McClelland No. 2035 Dark Navy Flake

McClelland - No. 2035 Dark Navy Flake.

Regarding the appearance, it has to be one of the most unique flakes I've had. It's very dark, and looks as though after slicing the flakes they've been put under a clothes iron; they're very thin and slightly shiny. I note how some folks raise an issue with the flakes having too much water in them but mine are great where that's concerned. They only take a few seconds to prepare and then I'm on my way.

For the first third of the bowl it seems a bit boring, the main taste is a slightly sweet, stewed fruit one. After the first third the smoke becomes stouter; there's a delicate smokiness that joins in at the back and it tastes nowhere near as soft as it did for the initial part. I think this needs patience to allow the flavour to develop. After half the bowl an earthy taste comes through, but for the last quarter I get a bit of an ashy taste. I find no fault with the burn; it's very reliable. For the nicotine I'll go with the majority: medium.

Because of the ashy taste towards the end I'll only give this three stars instead of four.

Recommended.

Recommended.

This is quite

I think of this tobacco as the bulk version of McClelland Dark Star. Both are excellent, Dark Star being somewhat more flavorful and DNF being a bit less expensive.

DNF will not disappoint if you like sweet, stoved Virginias. The criticism that it is hard to light and keep lit is, IMO, overstated. So what if it takes another match or two or a few more seconds on the lighter to get it going, the taste will more than reward the effort. (Another technique for firing hard-to-light tobaccos is to put a little easy-to-light tobacco at the top of the bowl -- like starting a fire with tinder.)

DNF is essentially a high grade cavendish tobacco. The taste is a mild mix of citrus, coffee and leather, with a mellow, vanilla background note, and is deliciously sweet without being cloying.

I've rated it 3 stars but would give it 3.5 if that were possible.

Received this week , I smoked two pipes of this stuff , with quite disparate results between them.

The first one, in briar pipe, maybe not the most appropriate of which I have to smoke a flake of Virginias. Result: a flat smoking, tarry and totally bland. A weed to forget, apparently. Second smoking, into a clay pipe jus arrived. What a difference!! A tasty smoke, spicy, creamy and with a clear evolution going down the bowl. A snuff to repeat purchase.

The visual impression when opening the bag that comes the bulk, could not be better. Strips of a flake that looks like it was broken glass, chopped unevenly, with edges that could be said almost sharp, and of a deep black and bright, with a oily texture. The flake prettiest I've seen so far. It worths to stay a while looking, touching and enjoying its presence and texture.

The good feeling that their appearance has left in us comes in handy to tackle the next step before the smoke: the load and lighting. The 2035 is pretty damn hard in that aspect. The sheets are quite reluctant to get into strands, on the contrary tend to break (again we return to the glass) despite a significant degree of humidity and "break" like we would cut in very irregular cubes. So I loaded the first pipe and the ignition was a nightmare and light maintaining a pain. Forced to puff hard, the smoke was a disaster. We know the Virginias have to smoke them "cool " to not lose the nuances and subtleties. The 2035 I think is particularly sensitive to this phenomenon, and as we go a little over the smoked ruins temperature, providing monochrome and tarry taste .

Second run. Double round of grinding. Thed pipe lights better and it takes less work keep it going, although it is not a bed of roses. In any case sufficient to smoked at a rate slower, allowing cold smoked. 2035 In this case the range of developed aromas is far more generous and deep, with hints of roasted malt, nuts, spices, earthy nuances, bread and a nice mild sweetness . In the latter part of the bowl almost have sworn to be smoking a vaper, for certain phase spicy and "hot" going through the mixture, very similar to that provided by the perique .

Taking care with the speed is a very very nice snuff. It's not the most I like from McClelland, but I 'll buy more to age and see how it evolves.

Loads soft n-vitamine, or maybe soft - half as much. Medium bodied, smooth, pulling through at the end. A stuff recommended for all day, though it can get a bit boring if overused. NOT for beginners and "puffers" in any way.

Update: I hereby repent me of the cardinal sin of Greenhorn Reviewers: reviewing a blend on only one bowl. For penance I will smoke three bowls of Deacon's Downfall and five bowls of Presbyterian. I was just so impressed with that first bowl... DNF can indeed be briney and boring, but it can also be as wonderful as I claimed below (I've also noticed notes of licorice and wood). Like the sea itself, unpredictable; beautiful and treacherous in turns. I suppose this is the lack of refinement as compared to Dark Star noted by other more knowledgeable reviewers. Still, recommended as I certainly think it worth the $2/oz I paid for it. Original review follows:

I spotted Dark Navy Flake in a jar at my local B&M, looking and smelling like thin strips of leather soaked in tar. My experience with flakes, limited though it may be, was enough to assure me that this is not a bad thing by any means. I bought me some and rubbed some out and stuffed it in a trusty I-talian billiard, my patience being insufficient to await a drying-out period. It took a few passes with the ol' Prometheus to get her going, but once that flame was enkindled, blow me down, maties. Ain't nothing wrong with this salty sea lass a little drying wouldn't fix.

Rich, sweet, spicy, cool; notes of molasses and spice (cinnamon maybe); good good good all the way down. I've had several more favorably reviewed tabacs that left me high and dry, whereas DNF had me sailing the savory seas. I will definitely buy some more to age in jars. If this is Dark Star's lesser little sister, as intimated by prior reviewers, I am afraid to try Dark Star lest I smoke myself into the poorhouse/early grave.

This is good stuff. I agree that it is very much like dark star. Not quite as sweet or flavorful though. Probablly this aged a few years would equal dark star.

Pouch/tin aroma is dead on exactly that of southern VA sweet homemade pickles my granny taught me to make. With Sauers pickling spice (smell those cloves!). Vinegar, sweet and spicy all at once and damn good. Oooooh this is twangy smelling stuff. If you never smelled that type of pickle maybe you think I am crazy- I would not blame you, but if you are from southeast Va I bet you know what I mean.

I would buy this again when it is gone and age some too. I like dark star too but this is real close to it and the bulk price is good although I noticed the prices just went up a bit recently.

I like to mix some of this in with bright virginias to "round the edges" sometimes. This is not an everyday or all day smoke for me but it is nice to have it on hand for when the mood strikes. Put a small pinch in a bowl of #27 mc va and you have a real treat.

I don't have a favourite type of tobacco as such, but if I were asked to choose one tobacco, a Desert Island blend, it would probably be a dark stoved Va. But it wouldn't be this. That honour would go to Rattray's Black Va.

Not that 2035 is in any way an inferior tobacco. It is great stuff. It has dark, rich, sweet, dried fruit aromas. It burns easier than Dark Star, tho not as well as RBV.

It doesn't bite. It lasts an age in the bowl. It is light on nicotine so can be an all day tobacco without any ill effects. What it does have is a mild casing that does not appeal to me. It isn't intrusive and I could probably over time come to overlook it, but it is there (which is why I believe this is called a Navy Flake) and it is enough to take a 4 star blend (which is what its sibling Dark Star is) down a mark.

McClelland 2035 takes the deep, tangy dark fruit flavors I associate with stoved Virginias to new heights, well, actually depths. To my taste buds and nose the flavor is what I imagine one would get from making unsweetened preserves out of what is leftover from pressing berries or dark fruit for wine. The deep tang of this blend is simply that strong.

The strength in terms of nicotine content is very mild. The taste is medium. I doubt this could be provoked to bite. Rubbed out/picked apart and packed loosely this tobacco burns well, with no more relights than my typical high number. For me this is too deeply tangy and uni-dimensional to be an all-day smoke, but I do recommend keeping some on hand. It is an excellent tobacco for smoking outside on a breezy day.

Menacing looking dark flakes that are moist even after a few weeks. Works best with some drying time and slightly rubbed. The flavors, while not in your face, are interesting. There's sweetness, dried fruit and a very little spiciness that could be enjoyed all day. This smoke is very nice on contemplative, warmer days when nicotine is not required.

Virginia lover

Interesting stuff! Once you get a good smoke going off of this you get a full dose of fermentation flavors and aromas. I'd describe it like fermented hay, with the sour parts resembling sauerkraut or rhubarb.

Mine arrived way too wet smoke, so I let the whole 2oz dry out for a few days until the flakes felt dry but were still pliable. For some reason rubbing it out make it easier to smoke but make it loose the nice sour flavors. I've had more luck compressing a wad of flakes into a cylinder and then shoving that down into a cob as in step 2 of the Frank method.