McClelland Drama Reserve

McClelland's Drama Reserve is a blend of ribbon-cut Virginias with Drama leaf added to the mix. Upon opening the tin you can smell the spice immediately. Due to the cut it packs easily and burns well. It is a bit moist out of the tin but a few minutes of drying time brings it to a better moisture level for smoking.

The flavor at first light is a slightly sweet spiciness. It is not a peppery spice like that of Perique but a more exotic one like saffron. As the bowl progresses the sweetness increases slightly and the spice moves to the background playing a supporting role to the VAs. Towards the end of the bowl there is a good base of sweetness with the spice coming through now and then. The blend gets more full at the end but it never gets harsh.

Drama Reserve is a cool-burning blend that leaves the pipe and palate clean. If pushed it can bite but that is a given considering the ingredients. Not a blend to be puffed like a locomotive but slowly sipped and savored like a fine wine.

Just a nice relaxing mellow smoke. I taste a slight, olive oil taste that melds together well with a rich and flavorful smoke that is ever so slightly sweet and spicy.

Delicious. Smooth, almost creamy. I didn't pick up the olive oil fragrance. Had a little trouble keeping it lit, but only through the middle. I'm picking up a handful more tins to tuck away.

Beautiful blend. Bit of a high-pitched tin note from the Drama, maybe the Virginias. Burns perfectly. Chocolate, cedar, gentle spice. Great warm-weather smoke. Finding it ages well too.

1/21/2015 - Agree with DK that this isn't overly complex; it's a beautiful "steady Eddie" all the way through. Only compliments from non-smokers thus far. Really well done.

This was my first venture into Oriental tobaccos and I must say this one blew me away. What a strange, wonderful blend. Interesting floral bouquet of flavors and aromas. Smokes incredibly cool and produces silky, oily, smooth smoke. Being inexperienced in oriental tobacco I can't really pick out which leaf is delivering which flavors but I can pick out a sweet, light, sugary virginia. Along with that is the earthy and sweet orientals. The earthy, sweetness is what really gets me with this one. It gives it a unique olive oil flavor and quality to it that is very pleasant. A very interesting blend. Good for tossing your palate a curve ball every now and then. Definitely one of those blends that makes out pipe smoking hobby so interesting.

Nice tangy oriental mixture. Anyone who likes the category should give this a try -- not overly complex to my tastes, but solid, and the olive oil aftertaste is pleasant. Since I know there are many tobaccos out there I would rate a 4, the question arises would I rebuy this particular tobacco, assuming my tastes don't change much more. In this case, the answer is yes, and I have.

A very creamy sweet rich smoke done on the mild side. the tin aroma reminds me of cotton candy.

Well, after a long series of four star ratings for this blend, I'm going to have to break the trend and rate this tobacco three stars.

Executive Summary: An overall smooth smoke with an indescribable oily tongue note; however, due to its extreme delicateness this tobacco tends to require too much concentration.

Review: The base tobacco of this blend is very familiar in taste to McClelland's #5100 Red Cake, somewhat sweet and slightly tangy, but there is an added note of the orientals that delivers a very nice dimension to the smoke. The only real downside (for me at least) is that you really have to pay attention to the bowl, the forgiveness of this blend is practically nil. If you puff at just the right rate, you'll get a wonderful oily tasting, multi-dimensional smoke, puff a bit (and I mean a tiny bit) too much and it becomes a one-dimensional Virginia tongue stinger.

Conclusion: This is a "should try" blend, but be warned, to really enjoy what this blend has to offer you need to dedicate all of your attention to the smoking experience - if you do, you'll be aptly rewarded.

The Nicole Kidman of tobaccos, elegant, cool, and sexy.

You have to sip gently though, drawing heavily only results in tongue bite.