McClelland Old Dog

(3.56)
One of the most loved in this series, this is a full English mixture dark with cool, smoky Cyprian latakia, spiced with fragrant Xanthis from Macedonia. These tobaccos marry under pressure with aged, sweet flue cured Virginias and smooth jet black Cavendish to create a very rich, satisfying blend with a tin aroma this is incredibly appealing. Sit back comfortably to ponder the meaning of life with Old Dog as your companion.
Notes: "Ashton Revival" introduced at Chicagoland Pipe Show in May, 2010

Details

Brand McClelland
Series Ashton Revival
Blended By McClelland Tobacco Company
Manufactured By McClelland Tobacco Company
Blend Type English
Contents Black Cavendish, Latakia, Oriental/Turkish, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 50 grams tin
Country United States
Production No longer in production

Profile

Strength
Mild to Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
None Detected
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Tolerable
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium to Full
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.56 / 4
17

8

2

0

Reviews

Please login to post a review.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 27 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 23, 2014 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium to Full Pleasant to Tolerable
Opening a tin of McClelland's Old Dog is always a treat. The aroma never fails to make this smoker smile. Smokey, leathery latakia bolstered by a subtle and promising sweetness, it is strangely familiar and very inviting. It never fails to relax. It does, however, arrive a bit moist in the tin. Reducing the water content to about 13 or 14% by removing the lid of the tin for a day or two and shaking the tobacco occasionally seems to do the trick. At this reduced moisture level it takes beautifully to the match, burns comfortably and will not bite. The first sips are delicious, velvety and rich with soft, deep latakia and pleasing fruitiness. As the pipe progresses (about the middle third) savory orientals emerge spicily as the virginias develop a toastiness balancing and enhancing the initial flavors. Exhale through the nose to experience the smoothly exotic elements of the orientals. From here to the bottom of the bowl flavors weave in and out deliciously. Smoke slowly for the full benefit.

Was wrong to be concerned about the black cavendish in this mixture. It is employed beautifully and never overshadows (nor oversweetens) the other constituents in this well balanced blend, which is an excellent take on a very special variety of English mixtures.

Nicotine? Yes, a bit, but never a threat.

Easily approachable, richly satisfying and very relaxing, Old Dog is a wonderful and trusty companion. Highly recommended (to the novice as well as the afficionado).

This tin is from 2010.
Pipe Used: Several. All reserved for untopped Latakia blends.
17 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 03, 2015 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant
Smoky, spicy, sweet & sour, woody, fruity, and toasty. If this one doesn't hold your attention you may have Attention Deficit Disorder. A wonderful and complex smoke that I really enjoy. Another great McEnglish.

Mild to medium in body. Medium in flavor. Burns great. I like to dry it a bit, but will burn well straight from the tin.
Pipe Used: MM Country Gentleman, Diplomat Apple, Mark Twain
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: fresh
12 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 18, 2010 Medium Extremely Mild Medium to Full Tolerable
I was hesitant to give this weed a try because I really don't like any Cavendish in an English mixture. The end result is that it does make OD an English on the sweet side, athough by no means is it an aromatic. McClelland makes it all work and I really enjoy it. In some ways I find this similar to Fred Hanna's new McClelland mixture "Legends." Although not as complex, I think those that find Legends great will really enjoy this mixture as well. I find that when I "sip" OD I really get the full range of flavor and sweetness. This is one occasion that the tin description really nails it. This is not an everyday smoke for me, but I will definitely store a few tins. Recommended!
12 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 28, 2014 Mild to Medium Extremely Mild Mild to Medium Tolerable
Basic black and brown with ribbons and chunks and a tin aroma of muted latakia. My nose could not detect the orientals nor the Virginia - it was like sniffing dried out latakia. Kind of bizarre. Made me wonder if this was a lat bomb and just what a lat bomb from McClellands might taste like.

It took me two tins to get any kind of a bead on this blend and I have no real idea why. It came overly moist and needed a bit of drying time to hold a light but I'm used to that. At the match, latakia takes over, which made sense to me since that's all I could smell. Very shortly the orientals added their fragrant sweet/sour pungency, with the Virginia adding depth and the Cavendish providing just an iota of extra sweetness. Some kind of topping to the Cavendish, which is no surprise. The flavors melded nicely. This blend made me think about what is meant when we say "complex". If it means the blend changes presentations down the bowl, then saying this is a complex blend is like saying termites are annoying. It never seemed to stay in one place for long. Even bowl to bowl reacted differently. I'd sometimes get this absolutely delicious creamy sweet hazelnut coffee flavor which would morph into a sourish piquancy and then to a robust cheese-like tartness. There were times within a single bowl where this was one of the finest tobaccos I've ever smoked, and times where I was completely turned off. But I was never bored. This is one unique tobacco. Complexity abounds, which is one of this blend's strengths while also being its weakness. Full English? Not really. This one almost needs its own category. Try it if you're convinced you know what an English tastes like. Two tins later and I'm still not sure.
Age When Smoked: 1 year
11 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 16, 2011 Medium None Detected Full Very Pleasant
As full an English in strength and taste as there is on the market today, this Old Dog will hunt!

It compares favorably to the revival of Celebrated Sovereign but is not quite as soft due to the Cyrprian rather than the Syrian Latakia. I also think the heavier on the Virginia and lighter on the spice approach is what makes this one stronger. You'll find a whisper of leathery taste with some sweet spicy undertones as you work your way down the bowl.

Yummy stuff!
9 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 10, 2017 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
The grassy, very citrusy, lightly fermented flue cured Virginias also sport a touch of dark fruit and wood as they form the base of the blend, though they are not the star component. The smoky, woody, lightly musty, rather sweet Cyprian latakia competes with the mildly spicy, woody, buttery sweet, dry, earthy, lightly floral Xanthis, and occasionally, one is a little more noticeable than the other. The unsweetened black cavendish provides some brown sugar to tame any potential rough edges. The strength is a step closer to medium than it is to mild. The taste level is medium. The nic-hit is in the center of mild to medium. No chance of bite or harshness even when pushed. Burns cool and clean and a little slow with a complex, nuanced, though inconsistent smoky, spicy sweet flavor. May need some dry time. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires some relights. Has a pleasantly sweet camp fire after taste that lightly lingers. Not quite an all day smoke, but it’s certainly repeatable.

-JimInks
8 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 17, 2011 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium to Full Tolerable
If I appear today to be posting overly high ratings (with one exception) it is because I rarely post negative reviews of those blends I try which are of a type I do not normally enjoy. There is little point in my stating I don't like so-and-so aromatic when I find so few enjoyable for me. Negatives on Latakia-containing English blends or VaPers I would not hesitate posting however.

This blend is a "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much". At least that was my first thought when I lit it up at the B&M. I had never tasted such a sweet English.I smoked this "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much" the rest of my drive into work and then lingered before going in to finish the bowl. Six hours later for lunch I loaded up another bowl of this "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much". I finished it at afternoon break.

On way home I smoked yet another bowl of this "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much" and when I got home I loaded a fresh pipe for yet another smoke of this "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much".

Four days later my tin was empty. I can almost not wait to get back to the B&M for another 2- 3 tins of this "blend-I-don't-think-I-like-very much".

My favorite McClelland to date.
8 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 23, 2012 Mild None Detected Medium Pleasant
This starts very smooth with subtle flavors of Orientals balanced with Latakia, however, it is very low in nicotine and bold flavor. Hence, I find myself puffing harder than normal to get some extra kick , this gets the pipe hot and brings on tongue bite. I feel the Cavendish muttles the flavors as you get past the first 1/3 of the pipe. If you are not a puffer and a lazy sipper you can make this tobacco work for you.

Update 8/31/12 I've been smoking this off and on for about a week now and I'm getting to really find this special. Just don't push it and it will deliver a ,smoky, flavorful taste, with a hint of sweetness. This is very smooth and I find it great for the end of the day when my tongue has had enough. I know , a 180 degrees from my first review , very nice to have around. I think I like this better than Black Mallory (that has the same types of tobaccos), because it is smoother with very little spice. This also seems to have a touch of cocoa, much like some of Fred Hanna's blends, Wilderness, legends , some similarities. I'm giving this 3-1/2 stars !
7 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 18, 2014 Mild None Detected Medium Pleasant
As a new piper, used to cigars, this is an early favorite. I tried a few different English house blends from my B&M, told em I liked the smokiness of the Latakia in their "925", and that I enjoyed the sweetness their "Pimlico", which they called an English, but said is a borderline aromatic. I figure it had a ton Cavendish in it, without any sort of flavoring.

They suggested Old Dog would be a split between the two, and another house blend, "Regimental Standard".

I love Old Dog, at the very least, a fantastic smoke for someone who wants to get started smoking pipe tobacco.

Smells great out of the tin, sweet, smoky, almost fruity, kind of incense like, but when smoked, tastes more to the smoky side. To new inexperience palette very intriguing and fun to smoke. Exactly what I wanted.

Pipe Used: Briar - Brigham 2-Dot
PurchasedFrom: 4noggins
Age When Smoked: Just Opened
6 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 03, 2018 Mild to Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant
McClelland - Old Dog (Ashton Revival).

The blend's 50/50 black and brown, pretty coarse, and of a good hydration. There's no ketchup in the tin-note, strange but true! Lighting up Old Dog couldn't be simpler.

The smoke, without doubt, has some heady flavours: sharp Cyprian, and odoriferous Orientals. But these two are kept in check by the fruity-sweet Virginia and the viscous black Cavendish. The Latakia and black Cav' also make for an exceptionally cool smoking experience, too. I can't fault the burn, a bowl can be smoked with hardly any relights, just the occasional tamp.

Nicotine: mild for a blend labelled English. Room-note: I quite like.

Old Dog? A very good smoke, highly recommended:

Four stars.
Pipe Used: Brebbia Fat Bob
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: Tin stamped 2017, but opened fresh.
4 people found this review helpful.
Please login to upvote this review.

target="_blank"