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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 and figure it out, step by step, completely overwriting their own methods, as well as source the same leaf. Like every blender in history, McClelland had proprietary practices, and for another company to alter its own proprietary practices enough to blend McClelland-style tobaccos is implausible if not impossible, especially because they'd have to be developed independently. McClelland's style and its strategies for achieving that style are gone. Those processes were forged and actualized within the confines of the McClelland factory, now dismantled, where no visitors were permitted. I tried for years, but I was unable to weasel my way in, not with charm, not with bribes, tricks, tears, or at 3:00 a.m. with a crowbar.
I've been smoking primarily McClelland Virginias and Vapers (Virginia/Perique blends) for about 15 years. I used to smoke everything before that, including McClelland and every other tobacco brand — and many Englishes, Virginias, Burleys, and occasional Aromatics, but I mainly smoked English blends.
Suddenly, my wife didn't like that. I'd smoked English blends around her for years, but one day she complained, and she doesn't complain about anything. So I stopped smoking any blend containing Latakia while indoors, limiting myself to Virginias and Vapers, because my wife didn't mind those.
The more I smoked those Virginias, the more I liked them, until after a few months I couldn't tolerate Latakia at all. Even the smallest portion was overpowering and distracting. I stopped smoking English blends and started smoking only Virginias.
After some time, my tastes narrowed to one blend: Beacon, of which I have often written. I do not beguile myself with the notion that it is the universally perfect tobacco, but for a long time it met my needs, and possibly only mine. As many times as I've shared my pouch with folks, no one has ever asked for a second bowl. My colleague at Pipes and tobaccos magazine, Cliff Nelson, tried it and said it tasted like cigarette tobacco, the barbarian. (For weeks after that incident, I interacted with Cliff only by throwing magazines at him). I suspect I'm the only one who can't tolerate the thought of a Beaconless future, though many around the world feel that way about their own favorite McClelland tobaccos.
Now my tobacco is gone, and after mourning for a reasonable time, I've accepted that what Beacon I have left won't last indefinitely. I need to explore other tobaccos. There's something out there for me, I know, maybe many things. I used to regularly enjoy a wide range of tobaccos and think it's time I explore that approach again.
And I have an advantage, because Smokingpipes, the company I work for, is a sister company to Cornell & Diehl tobacco. C&D is just down the road a couple of miles, and Jeremy Reeves, the head blender, is always willing to talk with me about how to go about branching out and finding other tobaccos I may enjoy.
Jeremy blending ribbon by hand
Jeremy knows I'm currently a McClelland Virginia/Perique guy. His expertise, though, is in C&D tobaccos, so his recommendations of course gravitated to items in the C&D lineup, though I'll diverge into other brands as the experiment progresses. But for now, since I have the world's foremost expert on C&D tobaccos at my disposal, I've taken advantage.
"I think a lot of people who enjoyed McClelland's offerings really looked to them for their Virginia selections," says Jeremy. "And I think, overall, the McClelland flavor profile focused on a tangier emphasis. Some people in their descriptions refer to a vinegar aroma. So I think if you are looking for something from the C&D catalog that fits that, it can't happen because McClelland had their own way of doing things and we also have our own way of doing things."
So I'm doomed. However, Jeremy offered some hope.
"There are some blends that quickly rise to the top in terms of analogous flavor profiles." That essentially means that if I can identify particular flavors in McClelland that I like, I may be able to find similar flavor elements in other tobaccos, and see if I also like them in those blends, perhaps finding new tobaccos to interest me. It isn't looking for a match, which is impossible, but for analogues upon which I can concentrate to see if particular similarities appeal to me.
"I personally really like the Virginias that we blend with," Jeremy continues. "I select them personally and I think they are rich and full bodied and robust. We have four red Virginias that we use." Sugar and nicotine levels are roughly similar in them, according to Jeremy, with the exception of the leaf used for C&D's Small Batch Carolina Red Flake, which has a higher sugar content, and I know I like that because I truly do enjoy CRF, the problem being that it's so rare.
I needed some context for talking about sugar content, and Jeremy is well-equipped with that information. "Typically the brighter the leaf," he says, "the more sugar you expect and the less nicotine you expect. For darker leaf the converse is true." He explains that darker red or orange leaf achieves its color according to maturity, that is, the time on the stalk collecting oils and sun and becoming ripe. "In some cases," says Jeremy, "we look for overripe Virginia. You'd be surprised how visually ugly a farmer might let his tobacco get for the purpose of the aroma and the flavor that it can offer. You look at it and it looks rough, it looks terrible, the leaves get tattered, they get sunspots, but the flavor that this leaf provides for a blend, the flavor is so rich that the ugly appearance is not pertinent." I gather it's something similar to banana bread, which requires ugly, overripe bananas to be successful.
"Carolina Red Flake is one blend that comes to mind," says Jeremy. "I think there are some flavor analogies to be drawn between the leaf that we use for Carolina Red Flake and some of the leaf profile that McClelland really crafted and spent so much time focusing on. Tangier. I think that CRF is a little spicier than you would typically find in McClelland, it's got a spicy sort of tingle on the tongue that I didn't find to be a mainstay of McClelland-style blending. But it has a rich sweetness and a palpable tanginess, a sort of tart flavor and aroma."
Check. When CRF is again released, I'll pick some up, not only because of Jeremy's recommendation, but because I already know I like it.
"Speakeasy is another possibility. We actually use the same grade Virginia in Speakeasy as we use in Carolina Red Flake. CRF, Speakeasy, and Sweet Tea [made for Briarworks] are the only tobaccos we use that particular leaf in. It's for that slightly higher sugar content and for its overall flavor profile, and that beautiful tang that it brings." It's the primary component of Speakeasy, so I wrote that down. "That leaf has a remarkably unique flavor profile. When I came across it, I was in the process of sourcing a new grade of red Virginia for all C&D blends. We don't have the luxury of the space to keep myriad grades on hand. One of the things that makes us unique is that our primary focus is on one grade of bright Virginia, one grade of red Virginia, one grade of Oriental tobacco, one grade of white Burley, one grade of dark Burley and one or two grades of cigar leaf that we blend together. The vast majority of our blends are produced with these singular components in varying quantities and treated by various methods. But in red Virginia, there are a couple of grades beyond our mainstay grade, and one of those is the grade we use for CRF."
I think there are some flavor analogies to be drawn between the leaf that we use for Carolina Red Flake and some of the leaf profile that McClelland really crafted and spent so much time focusing on. Tangier. I think that CRF is a little spicier than you would typically find in McClelland, it's got a spicy sort of tingle on the tongue that I didn't find to be a mainstay of McClelland-style blending. But it has a rich sweetness and a palpable tanginess, a sort of tart flavor and aroma.
When Jeremy chooses leaf, he goes to testing panels with the manufacturer, checking the specifics of each grade and smoking them. "There's a lot more to a leaf than what it says on paper regarding nicotine and sugar. There are things that can't be conveyed in a graph, various character traits of a particular leaf selection, like tanginess. You may be able to predict that there would be a tangy quality based on other aspects of the grading system, but the overall flavor profile is not as simple as choosing the right nicotine and sugar levels." Different crops and their various grades have different personalities, it seems, even within specific grades. Blenders can't just phone in an order, they must carefully taste each new supply of leaf beforehand. "So I was going through this tasting panel," says Jeremy, "and finding, okay, this one won't work for whatever reason, or I'm not pleased with the way this one burns, but there was this grade that looked very close, slightly lighter in color, and when I tasted it, I was blown away with how delicious it was."
It had a subtle caraway seed flavor, he explains, that was different from the flavor he was looking for; he was looking for a close match to the mainstay red Virginia that C&D uses. "I knew this was special," says Jeremy, "but I also knew that it would change the overall flavor profile of everything we make. I want to stay as close to our established flavor profile as I possibly can." That's how Carolina Red Flake became a project, because that leaf was so beautiful and tasty that Jeremy just had to take advantage of it. It's too distinctive, though, too different, for use in C&D's regular blends.
I also needed a blender's perspective on the use of Perique. I've visited Mark Ryan's Perique operation in Louisiana, in St. James Parish, the only place on earth where Perique grows well enough to harvest for blending while maintaining its distinctive flavors. It's packed into large wooden barrels, similar to those used by whiskey distillers, and huge jack screws are regularly tightened, pushing the barrel lids down, placing the tobacco under enormous pressure for months. It is, without doubt, the ugliest tobacco possible, at least during processing. The barrels appear to be filled with thick, intimidating, evil black goop. I recognized it from childhood nightmares.
But it's delicious as a condimental tobacco, in my opinion. It has to be used properly, though. Too much and I know it, too little and it's useless.
Perique barrels under pressure.
Jeremy agrees. "Perique varies from barrel to barrel," he says. "Same leaf, same group of farms, but barrel to barrel can be different. Like single barrel whisky. It's interesting that the same distillate from the same run in five different barrels can have notably different characteristics after they've spent time in their respective barrels. It all came from the same mash, the same distillation run, but the barrel itself imparts its own flavor. In Perique, a barrel can veer more toward a spicy category; it can veer more toward an earthy or loamy category; it can veer more into the realms of cherries and chocolate. When I purchase Perique every year, I go to Louisiana and hand select the barrels we use so that I know ahead of time that we're maintaining consistency."
In making recommendations, Jeremy thinks about the hallmarks of Virginia/Perique blends, and thinking of those same hallmarks as they exist in other blends, whether they contain Perique or not. "I'm thinking about a fruity characteristic," he says, "depending on the quantity of Perique used. I find that in smaller doses, Perique imparts more of the fruity side of its character, whereas in larger doses it tends to go earthy or loamy in the way it presents and the kinds of flavors that it brings out of the other tobaccos."
In Perique, a barrel can veer more toward a spicy category; it can veer more toward an earthy or loamy category; it can veer more into the realms of cherries and chocolate. When I purchase Perique every year, I go to Louisiana and hand select the barrels we use so that I know ahead of time that we're maintaining consistency.
Then there's the aging component. I never liked fresh Beacon and always put at least two years of age on it before smoking. It changes character at that point, going from average to sublime. Not only do I need to try lots of new tobaccos, but I also have to age what I can to see if I like them after they have time to mature. Jeremy says that Perique actually improves the aging characteristic of a blend.
"If you take a particular tobacco, let's say Bayou Morning, which is 25 percent Perique, initially you have a very earthy, spicy, mushroomy kind of tone that is imparted to that blend, but after aging it, you will eventually get to that fruitier, chocolatey tone as well. Perique seems to act like a sourdough starter; it seems to kick start fermentation because it is itself a product of fermentation."
Perique after fermentation.
Speakeasy has smaller quantities of Perique, and includes dark-fired Kentucky, and Oriental, along with the red Virginia used in CRF. "It retains the tangy quality that is so unique, that you may be attracted to because of your affection for McClelland. It has a sort of caraway seed aroma and flavor, but with a slightly smoky element brought by the Dark Fired Kentucky, and a bit of fruity character contributed by the Perique and the Oriental. In small quantities, Oriental will impart a sweet note, working with the Perique and Dark Fired. If I kicked up the Orientals you'd get some funkier tones, that spicy character, but in small quantities, the primary thing it's adding is sugar. And then the whole blend is cased with rum, and the alcohol is allowed to evaporate, so that too is reintroducing some darker sugars to the blend, essentially molasses."
Speakeasy and CRF. Check.
One of the things that makes us unique is that our primary focus is on one grade of bright Virginia, one grade of red Virginia, one grade of Oriental tobacco, one grade of white Burley, one grade of dark Burley and one or two grades of cigar leaf that we blend together. The vast majority of our blends are produced with these singular components in varying quantities and treated by various methods.
"Bijou also comes to mind," says Jeremy. "It uses a red Virginia from 2003. So we take red Virginia and bright flue-cured leaf from Canada, and steam those, and that gives you a darker color and darker overall flavor profile. Essentially, we're caramelizing the sugars. If, for example, you were a fan of McClelland's Dark Star, you might enjoy Bijou, not to say they are the same, not to say Bijou is any kind of match for Dark Star, but that darker leaf and that darker deeper flavor of Dark Star, you may find that somewhere in Bijou. After the red and bright have been steamed and dried back down, we add a little Katerini, which is a very unique Oriental tobacco. Unfortunately, more and more of the Oriental quantities are being bought up by the cigarette industry and there's less and less for everyone else's use. American style cigarettes are Burleys, Orientals and Virginias. In English style cigarettes it's Virginias and Orientals, no Burley. In the areas that produce these Oriental tobaccos, it's smoked straight. The crops are commissioned by the cigarette companies, and what's left over is what everyone else gets to use. It's the reality of the industry."
Bijou. Check.
Sunday Picnic is another recommendation. It pairs red and bright Virginias to some Oriental, with the addition of a little Perique. "Perique provides a little more nicotine kick," says Jeremy, "and brings out some of the sweetness in the Virginias and Orientals. I had the sad/delightful experience of smoking a 10-year-old tin of Sunday Picnic from Mike Reshke's cellar, purchased from his widow. I was really impressed by how dark the overall blend had become. It was nearly black. When we make Sunday Picnic, the Orientals have a golden tone with a slight tinge of olive to them, an olive tan. Bright Virginia tends to be very golden in color. So when you blend Sunday Picnic and even after it's pressed and has darkened slightly, it's still gold in color. But after 10 years of age it had become thick and dark, even black looking. And it had an incredible aroma, not dissimilar to the aromas I'm looking for when I select Perique. You could smell the fermentation, you could smell the high fruity cherry and milk chocolatey tone with the deeper, kind of soy sauce and earthy aromas. I attribute a lot of that darkness to the overall aging process and the presence of Perique during that process."
Sunday Picnic. Check.
Opening Night was an easy and intuitive suggestion. A straight Virginia Flake, it contains equal portions of red and bright Virginias. "Bright tends to have a lemony or citrusy kind of tone," says Jeremy. "I get a perception of sweet breads; think of pastries with coffee. It tends to be more overtly sweet than red Virginia. A little more bite, though not rough, but more aggressive in flavor. Between the two, I think bright is more immediately easy to identify in a blend, it's quite flavor-forward. With red Virginia I find you have to do more subtle sipping and searching before you find the right cadence with it. But bright will bite you harder if you're inexperienced."
Opening Night. Check.
So I have a list, and I've purchased the tobaccos, and I've smoked them all. So far, Speakeasy is my favorite, and I think it has great potential for satisfying the empty Beacon shelf in my tobacco cellar, though I'm still getting used to the dark fired character. Even though it's less than 5 percent, it's there and I'm not sure yet if it will become something I can appreciate. But when I learned to love Virginias, it took months, and I'm going to invest months for this. It's an essential exercise. I'll smoke these tobacco regularly, and I'll think about them, and I'll look carefully for similar qualities to the McClellands that I've become accustomed to. When I find them, I'll concentrate and appreciate the way they work with the rest of the blend.
I can't replace McClelland, but I can modify my own tastes. I suspect I'll come out of this even happier than before. I was too curmudgeonly in my adherence to so few tobaccos. There's a big world of tobacco waiting for me, and it's time to accept its potential.
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Comments
We can't forget the Great Greg Pease and his blends. One in particular stands out for me as a McClelland replacement. That blend is Regents Flake. It has that vinegar tang and the bright sweetness and bold deep dark fruit characters that only get better with age.
That's why I've told people for years that if they like a blend, buy as much as they can. I've seen far too many favorites disappear over the past thirty years but I've got McClelland blends for years to come.
http://pipesmagazine.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/album/12153/20190423_014218.jpg
Are you telling me with the master blenders today and the McClelland tobacco available that we can't replicate it.
Fabulous piece of journalism! Well directed and incredibly informative with many suspicions addressed and many questions answered. Best piece on tobacco blending I’ve ever read...also, nice portrait of Jeremy hand blending. I’d love to see a follow on piece after you’ve had some time to make the sort of changes we’ve all had to make over time. I’m working through a number of C&D blends just now and trying to find that “steady date”. I’m really enjoying Easy Times at the moment.
Great articles. I have one question if you
can help. I like VA/pers and I'm smoking Bayou Morning. If it has 25 percent,why isn't the tobacco darker?
I was late to the game on picking up and trying a lot of McClelland blends. They were going away as I was just starting to get back in to pipe smoking. Like a lot of people I bought a bunch of the Frog Morton series while neglecting what I later discovered that Virginia Woods would become my favorite blend from The Craftbury Series. I really kick myself for not trying it earlier and I now found myself in the same predicament that you're in with Beacon. The only thing I have found so far that comes close to Virginia Woods is Two Friends Redwood. It's not VW but there is some similarity in the two. It sometimes scratches the itch but it's just not as close as I hoped for. Beacon was a blend that I rarely smoked and I still have a little put up in jars and a tin unopened setting in my cellar. It's one of the tins I have set a side for trades. I found some groups on Facebook were people are always looking to buy sale or trade. Unfortunately that's one of the only few options left where it doesn't cost a person a day's pay for a tin of McClelland's.
I too thought about the loss of McClelland and replacement blends. I found HU tobaccos from Germany. Their Virginia blends are unlike any others I have smoked. Tobacco Reviews can tell you more.
I think the most interesting part of the article was Jeremy's discussion of the few main blends that CD uses to produce their array of products.
You can get into the Dark Fired as a condiment. Like Exhausted Rooster is delicious. But, everyone has their own taste buds. Cheers!
My only hesitation is the amount of mold I’ve found when I’ve cellared C&D. I never experienced that with McClelland or Mac Baren.
I never tried Beacon. But if you like Vapers the Low country Waccamaw is a treat.
My favorite McClelland was 5110, Dark English Full. I have about a pound left. Need to remember that they left not because of money, age, boredom, or competition; they left because they could not find tobacco of high enough quality for them to continue to produce such high quality blends.
Chuck, I too lament the passing of Beacon. I only purchased one tin about 5-6 years ago. I found out too late that McClelland was closing it’s doors and was not able to grab up a few more tins. I have Speakeasy, and it is ok, but I wish the dark fired was not in the mix. Maybe you can get Jeremy to blend up a custom batch for us without the dark fired😉
Another favorite of mine is SG Cabbie’s Mixture.....I just need to find out who to kill to get some. I have missed out on it the last three times it was in stock (or so they say) at SP.com and I am not that “slow on the trigger”. Very frustrating.
Joshua,
That Reagents Flake is another keeper for me as well, tasty stuff.
Oops......Regents Flake
Great article, Chuck. I've long been a Beacon fan, blithely believing that it would be around forever. The same goes for their Anniversary blends (I have some of the 40th stashed away, but not nearly enough). I'm now very glad that I once bought on a whim and stored several tins of their Blending Perique. For those of us who have been wringing our hands about the demise of McClelland your article is a godsend.
Congratulations, Chuck-‘impressed with your willingness to change-many’ don’t.
B.
i have diverse tastes, and nearly always try something new when i place a tobacco order. still haven't found a replacement for my favorites from mclelland though. if anyone has suggestions for prozies of frog moton's cellar and grey havens, i'm all ears.
i've been smoking speakeasy and regents flake lately; enjoy them both.
This is a fantastic article, I really appreciate it. Being pretty new to the pipe world (im 31, started at 28ish), I was just hitting my stride with McClelland and finding blends I like in geneeal when they closed down. Dunhill, my other favorite, was also recently gone. I only smoke a few times a week really, so I was lucky that I was able to grab a few tins of the Frog Mortons and some others from them that I havent yet tried, and those will probably last me forever.
But I was extremely distraught that Id never gotten to try their other really famous stuff like Dark Star or Christmas Cheer, much less explore the hidden gems of their catalog.
But I had a similar epiphany to you when I realized (funnily enough, while smoking a C&D blend) that there are literally hundreds of blends from dozens of brands that I have yet to try.
Does it suck that such an icon is gone? Yes. But its a chance for other blenders to step in to the spotlight, and the way I see it we owe it to them to explore their work and enjoy the new favorites we find since they are soldiering on and supporting our hobby. C&D, Hearth and Home, Stokkebeye...theres more good tobaccos still out there than favorites I have lost. Smoke up.
So exactly what happened to McClelland??
I was introduced to their 5100 (red &gold Virginia blend) in 1982; it became THE tobacco I would smoke, though I was to appreciate several of their other bulk and tin tobaccos. They made the only aromatic I liked enough to re acclimate five of my pipes for, their #720, a Virginia blend w/ a Grand Marnier topnote. I was incensed by what had happened to Rattray's; when the Germans took over, they really effed things up.
Great article! I just started smoking pipes a few years ago -- after giving up another vice -- and McClelland Red Cake was my first experience..and my favorite. Since the Company's closing, I've been searching for the closest thing to it....appreciate any suggestions!
Your article has caused Speakeasy to sell out all over the country! lol I ordered the last tin I could find even though I am usually a Latakia fan (R.I.P. Frog Morton). Thanks for the recommendation. I look forward to trying it.
Thank you Chuck for the wonderful article and Jeremy for your expertise! I will try some of these blends out, though after searching now for sometime, I agree with you and truly believe that there simply is no replacement for McClelland’s blends (especially their Virginias!). Thank you Mary and Mike for so many years of smoking “heaven”! And thank you SmokingPipes.com for the advice, great service and great tobaccos!
Hi everyone! I'm glad to see everyone enjoyed this weeks daily reader. There were a few questions asked, so I'll try to answer them all below!
@Garry Cloud After reading your comment regarding the Bayou Morning, I went to do some investigating in the warehouse. I took a look at the bulk Bayou Morning and while it was kind of difficult to point out in the bag, when I laid a little bit out in my hand, I could see the darker perique throughout it. It's still primarily Virginia's, so those do seem to be more dominant to the eye!
@IronMike, I can definitely understand your concerns. C&D is tracking any mold cases very closely and always looking to diminish it. I wouldn't let it stop you from cellaring tins as not only are the chances of the tins developing mold low, but we will always make it right for you(even if the tins have been cellared a while). I hope this helps ease your concerns, but feel free to reach out to us at [email protected] if you have any questions!
@Ambush, Cabbie's Mixture is always one of the first Samuel Gawith's to sell out, unfortunately. We know it can be frustrating and believe me when I say, we share your frustrations. We get as much stock in as we can, as often as we can, but the demand is so high that the supply goes fast. The email alerts really are the best way to be notified when the product arrives, and we recommend placing the items in your cart and checking out quickly(even if that means you place multiple orders). If you haven't gotten back in line for the email alerts, I recommend signing back up and it will pay off in the end when you're able to snag some! In the meantime, we'll continue to get as much product in as we can.
I've really enjoyed your pieces for this blog so far. It's like a long form/features approach to writing about tobacco and its excellent and refreshing.
I'm lucky in a sense that I never really smoked enough McClelland to where I was personally invested in any particular blends. That said, I'm a bit surprised that none of their recipes or techniques were sold or passed on. Doesn't that happen sometimes? Was that a decision the owners of McClelland made to not do so?
Perique is interesting stuff. People say it has some chameleon qualities, and I agree. I've recently come back to the pipe after a hiatus where I was smoking cigarettes, and the cigarettes I'd been smoking for the past few years were the black American Spirits with perique. They're like little VaPers with a filter. I really enjoy those dark, dried fruit flavors that you can get with some VaPers.
What a wonderfully detailed and informative article. Thank you!
My tastes are eclectic, and I don’t want to appear greedy, but next I’d like to see something similar focusing on what I might look for as, well, not replacements (I get your point about that, difficult though it is), but perhaps alternatives to gone-but-not-forgotten McClelland blends that were not Virginia’s, but primarily orientals, such as a Cyprian Star, Frog Morton on the Town, and Drama Reserve. McClelland also made hands down the best aromatics ever. For example, Mellow Mack, Town Topic, and Original Oldchurch. How keenly I miss them!
I notice another commenter misses Virginia Woods. Me too! It was my favorite Virginia.
Despite the reasons given about why no one is trying to reproduce McClelland blends (and the availability of the right kinds of leaf may be the most serious), it’s still puzzling to me that some tobacco company doesn’t try. McClelland products were so beloved that any company that tried would certainly have a ready market, would they not? Or maybe I’m just having a hard time letting them go. . .
By the way Chuck...
It wasn’t lost on me that you put Beacon at the very top of the McClelland tobacco tins in the photo!
Thanks again for the great article.
@Cassie D
Multiple orders? I don’t want to pay the ~$6 shipping on each and every tin or item I order, that’s crazy.
@Ambush I completely understand! With 99% of our products, it's unnecessary to place multiple orders. However, if there is a specific tobacco you've been trying to get for awhile, like the Cabbie's Mixture you mentioned above, getting the order in as fast as possible is your best bet since it sells out quickly.
My favorite McClellan was Pal O Mine. I know it's an aromatic but it's definitely special. I have only one tin left. If anyone knows of a replacement or something close please contact me.
Some of you may want to give Sutliff Red Virginia Crumble Kake a try. There is some similarity there to McClelland 5100. Putting some age on it and it may be the closest thing available that I have tried anyways. Regardless it's a excellent smoke
I'm missing the Blackwoods flake - it tasted like the back woods in Virgina (where I'm from) and was a great reminder of that aroma and taste. I've been trying to find a replacement, but all I've found is that I don't care for Cavendish, perique, latkia, orientals...
I've found a Stoved Virginia that's great but too mild. So now I'm trying to blend it with Sutliff Red Virginia Crumble Kake and some Sweet Virginian - but I don't think I will ever get that Backwoods taste that McClelland had mastered so well. Its a shame to see the best old practices going by the wayside.
I knew Carl Ehwa personally when I lived in Kansas City. One of our mutual friends who also knew his blending methods is still alive and in his 80’s even though I have not seen him in a few years. Think caves.
I have to say, my favorite pipe tobacco was from the Tolkien line based at justforhim.com and when McClelland closed, Ruins of Isengard had to be discontinued. It was the tastiest, flavorful, and deliciously aromatic smoke I ever had. Going to miss them for sure.
F.M. on the Bayou was one of my favorites. Does anybody have a clone of this?
I think they need to quit this “Only 500 tins” BS and come out with some great tobacco.Of course the shits going to sell out when a “Limited number” of tins is produced. Since McClelland was a cherished tobacco, try and come up with blends that hits close to home for us? Or keep with your moldy crap and lose customers by the day.
Well said. It's apparent that Smoking Pipes is heavily behind this "Limited Edition" bullshit.
Hi, I recently purchased a collection of pipes and included with the collection were three Hi, I came across your post on line and saw your interest in McClellands pipe tobacco. I recently purchased a collection of pipes and three unopened 100g tins were included from the mid 1990’s. One is No. 27 Virginia with a brown label and the others are 1994 and 1998 Christmas cheer. Send a message if interested. Marty
I am coming to this conversation late. BUT... I did have some McClelland tins to sell (some spares which were just not my thing...) and attempted to sell them on eBay. The snooks blocked me. You can sell Nazi paraphernalia and My Little Pony but not tobacco tins! What a world!
You can sell them on Facebook. The group is called Pipe Tobacco Market.
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!
I just popped open a tin of Beacon and a tin of 1996 Christmas Cheer. I'd been stockpiling various McClelland, Esoterica and Gawith Hoggarth tobacco for years because I knew they were doomed due to the prevailing anti-tobacco attitudes worldwide. Now is the time to start enjoying them.I love C&D blends and smoke massive amounts of their products, especially their burley flakes and Bayou Morning, but they aren't the same as the various McClelland products I enjoyed. Christmas Cheer, Beacon, Old Dog, Dark Star, etc. were unique, and it breaks my heart that they're gone forever. When I opened those tins today it was as if I'd stepped back in time. Back to an age when tobacco products weren't vilified, and one could enjoy an incredible smoking experience with relative ease. My god, that smell that emanates from a tin of McClelland Virginia or VaPer when it's cracked open. There is nothing so grand in the entire tobacco world.It's all gone now, so hats off to Cornell and Diehl for soldiering on. I'm glad they're dedicated to continuing the noble work of producing fine pipe tobacco blends. I will happily to support them however I can. I'm also gratefully to Peterson, and their dedication to keeping the former Dunhill blends alive. To lose Royal Yacht, Nightcap and EMP would have been a disaster.Just my reflections after charging my Castello with a bowl full of Beacon. It's now time to light up and watch the world go by.Cheers!