If there is one thing that pipe smokers will never lack, it's variety. From Aromatic to Va/Per blends, there is a little something for everyone, but that doesn't make it any less overwhelming when searching for your next smoke. Cornell & Diehl has proven themselves to be a reliable source of hand-crafted, flavorful, and consistent smokes built on a passion for the industry.

Among my favorite C&D series is the Serenity series, comprising four blends, divided into non-Latakia and Latakia blends: Reverie, Repose, Consolation, and Comfort. "The Serenity series represents perfect existential calm and peace with the absence of boredom. They're pleasant, nearly euphoric to smoke, and just lend themselves to calm and contemplative moments," says Jeremy Reeves, Head Blender at Cornell & Diehl.

While the blends are divided on their Latakia contents, they're united by the use of cube-cut Burley. Cube-cut is unique in its creation: It's a series of Burley leaves pressed together into a dense block before being sliced into tiny cubes. "You're able to get the kind of density of tobacco that would be in an unbroken flake but in a format that you could just fill your pipe with," shares Jeremy. "Cube-cut is also really easy to pack because it's basically little blocks of compressed tobacco. Simply gravity feeding the cube-cut into your pipe and just tapping the side of the pipe a little bit to let things settle into place gives you a pretty reliable and good pack without much effort."

Consolation

Consolation is a soothing blend of Latakia, Turkish, and Bright Virginias that's balanced with Black Cavendish and cube-cut Burley for a smooth, slightly sweet finish. For fans of classics like C&D's Junkyard Dawg and My Mixture 965 by Peterson (formerly produced by Dunhill), Consolation is a great entry point into the Serenity series. Jeremy describes it as "a classic English blend with a little Black Cavendish in the mix. The strength and complexity of the tobaccos are nicely balanced by the use of soft and easy-burning Black Cavendish. It's just an easygoing smoke, satisfying without being too heavy."

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Components: Virginia, Latakia, Burley, Orientals, Black Cavendish

Family: English

Cut: Ribbon

Comfort

A comforting, slow-burning mixture of Perique and Bright Virginias with a touch of cube-cut Burley and Black Cavendish for a smooth, slow-burning smoke, Comfort is a Perique lover's dream that's easy to find solace in. Comfort is especially appreciated by fans of blends like Old Joe Krantz or Bayou Morning.

Jeremy shares how the components make Comfort such a soothing blend: "The Black Cavendish used in this mixture is different from that in Reverie and Consolation. This Black Cavendish is processed from Dominican cigar leaf, lending a little bit of a chocolatey note to it that works really nicely with the denseness of cube-cut Burley. It really brings out some of the chocolatey and nutty notes in the Burley, with the Burley being balanced not with the Bright Virginia, but rather the Turkish."

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Components: Virginia, Perique, Burley, Black Cavendish

Family: Virginia

Cut: Ribbon

Repose

Primarily composed of cube-cut Burley with a touch of Turkish leaf and Bright Virginia that's sweetened with a little dark rum, "it's definitely not what I would consider an Aromatic. We're using real rum, so it doesn't overpower the blend to smell or taste like it. It's just augmenting it with a touch of added sweetness," Jeremy shares. It's the only blend in the Serenity series that doesn't feature Black Cavendish.

The rum plays in a nice melody of sweetness with the Bright Virginia and Turkish that uplifts the cube-cut Burley, which lacks a natural sweetness. Jeremy shares who Repose is aimed toward, "Repose is the blend in this line that is really made for the Burley lovers. It's very old school — if you're a fan of blends like Burley Without Bite or the old codgers like Carter Hall, or C&D staples like Haunted Bookshop, then this is a blend that is right up your alley."

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Components: Virginia, Burley, Orientals

Family: Virginia

Cut: Ribbon

Reverie

Reverie lends itself to sunny naps in the hammock or lounging under swaying palm trees. It's a contemplative mixture of Black Cavendish and cube-cut Burley with a soft touch of Perique, Latakia, and Turkish. Jeremy shares his thoughts on the blend's composition: "The strength and complexity of the tobaccos are nicely balanced by the use of the easy-burning Black Cavendish. It's just easy to smoke, easy to enjoy, and satisfying without being too heavy." Jeremy says if you're a fan of Bright Virginia, of their natural sweetness, or if you are a fan of prominent Oriental tobacco in a blend then Reverie is the Serenity blend for you.

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Components: Latakia, Perique, Burley, Orientals, Black Cavendi

Family: English

Cut: Ribbon

Jeremy's Favorites and Cellaring

While all tobaccos are great to cellar, some perform better for natural aging. In Jeremy's expert opinion, three of Serenity's blends are primed for better aging fermentation, "You've certainly got enough natural sugar in Comfort, Reverie, and Consolation to really lend themselves to fine aging. Since Repose is so predominantly cube-cut Burley, it doesn't have much in the way of natural sugar. However, the rum component does, which allows it to marry and give everything a touch of sugar to ferment for a little bit. Repose ages with less dramatic fermentation than you would expect from a Bright Virginia flake; if you age it for say 10 or 15 years, it just mellows."

Jeremy naturally has a favorite in the lineup. "Personally, I absolutely love Comfort. I think it's among the few blends allowing the stout Perique flavor to sing without being overpowering or disruptive to the balance of the blend. I think Comfort strikes that pose quite well."

My personal favorite of the lineup is Reverie; it really is just a nice, easy smoke straight out of the tin, with just enough nicotine to help mellow on a calm Sunday.

Jeremy does have something he wants to make sure is appreciated. "I just want to shout out to the label redesign that we did a few years ago. I'm just in love with the floral motifs of all the labels. I think that they're unique blends with a unique history and that the floral motif just speaks to that while being instantly comforting and recognizable to the eyes. It absolutely brings to me that feeling and experience of Serenity every time I grab a tin."

You can try the Serenity series now on-site, available in 2oz tins. Have you tried the Serenity series? Do you have a favorite or one you're eager to try? Let us know in the comments below! Happy smokes!