Tobaccos McCranie's - Red Ribbon, vintage 2000

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2009-04-17		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Very Pleasant

I was wondering when the 2000 version of the McCranie's famous Red Ribbon would be available for review. I am most certainly a fan of the '83 and '96 versions and was interested to try the latest.

This is certainly the mildest of the three. Not as sweet as the '96 version and lacking the strength of both of its predecessors, this one reminded me of McClelland's 5100 and a few of the McClelland's Christmas Cheer vintages.

Easy to pack and light, RR 2000 will appeal to those who enjoy lighter fare. I prefer a little more strength and flavor... But, the quality of the leaf and flavor of the Virginias employed is certainly in keeping with this famous series.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2014-11-10		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This pure deeply rich, fermented red Virginia offers a fair amount of tangy ripe dark fruit, wood, earth, sugar, a few bread notes, and a hint of spice. Has a vinegar essence that quickly vanishes. Not much complexity present, which is a hallmark of these Red Ribbon blends, and of red Virginia in particular. No chance of bite or harshness. The strength is just short of the center of mild to medium, and the taste is in that center. The nic-hit is rather mild. Burns cool, clean and even at a reasonable pace with a very consistent, smoothly soft, sweet flavor. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires an average number of relights. Has a pleasant, short lived after taste and room note. An all day smoke. For some reason, it seemed a little mellower, and a shade sweeter than the vintage 2000 flake version. Also not quite as deep in taste as some other years. Three and a half stars.

-JimInks

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Vrikkian (8)	2014-01-02		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This is a Virginia tobacco. Virginia, Virginia, Virginia. If you don't like what a red VA flake brings to the table (natural sweetness but a nice robust flavor) then look elsewhere. If you are someone who loves a "pure" tobacco with no casing, no artificial flavor, and nothing but the leaf from the harvest then keep reading!

A little backstory: I am still a "novice" pipesmoker. Even though I've been smoking off-and-on (3-5 bowls/week) for 2 years, I still don't have the cadence of the hobby down yet. Sometimes my bowls are too light, sometimes I don't tamp enough, sometimes I smoke too hot. Therefore, I can easily think that a tobacco is crap when in reality it's my fault because I've not mastered all the facets of the routine yet.

HOWEVER, Red Ribbon by McCranie's is one of the very few blends (even though this is, as stated, not a blend of anything more than VA ribbon cut, a tin, and a lid) that I have loved every second of from the false light to the heel. I've gone through an entire tin in 3 weeks (which is a lot for me), and... just wow. I don't know if luck makes me smoke this tobacco correctly, but it's simply incredible. It's a fresh, clean, but strong flavor. It's sweet, sometimes a little fruity, but tasty. It'll bite if you smoke it too fast, but just slow down and you'll be rewarded.

McC's Red Ribbon is now my Go To Virginia blend. Pairing it with me Go To English (Kramer's Father Dempsey) means that if I'm ever stranded on a desert island I'll know what to bring with me.

Pipe Used: Ivarrson Stanwell (Dark Tanned)

Age When Smoked: 13 years

Purchased From: McCranies website

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteelCowboy (685)	2011-10-15		Mild	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a soft one with loads of taste and produces clouds of wonderful smoke. It smokes best nice and dry. I am not normally a fan of straight Red Virginia's. This may be the one that changes all that! Nuff said!

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Denevei (58)	2011-01-08		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

There are two versions of McCranie's 1996 Virginia available, a flake and a ribbon. When I first began smoking the two blends I preferred the flake, but have come to more appreciate the Ribbon. It's the most popular of the tinned blends sold at McCranie's, and for good reason. Among McCranie's regulars who are Virginia smokers, once they try this blend they rarely smoke anything else. I certainly have no plans of my own tobacco shelf ever going without it. When you pop open a tin of Red Ribbon you are treated to a wonderful, enticing Virginia sweet aroma. There are darker and lighter ribbons of tobacco, but I've yet to find a stem or poorly cut leaf. This is a quality tobacco. It's slightly on the moist side, and might need a slight drying before smoking, depending upon personal preference. I like to open the tin and let it air for an hour or two before smoking it. The tobacco lights easily, and smokes smooth from the first puff. As you get deeper into the bowl the complexities and subtleties of the blend really become pronounced. As a new product, it's not yet had time to age in the tin, but I feel certain that time will treat Red Ribbon well, allowing it to age like a fine wine. Like the Red Flake, there is a creamy, vanilla-like taste to the smoke which is what I seek. Red Ribbon is a Virginia lover's pleasure. I asked Todd McCranie what his favorite blend is and he replied, without hesitation, that this is it. I then asked him what he smokes when he runs out of Red Ribbon, to which he replied, with a smile, that he never runs out.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-04-15		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Composed of a pleasing mixture of springy mahogany, chestnut, and dark brown ribbon of a small and delicate sort, McCraine's Red Ribbon 2000 has a pleasantly sweet and tangy tin nose. An initially rather sharp note of acetic acid mellows into light molasses as the tin is allowed to breathe.

Tinned rather moist, the springiness of the short broken ribbon, even when well dried, requires a bit of patience in packing, lighting, and tamping. When treated with care, however, it burns very well.

Light in body, in the pipe Red Ribbon begins with a bright, clean tobacco core accompanied by notes of citrus and leather. The finish is tangy. As the bowl develops, the flavors coalesce into a delicate mélange of fresh sawn wood, candied fruit, and lemon zest weaving in and out of an overall quite mellow Virginia flavor profile. Its nuances are very easy to miss, making it more of an occasional companion for times of contemplation rather than a dependable old chum for times of mindless puffing. Very clean burning, the springy ribbons result in a fine salt-and-pepper ash. To this reviewer tongue bite was never once an issue.

Red Ribbon is a refined tobacco which bears a striking resemblance to McClelland Bulk No. 5100 ('Red Cake'), which while not being crop specific is certainly a close relative both in terms of origin(s) and most certainly in terms of preparation. While considerably more expensive than 5100, McCraine?s Red Ribbon 2000 is a safe 'buy one for now, and a whole lot more for later' type of Virginia preparation. There is little reason to doubt that this limited vintage will not develop substantially in the tin, and I for one look forward to dusting off more than a few many years down the road.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	hiplainsdrifter (9)	2012-08-13		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Very Full	Pleasant

Wow. This tobacco is... I am speechless. Huge tin note, dominated by a sweet vinegar aroma. I would imagine the vinegar smell dissapates with age. Room note is really good, I have had compliments from friends who are non-smokers and hate smoking in general. Taste is massive, sweet dried cherry or cranberry notes. A little tongue bite if you really lay the hammer down but totally manageable. Hands down the best tobacco I have smoked, at least for my tastes. The only thing I have tried that is even comparable is Macbaren HH Mature VA, although I like Red Ribbon a lot more. I really love the fact that this phenomenal smoke is not a blend, rather one variety of VA from one crop. Wow.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2011-06-27		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Tin: Nice reddish-brown, long ribbon, with a very sweet raisin bread scent. The bottom of the tin is stamped 2008. It feels supple but not moist.

Packing & Burning: Easy. A medim bowl lasts a long time. Burns to a fine ash all the way to the bottom of a bowl.

Taste & Aroma: Monochromatic to start, RR is mellow, smooth, and sweet. Around mid-bowl, it develops a rich deep, sweet pastry taste. At the botom of the bowl, it is an even deeper, somewhat stoved, marshmellow flavor.

Overall: A pleasing all-day, indoor smoke. A little light on taste, so 3.6 stars.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2010-01-11		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This review is based on a recently purchased tin of Prime 2000 Red Virginia that was processed in 2008. I've never smelled or tasted any tobacco like this, including other Virginias, so, I'm unable to pass on a comparitive analysis. From my limited experience, I'll have to submit that the aroma and taste is foreign to me & this is the first, straight Red Virginia I've ever sampled. I don't notice a casing when sniffing, handling or smoking & the flavor is that of pure, quality tobacco.

This Red Ribbon seems to burn just a wee bit faster than some of the dark VAs I've sampled, but smokes cool & mild with minimal harshness or bite. The aroma & flavor is appealing & I taste nothing more than a unique, tobacco flavor. This is a great first Red VA smoking experience for me. This stuff is definately worthy of a VA connoisseur's attention & will most certainly improve with age, as most VA blends do. I purchased three tins each of ribbon & flake for my cellar. Therefore, IMHO, McCranie's Red Ribbon merits four **s!!

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2011-01-19		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Sampled from a 2007 vintage tin. The tin aroma...I sniffed a spicy, clove/nutmeg sort of smell. The topping wasn't so much as to totally block the smell of Red Virginia. The ready rubbed flakes are mostly very dark brown with a small amount of medium brown. It packs easily and burns well.

The topping wasn't all that noticeable to me. The smoke is as light as a feather and almost as smooth as air itself with the unique, sweet taste & flavor of Red Virginia coming through. The smoke is totally biteless and remains mild, cool & tasty to the end of the bowl.

McClelland blends this and they churn out a lot of good stuff...no doubt. I also liked McClelland's Reserve 1928 from Tinderbox. I think it was mostly Red Virginia as well and was the sweetest tobacco I ever smoked. Therefore, IMHO, McCrannies Red Ribbon 2000 merits four stars!

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	russ (27)	2012-02-27		Very Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I have been through multiple tins of the 1983---Once again the 2000 does not disappoint. If I were sent to a deserted island, and had ONLY one choice of tobaccos----with the exception of pipe choices---wait a minute---I would smoke this stuff in snything I could make into a pipe---thats how much I like it it. One of the best plain, straight up tobaccos a man could put in a pipe------------simply the best. I love this stuff. Its by far one of the best tobaccos I have ever put in a pipe. McCranies Red Ribbon, or their flake---folks it doesn't get any better than this.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-10-27		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I dont know what it is with me but i swear this is cased and sauced.nothing like the 83 crop. maybe age will help with this but to my tastes this is an aromatic. smoked three tins so far, maybe the ribbons in my tins were right next to the sprayers. some have said this is their best crop yet. no, not even close.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-05-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

This tobacco has a very nice natural cherry note to it along with a twang reminiscent of licking a battery. I rather enjoy the balance and find this one of the best smokes around. Very pure tobacco experience with bonus points for unique flavor nuances. It will bite if you are aggressive, but behaves well otherwise. Dynamite.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-04-18		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I will sadly admit that I have never had any of the earlier Red Ribbon tobaccos. But what I have tasted here is reason to search to find some. I will admit that this has an uncanny resemblance to McClelland 5100. It does seem to have a bit more flavor that the McClelland but the resemblances are uncanny. Personally I like this blend but would rather save the money and buy 5100.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2014-08-09		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

So is this what happens to McClellands Red Cake when it ages? Same mottled ribbon, but leans heavily to dark browns, much more so than Red Cake. Almost smells like a bit of stoved in with the mellow sweet Virginia. Came a little wet but didn't need too much drying time. This was a gift from a friend (thanks, friend!).

Deeper and richer than the oldest Red Cake I've ever smoked (about 5 years old - not much younger than this one, but this was tinned from a 14 year old crop, of course) and contains a different kind of sweetness. Where RC is "sweetly sweet" and tangy, this one has a mellow, deep kind of sweetness. Hard to describe - best I can say is that RC is more of a noticeable sweetness while RR is more subtle. I guess a comparison is the only way to get the picture! This is a fair bit more complex of the two as well, and with no nicotine overload. As much as I enjoy RC, this blend is considerably superior to my tastebuds. Makes me want to continue to age the RC that is in my cellar. McClellands is the master of Virginias in my book, and this is one that anyone that enjoys such blends to sample.

Pipe Used: meerschaum and morta

Age When Smoked: 6 years

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stan (179)	2009-12-07		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

This is an excellent red ribbon vintage. Tastes sort of like a cherry blend without the cherries.

Sweeter and milder than its flake brother. Not as robust as the 1983 vintage but still worthy of the red ribbon label.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2019-05-01		Mild	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a prior review around 2010 based on a recently purchased tin of Prime 2000 Red Virginia that was processed in 2008 & purchased around 2009. I've never smelled or tasted any tobacco like this, including other Virginias, so, I'm unable to pass on a comparitive analysis. From my limited experience in that time period, I'll have to submit that the aroma and taste is foreign to me & this is the first, straight Red Virginia I've ever sampled. It is very mild with a semi-sweet, tangy, earthy flavor. I don't notice a casing when sniffing, handling or smoking & I assume the flavor is that of pure, quality Red VA.

This Red Ribbon seems to burn just a wee bit faster than other VAs I've sampled, but smokes cool & mild with minimal harshness or palate discomfort. The aroma & flavor is appealing & I taste nothing more than a unique, tobacco flavor. This was a first Red VA smoking experience for me. This stuff is definately worthy of a VA connoisseur's attention & will most certainly improve with age as most VA blends do. I purchased three tins of this particular version of Red Ribbon for my cellar. I sold the other two as I found it lacking in strength... too mild to suit my taste preference.

From my experience reading thousands of reviews on this sight, I've discovered that many pipers prefer milder blends & I'm just the opposite. Since I don't inhale & prefer to keep my lungs free of "asphalt," I prefer stronger blends that absorb into the membranes rather than pave my lungs with tar & possibly come down with COPD or lung cancer. I can't highly recommend this Red Ribbon which for some odd reason, commands a premium. My advice... fuhgetaboutit & save your nickels & dimes for C & D's Small Batch, Carolina Red Flake.

Pipe Used: Dunhill 2S Shell Briar

Age When Smoked: 8 Years Old in 2008

Purchased From: McCranies

Similar Blends: Nothing to compare with at the time but in recent months have found C & D's Small Batch, Carolina Red Flake far superior in taste & with more strength... made it to my top five in rotation. Nothing better for an Old Belt, Red Virginia..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2019-03-16		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This is a prior review around 2010 based on a recently purchased tin of Prime 2000 Red Virginia that was processed in 2008 & purchased around 2009. I've never smelled or tasted any tobacco like this, including other Virginias, so, I'm unable to pass on a comparitive analysis. From my limited experience, I'll have to submit that the aroma and taste is foreign to me & this is the first, straight Red Virginia I've ever sampled. It is very mild with a semi-sweet, tangy, earthy flavor. I don't notice a casing when sniffing, handling or smoking & the flavor is that of pure, quality Red VA.

This Red Ribbon seems to burn just a wee bit faster than other VAs I've sampled, but smokes cool & mild with minimal harshness or bite. The aroma & flavor is appealing & I taste nothing more than a unique, tobacco flavor. This is a great first Red VA smoking experience for me. This stuff is definately worthy of a VA connoisseur's attention & will most certainly improve with age as most VA blends do. I purchased three tins of this particular version of Red Ribbon for my cellar. I sold the other two as I found it to be a bit wimpy in Vitamin N. Therefore, IMHO, McCranie's Red Ribbon merits about three stars.

Pipe Used: Dunhill 2S Shell Briar

Age When Smoked: Fresh Tin

Purchased From: McCranies

Similar Blends: C & Ds Red Ribbon...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2013-07-21		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I think this is a McC product sold as a McCranies blend. It is actually very nice. Soft, gentle sweetness wrapped in a woodsy flavor. Very easy burn and it didn't have too much of the "ketchup" you find with McC VA blends. This is a nice blend to have around, let it age, have a bowl from time to time, put it back, age some more and so on. Nice.

Smoke in peace.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	chgo.piper (37)	2012-08-16		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Not enough taste for me. If I were to smoke anything on this order, it would be McClelland's blending virginia.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2011-06-19		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a high quality square cut Virginia. It lasts very well. It is optimum for blends that call for a flavorful basic Virginia. I bought assorted brands and varieties of tobaccos primarily from L.J. Perettis -and this one from McRanies home store- all at around the same time. All were stored at my home in the same conditions. It is time to replace all of the tobaccos but McRanies. It still smokes flavorful and fresh.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dubinthedam (133)	2010-03-10		Mild	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I loved this..what a nice surprise, soft, fruity, sweet with a little ketchup, quality leaf. Super easy to smoke Red Virgina, my tin was gone in a week.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-09-18		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is a very nice Va. Minimal tongue bite, I think a little more drying time will help with this and the fact it produced only a moderate amount/volume of smoke. Nice caramelized, sweet aroma and the taste was slightly tangy with a hay-like flavor. I think I will get some of this to age and see how it works out down the road. I usually like a fuller bodied blend of Va and Burley but this was quite pleasant.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-06-30		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

I had an opportunity to smoke couple of bowls of RR 2000. I must say this is a great Virginia for a daily smoke. It has a very sweet flavor I detect they have kind of Honey Sauce or some whiskey put in here. Some Virginias after a dozen bowls it gets boring but this blend is very consistent you can smoke it all the time and always enjoy it. If not properly smoke it has that Bite tendency that you know its there waiting for that snap must be that red Virginia. This Blend is really sings when smoked on a Size 6 and up bowl to get its full Flavor. I tried it in a Medium size Jt Cooke and it was great but when Loading this Baby in a XL Upshall It was like being in heaven.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-05-09		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I purchased 2 dozen tins of this tobacco at Chicago based on Tad Gage's review in P&T. Risky? No chance! I can add nothing to his comments, other than I believe he's 100% correct: this may well be the best batch ever. Having smoked the '83 and '96 batches, the 2000 edition stands very tall with them. Smooth, rich red VA taste, bite-free; this will be a cellar star. My big problem is determining whether or not to order more. I simply can not run out of this Red Ribbon.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-04-17		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

This is McCranie's best Red Ribbon to date. It is by far, one of the best Virginia tobaccos I've ever smoked. If you like Virginia tobacco, you'll be hard pressed to find any better. Red Ribbon 2000 will be what you judge other Virginias by.This tobacco is good for your early first pipe of the day or your last in the evening. I find it a taste that I crave!

I've had the good fortune of knowing the McCranie's for many years,and I feel they have a well educated palate when it comes to Virginia tobacco. Many bowls of various Virginia tobacco was smoked and evaluated before claiming this particular small 2000 crop allotment their own.

The past tinnings seem to have disappeared rather quickly. Try it before it's gone, you will find it very pleasing.

1 person found this review helpful.