McClelland - Christmas Cheer 2007 pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Showing reviews 1 through 20 of 34 reviews of this tobacco NEXT >
CPT/VSG	05/18/2013	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
Primarily a smoker of Oriental blends, I smoke Virginias as a change of pace. While it's unlikely that I'll ever convert to the notion that straight Virginias are the most interesting tobaccos to smoke, as MeCelland claims, the Christmas Cheer series offers what is probably some of the best Virginia leaf available in a vintage year format. It took me since 2008 to finish this tin but it was always enjoyable--sweet, rich and complex. I'll move on to the 2008 incarnation next, which should have matured nicely in the tin.
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Kilmarnock Piper	04/13/2013	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
I always have trouble reviewing Christmas Cheer. They are all great for lovers of pure Virginias (like me), but even though the Virginias come from different growing areas, the taste differences are so subtle (at least to me) that it is difficult to compare and contrast them. The only one that I think I could identify blindfolded among the ones I've tried is the 2002, which seems to take the idea of single-crop purity found in this series to the level of outright austerity... The 2007 is just what one expects from the CC series: pure, American Virginia served up in the McClelland way.
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Pipe-arazzo	12/22/2011	Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
This is my first CC, bought back when it first became available and aged since then in my cellar. Typical McClelland vinegar aroma in the tin. It needed some airing-out. In fact, I always found this a bit bitey no matter the moisture level. The only thing that worked was an accident: I left several bowls' worth out to dry for too long, and then had to re-hydrate it. That smoothed it out without sacrificing any of the flavor. Try that if you have the same problem. A pretty pleasant smoke overall, with both sweet and salty notes.
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Darth Vader	08/05/2011	Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant
Its 4 years old now and while a its enjoyable, it doesnt blow me away. Standing alone, its a little weak for me. Still quality though. If only they could get rid of that god awful ketchup smell from the tin. Update. The more i smoke of this the more it's subtle flavours come out. It's teaching me to enjoy milder Va's. After 4 months the vinegar smell is all but gone and now smells very nice. Up to 4 stars.
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Kyrob	01/10/2011	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

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don1688	01/04/2010	Mild	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
I am a virginia lover and find the "ketchup" tin smell from McClelland virginia's wonderful. So, you know what I think. Sweet and tangy like citrus with a spicy background. My pallate is not as refined as some, I'm sure, therefore I find each year to taste somewhat similar, but that is fine by me because I love them. No need to concentrate while smoking this one the sweetness comes through easily.
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2PiR	12/24/2009	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
Well, I put it off as long as I could. I've been eyeing my tin of Christmas Cheer for two years. So, on Christmas Eve I have decided to open it as a treat and to also break in a new pipe. Upon opening the tin, I was greeting by McClellands classic virginia aroma. I personally think it smells good and is a sign of high quality. Small, dark broken flakes abound. With closer inspection, I noticed sugar crystals have formed on the flakes. Excellent! Moisture seems just right, definately not on the dry side. I rubbed out a bowl and loaded my new Elliot Lovat. Two lights, a tamp, and I'm greeted with a soft spicey smoke. Reminds me of cloves and apples but not in an aromatic way of course, just high quality aged red virginias. Treat yourself this holiday to a bowl of Christmas Cheer and make sure to add some to the cellar.
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KinnScience	05/02/2009	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant
An excellent example of McC's Christmas Cheer that only gets better with age.
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Pipe4ever	02/05/2009	Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant
This is a very, very good Virginia when aged for 1 year or more, It is also much better few months after opening the tin, this is a Virginia with the typical McClelland ketchup aroma however it is a sublime and memorable Virginia, available from eBay, you must try it at least once!
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Ghosthunter	01/20/2009	Mild	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Strong
Save your money...Rattray's...Old Gowrie...C&D "Opening Night" for the VA beginner.
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PipenGuitar	12/18/2008	Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Peeling the tin back... peeling the tin back...finally! WHOA!!!! What a smell! It's ok though, because this was my first tinned Virginia. I was expecting that ketchup smell everyone talks about and I sure as hell got it. Having smoked mostly aromatics, I've been growing tired of the same old great smell but no taste effect. I tried some Virginia's and had great tastes, but horrible room note. Here is a tobacco that has the benefits of a good room note and leaves a slightly sweet/spicy after taste. Be sure to dry it out a bit. Puff slow and hold it for a few secs to let that subtle sweetness present itself.
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NONSUMDIGNUS	12/14/2008	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant
Mmmmmm... read all the other 4 star reviews and I concur. Nice! Add'l Note: The ketchup smell was unreal and interesting. I spread this stuff out and let it dry out for about 12 hours and put it back in the tin. The ketchup smell eventually died out and what was left was a very pleasant spicy smell with hints of cloves. Nice indeed.
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Society of the Briar	12/01/2008	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong
I was able to procure the last tin/tub of this wonderful tobacco from my local tobacconist, and for a reasonable price. To begin with, I knew what I was getting into with the aged VA's, but some newbs might be confused as to why this is called "Christmas Cheer," and isn't positively laced with cinnamon, cranberry, clove, nutmeg topping and pine-cone essence. Well, for starters, that'd likely be disgusting. Second, this tobacco is more to showcase some absolutely top quality aged Virginia tobacco in limited quantity around the holidays. Upon opening, the first thing you notice beyond the small-ish flakes of dark virginia is the distinct fermented smell. Indeed there is a noticeable vinegar/ketchup aroma floating on top of that natural tobacco smell. But with all great tobacco's, every time you sniff, you get something different and there's many layers here. There's that really great VA, earthy, autumn leaves aroma going on and I know I said it wasn't "christmas-y" but is that clove I detect in the background? Tiniest hint of vanilla? Even after aging for a year, there's still a good amount of moisture in the flakes, so after rubbing these somewhat thick flakes out, I recommend giving them a moment to dry. Char-light, tamp, relight, tamp, then final light and you should be good to go. You'll notice instantly that the vinegar-y smell is virtually gone once it's lit. Man oh man, this tobacco has turned me into a VA fan. Smokes nice and cool, though stronger in taste and nic than what I'm used to. The spicey/sweetness is subtle but distinct and the cleanliness of the aftertaste is about as perfect as you could hope for. About midway through the bowl, this tobaco took on a bit of an espresso note, amazing stuff. Hardcore aromatic fans may likely not enjoy this, but I find it to be a truly great, natural VA tobacco. Glad I bought this!
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rhapsodyofmetal	11/17/2008	Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
UPDATE** I aged this tin from September 2007 until today. It is amazing!! It is aging wonderfully. The Virgina is at its peak. The taste has sweetened. I wish I would have bought more than one... ORIGINAL* It is smooth and creamy with a vinegar/clove smell that does in fact invoke a holiday air and feeling. It does have a calming effect just smoking a pipe full whilst warming yourself by a fire with a brightly lit Christmas tree and your favorite Christmas shows on the tube. The Virginians are brilliant in taste. It has an aromatic taste but is easily better than any aromatic. Well done. 4 stars. Can burn quite hot but with a little care is a smokers delight.
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Pipemanuk	06/28/2008	Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
This isn't one of my favourite McClellands. It smells just fine and it smokes..well just about tolerably, but it doesn't give you what you expect from these masters of the art. I wish it tasted as good as it smells...which is something like Christmas Plum Pudding...but it never delivers anything other than a VA ready to bite you at any second. Shame really. I have one more tin and I'll hide that away for a year or so and hope it matures a bit. Updated review June 2008 I'm still working through the same tin I reviewed earlier and I must admit that I am enjoying it more now. There's less of the plum pudding and more of a scent of cloves and cinnamon and this is coming through in the smoking as well. I rubbed out the entire contents, not something I normally do and that combined with a few months airing in the tin seems to have improved the smoking qualities really well. Upped to 3 stars now:-)
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Ankara_Dave	04/19/2008	Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable
I had to give this one a couple of weeks trial before I could give an honest review. Others have noted the ketchup flavor; some calling it slight others mild. I'd call it sickening; but I really hate ketchup, violently so. It's very appropriate that it's in a red tin. When I read about the ketchup smell I thought it would be how wine snobs comment on oak, chocolate, and other flavors normal people can't perceive... wrong! This really colored my impressions of this stuff the first ten smokes or so. I tried drying it for various periods, but that odor and flavor still lingered. But over the course of two weeks the tin began to lose the Heinz smell, and the tobacco lost that horrible flavor. I don't know how they get that flavor in in the first place, but I'm glad time cured the problem. What's is left is a fairly honest, smooth VA blend; but nothing to write home about. Will I buy another tin? Probably not. If you can deal with the ketchup smell, or relish it as some of the reviewers obviously do, you may well love this blend. To be honest, I'm now gun shy to buy other McClelland VA blends simply because of the ketchup odor so many of you report.
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smoking-rob	03/02/2008	Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
My Christmas Cheer 2007 arrived last week. It is also the first time I tried any of these seasonal tobacco's. I really loved the smell from the freshly opened tin: ripe, fruity and spicy and possibly a Perique smell as well. But this is not stated in the description! I might add some of my own to a few pipefuls soon.. It is a broken flake, dark brown in appearance and I haven't yet decided whether to rub it out or not. For the rest, a quality matured VA, zesty and spicy, sip it!
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Hunter	02/21/2008	Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
My first Christmas Cheer. I have started a new tradition! What a wonderful blend. Rubs out easily, a mild and flavorful smoke. A little on the moist side, but well within what I am used to for a pressed cake. Remarkable!
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Pipestud	02/01/2008	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
I knew I should have waited..... But, since I've smoked every vintage of Christmas Cheer except this one, I figured I'd give it a try. Rough around the edges, but certainly has the potential to age well. The tobacco arrived very chunky in the tin and was certainly not yet in smokeable form the way I like to work the leaf. I have read where some reviewers do not appreciate the difficulty in rubbing 2007 CC out. Try taking a pipeful or two out of the tin and place it on a paper towel or napkin for an hour or two. Then rub it out with ease. The moisture content should have dissipated substantially and keeping it lit will not be a problem. This vintage tasted a bit stronger and was more odorous than the most recent offerings. Perhaps I'm being an optimist, but I really do believe this one could develop into a bellringer with 5 or more years of age to it. My other two tins are now in my "cellar."
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flaminbill'	01/25/2008	Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable
I really like McClelland Virginias and this is no exception. The key to some of these McClelland flakes to me is the preparation as the broken flakes are rather thick and unruly. I find that if I don't rub these flakes out, I can't keep them burning. The bottom line is if you have some skills and patience and can get the tobacco to where it smolders, it is excellent. I do prefer smaller gauge pipes for Christmas Cheer of any vintage.
Showing reviews 1 through 20 of 34 reviews of this tobacco NEXT >