Cornell & Diehl Black Frigate is a true Royal Navy blend — Bright and Red Virginias soaked and aged in real rum, Latakia and Turkish layered in, pressed and sliced into an old-fashioned crumble cake.
Black Frigate is built on C&D's Blockade Runner Navy Cavendish — Bright and Red Virginias hand-stoved, soaked in premium rum for seven days, then lightly stoved again. For Black Frigate, Cornell & Diehl adds a healthy dose of Cyprian Latakia and spicy Oriental Turkish tobaccos on top of that rum-aged base, then presses the whole blend into a traditional crumble cake. The result is a true Royal Navy–style English — rich, smoky, naturally sweet from the rum-soaked Virginias, and complex enough to reward slow smoking. Part of Cornell & Diehl's nautical Sea Scoundrels series.
Blend Information
- Blend Family: English (Rum-topped Virginia / Latakia)
- Components: Bright Virginia · Red Virginia (rum-aged) · Cyprian Latakia · Oriental / Turkish
- Flavoring: Real rum (Virginias soaked and aged for seven days)
- Cut: Crumble Cake
- Body / Strength: Medium to Medium-Full
- Room Note: Balanced
- Country of Origin: United States (Morganton, NC)
- Format: 2 oz tin
Tasting Profile: The rum-aged Virginias form a creamy, naturally sweet base with a soft tang of rum running underneath. Cyprian Latakia layers smoky, leathery, campfire-adjacent notes over the top; Oriental Turkish brings a dry, slightly ethereal spice that cuts the sweetness and keeps the blend balanced. The crumble cake format melds the components together — ash is clean, the burn is slow, the room note richer than most Latakia blends.
A C&D classic that pulls off a legitimately difficult trick: a Royal Navy blend that satisfies both Latakia smokers and Virginia smokers in the same bowl.
