McClelland Old Dog

I've had this in rotation for a while now, and feel like I have smoked enough to share my thoughts.

Tin Note: Smells rich and smokey. The Latakia is definitely present.

Preparation: The tobacco is somewhat inconsistently cut, and I found a lot of stems in my tin. It was also so moist that I could form a clump and it would stay formed indefinitely. I've left the tin open for 2 days now, and it still has a sticky moistness to it that can only be from some type of added humectant. I have experienced this with every tinned McClelland blend I've tried, and it has always been troublesome. It packs ok, if not a little unevenly due to the variety of different cut sizes.

Light/Flavor: Takes light easily. First taste is pure silky Latakia, which slowly transitions into the lightest background oriental. Latakia definitely dominates, not really allowing the Oriental tang to come through. I detect no sweetness at all, despite their being Black Cavendish and Virginia in the mix. I find the smoke to be entirely one dimensional, Latakia, and it seems out of balance. If there was a tad more sweetness or a touch more Oriental, this would be a fantastic all day English; however, it's lack of balance makes it fall short, and I find that I feel cheated at bowl's end.

This, and all tinned McClelland blends, seem to leave a little moisture and dottle in every pipe I've tried. Even my trusty Nording Classic gets a little swampy, and I have to break out the pipe cleaners(something I almost never do anymore with my usual blends).

Summary: All in all, this smoke wasn't satisfying for me due to the aforementioned lack of balance. I have experimented by blending this 2:1 with straight Virginia, and it is an infinitely better smoke. I never tried the original Aston blend, so I can not comment on how close this is to the Original. This reminded me very much of regular Frog Morton, but maybe a little more Latakia forward. If you hate sweetness in your smoke, enjoy primarily Latakia, this could be an all day smoke, but I find I need more complexity in a blend and so this one was not for me.

finally finished a tin of dunhill emp and opened this old dog bought from japan, (cos cant find nothing in hongkong other than ordinary big brands..). a bit wet from the tin, aroma is subtly sweet and not as much latakia as expected compared with emp, and even a bit musty. bigger chunks and cuts than most other baccy, but light easy in my corncob. very very cool smoke after first lights, subtle latakia, very sweet tho, for me. not fruity or candy sweet but kinda like sweetness from some plants used in cooking. middle of the bowl the latakia started to come out, but i still havn't got the tastebud for oriental as others reviewers said, soft smokiness and spicy, creamy all the way, even a hint of chocolate i am not sure if it were ghosts in my corncob, which i had smoked some borkum mixture with. sweet virgina (i guess they are) turned toasty with faint reminder of latakia and spiciness at bottom of bowl, mostly ashes left. i find it the best smoke i have had compared with others, flavored or not, house blends or brands, but my gf finds the room note pungent tho. my only odd feeling is i find a hint of ammonia-like smell from bowl whilst burning (again, could be ghosts). will try it on other pipes next time.

UPDATE: thanks for other reviewers, the sweetness resembles cinnamon, very very cinnamon, starting to grow on me. love this, altho takes some drying time, but worth it!

Had a bowl of this today and really enjoyed it!!! A friend gave me a little bag to try out. At first light, The latakia proudly stands out. And the orientals are present as well. It burned great throughout the bowl. Did not cause any bite or burn to my mouth. I smoked it out of my Wizard MM cob. A cool short smoke that had me wanting more the whole time! Not overpowering in the N department. Would be a great english to start with for beginners!

This is a nice English blend for my daily smoke. Not overwhalming taste, easy to enjoy, and nice start for daily smoke. The sweetness is clear and sharp, with smokey floral and herbal taste almost similar with the Dunhill My Mixture 965 but less complexity. With a proper packing and slow smoking, the light is easy to keep and without tendency to bite my tongue. Slow burn, great smokes, medium strength, medium taste, and with my Stanwell 11 Black Diamond, I'm enjoying an hour pleasant smoke. The taste is not full nor strong, but it it quite pleasant, I love the sweetness of this blend.

A very good mild to medium all-day English blend, slightly sweet, very smooth and cool-burning, with considerable underlying support, and occasional dominance, by McClelland's trademark virginias and some notable oriental content other than the latakia. Ultimately, it is overshadowed for me by the outstanding Three Oaks blends, Mr. Hanna's amazing blends such as Wilderness and Legends, and a few of Mcclelland's other, slightly fuller or more unique English and balkan mixtures. Nonetheless, a flavorful and well-crafted medium English that is tasty, great-smoking and easy to get along with, right out of the tin.

This blend has aged and mellowed magnificently. New tins proved to be very good, however, time has been kind to this Revival tobacco and made an even better treat. The latakia seemed to have mellowed a bit, but still has a definite presence. The Virginias have become more bold and added some subtle measure of sweetness. Unfortunately, this is my last and best tin. IMHO, this blend is the epitome of what a Scottish pipe tobacco is meant to be. McClelland surely did this right!

I have asked myself why I write reviews for things that are no longer in production. I then went back looking for reviews on the original Ashton Celebrated Sovereign and realized why. Tins come around even after long out of production and someone may want to know what others thought way back when... This is one of McClelland's best English blends in my opinion. Many are too mild for me to get excited about but Blue Mountain, Balkan Beauty, 3 Oaks Cyprian and Syrian are in my favorite blends, this one may have just cracked that list. Tin note is sweet with Latakia in the lead. Some sourness from the Cavendish and Orientals. Very inviting tin note. The flavor is sweet, creamy, earthy with some woodiness to the profile. It is very complex and you can tease out certain flavors from each leaf as the bowl develops. The VA is there but for a McClelland, it is hard to pick out. For me this fit best in a cob. Richer flavor for some reason. Great in a briar too, but the MM General really liked this one. Another great smoke that I am both happy and annoyed that I tried.

I smoked this tin faster than any tin of tobacco to date. The black Cavendish has no discernible flavoring but it is included and I don't see any problem with that. The components are perfectly blended. Mostly a Latakia forward taste but there are pockets of Virginia that stand forward of the other tobaccos from time to time. The tin says it is English on the label so in my book it is English, and my favorite one so far.

As far as english blends go this one is on a mild side. Smokes cool and burns well. In the tasting department you get smooth leather and smokiness from latakia, slight sugary sweetnes from black cavendish and incense type aroma. Retrohaling this one is simply heaveny as it doesnt burn your sinuses. No nicotine detected. Mellow english that can very well be an all day smoke.