McClelland Brindle Flake

While not as deep in flavor as the original, McClelland's has again done justice to an old classic. This broken flake Virginia is not too sweet, and doesn't give you the tangy eye watering splash of many lighter flue cured pipe blends.

A very long smoking tobacco compared to others in its class, and certainly tasty, although not destined for greatness.

Nicely prepared flakes that are thick than most; some were rubbed out or had separated in the tin during shipment. The tin aroma has much less of the McClelland ketchup aroma and that's a +. Packs easily right from the tin due to an ideal moisture content, lights easily and burns uniformly without relights or condensation. Mildly sweet from start to the bottom of the bowl. If I could get it in bulk, I'd add it to my rotation.

I never had the original so here goes. A very broken flake that is composed of thick brown chunks of tobacco. The preservative smell is light and dissipates a lot after a week. Packs easily and burns to a white ash.

The first puff is zesty and slightly sweet, afterwards it develops into a mellow smoke with dried fig undertones and a slight brioche-like accent. If puffed fast, the Virginia predictably becomes tasteless hot air which is a good thing because it means that the casing or topping is either nonexistent or barely applied.

Not a legend in the making but a solid choice for a Virginia smoker! The more I smoke McClelland Virginias, the more I get hooked on them notwithstanding the preservative smell.

Virginia lover

This is a nice and earthy blend. I found it to have a bit of a bite. It is possible I smoked it too fast, but I could not shake it. Despite that, it was a sweet and mellow blend. Packs very well, burns to a nice ash. It had a hay or grain like flavor in the beginning. It sweetened up to more of a maple like taste. I'm not sure if these were the product of a casing, but they were very smooth and natural like. The Virginias are not as acidic as some other blends. All around nice smoke. Recommend.

My first impressions were that I was extremely put off by the awful ketchup scent coming out of the tin. So i rubbed it out and immediately stuffed it in my pipe. It was awful, and I could still taste the ketchup whatever that is. So some time went by and I finally wanted to try it again, I did spend money on it after all. So I rubbed it out and let it dry, this was key to such an amazing smoke. The best english blend I have smoked to date!

The tastiest virginia I've ever smoked. A wonderful broken flake that needs to be dried and rubbed out to be enjoyed. A delicious sweet taste and cool burn. This is just exquisite. Do yourself a favor and give it a try. Completely captivating. In a class by itself. Loaded with flavor nuances to keep it interesting. There is a slight burley taste to this virginia, but so much better than any burley I've tried. With no bite or bitterness. Exceptional. I originally thought this was a 4 star blend, but have since found the nuances to disappear and the taste becoming monotonous.

This is a straightforward Va broken flake of pure tobacco. Partially stoved I suspect, it does not have the Christmas pudding aromas I usually find in stoved Va tobaccos. Nor does it have much of the McC acetic aroma.

What it does have is solid Va flavour, untouched by any kind of artificial assistance. To my mind it is what a navy flake would be without molasses, brown sugar or rum. This is a point of distinction to, say, the Rattrays Va flakes which do have a pronounced brown sugar flavour.

It is moderately sweet, with some distinctive spice notes. Burns cool and slow (I can get nearly 2 hours in a mid sized bowl) and requires few relights. Rather linear in profile, it does not grab me with complexity, nor does it change much as the bowl progresses.

I prefer this in a MM Shire Cobbit; the long stem ensuring a cool smoke and the cob bowl keeping the smoke dry and clean. Burns fine without being rubbed out.

Honest, well made tobacco. Just shy of 4 stars.

A good flu cured VA. It is zesty and tangy with notes of citrus a little hay some bread like sweetness that comes and goes and a note or two of toasted grains. As with all flu cured VA I get a slightly woodsy note like sawdust. It has earthy/dusty notes here and there and a light sweet spice (that reminds me a little of cinnamon and maybe clove). It is slightly sweet and represents what flu cured VA's should be. It is not overly complex and it changes very little as the bowl progresses. A good blend that missed greatness for me but one that if you can ever find would be worth a try if you like flu cured VA's. Smokes slow requires several relights, the nic is closer to the mild side and is great as a first pipe of the day as the finish does not linger very long allowing you to load something else latter in the morning. Room note is a little harsh but not horrible.

I opened a 4-yer-old tin and discover loosely composed broken virginia flakes with mainly bright and light brown color tobac. Very easy to prepare and similar to C&D or GLP's flakes. The McC vinegar was less evident than their other Va/Vaper offers. The taste is grassy, citrus, dry, with less sweat and tangy I usually prefer. Very easy to light and keep lit, but it gets hot and spicy if push. A good straight Va, but not one of the bests. Somehow I think of C&D's opening night, may be due to the flake presentation, but I like the latter much more.