McClelland No. 5105 Stoved Virginia

Oh wow, now here's flavor and strength! It has been pressed to the point of no return and no matter how hard you puff it will not bite. It burns well and provides Virginia lovers with the flavor and depth as well as sweet spots all the way down the bowl. Delightful stuff!

Having read a few reviews from some of you gents who tried a bowl of this by itself, I smiled at your one- or two-star ratings. This is meant to be a blending product! I'd highly doubt that many in the world smoke this by itself....

Try this for a really nice pound to age: 10 ounces of 5100 Red Cake, 4 ounces of this Stoved VA, and 2 ounces of McLelland's Blending Perique. If you like a stronger VaPer, by all means, add an ounce or more, and subtract it from the 5100. But, leaving the four ounces of 5105 is a key. Obviously, stoving hastens the sugar development, and yields real aging benefits. I have pounds of this aging at present, in varying strengths of Perique. I recently broke the seal on one of my Mason jars and went through a jar of the above blend that was merely 13 months old, and found it to be marvelous already. In a year or two, it'll be special, I believe. Will it be the next Escudo? Nah... but it will be a far more economical everyday go-to blend.

I'm a huge fan of Rattray's Hal-O-The-Wynd, and was happy to learn that Smokingpipes.com is now selling this in 17.5 ounce bags. I bought my first bag, mixed in 4 ounces of 5105, and have sealed the blend in more Mason jars. (Quart-sized) These funny little black sticks of stoved VA will help to soften the HOTW, and I'll bet that when I first smoke it, it'll be marvelous. A year should even make a great difference.

Making our own blends is fun, though highly subjective. But as a blending tobacco, I'm at a loss without 5105. I know of no other bulk stoved VA out there quite like this.

Bulk: Coal black. Looks like a pressed sheet of flake that was rubbed out into hard splinters. A light sweet scent.

Packing & Burning: Gravity feed, then use constant tamping and puffing to concentrate the taste. It takes a relight regularly.

Taste & Aroma: Initially just moderately sweet, but mid bowl, good stoved VA qualities develop, rich, dark, almost carmelized, not bitey. Akin to mildly carmel, browned popcorn. Also a nutty chocolate complexion.

Nicotine: Mild

Room Note: Tolerable

Overall: This one matches the qualities its expected to have. 5105 gives a good idea of what a stoved VA is all about. Use a large bowl to bring out these characteristics. 3.8 stars.

Jar note of tangy spices, sour stewed fruit, and orange zest. Tobacco is black thin stiff ribbons. Moisture is on the dry side, no prep needed. Burns slow once started, maintained with a few relights. The strength is mild and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is mild to medium and consistent, with notes of earth, very wood, sweet bread, spice, mild tangy lemon, sweet grass, mildly herbal sour, a tart stewed dark fruit background note, and a mildly peppery retro. Room note is pleasant, and aftertaste is great.

As someone else said, when added to 5100, the result is supremely delicious. I don't know about smoking it straight, but invaluable as a blending tobacco.