Enlighten me on C&D and GLP

[ofafeather]

My advise is to stop thinking in terms of what everyone else rates these blends and explore for yourself. But, don't be in a hurry. Ease on in and wallow around.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. There are some great blends to be had in bulk. I tend to buy tins because it’s easy for me to deal with but bulk is cheaper and easy to buy a single oz of a bunch of stuff.

Usually their bulk tobacco will be dry or on the dry side, even the aros. Keep that in mind. Also as was previously mentioned, sometimes a few weeks in a jar can make a big difference.

Looking at my cellar, I have over 20 different C&D blends and 40 GLP blends! Don’t even ask about poundage and that doesn’t include blends they’ve made for other labels.

Among others I think that C&D Bijou and GLP Regents Flake are among the best tobaccos out there. Both are Va/Oriental blends.

 

[Hutch Piper]

I think GLP makes only one aromatic - The Virginia Cream. He is most known for his English blends, and just generally being creative in his blending.

C&D has so many great blends of all types.

 

[Sig]

Well, I for one don't have any trouble understanding OP's question at all.

C&D are super popular and much discussed, but you don't see many of their standard blends holding the same rabid, lustful fan base that you see for something like Esoterica or 1792 Flake, for example. (Haunted Bookshop and Carolina Red Flake might come close.)

I've wondered why, too, and my best guess is that C&D blends aren't treated with the same fervor because it's simply taken as a given that they're such solid blends.

It isn't that people don't appreciate their offerings; folks just tend to talk more emphatically about things that the cool kids flip out over. C&D are reliable, consistent, delicious, and don't appear to be going anywhere soon. People take that for granted.

I think if they were to announce closure, we'd see the fawning that appears absent now.

To my taste, their blends have a natural, earthy flavor of unmolested tobacco and a richness that takes about half a bowl to unfold. It's good stuff and rewards long visits over several weeks.

Some really good ones I'd recommend are Bayou Night, Super Balkan, Oriental Silk, and Briar Fox.

I also think that many consider C&D blends everyday smokers and cellar suffers. It's much cooler to say you have 3 pounds of FVF stored versus I have 3 pounds of Pegasus stored.

 

[sunnysmokes]

Funnily enough after I posted this thread, this video appears on my YouTube feed:

 

[ofafeather]

Funnily enough after I posted this thread, this video appears on my YouTube feed:

Interesting. Also by chance Briarworks Smokehouse blended by C&D was just released today, too.

 

[ofafeather]

A few other interesting things that are more recent - they have a proprietary red VA cavendish and proprietary Perique grown on farms owned by Laudisi, C&Ds parent company.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I think GLP makes only one aromatic - The Virginia Cream. He is most known for his English blends, and just generally being creative in his blending.

C&D has so many great blends of all types.

Stonehenge is cased with a sauce made for him by GH. Virginia Cream is not what I would call a traditional aromatic. I mean, yeh, it has a splash of liquor on it, but all of the rest of the flavors and mouth feel for that one is in the selection and amounts of various leaf used in the mix. It smokes best in a pipe NOT dedicated to aromatics.
But…. YMMV

 

[cosmicfolklore]

True but @Chasing Embers also expressed an opinion.

Well, no. He twisted logic to denigrate the other opinion. He did not just disagree or pose his own opinion.
Words mean something.

But using your own logic. Why denigrate my opinion of another's opinion about an opinion. So there…

PM me if you want to say anything else to me.

 

[Steddy]

I really like their style. Natural, earthy, a little rustic, the flavors are clear to me. Kind of like a good wine vs one that has been adulterated. Kind of like a good whiskey vs Fireball. Kind of like a rustic loaf bread vs Wonder bread.

I’m not saying it’s better, it’s just what I prefer.

 

[Hutch Piper]

Stonehenge is cased with a sauce made for him by GH. Virginia Cream is not what I would call a traditional aromatic. I mean, yeh, it has a splash of liquor on it, but all of the rest of the flavors and mouth feel for that one is in the selection and amounts of various leaf used in the mix. It smokes best in a pipe NOT dedicated to aromatics.
But…. YMMV

FYI Stonehenge is out of production.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

FYI Stonehenge is out of production.

Thanks... I wasn't aware.

 

[geoffs]

C&D offers a more "raw" tobacco taste. In my experience when they hit it right, it's amazing. But if it's a blend that's not quite to your taste, it can be a big miss, because there's nothing extra to smooth out the rough edges. Age definitely helps in that regard.

 

[The Novice Piper]

And are their staple offerings (not limited release) just "good enough" because it's readily available, or truly a good product that does stand up to those who might have more focused attention on lesser blends (even if harder to get)?

In my experience, they are truly good products. A lot of it boils down to personal taste, but even the blends I haven't liked are clearly made with quality tobacco.

Over time this distinction has become clearer for me...it's possible to have a "quality-tasting" tobacco that isn't mixed well with others, or has an obviously artificial added flavoring. C&D rarely make these mistakes, it seems.

That being said, there are others who apparently specialize in certain blends (or have spent a long time perfecting one) and they produce knock-out stuff. Tabac Manil is a good example. Bengal Slices or SPC Hogshead are good examples. Naturally this specialist approach produces some exceptional blends, but that doesn't mean those specialists are capable of making a wide variety of standards. And C&D have their own share of specialized blends that are top-tier. They really are a powerhouse the loss of which would devastate US pipesmoking.

Over time I've noticed that a lot of blenders have their own unique flavor "profile" or base flavor, something hard to articulate. I can tell a Watch City blend from a Peterson Blend right away.

C&D's signature profile is very smooth, rich, and natural. They do a particularly good job of mixing multiple flavors together seamlessly.

I'd echo others' advice and just jump in, don't overthink it. If you want to get a solid idea of what oriental or burley tobaccos taste like, C&D has a huge variety of great examples.

 

[ChubbyOldHiker]

One thing I think people may miss is that C&D is so readily available--SP never seems to have a limited supply of anything. People tend not to appreciate things they can easily get, which is why their limited runs disappear so quickly, and why their standard blends may not have the same cache.

Personally, I've now tried about 40 C&D blends and have liked them all. I've loved some, (Atlas Balkan was new to me this morning and blew my mind) and probably won't buy others again (looking at you, Byzantium) but all have been worth my time and all I have bought will be smoked eventually.

 

[khiddy]

I've spoken earlier about sleepers blended by C&D, especially their Low Country line, but under their own label they make several fantastic blends that fly way under the radar and score way high on QPR to my palate and pocketbook.

Cordial is a superb light English blend in the vein of Dunhill Aperitif, and Mountain Camp is a lovely high-latakia "kitchen sink" blend that is fantastic for an outdoor patio smoke. I keep those (and the aforementioned Yorktown) in stock by the pound at chez khiddy.

 

[Steddy]

Funnily enough after I posted this thread, this video appears on my YouTube feed:

Great video, I learned that molasses is added to the Burley in Old Joe Krantz. Never knew.

 

[NookersTheCat]

It’s one reason why I like to read the WAYS threads. Gives me a good sense of what people are actually smoking regularly.

This for sure. Granted, we are a small sample size (a subset of people who post what we're smoking relatively frequently also of a subset of people on a pipe smoking forum to begin with) but it's definitely a good 'boots on the ground' approach, I agree wholeheartedly. Definitely a difference between that and seeing all this McClelland thrown around on the TAD... not mentioning any names @Brad H

 

[NookersTheCat]

C&D offers a more "raw" tobacco taste. In my experience when they hit it right, it's amazing. But if it's a blend that's not quite to your taste, it can be a big miss, because there's nothing extra to smooth out the rough edges. Age definitely helps in that regard.

I definitely agree with this in their good blends.. along with many of the other things said here. Now it's also a reason that many (including myself) don't see them as a favorite... but I don't hold it against them either.. it's a legitimate style and something that sets them apart as a blending house.

My main criticism of C&D though is that I just think they've got too many damn blends that are way too similar... especially when you realize that minimally cased/topped tobaccos are their shtick. I mean, how many different ways/proportions can you blend the same unflavored Burley, Red VA, and Perique?? Maybe there are some out there that can tell blindfolded Bayou morning has 30% perique 70% burley while Bayou night has 35% perique 65% burley and Kajun kake has 40% perique 60% burley... or the 5 different colors each of Billy Budd or OJK... but I am not one of them lol

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Maybe there are some out there that can tell blindfolded Bayou morning has 30% perique 70% burley while Bayou night has 35% perique 70% burley

Ahhhh, well... It's pretty easy, when you realize that Bayou Night has latakia. The cavendish part of Kajun Kake is what sets that one apart, very smooth. Admittedly, I am still working my way through all of their offerings, but I have yet to find one to be closely similar to the rest at all. A few years ago, they removed all of the similar blends, so what is left are all very unique.

And, I find all of the OLK blends to be vastly different. Still getting around to the Billy Budds.

Some people just prefer cased tobaccos, and that's a perfectly valid thing. Some of us just prefer to only taste tobaccos.
But, many have repeated that thing about them having too many similar blends, but that started long before they reduced their selections. Maybe, it continues to remain repeated because folks forgot that they reduced their blends. Just a guess.

 

[Zamora]

The only GLP blend I've smoked is Maltese Falcon, it's great and I'll definitely be getting more of his stuff. I haven't had anything from C&D and their massive catalog makes dipping in a bit daunting, but when I do it will probably be either Star of the East, Bayou Morning, Bluegrass, or Purple Cow.