I especially enjoyed this in a meerschaum in the evening where I could relax and enjoy it. It has plenty of high notes. The strange, McClelland taste was in the background to be sure, but not as pronounced as in some blends, and I like it anyway. This is an excellent blend well deserved of its appelation. There are several tins of this stored away in the cellar.

For a latakia mix, the room note is not bad. I smoked this over the holiday and even my sister in law commented on the nice pipe smell emanating from the patio.

One of McClelland's best to date. If you find a place that still has it, buy all of it.

I choose a vintage Savinelli Capri for this tasting, The Savinelli Capris are some of the driest and coolest smokes that I own.

After opening the tin, the first thing I noticed was that this blend did not have any of the common "acetic acid" aroma that I have noticed in freshly opened tins of other McClelland products. This may be a factor of cellaring; I have noticed that aged bulk blends of this maker also loose this smell over time.

Even though it is not mentioned in the tobacco description above, I can not help but notice some ribbon cut flue cured tobacco in the blend. This is mixed with a fully rubbed out Virginia Flake and dark ribbon cut tobaccos, some of which may be fire cured virginias and of course Latakia.

The blend loaded easily into the pipe. It is one of the few tinned tobaccos that are dry enough for me to smoke directly. A charring light took well and I was in business with the second match. One of the first things noticed was that the Latakia tasted more like a Syrian variety than the more "sweet" Cyprian variety usually found in McClelland mixtures.

This tobacco has more of the characteristics found in an English blend of decades ago and is reminisent of the original Scottish Rattray's I have been privy to. The tobacco would be ideal for many smokers all day blends, I found it just a little lacking in body. The flavor did not change at all from the first to the last puff, a rarity these days. All that was left in the bowl was some white ash and pleasant memories!

I liked it from the first, and, several months on, I still smoke it fairly regularly. It has a nice sweet tone to it, which seems to be perfectly balanced (at least to my admittedly inexperienced palate) with the nuttier Latakia. It packs easily, even for me, and smokes well. In some ways, it is similar to Frog Morton, although, of course, with a much lighter Latakia content and a more pronounced VA taste. It has sharper 'teeth' than FM, but it doesn't bite hard or easily, with some care.

Unlike some of the other McC blends I've since tried, it isn't overly moist; in fact, it seems to be a bit on the dry side, which I like. It also doesn't have quite as strong of a tomato-vinegar smell as some of the other McC's do, either, which, imo, is a Good Thing.

While I certainly like the taste, and consider it well balanced, I would not say it's complex, like one of the Pease blends. That isn't bad; sometimes I want fine Indian food, and other times I want a nice, rare steak -- but that doesn't mean one is bad, and the other good. Still, I'm more likely, now, to go for Samarra or Raven's Wing, yet there are still times when Anniversary is a comfortable, pleasant, and delicious experience.

Virginias, not latakia, dominate the flavor, but the black stoved virginias add depth and the subtle latakia adds coolness.

When I first tried the blend after the first of the new year in 2002, the bottom half of the smoke developed too much in strength. I realized the blend, probably already aged for over a year by the manufacturer, still needed another 6 months plus aging. Now, after 7 additional months in my "cellar" (boxes), I am smoking up the final two-three ounces in a medium large Wiley rusticated horn. I have a few bowls left. It is much smoother now but still on the strong side of straight virginia blends.

It is heavier than Oriental No. 1 (which is a mild-medium English and which has more of a red virginia base and less dark leaf) by the same manufacturer, but not as dark tasting or rich as Mc Crainies' Murdocks Pipe (which is Scottish and has more dark leaf including more latakia, added perique, etc.), also by the same manufacturer. So it is a middle of the road between these two but still weighs in closer in fullness to the latter, Murdocks (which is much smoother and more balanced to me even though it has heavier tobaccos). The manufactuer has other somewhat similar red-stoved va. blends and flakes, like Butera's matured ribbon, but the latakia here is what makes this one different.

You can still taste the red virginias in the blend even with the darker leaf which adds a deep contrast to the flavor. It has weight, is not hot, and is fairly steady burning after you have the bowl going good. If you are a straight virginia smoker and want somether with a little more weight than virginias alone, give this a try. I understand the manufacturer will continue to make this into the future and so it will not remain a limited edition.

Let me say that I don't like latakia blends because IMO the latakia usually overpowers everything else. Moreover. smoking latakia makes me cough. But in a moments madness I began to pack my Ashton OC XX Billiard. I noticed first the rich virginia tin aroma with the characteristic McClelland fruit with just a hint of smoke. [Land sakes, I don't get this ketchup business. What you're smelling is high sugar Virginia tobacco.] The tobacco packed well and lit easily. The first taste was of rich virginia with the slightest taste of latakia. As I smoked, I noticed the latakia began to assert itself but did not overpower the smoke. Anniversary burned well with few relights until the last quarter bowl.

I hope MClelland continues to favor us with this blend as a change of pace for Virginia smokers. In Anniversay we have latakia used as a spice but not the whole meal.

I give this tobacco a whopping 8/10. It's hands down my favorite non-aromatic tobacco.

About half the group enjoyed the upper part of the bowl, but agreed that the blend turned harsh and bitey as the smoke progressed. It starts out sweet with the virginia and smidgen of latakia intermingling well. But, as the smoke continued, it was obvious the virginias could have used a bit more aging. This led us to believe that cellaring the blend for a year or two will make this an awsome smoke.

The other half of the group enjoyed the blend from top to bottom. Their impression of the virginias was that it was stronger near the bottom, but not harsh. My personal belief is this group boasts leather tongues!

I suggest you grab a tin or two, stick it in your cellar, and pop the tin a year or two on down the road.

Packaging: 100g tin, labeled with ecru paper, gold embossed logo and script. Covered in Ecru paper, sealed with red wax. Tobacco appearance and fragrance: Fully rubbed, good uniformity, overall very dark in composition. Upper olfactory registers the ever so faint McClelland signature acetic acid, with delicate hints of Latakia, rounding the lower realms. *Perfect* moisture content, by my tastes. Packs well, let take 'er for a drive!!! Flame hits weed, releasing soft clouds of muted fragrance, soft? This stuff makes velvet seem like sandpaper. The scent is primarily Va, with utterly no edge. Latakia is present, but in such small amounts that it only provides a slight darkness for the Moon (Va) to hang in. The Bear's palate can detect no orientals (save Latakia, if you choose to categorize it thus), and no perique. Burn was consistent all the way through, developing an extra dimension of nuts in the bottom third of the bowl. Bottom line: Outstanding example of a soft, all day, indoor English tobacco. Displays great finesse and breeding. Would especially recommend to those who prefer their weeds with less Latakia, and to Va lovers that would like to add an occasional Latakia into their rotation, but who have been put off by "Big Shouldered" Lats. 9 out of 10 Bear Claws.