McClelland Frog Morton on the Bayou

Maybe it’s the onset of springtime, but over the past month, I have been opening a bunch of aged tins from my tobacco cellar and coming across a few that I had purchased way back when and for whatever reason, never got around to trying. I say this because my review is based on a tin of FMOTB from 2002 and I have not tried it fresh off the shelf and so my thoughts are only on an aged tin. My reference points are Frog on the Town and on the Pond. Of the two ‘on the Town I prefer more. I should mention that I like Perique with Virginias and English blends alike. So On the Bayou should have held some promise. As with the other Frogs, The usual wait and dry time is needed before packing a bowl. I should also mention that at least in the aged version, the scent of the Perique is easily detected in the tin note. On the Bayou seems to be a little less sweet than FMOTT, and the Latakia plays a supporting role in the flavor department. I find on the Bayou to be a bit stronger than the other two as well. For the first several bowls, I really enjoyed on the Bayou, but over time that diminished, and soon went downhill. I noticed that one reviewer pointed out that he felt this blend aged poorly and I am finding myself in agreement. It seems that time has softened the other component tobaccos; this is especially true of the Latakia. I have found that Perique seems to soften over time too, but in the case of this blend, it takes over too much of the blend and things seem way out of balance. The bottom third of the bowl was totally dominated by the Perique. In the end, I grew tired of it. I seldom smoke any in the series anymore, but if I happen to buy a newer tin, I’ll update this, but for now, FMOTB misses the mark, at least in the aged department.

Lead by the Orientals. The Latakia is next in influence. The Virginias add a little sweetness, but not much flavor. I find the Perique to be very lightly applied adding just a touch of spice and a mere hint of flavor. Truthfully, I'm a bit let down by this one. My expectations were, perhaps, a bit too high. For me, it's just an average Balkan.

Medium in body. Mild to medium in flavor. Burns very nicely.

I don't know what all the hype is about. Mclelland's frog Mortons all use the same blending tobaccos. There are very strong similarities in all of them, making me regret that I purchased the entire Frog Morton line.

Bayou is decent at best. The cut is sloppy, and contains some stems. But that doesn't bother me as much as the monotonous taste. If you smoke dunhill blends, you know the giant differences between 965, nightcap and EMP. When you smoke different Frog Morton blends, I find myself SEARCHING for the differences. Maybe I've been spoiled by Dunhill, I don't know, but I am disappointed.

Anyways, I'm ranting, and if I try to be unbiased in this review, it would go something like this: Bayou is a Latakia forward, perique secondary blend. Its smokey, peppery and very bready / vinigary. Reminds you of a meat & potatoes dinner.

None of the tobaccos in this blend have outstanding characteristics but they do make for a balanced smoke that will satisfy if not looking for anything particularly special.

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?)

As with all the Frogs, this is a good blend but not a great blend. The tobacco starts with a hint of chocolate flavor that fades fast into Orientals. Mild, smooth, more sour than sweet, no bite, but doesn't burn well at a sip and requires constant relights, and this does try the tongue. The Orientals don't really "dance" , as they fade into the background. I don't find the Perique except on relights, even though the name " On The Bayou" indicates a heavy presents. This might be the best of the bunch ( If you like Orientals as I do)but it is still boring.

Wow, I just checked the other reviews, is my taste so shot that I'm so far out of wack with you all? I guess it's just me and reviewer "zulujerk 9/19/09".!

I have held off on reviewing this blend for some time, mainly because I cannot really figure it out. Is it a VA/Per with some Latakia? Is it a Balkan (whatever that means)? I still don't know. Here is what I know: There is damn good leaf in the blend, it was skillfully blended, but I don't know what it wants to be when it grows up.

The tin note is McClelland Balkan: I am not sure if it is a topping, a stave or alchemy but McClelland blends of all types have a distinct signature aroma and they are all fantastic.

The smoke is tasty but confusing. I get red stoved VA's and latakia mostly but there are also woody Orientals and sweet VA's in there as well. They all seem to combat with one another at times and harmonize at others. The first 1/3 of the bowl to me brings the VA's and the perique. delicious and satisfying, Sweet dark fruit and pepper, figs and stewed fruit are at the center. After that the Latakia becomes more prominent. Malty, creamy, sweet and smokey notes become the main theme. The perique is almost unnoticeable in the bottom 1/3 of the bowl, even on retrohale. The blend is top quality. The "problem" with this blend is that it has no true identity. If you aren't in the mood for anything in particular, this is the blend for you. However if you are like me and choose from your rotation based on what you are in the mood for, this has no real good fit. It is good, please don't read this as a poor review of this blend. It just is hard to know when I might want exactly "this" blend.

I would likely rate OTB as 3rd amongst the FM collection, behind both Cellar and Across the Pond. It's a pretty decent blend, but I feel it's lacking something. It's holding back. I think it'd be a lot better with less latakia and more perique. McClelland handles perique very well, in my opinion. But they were a little light handed with it here. I also wish they'd used the vastly superior Syrian latakia, but I know scant reserves would soon bring the blend to a halt.

Right from the start I pick up strong latakia presence. If the overall strength were higher, I'd put this one in the latbomb category. Normally I wouldn't mind so much, but it makes the perique very hard to zone in on. I don't really pick up on the orientals or virginias. They're hiding behind the latakia. The blend smokes well, I must say, despite the higher moisture out of the tin. I experienced no relights or tongue bite.

Summarily, this blend is okay. It's not that unique and I think it could benefit in this regard with the addition of more perique. In my mind, bayou=perique. I know the frog morton series carries a somewhat inflated reputation, most likely due to the relative scarcity of McClelland tobacco to our overseas pipe-smoking brethren. But honestly, when I want virginias I go to McClelland, when I want English I go to Dunhill. As always, your mileage may vary. This blend is worth a try.

My least favorite Froggy blend. Not a fan of Perique or the pepper flavor it leaves in any smoke. For those of you who like that in a blend you should like this blend. To me the pepper flavor overloaded anything else as far as taste is concerned. I am not a fan of this blend so two stars is the best I can give.

Before reading my review, know that I am not fond of Frog Morton's cellar. If you enjoy FMC, skip this review because you will probably like this tobacco more than I do.

Conclusion: This is a dessert tobacco for me, it is very sweet. For those times when one has to satisfy one's sweet tooth. Other than that it is unremarcable, simple and straight. No need to fear either latakia or perique because those are very subtle. Mechanically it is a pretty poor blend that puts off alot of moisture and is quite hard to keep lit. This is in my opinion an ok tobacco, but I most likely will not order another tin.

Taste: An almost sugar like sweetness dominates, reminiscent of that in its aromatic cousin "Frog Morton's cellar". This is clearly topped, I would say, but that is nothing untypical of McClelland in general. Also there is this note of tomato often found in McClelland blends coming through. Beneath these two elements the latakia is most prominent, which makes for a sweet smokiness. The perique is hardly noticeable for the first two thirds of a bowl, and in the last third it reveals itself only through a slight tingle in the nose. Overall it is hard to discern any subtle flavours in this tobacco, it is pretty thick and dense. Blunt almost. That said it is tasty, however simple.

Mechanics: A rough ribbon, kind of a sloppy cut. Needs some drying to not put off alot of moisture that will require a run through with a pipe cleaner, and even so it will need an amount of relights usually reserved for flakes. It does not bite though, nicotine is at mild to medium.