McClelland Christmas Cheer 2004

I feel a little guilty posting a review of this since the tins are so limited in availability and so expensive, but I smoke it and enjoy it, so for posterity here goes. At first blush this is like all Christmas Cheer offerings, a straight VA broken flake with little processing to my knowledge in the traditional sense (such as steam pressing i.e. SG FVF). For years my local pipe shop was loaded to the gills with McClelland and often little else, so while their offerings have never been among my favorites, they were unavoidable if you were hankering for something new and buying local. For me a little Christmas Cheer goes a long way, I am still smoking from a tin of 1998 that has been open and jarred for more than a decade. It can be somewhat monotone and hard to smoke, frankly, so while I have several other tins of CC I never cracked another open and stuck to my two or three bowls per year routine.

For me this year, however, was another level of flavor and enjoyment, and it is not going to last ten years now that it is open. I purchased the tin somewhere around 2004-2005 and did not open it until 2019, so it had ten years on it when they released it, and I put another fifteen on it in my cellar. That may sound extreme but these types of VA’s are almost limitless in their aging potential and only get better the longer you wait. Well, this 26-year-old VA is now amazing, just beautiful in every respect. The tin aroma has that twangy McClelland vibe, but in addition this one has deep tones of spiced plum with cinnamon and nutmeg. It is mouthwatering.

It is a broken flake that looks like old dark brown shoe leather. I rub it out about 50-75% more than it already is in its broken tin form, and pack it loosely in small, narrow bowled pipe. A little goes a long way, and the bowl I smoked last night lasted for more than an hour in a pipe whose chamber is below the second knuckle of my pinkie and no bigger around. I find it best dried out so that it is still flexible but not moist to the touch. It takes a bit of effort to get it going but once it is started after a few false lights it will burn readily with minimal (maybe 4-5 over the course of an hour) relights. I find that the best flavor is preserved by letting it go out and then relighting as opposed to puffing and lighting constantly to keep it lit, and that also controls the heat overall. When puffed gently this does not bite (but it will if you overdo it) and all of that rich sweet spice is what you taste – sweet VA’s with tones of Christmas spices, like a fruitcake. This is very consistent from top to bottom but gets a little richer as you move down the bowl.

For reasons stated above I do not have a number of years to compare this to yet because I never cracked my other tins of CC. I find it much more complex, spicier, and better in every way than the 1998 offering. Is it worth north of $100 if you do not already own a tin? Only you can say, but I would offer this guidance. If you are a fan of McClelland style VA’s, and the CC offerings in particular, then I would say that this is essential. If not then I would not kill myself hunting a tin down, but certainly if you can find a tin for a reasonable price or if you get it as a gift (I gave two of mine from various years to good friends, so maybe you will get lucky in the future too) then it is well worth cracking it open. You could also let it sit for another twenty years. Mine has not even begun to sugar up yet so it will only get better. A final tip would be not to leave it in the tin after it is open under any circumstances. That plastic lid does not hold the moisture and it will dry out, and once that happens you lose the magic with this one. Immediately put it in glass with an airtight seal after you crack the tin (canning jars are really the only option for foolproof safe storage) and it should last a good long time.