McClelland No. 2015 Virginia Perique Flake

After the needed dry time, 2015 smokes with a tangy sweetness that is a bit muted by an ample amount of Perique. During the first half of the bowl the Perique isn’t as forward as it is in the later stages. The red Virginia takes the lead and there is a mild spice note but I wouldn’t call it a spicy blend. The brighter Virginia’s take more of a back seat here. There is no bite and only a moderate amount of complexity and it isn’t as “rich” tasting as my preferred McClelland VaPer, St. James Woods. I tend to enjoy most of my tobaccos dry (not crispy) and even when 2015 is well dried, I am amazed by the slow burn rate of this blend. I prefer to smoke it in a group two or three size bowl with a little fully rubbed out on top. There is a little more Lady N in this blend than in other McClelland Virginia’s that I have smoked too. In smaller amounts, the price isn’t much cheaper than many tinned blends, but buying larger amounts really makes this broken flake an excellent value in terms of quality and price in comparison to many tinned blends on the market. Lovers of McClelland VaPers should make a space in the cellar of this one. While not a rotation maker for me, (although it is for my wife), I am going to cellar some just the same.

First off I was surprised that McC's bulk is pretty much just as good as their tinned leaf. I smoke a ton of Saint James Woods but lately have found my taste for strong perique blends getting less and less. 2015 seems to be more of an all day blend as far as perique level goes. It has the red virginia flavor that I love with a little sweetness and complexity from the orange. Overall is fantastic quality and amazing flavor with a good and sensible amount of perique. Definitely top 5 smoke material here. As usual with McC there's no sauce, casing, frosting, etc. Just carefully crafted high quality tobacco. Oh and who cares about tin note. Smells like natural virginia tobacco.

Get a bunch of it, jar it up and let it age. I don't see how you can be disappointed.

I'm not much of a reviewer, but when I try something at all remarkable, I like to note it. Based solely on the reviews here, I ordered a few pounds... how's that for confidence? Everyone mentions the ketchup aroma, or stench, depending on your opinion. Sure enough, it's ketchup! While I love ketchup, I am not a fan of tobacco smelling like ketchup. Eww. I ordered this in spite of, not because of, this characteristic. The flake is really nice! My order looked like a big, fat bag of tree bark. Moisture content was as I like it. Breaks apart nicely. I have a tough time trying to imagine what smoking ketchup would taste like. Others say the tin note carries over to taste, I didn't notice this, but ketchup is sweet and tangy. This is my first ever encounter with "tangy" in the tobacco world. It's very seriously sweet n tangy. It's a wonderful smoke! I was EXTREMELY relieved as I smoked my first bowl... as I gazed upon the few pounds I'd ordered. I'm very curious as to how this stuff ages and evolves. In closing, in dealing with this ketchup issue, if you are revolted by ketchup, it's likely best you stay away from this VaPer. If you like it or if you're curious or indifferent, you owe it to yourself to give this McClelland a go. It's a very tasty, sweet n tangy, and beautifully burning/tasting leaf.

McClelland Bulk No.2015 Virginia Perique Flake is a delicious VaPer. The broken flakes are easy to pack and light and burn to a light gray ash. However, it benefits from a bit of drying out. Although a rather inexpensive bulk tobacco, IMO it is one of McClelland's best.

Taste is similar to other McClelland VaPers (yes, it has that ketchup aroma although this dissipates if cellared for a year or so) but better in a number of respects. It is sweet -- I like that -- with a modest Perique flavor (I really didn't detect much Perique spiciness). The taste upon lighting up is nutty but develops into a fairly complex blend of flavors (clove, almonds and vanilla) as one gets to the second half of the bowl. While some others say that it has some fruitiness, I don't detect this. Bite is minimal, even if puffed on hard but, as with all good pipe tobaccos, the flavor need slow smoking to fully develop. I've tried smoking it both rubbed out and in flake form and I strongly prefer the latter as it encourages slow smoking which is necessary to fully develop the flavors. No. 2015 greatly benefits from cellaring for a year or two.

I gave it four stars although I would probably have given it 3.5 if this were an option. Nevertheless, it is an excellent tobacco for the money and, if you like a sweet and really tasty VaPer, you won't be disappointed.

I was gifted exactly 2oz of this from a friend on a private cigar/pipe forum a few years back. According to my good friend who has been smoking and cellaring tobaccos since the early 80's, this one he had cellared since 1990!

Let me just say, this particular 2 oz sample only gets smoked on rare occasions that I KNOW I will not be interupted, bothered, or interferred with. The mellowness of this 21 year old tobacco is like nothing I have ever smoked in my life. The flakes are all broken into thin strips, but that just makes my job of loading easier.

Rich, mellow and a bit tangy, I savor every pipeful of this. I'm noy sure what a modern day 2015 tastes like, but I may have to cellar a few pounds and find out in another 21 years.

Update 2/2016 I still continue to smoke this quite often, and have several pounds in my cellar. Ages terrifically!

Update 9/9/04 ---- After letting this weed settle and age, I've found it to have most of the endearing characteristics that others describe. Sweet and full of tobacco flavor yet containing a sufficiently heady dose of Perique. It ranks up there with the C+D blends as far as VA/P excellence. It is not quite as smooth or subtle as St James Woods but hits the spot when you want something a little more "in your face". Perfect for the evening VA/P smoke. Rub it out well and smoke it slow. Gooood Smoooookin....

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I am taking into account two factors while writing this review: first,this is a bulk tobacco blend. Second, as with most McClelland's blends, I gather this improves greatly with age.

In packing: I found it burns equally well unrubbed or rubbed. The taste is much fuller when the flakes have been well rubbed out. This process, and the nice bar-b-cue smell that it emits is luxurious.

Unfortunately the smoke of my first several bowls of this tobacco have been lackluster. There is a strong VA "straight tobacco" taste - it is however very flat. The perique is noticeable right from the start and gives a rewarding hot pepper element. This infamous weed is the high point of the blend, and perhaps the entire point.

Even as far as bulk blends go - there are many others that deliver levels of sweetness and spice, a more refined stoking of flavors, and even more variety within each individual smoke. This stuff certainly isn't bad (and obviously high quality tobacco base)- and may be *that* blend that many others seek - but at least until I let the remainder of my bulk age a bit and give it another whirl I'll take Bayou Morning any minute of the day.

I don't smoke as much as many pipe smokers. Perhaps if I went through an ounce every week, I'd feel differently. But I see no reason not to purchase St James Woods if I wanted a richer, meatier, more pleasurable smoke. This stuff isn't *that* much cheaper.

Anytime I can score a sample of McClelland is always a good day. A good friend of mine gave me a nice size sample of this dated Nov 2017. This is a nice dark flake, slight McClelland Vinegar smell. I did my usual prep method of folding the flake(s) lengthwise, in half, twist and plug my Altinay Meerschaum Poker Pipe. This does take quite a few matches but provides me a nice long smoke due to the thickness of the flake rather than rubbing it out completely. McClelland always seems to use premium tobacco and this is no exception. They could probably have taken new Virginia and made it taste aged and refined. Not a very sweet smoke but very smooth, rich tasting with a hint of Perique. I always like any tobacco with St. James Perique in it and this is once again no exception. Lucky to have been able to have some of this extinct blend. On a side note, (inside joke) there were no birds singing on the porch while smoking this fine blend.

I love this tobacco. Very glad to find this in bulk. After finding and absolutely loving the 40th anniversary, I decided to see what all the hub bub was about McClelland Virginia's. They quickly became my favorite tobacco type.

I've really only had the Red Cake, 40th and this one. I love them all. I didn't think I'd be able to find something similar to the 40th in bulk, but this isn't too far off.

It's a bit more ketchup-y, and the perique adds a bit of kick, but it's closer to 40th than say red cake. I still love my red cake for morning lighter red virginia smoking, as this one is quite heavier and spicy. Moreso than the 40th.

40th is still hands down best, but I'm glad to have this in bulk to smoke as a nice more full variation. I won't miss 40th as much when its gone, having this one around.

I just found my favorite type of tobacco here and it surely is my taste, so to each his own, but McClelland red virginia's are really nice and all are preferred over every other tobacco I've tried.

It comes really damp, which I hope isn't to make it weigh more, but it probably does, so I'm hoping my bulk purchase goes a good ways, but with all that water in the tobacco, that remains to be seen. Takes some drying time and breaking to get it appropriate for smoking, but I don't care about that as much as the added weight the water might add. I wonder if buying less damp tobacco yields significantly more to smoke, but again, I just have to wait on that to discern. It is the dampest tobacco I've ever bought. That's the biggest knock.

Otherwise, it's a great addition and something I can see myself enjoying daily.

This is a good VA/Per, very sweet and burns great, several people around me commented on the aroma, a bit of tongue bite next day but I did smoke two bowls back to back, easy to rub out but I prefer balling and cramming for air pocket packing.

Update- The Virginia's in this blend are excellent, a little on the "bright" side. If rubbed out well (I use a tobacco grinder) it indeed has a more complete flavor profile and burns very easily throughout the entire bowl. Paced puffing is best to moderate burn temperature and to get the benefit of the flavorful Perique.