Tobaccos Cornell & Diehl - London Squire

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ChristianProbst (4)	2016-12-29		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Strong

Elegant! When you know C&D Bulk- Blends, you know what to expect. Rich and Strong, quite Earty and Robust, natural Tobacco. This one is a bit different. Of course, it is flavourfull, and of course it is a natural tocacco. And it has all the good characteristics of a C&D Blend. It is quite dry, very easy to light and burn. When you smell it, you smell Latakia, but also a sweet note of the Virginia and nutty smell of black cavendish. You can compare it with C&D Constellation. But London Squire is a bit less bold, and Black Cavendish is not so promiment. It reminds me somehow old Dunhill- Blends as they were still made at murrays. London or Standard Mixture for example. London Squire is the most elegant, yet sophisticated C&D Latakia- Blend that i know. It has not such a big Nic- hit, and not a overwhelming Latakia- Content. Very harmonioulsly middle of the road english. Taste is quite complex, with a nutty- smoky notes and little sweetness. This could meant to be a Pease- Blend. I would recommend London Squire to those that look for a real classic english. Or those that find usual C&D Bulk- blends too strong. or even those, that look for a good quality, rich and elegant all- day smoke.

Pipe Used: Several Briars. Dunhills, Winslows, Savinellis...

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Dunhill - My Mixture 965, Dunhill - London Mixture.

15 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2017-01-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Very Full	Tolerable

I've smoked a lot of C&D blends over the past couple of years and am now starting to post my reviews by transcribing them from my notebook.

According to my notes, no English or Balkan style blend from C&D gets a heavy dose of Latakia into the veins like London Squire. Beautifully put together true English style with heavy hitting from the delicious Latakia, several grades of Virginias and wonderfully presented Orientals for a full, yet refined taste that is so smooth that the power of the Latakia actually was more than tolerable. It was just plain good. Don't smoke this one around any fire alarms as you're sure to set it off from the heady doses of smoke that will choo choo train its way out of your pipe's bowl.

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3019)	2015-03-17		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Tolerable

The musty, mildly floral Cyprian Latakia is smoky, woody, earthy and a little sweet, and is well supported in the first two attributes by the earthy, woody, herbal, dry Oriental/Turkish, which also has a slight spice note, some floralness, and is lightly sour with a hint of butter. The Virginias are grassy with a bit of tart and tangy citrus, bread, and are a tad floral in a back up role, but also have a little dullness. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels are mild. Has a few small rough notes. Burns clean at a reasonable pace with a consistent flavor, leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires an average number of relights. It won't bite, though it can get a little too warm at times, so it needs to sipped just a mite. The pleasant after taste and stronger room note are short lived. More of an entry level, all day English. Two and half stars.

-JimInks

12 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2014-02-20		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A very good light to medium English. Latakia and Orientals pretty well balanced with a nice mildly sweet base of Virginias. Mild to medium in body with medium flavors. Tasty and enjoyable. Great for when you want a break from the heavier English blends.

Pipe Used: MM General, MM Country Gentleman

Age When Smoked: fresh bulk

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StrongMixturesOnly (17)	2013-08-04		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

As a connoisseur of English mixtures, I must say that London Squire is enjoyable, but not so much if you are searching for strong tasting blends and/or blends high in nicotine content. It is a good starting choice for the novice English smoker, as well as a mellow morning and afternoon smoke for those who smoke often. The taste is, in general, light with Latakia and Virginia dominating the bouquet with a subtle hint of Turkish announcing itself from time to time.

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	millarddj (2)	2018-02-07		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

Very earthy, smokey, and with little sweetness, this seems to be of medium strength to my palate - but that from a relatively novice English blend smoker. However, I find the particular combination of Latakia, unsweetened Cav, and other tobaccos makes this considerably more interesting and satisfying than milder English blends that I have tried (thinking of Frog Morton AtP, Dunhill Early Morning, Boswell Countryside, and others). Heavy enough on Latakia to really satisfy that craving, but mellow enough a blend overall to not swamp the tastebuds and allow for other tobacco to be enjoyed afterward.

Have smoked this numerous times now, and it is the blend that opened the door for me to English/Balkan style blends. Therefore, I can wholeheartedly vouch for the recommendation that this is a good serious yet entry-level English for new pipers.

Pipe Used: MM Eaton, Peterson Rocky Donegal

Age When Smoked: Fresh to 16 Months

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2075)	2017-04-27		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Cornell & Diehl - London Squire.

The ribbons are quite coarse, the blend contains an equal amount of black to browns, and sadly a few twigs too. It could afford to be a bit moister, not that it's un-smokeable, I just wouldn't trust it in my cellar for long.

The smoke isn't as aggressive as Balkans can often be: the Latakia gives the softer notes instead of the more abrasive ones, with the Orientals sharing the lead. The Virginia sweetens the smoke, with the Burley giving it a slightly rustic edge. My only problem, although it's listed as a balkan, I want more oomph from it! A good beginners blend instead of an aromatic maybe? A bowl of L.S. burns well, but tends to be over quite quickly.

The nicotine's milder than a lot of this genre and the room-note isn't great.

I wouldn't add this to my list of regular blends:

Somewhat recommended.

Pipe Used: Somali Meerscham Oom Paul

Age When Smoked: Two weeks

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capt (339)	2020-08-04		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

As StevieB noted, this does ship fairly dry. I prefer my blends on the dry side, so it affected me none.

Pouch appearance of short, choppy ribbons. 50% dark tobacco (from the Latakia and black Cav) bright virginia and the rest comprised of medium brown.

Aroma has a light smokiness, not as thick as some Balkans can be. Notes of a clean, floral, slight fruitiness from the Orientals. Packs and lights very easy due to the minimal moisture.

Initial flavors make me think this blend is very young. Not as much Latakia comes though as I had hoped. I think the Orientals overpower the majority of the softer additions here. Has a toasty quality, which I assume would come from the burley. Very monotone and leaves an ashy flavor on the palate. Ill revisit in the winter time. For now, 1 star.

Age When Smoked: fresh

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fumatore (49)	2007-06-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

I am revisiting this tobacco (5/10) after not smoking it for 3 years. This one is a pretty good medium English tobacco, with emphasis on the orientals. The first 1/8 bowl has a tendency to be a little rough on the taste buds, but it settles down into a tasty smoke. The complexities of Latakia and Orientals meld together quite nicely. Believe it is somewhat unappreciated English in the C&D lineup.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	GergelyAdam (10)	2021-05-21		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

This blend has a potential for those who are into american english or just getting into english blends. Packs and burns easy, no bite. Taste, smoke volume is medium, strenght is more mild to medium. It is sweet at the first half, then slowly earthy and sour notes are taking over in the second half. Even I dont prefer burley in english unless kentucky, this blend is a well done tobacco especially if you only starting your journey to latakia mixtures. As there are better starter english tobaccos like Royalty, I rate this somewhat recommended.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Paul from Jersey (15)	2020-10-13		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

What else can I say if I almost completely agree with Jiminks, except that I find the Latakia less dominant, the nic hit gentle, the touch of sweetness remaining to the end, and a blend deserves at least 3 full stars as a reasonably solid anytime smoke from a good maker that vexed my room-note-detector wife hardly at all. I've kept it around for years as a bowlful that will need little attention and lets me read...burns well, no/few relights if lightly tamped, little-to-no moisture, no need for pipe cleaner until cleanup at the very end.

Pipe Used: BBB Bent Brandy, Sebastien Beo Dublin

Age When Smoked: A year or more, bulk stored in tin.

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Doctor Willet (13)	2019-04-21		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is possibly my favorite English blend from C&D. The addition of unsweetened black Cavendish really rounds out the flavor and sets it apart from the majority of Englishes that I've had. It adds a certain buttery quality to the flavor and overall experience that's just wonderful, and it makes the smoke real thick and 'creamy. As with many mixtures that include more than two component tobaccos, the flavor of London Squire is more than the sum of its parts.

When I first bought a few ounces a year ago, I didn't care for it nearly as much as when I revisited it somewhat recently. My batch is a little more than a year old now, and I think that little bit of aging helped the flavors to meld, and let the Virginias sweeten. On that note, I typically expect anything with black Cavendish to be sweet, but as I've learned from smoking several different blends, unsweetened black Cavendish (UBC) is an entirely different product than its sweet brother. As with C&D's Poplar Camp, the UBC gives it a flavor which reminds me of products from JF Germain. UBC in combination with Cyprian Latakia is a wonderful thing; when the proportions of each are just right, it's a match made in heaven.

Aside from the condiment tobaccos, Burley's trademark dry, nutty, alkaline flavors become very balanced in the presence of these other tobaccos. It does a great job of keeping the sweetness of this blend in check, without stealing the show. As a big fan of Turkish Orientals, I was looking for their tangy flavor here, but found only a little. As with nearly all of the components in this blend, it becomes a part of the whole flavor instead of sticking out. Finally, the Virginias add a nice foundation; they're mainly of the light variety, which I like more than red. I wish C&D would use more light Virginias instead of reds, as I find the latter in many of their blends makes for a very 'dry' and sometimes harsh flavor profile.

In the nicotine department, London Squire is just north of mild, so no worries if you're sensitive to nicotine. The room note won't make you any friends, as with most English blends. However, LS's room note isn't anywhere near as intense and off-putting (to non-smokers) as the majority of Englishes. One review here said that this would make a good starter English for those new to them or pipes in general. While I agree, I don't want to give the notion that it's unsophisticated or boring; I assure you, it is quite the opposite! This wonderful English has a great 'old word' appeal, and it'll likely be an instant hit with fans of this smoky blend genre. Don't let the UBC scare you away - it makes the scene! 3.5 stars.

Pipe Used: Conical chambered Dublin, Stacks, Cobs

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: JF German Special Latakia Flake.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sasha (228)	2005-07-05		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

"Earthy" is the first adjective that comes to ming while thinking about this blend. It isn't smooth, refined and somehow "aristocratic" like many English blends on the market, not subtle at all. It gives you exactly what you might expect: a great latakia blend, full, tasty, spicy...a true Balkan-style in the old fashion. Latakia is clearly the top note, but the orientals play a major role and that's the secret of its deepness. The Virginias are there to support with "meat", not sweetness. Recommender to the latakia lover.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2002-12-16		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Tolerable

General Comment for All C&D Blends. So far, all my samples have burned clean and dry. They contain quality ingredients. If purchased fresh from C&D, I find that I must adjust the moisture content, and let them rest for 3-6 months before sampling. They change flavor dramatically in just a few months.

In appearance, this is mainly a blend of mid to dark flakes with an occasional bright speck here and there. The blend aroma is that of a very mild English. The taste is that of a very mild to medium Latakia-Oriental type blend. There are a few puffs where the flavor goes flat but then returns again. It is smooth and does not bite. It burns clean to a powdery gray ash. I can smoke this when I want the flavor of Latakia, but do not want to have the smoke interrupt whatever I am working on at the time. This would be a great smoke for those that want to try a good English blend, but have not acquired the taste for stronger or more complicated versions.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2001-02-25		Strong	None Detected	Full	Strong

Here's a tobacco that's so polite in its Englishness that it's in danger of going unnoticed. To the eye, it looks like a black and tan beer, with wide cuts of latakia predominating. It's a very simple looking mixture with a very simple, enjoyable flavor. The fun of the tobacco comes not from any unique taste or zany flavoring, but instead from its almost reserved consistency and friendliness. It's much more like a friend with whom you are so comfortable that you don't feel the need to speak, instead of one who is always engaging your responses. The hefty cut of the tobaccos makes it slow burning, and sometimes hard to keep lit, but the payoff is a very mellow smoke. I got curious to see what this would smoke like if cut into smaller ribbons, and I diced some throroughly to see what effect it would have on its smoking characteristics. I like it very much. The burn is better and easier, and the flavor seems clearer, oddly enough. I'm sure a certain amount of my reaction is the placebobo effect (the psychological benefit of hitting a clown in the face with a pie...), but I do like it better. It's hot on first light, though, but quickly settles into a smooth burn. It truly has everything in its favor - mellowness, comfort, affordability, and ready availability.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Legion (25)	2020-01-07		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

London Squire is a tasty mild to medium English blend with a mild nic-hit. It would be a good introduction to latakia for new pipe smokers, those venturing away from aromatics & for those who are looking for a milder English experience where the latakia is obvious without dominating.

My pound bag arrived rather dry. It had some rather large chunks of Black Cavendish that needed to be chopped. It might sound like sacrilege to some but for something different I sometimes mix it 50/50 with an aromatic, Mark Twain, for a very enjoyable 'cross-over'.

Room note probably wouldn't win one many friends amongst non-smokers.

As it's tasty, mild to medium with mild nicotine, London Squire suits my preferences rather well, so it gets 3.5 stars from me.

Edit 12/12/20 London Squire leaves an astringent taste in my mouth that is less than appealing. Rounding down to 2.5 stars. Tobacco is very expensive here so nothing goes to waste. I've used LS to make a semi-aro English and a general mixer for which it nicely serves that purpose.

Not bad but there are better mild to medium English blends out there.

Purchased From: TobaccoPipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	King Weed (228)	2019-07-28		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I recently bought-out the pipe tobacco holdings of a close friend and in it were two tins of this blend, London Squire by Cornell and Diehl. Dated from July 2012 and appearing in the older blue and white C&D labels, I figured that they had lain dormant long enough to satisfy any speculation as to the effect of aging. I was right, as it smoked smoother than the alter ego bulk blend I had been pilfering over the years. In general, I feel about the same as reviewer Fumatore 2007-06-23, in that, I agree that it is a pretty good medium English smoke. I also, like he, found the initial 1/4 bowl a little spicier than the remainder; a trait I find in common with a lot of blends. You just have to wait for them to calm down, I guess. Smoked straight out of the tin, it is a more than adequate medium English and smokes consistently positive. I have always thought that this blend, ultimately, needs a little something else to elevate it to four star status. I found London Squire to be very copasetic in blending and that is how I will use it from here on out. I would give three and one half stars to it, if I could.

Pipe Used: Ashton LX Pebble Grain Pot

Age When Smoked: seven years old

Purchased From: a friend and former pipe smoker

Similar Blends: I've smoked this type of blend, Balkan plus black cavendish, several times in my life; no one blend stands out in my memory and most bowls were smoked in my local smoke shop of preference as a bulk house blend called "Baskerville".

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cm1648 (106)	2021-03-05		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

(This review is based off of a 5yr old jar of LS.

Prep: On the dry side but due to it being traded to me and with 5 years of age, it may normally not have that issue.

Notes: The Latakia is upfront, giving you a smoky, woody, foundation. The Orientals are evident delivering some butteriness and floral spiciness. The Virginias are bright with a more grassy citrusy notes. The Burley is simply not evident to me. Maybe due to age or my palate but I didnt realize Burley was in this blend until I read the description.

Overall, it is a fine entry level blend. Smokes cool, it's a fairly dry smoke, and it's inexpensive. But it wont be impressive. 5.5/10

Similar Blends: University Professor.

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