McClelland Frog Morton on the Bayou

Take Froggy out on the Town and add a bit of Perique and voila you have Frog Morton on the Bayou.

I have to admit that I bought the Frog Morton series after everyone’s glowing reviews and adulation for it in pipe-clubs and show but I will squarely put myself with that cohort of the Tobacco-smoking population that doesn't get it.

This is, mostly, my fault—Had gone from Aromatics (where most of us start) to The Frog Morton series as my introduction to English (and Balkan and Oriental and Scottish) styles then I may have had more love for these blends.

I, personally, did not—and went from a sweet Cavendish-laden CAO blend right into London Mixture (and loved it) thus skewing my perception of every English-Oriental since then.

There is a casing/topping in these that is barely discernable although the sweetness is most certainly there and in the tin it is hard to tell this from some of the other Froggies apart. Aside from quality tobacco and a nice blend overall I suspect a lot of the love on this one comes from the marketing.

It is a good blend with good tobaccos, but it is one out of what seems like an needless ocean of similar mild-to-medium English blends that companies like McClelland, Hearth & Home, C&D, and G.L. Pease keep pumping out—high quality, well executed, middle-of-the-road crowd pleasure that lack in captivation what they make up for in democracy.

(PS- Is it me or has the mostly male pipe-smoking world officially come out as Tolkien geeks?)

Rich tin notes of leather and jerky with a mild vinegar presence, moist out of the tin and requires dry time. Virginias are sweet, fruity and slightly earthy. Cyprian Latakia lends notes of hickory smoke and a touch of malt, together they are the main components. Perique with spice and stewed fruit sing through with the buttery citrus and leathery Orientals in a very harmonious way. Smooth and relaxing, On the Bayou is a classic Balkan and distinct selection from the Frog Morton.

I have to say that the first 3-4 bowls of this tobacco, I was seriously disappointed. I almost traded it to a friend but I am so glad I didn't! The first few smokes, the Perique/Latakia mixture seemed to make the blend overly acidic to the point of making my nose and throat irritated. KEEP READING THOUGH!

As the weather was getting cold, I found myself reaching for this tobacco again and again. My nose and throat must have acclimated because about 2 weeks after opening the tin, I started to crave the savory/smokey/sweet goodness of this tobacco over all others. Pretty soon, I would pass by my GL Pease Maltese Falcon and even my favored McClelland Christmas Cheer tins for a cobfull of this stuff. So, if you get this, don't give up on it right away. It may end up being your favorite tobacco!

This tobacco is a salmagundi of light brown, brown, and black; in flake, wide and ribbon cut, with stems. There is a smorgasbord of Latakia, Perique, oriental, Turkish, and Virginia. It packs easily.

The tin aroma is the standard, mild McClelland sweet fragrance, with a slightly smoky and citrus undertone.

FMOTB is slightly sweet and rather smoky. Otherwise, it seems similar to the other Frogs in the Sandbury Collection. It's not as sweet as FMATP.

Straight from the tin, once you get it lit, it burns with no tongue bite, and a chocolate oats character. That said, there was the attendant mild mouth scour. Sometimes the bowl burnt hot.

Albeit, not having that discerning a palate, I didn't perceive the Perique spice element, standing out on its own merit, that others have said is a FMOTB signature.

Being too mild to deserve the appellation of a Balkan, the Latakia is subdued. One reviewer called it a Scottish, due to the stoved Virginias.

Frogs raised on the bayou have a bit more nicotine kick than other Frogs.

Newly opened tobacco was barely moist. Using two lights, there was no gurgle, but a small dottle was left. Allowed to dry for 3 hours, it was absolutely bonedry and still left some moisture in the bottom of the bowl, again with mild mouth scour. Caveat: Even this old salt could sense the reduced flavors of the tobacco after it was dried.

The room aroma is pleasantly smoky, though an alfalfa ambiance was left on my clothes. After thorough cleaning of my meerschaum, a definite taste of Latakia was still left in the pipe when a straight VA was smoked.

This could serve as the impetus for delving into the plethora of English-style blends. To try Frank's method of pipe packing, Google "Frank pipe packing method."

When I first opened the can of FROTB, I immediatly knew just by the smell that this was going to be one of my all time favorites. It was at first a little bit moist, and here in south Alabama, its a bit difficult just to let it air out (and because i couldnt wait to smoke it), as it is very humid, so it took several relightings throughout the bowl- and I must say it would be an increadably consistently burning tobacco had it been just a bit dryer. The cool and increadably smooth way this smokes, its just something to be experianced. The Latakia is prevelent, and even though there is a hit of a sharp edge, it is a little hidden, and very interesting. Most everything I want to say about this has already been said, so if this is the first review you scrolled to, I suggest you start from the top. Its difficult for me to describe the way it is, for any tobacco, I cant htink of words but I can say things in colors and shapes and landscapes. This is certainly a low, happy, marshy, boggy, misty smoke... As the name suggests of corse, it reminds me alot of the overcast conditions during the fall in the Shire. I cant describe it, but it brings a very, very nostalgic feeling to you. I reccomend anyone trying this, at least once, to see what I mean. Overall, the tast is suburb, the latakia and turkish mix very lovingly, in fact all of them do. I especially like the review somewhere above likeing it to a symphony.

A good friend of mine brought some of this in for me to try as I have never smoked any. His was dated back in 2017. Disclaimer, I only smoked two bowls, so this is more of a place holder to at least say I had the honor of trying this one out. A good English (Balkan?) blend which was consistently smooth and for an English quite mild I might add.

I love OTB and was blessed to score a tin from eBay dated 2011. Man, this stuff is GREAT!!! A fine Balkan, that when enjoyed in a Corn Cob has a nice sweetness and when enjoyed in a Briar is smokey and a bit spicy. Some Balkans have a pungent room note, but OTB is quite different, it has an inviting room note that trails off to produce a subtle, smokey pleasurable aroma. No bite, finishes well on the palate and you can taste all of the tobaccos throughout the smoke. Highly recommended and if you can find older tins, consider it winning the lottery!

My first venture into the Frog Morton series, as I'm not normally a fan of the McClelland vinager/BBQ flavor. This flavoring is most noticeable at the beginning of the bowl in "On the Bayou" but manifests itself as sweetness intermittently binding the different tobaccos and tones down the latakia. I also tend to prefer perique.

Off the light the perique gives off its trademark spice and employs notes of fig and raisin throughout. The woody, smokiness of the Latakia is the star of the show, and provides a creamy chocolatey sweetness when interacting with the sugary dark fruit Virginia and buttery Turkish, the latter I found to shine with exotic spice on the finish. Well balanced, once you get over Latakia's heavy hand. The perique isn't too spicy but noticeable, smoky/sweetness is more this blends thing. At times a beefiness/meaty element comes through. This blend can be pushed and won't bite, doesn't get hot. Can leave some dottle with a couple relights necessary- but burns well and down to a partial ash with larger blackened pieces. A well blended Balkan style- the perique spice is more evident in a narrow bowl, but I'd recommend wider. Not quite 4 stars for me bc of mcclelands trademark soupy flavor, and the mutedness of the tobaccos, intentional or not.. but a satisfying B- and worth a purchase.

What can I say about McClelland that hasn't already been said? It is one of the worlds most supreme tobacco blenders and are making exciting, Exciting, EXCITING stuff, consistently!!! Not everyone likes McClelland though. Some people say that A LOT of their stuff smells like ketchup, vinegar or BBQ sauce out of the tin. It does. Some people say that they use a lot of Propylene glycol in their stuff. I would suspect that they do and I don't have a problem with it. With a lot of their stuff, the look of the tobacco out of the tin makes me wonder if they have the Swedish Chef doing their cutting. But these things don't bother me. I have smoked a lot of tobacco and I keep coming back to McClelland for one reason and that reason is that whatever they're doing, for me, it works! I can't think of any other blender that I like as much, as consistently as McClelland, with the exception of Samuel Gawith. Ha! Take that naysayers!

But if there's one thing that people should remember about pipe smoking, it's that you should be enjoying yourself, whatever you choose to smoke...

FMOTB is like a leather recliner... You just sink into it. The first thing that comes to mind isn't the Latakia, though there's a fair amount in this. No, it's the Perique. I think back to some of the other Perique containing baccys that I love, like Escudo and SG's St. James Flake and with those, it's fun to see how Perique contributes itself to the experience when it's just the Virginia and the black truffle itself! SOOO EARTHY!!! I don't know if I was completely prepared for the impact Perique had until after many years of smoking it... The way that the Perique in this mixture plays off the Latakia! Have you ever heard The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams? It's achingly beautiful with all the string instruments used for it. Beautiful base structure playing off a top note, the lark itself, fluttering higher and higher! That's how the Perique and Latakia play, like a beautiful piece of music, the base ground of Latakia and the wet earth itself, with all its minerality, roots, bugs, fungi and other stuff living in it, just under the surface.

Then there's the Turkish/Oriental and Virginia leaves. They are tying in the various strings, rounding them out. The Oriental contribution, fills out the mixture with supreme complexity and the Virginia is wonderfully sugary and help drive the experience.

Like I said before, this and other McClelland mixtures look like they have the Swedish Chef doing the tobacco cutting. It's sort of boggling to look at. It almost looks like they were being lazy, but it seems to work! The mix burns well and packs well. It stays lit, even though I think they've been using plenty of humectant to keep it moist. Sip this, and it shouldn't bite. Also an added benefit of Perique is that it helps with alkaline tongue bite because it tends to be more acidic. (Thanks Pipedia!). The aftertaste leaves you wanting more!

Sit in your leather recliner, put on Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending and smoke some Frog Morton on the Bayou with no regrets!