McClelland Classic Samsun

So this is what Oriental tobacco is. Very interesting. This is my first venture into strictly "Oriental" tobaccos and I must say I am very pleasantly surprised. The fact that this produced no bite except when I puff super intensely and fast to try to get bitten, earns this tobacco 3 stars off the bat. This is definitely not an aromatic, but there is indeed a slightly nutty aroma. Any "sweetness" is subtle and mostly imagined. Dry it for a day or two, then get a good charring light, and you are good to go. It also lasts a long time in the bowl and no truly foul aftertaste. Man, this is a good tobacco. The only thing I think some people would have a problem with is the fact that it is very reminiscent of smoking a cigarette, including a noticeable nicotine kick. It took me a few bowls to get over that, but once I did, I was able to enjoy it with no problems. I will have to try the other Grand Orientals to really compare, but I feel confident in highly recommending this.

upon the first lighting of this tobacco, It started off mild and sweet with a creamy smoothness that was pleasantly surprising. As I smoked further into the bowl it got a bit tangy and no bite. I also get a very subtle nutty flavor too. The strength stays fairly mild, but the gentle flavor gets a little fuller by mid bowl, but I wouldn't call this "full flavored." I know that some have mentioned that room note was pleasant to some ladies, but my husband who is also a pipe smoker actually disliked the room note and had mentioned it on several occasions as I was smoking my pipe. Overall, I really liked this blend from the very first bowl. If the other Grand Orientals are this good, I can't wait to try them!

This delightful blend ostensibly consists of un‐topped Turkish tobacco from the Balkans. This is absolutely lovely: Upon lighting the bowl with a flaming charred splinter of bird‐eye maple, the smoker is confronted by an innocuous plume approximating in taste a hypothetical confection consisting of marshmallows and dried figs—perhaps some drunken makeshift 'smore' analogue consisting of alternately‐skewered 'Fig Newtons' stacked in close proximity to marshmallows roasted over a fire: An aromatic conflagration engulfing planks of oak (4×2), coffee beans, cocoa hulls, and one unfurled ceylon cinnamon strip dipped in cranberry juice. But after persisting with this, the taste slowly morphs to one reminiscent of hay and smoldering birch bark—not what most people would usually consider 'good,' but more approaching my idiosyncratic preference. Persisting further with additional Samsun tobacco addition—over a Costa Rican espresso and lit with butane—the smoker is presented with a new suite of flavors, including: graham cracker, pencil shavings (from a Dixon Ticonderoga™ pencil), burnt Pop Tart™, and middle‐aged nutsack—definitely getting better. But perhaps the best way to appreciate McLelland's Classic Samsun is through a flax rolling paper—as a cigarette—where halfway through the smoker is graciously presented with an unparalleled array of flavors that can only be described as your grandmothers vagina being licked through a sepia‐toned photograph from the '60s. Thus: McLelland's Classic Samsun never disappoints and offers nothing less than a 4‐star experience, the rating which I had personally given it (I'd give it four million if they'd let me.. .)

My 6th Grand Oriental to date, and I am officially in love with Samsun leaf. As is stated in the footnotes for this blend, great care is taken with this ( and all these "boutique" oriental specialty blends I believe) to cultivate the full sugary flavor of these delicate leaves... think white tea leaves if you've ever been so fortunate to taste this fantastic tea leaf.

Deftly blended with quality Va's this Turk/Oriental leaf has caused me to rest my thoughts of Turkish blends in general. Prior to the Grand Os I associated (rightly or wrongly) Turkish toby with roughness; think London Mixture, Standard Mixtue, Sherlock Holmes etc, where it is a background to English-centric blends.

Here Turk leaf is front and center, and as has been more eloquently stated than I can do justice the result is harmonic perfection. A mild blend that at the same time isn't light in texture or taste.

Sweet, savory and yet at times slightly spicy, never ever hot or bity, this blend has body and personality. The only peculiarity I took note of is that it tasted even better when very loosely packed... this caused it to burn faster but it allowed the flavors to flow better.

Ahh, the Samsun! Like all blends in the Grand Oriental line, this one is sure to please an experienced smoker as much as a newcomer. It is easy to fall in love with, while offering great depth to the more discerning palate. The palate is tantalizingly sweet, especially once you master the pace. Light in strength yet highly satisfying in flavour, room note, and the after taste. As great in the heat of summer as it is on a winter afternoon.

I wish I could compose the words and sentences to do this tobacco the full justice it most assuredly deserves. If one cares for Oriental tobacco at all, this will very easily go to the top headings of your list. A taste of spice, a taste of sweetness, a taste of earthiness. None of which are overwhelming, but migrating to the front for prominence, staying long enough for you to enjoy and be pleased by that sensation, then withdrawing to the background for the next momentary sensation to please you and it then also drifts into the background to be replenished by a new sensation of pleasure.

It does not bite your tongue or scorch the roof of your mouth. I have not been able to push it to become a nuclear rocket sled on a stick. I make the suggestion to get your pipe packed correctly so that you may smoke it as slow as possible, not to avoid heat, but so that you may "sip" this tobacco and truly enjoy its spectrum of flavors.

I highly recommend this tobacco not only to Oriental tobacco lovers, but for those willing to change from aromatics or Latakia smokers wanting a change of pace. It is on my lists of "Always Have" and "Grab Now."

My Dunhill pipes love it and so do I.

This is the blend that has turned me on to try the rest of the Grand Orientals series. Quite good. And sip slow, not fast, or it will ruin it. I thought I hated it at first, but that was because I was huffing and puffing.

Sweet, delicate, satisfying, and not too rich, so that this could be an all-day for some.

UPDATE: I figured I should come back and say that the roomnote on this is fantastic. A friend was smoking it near me and it was amazing. I'm not sure how anyone could dislike this note, smoker or no.

Throughly enjoyed this blend. Classic Samsun is a subtle blend, and best smoked in a pipe that smokes neutral, such as a meer. It has a lightly creamy flavor, with a natural sweetness. There is a nutty component, such as in a good straight burley, but without the cigarish flavor or bite of a burley.

I'll add to this review as I'm not doing justice to the blend. Suffice to say, this is what I want my aromatics to smoke & taste like.

Pipe smoking friends, this is wonderful. It just has to smoked to be believed. There is a slight cigar note, but the main thrusts are subdued Virginias and exotic, dark spice and earthy truffles. There is a pleasant acrid, slightly sour note noticeable at bowl's end.

Samsun is not Yenidje and it would have been hard to note the differences without this series (I'll bet most blending houses nowadays need this series to compare what fine varietals are all about, given that most blenders have recently only had blended Orientals to work with). Both varietals are wunder-leaf on their own.

This kind of mixture makes one forget about Latakia, and makes me think that blenders use too much Latakia to compensate for low-quality Orientals and/or inferior flue-cured tobaccos.

There is some sort of chocolate top note, but whether this is from the leaf or accentuation by the blender, I'm not sure. This top note does not translate into the flavor or burning aroma.

The burning qualities and ash are superior. This is very cool, dry smoking and lush. I will try the rest of the series, now that I have smoked YS, YH and CS.