McClelland Frog Morton's Cellar

I'm not sure if the block of wood you find inside actually adds to the flavor or is a collectable gimmick, but Holy Wrinkle Balls, this is some great stuff. I have to wonder what they pour inside, since my nose was tingling from the vapors and high octane spice. Whiskey, mulled wine, burnt wood, and what must be gunpowder mingle to amp up the flavor.

Mmmm, I love this smoke. It is deep and spicy. One of the few that does not get boring by the end. I do wonder if what they put on must be toxic... nothing that tastes this great is ever good for you.

It has been awhile since I had the original Frog Morton, but this one is easily on par if not better than the original.

Everytime I make a tobacco order, I try to get a good mix of makers and blends, but as time goes by, there is more McClelland in the cart and I wonder why I even stray.

I've been on a mission to find some good tobaccos. So often that has been met with disappointment and I wait, hoping that with age or maybe a few more bowls, I'll come to like some particular tobacco I just spent a bunch of money on. (I'm speaking here of blends other than FMC.) In some instances I find one I "kind of" like and then it gradually starts to grow on me and I learn to appreciate its subtleties. This has been my experience with other tobaccos to date.

Well with FMC I can honestly say it was the first time I was actually blown away by a tobacco. I quite literally said after the first couple of minutes, "Wow. This is really, really good."

I hadn't tried any English blends before, and I realize many put this in the "intro" category, but honestly, if this is intro I'm not sure how much further I need to go. (My only hope is this blend will continue to be made available internationally come what may in the USA. But enough about politics.)

Tin note: subtly smokey from the Latakia with a mild alcohol scent present as well; present but not domineering.

Taste: Simply unbelievable. I wasn't sure how I'd react to the smokey Latakia, in fact I was a little worried that I would find it too strong, so if anything I went into the bowl with some trepidation about how this was going to go. Well, boy was I wrong! I couldn't believe it. I should have probably known that for someone like myself, who loves the smell of wood smoke at any time of the year, I'd probably also like a smokey taste. For anyone who, like me, was reticent about these smokey, Latakia blends, the only thing I can say now is this: do you like smoked meats? Do you like smokey BBQ sauces? Then you'll probably like at least some measure of Latakia, because that's what it's familiar to I think.

If I were to paint a word picture of how it tastes, I would say: Hints of woodsy, single malt scotch sweetness with the subtle flavour and aroma of wood smoke mixed with hints of the sweet incense that tree resin sometimes give off on warm summer evenings, all in one taste profile. This is Autumn in the northeast in a bowl.

This is a good all year round smoke but it would especially pair well with summer mornings/evenings as well Autumn days and nights when the geese are flying overhead and when the days are milder and the morning and evenings cooler.

Room note: I smoke outside so I'm not sure and its not always easy to tell on your own, but from what I can tell of it the note would likely be a slightly "woodsmokey" scent with hints of sweetness from the whisky profile.

Highly, highly, highly recommended. (Is that clear enough? :D)

Let's put it this way. I smoked one bowl and immediately went out and bought three more 100g tins. I've never done that before and most of the tobaccos I've tried, I haven't reacted to with much excitement. (Until FMC, it was usually "yeah, that's pretty decent" at best, and in many instances it wasn't even that.)

I think if you like smokey-sweet and a bit of single malt smokey goodness, they you'll adore this tobacco.

UPDATE::

I'm progressing through this first tin of FMC and I can say I continue to be impressed by it. In fact, I've decided to cellar at least 18 large tins of this blend.

This tobacco mix looks interesting. Mainly black, some brown and bright tobacco in a mix of wide, medium and fine, very irregularly cut ribbon, heading towards a Wild Cut. The dominant tin notes are fresh, fruity tobacco and sweet Whisk(e)y, reminding me of Drambuie® or Southern Comfort®. I call this one a Flavoured English Mixture, not an Aromatic. Base and body of this blend is definitely (soft) English. A cube of a former Whisky barrel in the tin delivers a Whisky aroma (which I find much more difficult to identify in smoking than in smelling, and I am a Whisky enthusiast), plus a note of wood.

FROG MORTON’S CELLAR is a light, easy-going, fruity, tasty and fragrant smoke with a mild aroma range, able to satisfy Scottish, English and Danish pipe smokers. An interesting gate for Aromatic smokers to approach English blends. Good quality tobacco. A short drying time is advised. Good smoking “mechanics” (stuffing, lighting, burning, etc). Consistent taste throughout the bowl. The Whisky flavour is difficult to catch and Latakia is very low but always present. There must be a touch of additional, artificial sweet topping, which I am sensitive for and never appreciate. I favour purely natural tobacco-sweetness and reserved salty tastes. All a matter of individual preferences.

For my personal satisfaction, I miss depth and a determined character in this mixture. Disappointing after-taste. I also miss the aromas of campfire, peat and leather in the added Latakia. FMC might be an occasional light smoke for in-between, mainly to satisfy visitors, as this blend is pleasantly fragrant. A very dark roasted, unsweetened coffee is a matching company.

A recommendable trial mixture for Aromatic, Danish, Scottish and soft English smokers. Not recommended for hard-core English and English-Oriental smokers (too little Latakia, no peat, no Oriental, no spice).

AAA

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!!!!!....... nothing more to say just like it says on the back of the tin i can't do this review any justice all i can tell you if your new to pipe smoking and your only in to sweet aromatics give this a go... this got me into falling in love with latakia and now my main stay became english tobacco and this blend is my #1 blend by far... put it to you this way i own the top 100 tobaccos and i always find my self craving this flavor i consider this to be a special blend like no other on the market the stave cube wooden block inside is a bonus it defenetly gives off additional flavoring ....on a side note i came up with my own concoction" if you have a tobacco press your in for a treat try this.... 2 big 100 gram tins of FMC... and add two 50gram tins of mcclelland balkan blue aka blue mountain...then add 1 tin only of seattle pipe clubs plum pudding press for a week then add the drippings back in then press for another week i call it cake of the gods if you ever wondered what's in gandolfs churchwarden this is the stuff i just can't ramble about this pipe weed anymore i could write a holy bible based on it just do yourselves a favor if your gonna buy a tin at least buy the bigger one i can't see anyone regretted extremely smokey and sweet.

Smoking with Da Whisky Frog.

This is my first Frog Morton blend. I've been neglecting Mr. Morton's invite for quite a while. I chose "the Cellar" based on reviews of the series (this one has the highest marks) but mainly because it contained two of my 4 basic food groups: Tobacco and Whisky. What's this? Put the two together? Whisky flavored, Smokey-smooth Latakia?

Ka-ching I'm in. Be right over. Light-er up Morton and pass da bottle.

Smooth mild (not heavy didn't clean the grill after the Q) smell. But smokey with the flavor of real whisky. When you pop the tin lid the spirit of Whisky/Alchohol hits the air. I was surprised to see the chunk of whisky barrel in my smaller tin. I thought it was only in the larger cans. I keep it in, but take it out when going for the pinch.

The taste? Imagine smooth smokey quality Latakia infused with Geniune Whisky flavor and sweetness combines with the tasty and just amount of touch of sweetness in high quality famous McClelland Virgininas!

Bam! All day, any-time smoke is born. I can see why some pipers put aside other blends for this one for a while, The Whisky Frog has that kind of holding power.

Now just to blend my other two food groups.. pizza and sex.

4 stars. Have a seat with this Frog and smoke it up, in the cellar, or anywhere you wish.

I don't have much to add to all the other positive reviews. My experience was that this was a very agreeable introduction to English blends and as the year has progressed, it continues to be a go to for a reliable "english" experience. I couldn't detect any particular whiskey connection as promised on the tin, but as I really do not like whiskey, that was a good thing! the tobacco remains very smokable 6 or more months after opening the tin - I'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing with regards how freshness is maintained in the Frog Morton Cellar (I'm always a bit wary of any bread for example that is still edible 2 weeks after purchase - what did they shove in it to allow that to happen?, etc!) - anyway, just an observation that for an ocassional smoker of English Blends, this seems to last well after opening so may be a good choice. As said elsewhere, my experience is that this tobacco is very docile and can be smoked at whatever pace suits with next to no bite.

Very nice and enjoyable. Out of the tin the nose is mildly sweet and subtle. The ribbons are uniform and alternate between light and dark browns to black. Moisture fresh from the can is perfect for immediate use. Gravity feed....char...tamp....and light leaves you with a one match smoke. Cool. Mellow and subtly sweet this is a blend that is easily French inhaled and rolled around the tongue. I'm not sure if the charred oak chunk is really effective but it's a neat idea nonetheless. I will definitely keep this in my library as it is a nice simple smoke.

***2015-07-30 Update ***

One year in a mason jar and this blend has become even more mellow than when I first opened the can. It is a beautiful smoke and ages very very well.

I'm a huge fan of the Frogs, but struggled a bit with this one. Smells terrific, but can be a bit of a challenge to keep lit if smoked fresh (my tin was pretty fresh too).

Seems to smoke best if you pack a bowl one or more days in advance. My last one sat for three days before I lit up, and it smoked like a charm; noticeably cleaner than the more Oriental-heavy versions like On the Town and Across the Pond.

Of course, letting it sit loses much of the rum aroma imparted by the toasted oak stave, but it's still there (faintly) in the background, and some nice vanilla-ish notes come through in the smoke.

I really had High hopes for this blend. It packed ok, Moisture out of the can was acceptable. Date code on my small can is 470413 , Really nice chunk of wood in the can. Stayed Lite pretty well, Didnt bite nor get too hot. Very Weak in body, Very very mild nicotine, No whiskey flavor present. It reminds me of several other MC bulk latakia blends. very dissappointed. It did smell pretty good in the can.