Virginia /Perique Tobacco » Cornell & Diehl #840: Or L'yom (Daylight) Tobacco Reviews

Or L'yom: a codger Burley with more character than you'll find in an OTC blend.

Or L’yom, the fifth blend that I’ve tried from C&D’s Hebraica Series is a coarse-cut mix of various brown tone and black tobaccos supplied at an ideal moisture level. Upon opening the jar from which I’ve been indulging for the past two years, a vague sour, musty, and subtly sweet bouquet emerges.

The charring light creates an aroma suggestive of a cigar blend – most noticeable in the nose and sinuses, but that fades quickly as the bowl settles in and the taste becomes Burley-forward with good sweet support from bread-like red Virginias, and a dark Cavendish -- almost certainly made from sweetened, toasted Burley -- which produces a slightly parching finish. There is a mere hint of Burley bitters – not a bad thing, here -- and an amazingly round Burley body.

The burn produces ample clouds of chewy smoke with a hint of Oriental mustiness (my guess would be Izmir), and a tastefully low level of plum-like Perique with a peppery tingle in the margins of the mouth and in the nose. In the background, maybe it’s in the finish, is a brut, chalky sensation that stops short of developing a cocoa flavor – and it complements the brown-tone flavors of the Burley quite nicely. All along, the bread-like red Virginias continue to pump in the sweetness necessary to keep the blend well balanced and delectable. This is very much a case of a brawny Burley wedded to a VaPer with a hint of Oriental mustiness.

I found the blend to be very much in the style of a codger Burley, ideal for a morning smoke. Despite a slight lack of clarity, which muddies-up the dark-tone flavors somewhat, I find that the flavor matrix varies a lot depending on the pipe I use, my current appetite, or the condition of my palate. At times I’m impressed by the bread-like sweetness of the blend. On other occasions I can’t help but notice the pungent Oriental taste it produces. I have even had sessions with this blend in which a citrus zest was its most conspicuous sensation – and God only knows wherefore. But in the main, think of it as a rounded, full bodied, satisfying codger Burley with more character than you’re likely to find in an OTC blend.

This is easy to pack and burn; has medium nicotine strength; is dry smoking; and has no bite. It produces a pleasant, delicately bitter finish that is better described as “woody”.