McClelland

10 Great Winter Smokes

January 19, 2023 by Gabriel Bass

11 Comments

As winter begins its gusty approach once again, I find myself returning to blends that offer rich, deep flavors, or alternately, old favorites that feature top notes of nostalgic quality. I can't say what exactly draws me to certain blend types in the winter months. Perhaps Latakia's smoky, incense-like flavors unlock ... Read More

Life After McClelland

June 28, 2019 by Chuck Stanion

47 Comments

Many have written to ask what I recommend as a replacement for McClelland, but there is no replacement for McClelland tobacco. Reasonable replications of particular blends are remotely possible, but not with the same ingredients used by McClelland, unless some tobacco company wants to start from the ground up ... Read More

Farewell McClelland

March 9, 2018 by Chuck Stanion

31 Comments

I'm a Virginia/Perique smoker, and my daily smoke for the past ten years has been McClelland's Beacon, a flake of unsurpassed complexity and clean, pure taste. It hasn't been an outrageously popular blend—I think I probably bought more than anyone else over the years. It is my friend and I'll miss it desperately.

Know Your Pipe Tobacco: Blending Components

December 23, 2016 by Andrew Wike

21 Comments

Whether you're interested in blending your own pipe tobacco or just want to better understand some of your life-long favorite mixtures, it's important to know what each component brings to the table and how it interacts with the other leaves in your blend. Many of you likely already know the differences in flavor between ... Read More

Holiday Gift Guide 2016

December 6, 2016 by Adam O'Neill

2 Comments

Christmas shopping can be an intimidating endeavor at the best of times. Not only do you have to find the time to get to the shops, navigate the running of the bulls that is walking into any retail store after Thanksgiving, but you have to actually buy a personalised gift, often for people that are unwilling to give any kind of clue as to what that might be. ... Read More

Spring Showdown 2016: Final Four Spring Va-Per Tobaccos

April 15, 2016 by Adam O'Neill

22 Comments

With the announcement of our second Spring Showdown, we also mentioned we'd be doing it a little differently this year. Instead of an all in brawl to see which blend in a wide open field of contenders was the best springtime smoke, we narrowed the scope a little ... Read More