Thoughts about Crooner
Okay, I said I would review Ctooner by Cornell and Diehl, which says they got the recipe for this tobacco from an old trusted friend of Bing Crosby. Crooner is in the top 100 best sellers on Smoking Pipes website. They had one ounce left when I bought it and now they are currently sold out. But what makes this tobacco stand out from so many others? Is it that it is associated with Bing Crosby? Well, that might be part of it, but most is out of pure curiosity.
I had to do some research into it, but Cornell and Diehl is the only pipe tobacco blender that uses deertongue. Never heard of it? I hadn't either after smoking pipes for fifty years. Deertongue is new to me. This tobacco blend uses deertongue. So, what the heck is deertongue? It is a plant native to North America which grows mostly in the wild along the East Coast from the Carolinas down to Florida. When one treks in the woods often one comes across the scent of it.
It is a Vanilla plant; and only the dried leaves release the scent. Native Americans used it for healing and other uses including the fragrance that is almost like any fragrance, except the fragrance is Vanilla. It has soothing properties besides just its pleasant fragrance. Back in the 70's it became a popular ingredient in the tobacco blending business, but has since fallen out of favor having been replaced with the artificial Vanilla flavoring used today. But a few tobacco blends by Cornell and Diehl have it.
Every pipe smoker says it has to be tried at least once just so one will know what it is. Crooner is NOT an Aromatic. But it has a fragrant Vanilla room note and gives the tobacco a natural Vanilla flavor. Now, that is the lowdown on deertongue. Why it is named this goes back to native America. The Native Americans gave it that name. The leaves are not tobacco, but they are dried in much the same way tobacco leaves are dried. And they give off the Vanilla scent after they are dried.
It was used by the settlers of this country simply as a scent, but in the 1700's they discovered the Natives use for it as a tobacco leaf would be used for smoking. So, it was added in tobacco, but fell out of use in place of artificial flavoring until then. It is said the old Half and Half used it. Many tobacco blenders back then used it. But as artificial flavoring became the norm only a few use it today, as most notably Cornell and Diehl. It is found in Crooner.
It is polarizing among pipe smokers. But every pipe smoker will tell you it has to be given a try, which is probably why Crooner is on top 100 list. I had been tempted to try it, but simply added an ounce to my order to give me enough for free shipping. I thought for the equivalence of free, I'd try an ounce. So, what do I think of it? At first, I was slightly puzzled by it. It's not an English and not an Aromatic. So, what is it? It's a natural Vanilla flavored tobacco that is Burley with deertongue.
It is exactly as described. I had my first bowl and I wasn't sure. But my second bowl had me convinced. This is a very good blend. I like the fact the Vanilla is natural and I can't understand why it's not used more. But I understand it's rare, except now it's used for land reclamation after mining to regrow growth that was once destroyed. But at least now I know what it is and if I see it listed as an ingredient in a blend I won't be afraid of it. I'll understand what it is.
So, my thinking this morning is that while I wouldn't smoke it all the time it might be nice to have on hand just for something different. It gets 4.38 stars on Smoking Pipes with 103 reviews. That is excellent for any tobacco. And it's not because it was Bing's tobacco. I wouldn't call it an every day smoke, but then one doesn't drink a fine wine every day. Once in awhile a pipe smoker wants something different. This is that tobacco. This morning I dd something I'd never done before. I was smoking my Gettysburg pipe, having begun my morning with a bowl of Old Professor. I dropped my pipe and the stem broke on it. So, now it is my Lee Van Cleef Meerscaum pipe with some Crooner. My coffee this morning is a hot black cup of fresh brewed Guatamalan coffee. Thank you for your time and Peace to each one of you.
Dave
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