McClelland Honeydew

THIS IS GOD AWFUL!!!!

I am sorry to say but I think McClelland keeps missing the mark on new blend developments. Most of thier blends, especially thier flakes reek of vinegar. I guess it is thier theme. That smell is there to but with an added twist of an addition of a sweetener to a blend of golden brown virgina broken flake. It creates a sort of power play between the vinegary tang and the syrupy sweatness analogous to a sweet and sour dish at a chinease restaurant. It is called Honeydew but it sure does not taste like it was flavored with honey. In fact it tastes like the cheap syrupy sugar sweetness found in generic cavendish. This simply does not work.

-Not recommended

I enjoy this when I am in the mood for a light sweet virginia blend. This is sweeter than the tin aroma may lead you to believe. There may be a light honey topping but I think the sweetness mostly comes from the virginias. Even though this is a virginia blend I believe that there may be a small portion of burley in this in that on occasion I detected low notes that were cigar like. I may be wrong on this but I am a fan of virginia based blends with very small portions of burley and many of these style of blends have a very similar low note that occasionally comes through that straight virginia blends dont have. I prefer to smoke this dried out much more than the way it comes in the tin. It bites less smoked this way, however it still will bite with out much provocation. For this reason I give it 3 stars and not the highest rating. Recommended.

I am a McClelland VA lover, but this is just too sweet for me; I find it cloying. McClelland VAs are naturally sweet, so there is no need for further topping. I will struggle to finish my tin. However, Honeydew might be fine for an aromatic smoker looking to try a Virginia. The base tobacco is high quality and the burn is excellent.

I am just getting 'round to a review for Honeydew. A friend passed over the last half of a tin, which I polished off in good time. I purchased another, which sat for a few months, then was smoked over a week, finishing up today. This tobacco is a rough cut, very pretty in the tin, not much "ketchup" aroma, more peppery to my nose, very "irish flakeish". Lightup is rather uneventful, frail wisps of smoke give way to a gentle taste experience. It certainly is a competent cake builder, and smacks of a quality blend of virginias, mostly sweet but not offputting to the non-aromatic crowd. Room note is pleasant, albeit heavy. I like this blend the most of the Baker St trio, it being welcome reprieve to my latakia inured palate. I will cellar a few tins.

I was very pleasantly surprised. This is the first McClelland flake tobacco I?ve tried that is light enough for a breakfast or brunch smoke. I could detect a light topping in the tin aroma?some say honey?it doesn?t remind me of the melon honeydew aroma, but it?s light enough so that I can?t fully get a handle on it - enough to tag it. Neither can I detect it much in the taste of the smoke, but others near me can and several have commented as to it?s lovely quality: ?"like pumpkin bread baking"?"it reminds me of when I was a child and my mother used to bake cookies, and the like"?that from a woman at work. It?s always amazing how powerfully evocative an aroma can be. I was near a hero to that lady, as she walked around with a warm and dear memory for the rest of the day. Be that as it may, this tobacco parts, packs and puffs very nicely and has a fine medium taste. It seems to me to be one of those rare tobaccos (to me NOT an aromatic, per se) in which the light flavoring makes the smoking experience infinitely better than if it were not present. It works with and compliments the tobacco instead of frosting it like a layer of mud. I like this very much as I?m now exploring other light flakes such as Astley?s 109, Dan Pipe?s Hamborger Veermaster, Reiner?s Long Golden Flake, Bjarne?s Flake de Luxe and the like. They all fall into a category to me that is labeled: Excellent Smoking Experience! This is a 4 out of 5.

This is a light tobacco that is good as an early morning smoke or an all day blend. It smokes smooth and cool. Don't let the name "Honeydew" scare you if your hesitant about aromatics. The flavoring has been applied with with reserve. It has a great tin aroma and room note, but again the flavoring is delicate and remains subtly in the background. It smokes well all the way down the bowl and becomes a little more medium bodied and flavorful as the bowl progresses. Overall I think McClelland has done a fine job with this much anticipated blend. If you like this blend, you may want to try Peterson Irish Whiskey.

This is another first for me with McClelland's 221B Series Honeydew.

The tobacco has a mild aroma upon opening the tin, the cut is a Flake and needs to be rubbed out a little. The taste is not a sweet aromatic like one would be lead to believe by the name of Honeydew.

This one could nip your tongue a bit if not smoked like a Virginia, the gentleness is there if one will take their time and smoke it slow. Honeydew presents itself IMHO as a satisfying tobacco in the Irish traditionand with a delightful aroma, and a subtle sweetness as the tobacco slowly blends the fragrant of the flake into one enjoyable gratifying taste.

Smoke it Slow, Enjoy it Longer