I posted the following review on TR.com. I really got a kick out of the tin art on this one and even bought a t-shirt with the design.
The C&D catalog describes Purple Cow as "A classic blend from Bob Runowski. Bright VA ribbon is added to a Burley base, then complemented by a dash of Latakia and tasty maduro cigar leaf." This was a good sign for me as I have never smoked a Bob Runowski blend that I didn't like and some of his creations are among my all time favorites.
Purple Cow is available in 2, 8, and 16 oz. tins and has a rather humorous logo with a pipe smoking purple cow and a farmer with an astonished look on his face. I tested the 2 oz. tin. The cut is a rather wide ribbon. There are several shades of brown and some black in the tobacco.
PC seems to like a rather firm pack in the pipe, perhaps because of the cut. One charring light gets it going, then the smoker is treated to a mix of the burley flavor with the Latakia in the background, perhaps not as prominent as in a tobacco like Morley's Best. The VA is there but plays a minor role, however this one can nip your tongue if puffed too fast. The maduro leaf appears to become more prominent as the tobacco is smoked down and adds a cigar note to the mix. PC burns well and down to the bottom of the pipe with no dottle.
I did require a few relights while smoking it, but that is par for the course with me, I've never been a "one match" smoker. PC was smoked in six different pipes and seemed to prefer larger ones, particularly my XL Lannes Johnson.
Overall I enjoyed Purple Cow and will definitely purchase it again. Bob, you did good!
Scores for Purple Cow: Taste-16 of 20; lighting and burn- 7 of 10; value- 8 of 10. 31 pts. gets Purple Cow a high *** rating
Smokey
