I've never found CC's to smell or taste anything like NC's.
Back in the day when I still smoked NC's I always noticed these two major differentiations (outside of taste, smell, balance, transitioning flavors and complexity lol)
1) I could smoke 5-6 CC's in a day, and that night or the next morning, my mouth and throat was none the wiser. I never woke up with a tobacco or cigar taste in my mouth and I never had any trace of even smoking.
However, if I smoked even 1 NC, I could taste it in my mouth and throat for a day or 2. It would taste and feel like I just ate a roof shingle.
2) NC's always left a metallic, chemical taste on my lips after smoking. It wasn't nicotine either, it was something else, but very unpleasant. Something I never even remotely get from a CC.