a tin on hand for when I want something unusual & exotic.

Three and a half of five stars

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2005-08-19		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Strong

This was purchased at Iwan Ries in Chicago(My favorite store)and the tin was dated 03-07-02. It had 3 years of age on it which I feel truly mellowed the flavor.This is a very unique Krumble Kake.Please do not compare it to Penzance,it is not Penzance.This has a wonderful RUM based cavendish to which Latakia and Turkish are added.The flavor is superb.A sweet Latakia! This is not FMOT either.It is not complex but rather simple and satisfying-like a cup of warm cocoa in winter.The flavor is very smooth and the 3 elements really work well together. The flavor is slightly sweet and very rich.Latakia is not dominant here,but its presence is quite known. There is nothing out there like it. The only bad point is the following-IT STINKS FROM HERE TO HIGH HOLY HEAVEN!You will not make any lady friends with this one and my lady friend loves Latkia! you are warned to keep the windows open. An excellent smoke 3.5 of 4 stars! P.S. Do not let the initial tin aroma of rum put you off. Let it breathe for 30 minutes and you will be well rewarded.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2004-06-17		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

My first experience with a crumble Kake. A smooth, sweet blend which has struck a chord with me.

I've found that the larger block you manage to get going as a whole, the more even and smooth the flavors become. The rum integrates so well that it is barely noticeable...and then only an enhancement to the sweetness. While not full of varied components, the taste does have layers from musky and peppery to almost sugary as you work your way down the bowl.

One particular churchwarden I have has taken a liking to this blend, and always seems to evoke a sweet-smokey ride across the white, fluffy waves!

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2002-08-31		Strong	None Detected	Full	Strong

Black Frigate is a rather strong latakia crumble cake that is somewhat like Penzance, but stronger and smokier. It breaks out very well, packs and burns nicely. While it does not have a wide range of flavors, it builds to a very nice crescendo in the bottom third of the bowl. Like most C&D's, it is rather dry out of the can, but I like my tobaccos a little on the dry side so that's fine with me.

This will never be my everyday smoke, but as a change of pace, it fits nicely into my rotation.

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