McClelland - Matured Virginias: No.22 pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Showing reviews 1 through 20 of 32 reviews of this tobacco NEXT >
PD71	02/08/2013	Mild	None detected	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable
I am new to pipe smoking, and certainly new to reviewing tobacco. My experience to this point is mainly with aromatics, so this is my first real non aromatic tobacco. And I like it!! The tin note is definitely along the lines of roasted tomatoes, vinegar, and ketchup. Not my favorite smells to get out of the tin. However, the smoke seems fairly complex - I do get some roasted tomatoes to taste, but also leather and hay. It burned very well and offered an extremely long and cool smoke. No tongue bite for me. A very nice tobacco that gets 3.5 stars from me. I will absolutely keep some of this on hand.
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Kilmarnock Piper	12/06/2012	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
My tin is vintage 1997, and I don't think I can add much to what others have said except to say: another winner from McClelland's Matured Virginia series! They have a lot in common anyway, but the main similarity is just in the overall quality of these American Virginias, and McClelland's excellent selection and treatment of them.
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TK Pipe	10/26/2012	Mild	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
McC #22 Virginia … A tasty, somewhat rubbed out Virginia flake blend of the best of America’s Virginias. The moisture level is about ideal, but I aired my tin out some, maybe just from habit, but the result was a real decent smoke. There was some sweetness and a good measure of that milder smooth Virginia tang. Due to the coarser texture, I found bowl packing can be a little tricky unless rubbed out some, but overall IMO #22 is a real keeper. I found this tobacco bite free, with only a bit of the typical Va. tongue tingle, but overall a easy going smoke. For those reasons this tobacco (IMO) could be candidate for as all day smoke, but I save this blend (and others) for my evening smokes, when I have time to get into my sip and taste mode. For those that enjoy the taste of a straight aged Virginia, I sure would recommend you try this one. P.S. This blend is not without use as a blender.
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Katharsis	04/23/2012	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
As per usual, McClelland produces another great VA. Tin note is of course the ketchup/vinegar smell, which of course does not carry over to the smoke. This one is probably the most unique VA I've tasted. It changed a couple times throughout the bowl. About mid-bowl or a little after mid-bowl, the flavor became very rich and was probably the most multi-dimensional flavor I've experience in a VA. It was sweet, a little leathery, floral, some sort of spice, and of course a little hay-like all at the same time. Another thing to notice is the room note. I usually don't care about this, as I smoke on my commute to and from work, or while I'm reading outside on the porch or deck. But I had smoked this outside at a friend's house, and another friend, who actually has an allergic-type aversion to scents, liked this smell on me. Also, I will try to occasionally get a clue at the room note simply by smelling the bowl while I'm smoking -- probably not the most accurate way. However, this one smelled great when I did that. Just sweet and slightly floral. I don't like floral tasting tobaccos (see: Lakeland), but the slight floral notes I've mentioned in this review are not like that at all, so don't be turned off when you read that if you're like me. Overall, this is a great VA. Maybe not the best, but it definitely gets four stars so far from me. Let's see if it stays that way throughout the tin. (And, of course, as per almost all McClellands, a couple days of waiting after you open it is best.)
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rintrah	04/01/2012	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
Excellent leaf. Highly recommend it.
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carolina kid	09/28/2011	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant
This is a wonderful Virginia flake with more dark, sweet flavors than the kind of hay-like flavors found in brighter Virginia flakes. Rich, creamy smoke. Rich, natural tobacco flavor with distinct notes of clove. Also notes of leather and cedar. Moderately careful technique precludes any tongue bite. Not overly complex, but full flavored and satisfying from start to finish. Mildly sweet with moderate nicotine. Like most flakes, a little drying and rubbing out is beneficial.
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NA Morrison	05/22/2011	Medium	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
a well aged virgina flake this was my first tinned tobacco i got and found it to be enjoyable. it does have the mcclelland vinger and catsup smell but dont let that scent fool you it is a great smoke and really dresses up the the virgina nicely
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Virginia lover	05/08/2011	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant
A very tasty blend, well balanced with a minimum preservative smell off the tin. Zesty and slightly tangy yet it never bites. Easily a perfect all day tobacco for Virginia aficionados who prefer a genuine, unchanging, rich taste.
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John Offerdahl	01/08/2011	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
This is the first Mac Baren tobacco I ever encountered. I go back and forth with it, sometimes liking it and sometimes not. Like most of their tobaccos, Vanilla Crème has a strong tin aroma, especially when freshly opened, of fermenting compost, but in this case it’s vanilla fermenting compost. I’ve said before, though, that you sometimes have to ignore the tin aroma. The tobacco is a broken flake of heavily cased Virginia. This is a good smoke when others are in the house. My impartial room note judge said that the fragrance is quite nice, kind of like having a vanilla candle burning in the room. Easily lit, the burn is smooth and fairly cool, especially for an aromatic; I suspect that this is due to the quality of the tobacco used. Once burning, the vanilla flavor is accompanied by a nice creaminess. Think of cream soda in a tobacco. There’s nothing subtle about Vanilla Crème. I did find, though, that the flavor began to get a bit sour by the bottom of the bowl, and it doesn’t DGT very well. If you want a really good, high quality vanilla blend, go for either this or Sweet Vanilla Honeydew. I personally prefer SVH, but that could be because I smoked it first, and maybe because it has a bit more subtlety about it. Vanilla Crème is a good tobacco to smoke when others are around, especially if those others have a tendency to complain about "stinky" tobaccos.
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Davetopay	09/23/2010	Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Another of the blends I have been puffing away at, and meaning to review. Why haven't I? It hasn't moved me. There is absolute;y NOTHING wrong with this tobacco. I enjoy looking at it, touching it, smelling it, and smoking it. Would I go out of my way to buy it again? MAYBE. It's of the "can't hurt to have some on hand" class of straight VA's. It is a very pretty, slightly broken, fairly thick cut flake presenting a wide range of colors from bright yellow to dense umber. The moisture was pretty close to spot on when I opened the tin( about 2 years old). I just crumble/fold some chunks into a pipe, rub a few strands out as kindling for the top, and light'er up. The smell I find to be hit or miss based upon my mood, the weather, the alignment of the stars, and the timing of an obscure geyser in Iceland. Some days it smells EXACTLY like A1. Yes, A1 steak sauce, which paradoxically is the WORST thing anyone can do to/put on a steak. But it tends to work here. Whether this is the result of actual spicing used in the process, or just the result of these particular leaves and the chemical reaction which they present when dosed with the vinegar-voodoo juice at Mc C's, it lingers in the room note. Not bad, just different. Some of it comes through in the taste, but not much. There isn't any bite, but there is a bit of a peppery tingle and spicy undertone. Almost all of the proper Virginia flavor and aroma components are there, but it never really grabs me and demands that I smoke it. Toffee, caramel,buttery pastry, it's all in there. No grassyness, no hay, no citrus. I wish it developed more, then I would have more to say about it. I still have a tin of No. 25 on the shelf, dated May of 2009, so I have something to look forward to. It may be the family member that floats my boat.
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Requiem	11/07/2009	Medium	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
This Virginia is a tasty, zesty one. It has an acidic, fresh note. Problem here is the high maintenance it demands. If really dried out it takes light well, but looses some flavour. If not completely dry, it tastes great but is very hard to keep burning.
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DK	08/10/2009	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
Nice looking mottled flake. This one combines natural VA sweetness with some mild zestiness. As mentioned by others, hard to get lit and needs some drying time. This one worked best for me with a decent amount of moisture content left - not dried to tinder. I preferred its taste that way, even though it didn't take a light as easily as I'd like. Great flavor development down the bowl! This has a nice combination of high and low notes, whereas I found #27 to excel at high notes and #24 to excel at low notes. I suppose my taste must be in the lower, darker notes as I prefer #24 and Navy Cavendish to this, and this to #27. I haven't smoked #25 in years so I can't comment on that one yet, although I have a tin simmering. Of the ones mentioned above, this one might be the best at the balancing act. It's a no-nonsense virginia that does everything right in the flavor department, not trying to do too much or too little. It's just right! I like this one but I prefer a little more "naughtiness", which is what I get from #24 and Navy Cav. Still, this is a high quality, good tasting straight VA and deserves a try.
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al1	12/13/2008	Mild	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
This one is good if you are looking for straight va taste without much else but good high end flavor. I like the flavor. I do find it more enjoyable outdoors. I agree with another reviewer it needs drying as do all the tobaccos in this series. When properly rubbed and dried it lights and burns ok but harder to light than average. Not as memorable as #27 but a good smoke for those prefering the high clean end of va flavor spectrum. A good one for those new to the flakes I think. It is nowhere near as touchy as #27 but it has nowhere the flavor or kick either. Not for me too often but it is good for those liking this sort of flake. Room note was commented to me to smell good, something like pastry in the oven or toaster. This was said by someone who is sensitive to stinky blends. Update: I am turning to this and #24 much more often lately. I love #27 but I disagree with the tin label that #27 is a great all day smoke. This blend is much more tameable and less quick to hurt your tongue. #27 is so good but it requires too much pampering to get a great smoke. I got sent a savinelli 804 canadian instead of the pipe I ordered from the store and that by chance was one of the best mistakes ever made. That pipe is proving itself to be a great smoker- one of the best ever up there with my ardors. This blend and other va's are sublime out of this pipe. In fact it is one of those that I think would smoke anything well. My point- this blend shines in a pipe that suits it. Second update: This lost it's 4th star after I found the wonderful world of Greg Pease tobacco's.
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cell biologist	02/18/2008	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant
This is a reference tobacco. It is coarsely cut and pressed into flakes that can be rubbed out or simply wadded up in a Frank-type side-pressure spin into the bowl. This tobacco is very similar to 2010, perhaps it is a longer aged version as some have suggested, but I detect richer notes from this than 2010. Both are very lemony with bright citrus notes - but only in the right pipe and at the right burn rate. When it burns too hot (and it can if you?re not careful!) burnt rubber notes can be gleaned, which I find to be generally true of the lemon virginias. No one likes that! But carefully smoked, this stuff is just marvelous, rich mahogany malty bass notes with a citrus top end. It took me awhile to notice and appreciate the citrus notes, in part because only a few pipes bring it out, in part because I wasn?t tuned in to the flavor. It?s best for me in a tall somewhat narrow bowl with a long draw or cooling stem of some kind (I just made a pipe of pyrolytic graphite that works very well with this). I call it a reference tobacco because it is the old style, old breed, simply prepared without additives, of very high quality.
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fourshephards	09/19/2006	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
I am going to keep this brief. #22 has everything I look for in a Virginia tobacco. It lights well, when allowed to dry a bit, and stays lit. The flavor at the match is a little sweet and grassy but this develops beautifully as the bowl is consumed. After about 1/2 bowl, #22 becomes rich and sweet with a little spiciness that plays in and out. The only thing left at the bottom of the bowl is a grey/white ash with absolutely no goop. I love this blend. Jay
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Mr. Dottle	10/31/2005	Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
This is the least favorite of the McClelland matured VAs I have tried to date. The distinct vinegar smell was overwhelming in my tin. Despite letting it air out and ?re-age? for another several weeks, it didn?t mitigate the vinegar smell. A little harsh at first light, it settles down into a decent VA smoke for a while then ?turns south.? The flavor seems to dissipate, it loses ?punch,? and becomes moderately harsh. And unlike some other reviewers here, I thought its burning qualities were marginal. A cigarette is to be smoked. A cigar is to be enjoyed. A pipe is to be savored. I rate this tobacco 6.5 out of 10.
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Semois	06/23/2005	Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant
Opening the tin, a smell of fermentation and dried apricots. None of them detected while smoking it. On his best in the first half of the bowl (then a little hint of the fermentation). I prefer it otherwise. At the end the spiceness dominates too much. Is it a bad-tasting tobacco ? Not really. But as I use the star-qualification very strict, I can't say that I recommend it.
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Spike	03/12/2005	Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong
A smooth and flavorful straight Virginia. This is from a three year old tin so a new one may not be as tasty and bite-free. The spousal unit was especially critical of the after-smell of my clothing. I on the other hand enjoyed it thoroughly. Highly recommended.
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Beer	09/01/2004	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable
Smell of sour prune jam and pear, very yummy. Broken flakes, very easy to load, maybe a little rubbed out. Lights and smokes very easily and dry. A very good tobacco, tasty (sweet, sour and spicy) and not bitey (though my tin was 3 years old, so YMMV). Not as distinctive and memorable as 27, but solid and reliable.
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The Keeper	07/27/2004	Medium to Strong	None detected	Full	Tolerable
I'm not a connoisseur of straight VA blends. I've only tasted a few and they keep my interest less than VA/P and Latakia blends. This leaf is quite nice. More solid and varied flavor at the top of the bowl...a bit... coarse through out the later portions. Towards the end a little bland. I found it pretty well behaved, but my sample is quite (nicely) dry. Burns very evenly and good thick cut.
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