McClelland No. 5115 Old World Classic Cake

A couple years of aging has given the jar a strong note of fermented Virginia tobacco that I see people describing as the McClelland "ketchup", but I smell it in so many well-made Virginias from other manufacturers that I am suspicious of any VA that doesn't have it (looking at you, Cornell & Diehl). As a baker, maybe I'm just trained to think fermentation smells good? I also smell cloves ... go figure.

The blend of yellows and reds is excellent, a perfect mixture of high notes and backbone. On first light, sometimes I'll see the larger flakes getting that glassy cooked sugar look to them - lots of natural sugars here. I've taken to breaking this up into a ready-rubbed consistency, which I don't do with many broken flakes, but this leaf is so sweet that I find it helps the burn.

It burns clean and flawlessly all the way down, and tastes like tobacco, the topping doesn't ever detract from good clean Virginia flavor. I think it's misclassified as an aromatic here.

In view of the great loss of McClelland having stopped manufacturing their sublime Virginia Flake tobaccos, I am so grateful that early on I stockpiled a good amount of this. Most of it was purchased in 2016 as I often smoked it blended with some 2010 Classic Virginia but then left it alone for McCl tinned Virginia Flake, and their most excellent bulk 2015 Virginia~Perique Flake. As are all McCl flake tobaccos, it is delightfully slow burning. I can tell it has really improved with over 2 years, but it remains to my palate anyway, a one dimension Virginia which has little depth or complexity. Perhaps that is why a "fruit essence" was added to it. Nevertheless, all in all, a worthy smoke of some excellent Virginia tobaccos which McClelland knew how to find.

Nice looking broken flake with a bag aroma (1 oz sample) of basic Virginia overlaid with a Lakeland-type essence. Very light on the scenting which is almost just that... a scenting rather than a flavoring. However, the flavoring does come out in the taste, but it's very light while the scenting is rather heavier (but not heavy in the least).

This smokes like a straight Virginia... sweet and robust in the way only McClellands seems to deliver, but with that light sweetener. I can't place the flavoring/scent and it's considerably less noticeable than their #2000. While that one is noticeable for having excellent flavor and a flavoring that lasts down the entire bowl, this one is wispier on the casing. The virginia is top-notch and this would be a blend that those looking to break away from the goopy aromatics might try. This might be McClellands answer to the Lakeland style blends, although it's more of a gallant effort than an all-out success. Worth a try but not destined for my rotation, as I prefer the more fully realized #2000 as my cased broken flake Virginia of choice.

Like others, this reminds me a bit of a Lakeland -- the topping seems to me to be a bit like GH's Louisiana Flake -- but only a bit. The topping itself is on the mild and sweetish side, the N is even lighter. There is a bit of a bite to this, but fortunately just a bit. A pleasant summer smoke, when something light and a bit different is called for. Since I know there are many tobaccos out there I would rate a 4, the question arises would I rebuy this particular tobacco, assuming my tastes don't change much more. In this case, the answer is not often.

Looking back on my reviews over the last few years, you will read about McClelland blends always biting my tongue horribly. I must be learning to properly smoke these blends. Although I do get a bit "stung", it's not really bad at all.

5115 is a nice mild VA that is a great morning smoke. I do not detect much casing in here as stated, but it is a bit more sweet than some. Rub, lights and packs fairly easy, just be careful to slow your puffing to reduce bite. This can burn fairly wet, but a few hours of drying will remedy that. All in all, not a bad choice for an everyday VA.

Pairs well with my morning coffee.

9/11/11

I have smoked about 4 oz of this, and is a great all day VA blend. Fast becoming a favorite of mine!

Others sing the praises of McClelland's 5100 as their all-day smoke. And I've recommended 5100 to enough people, enough times, and have purchased enough of it, that I readily agree. But if you get too caught up in it you'll miss this delightful blend! I know I almost did. As often as I've heard people rave about 5100, I‘ve never heard mention of 5115; I bought my first half pound of it merely because I liked the description.

5115 arrives as a broken flake, with some large flakes and a lot of smaller ones, as well as some that appears rubbed. In color it is an orange-yellow-brown tone. The aroma is less tobacco-ey than 5100, with an undertone of citrus. And that undertone makes all of the difference in the world when put to flame.

From the first light, the tobacco has a delightful, citrus taste on the back of the tongue. But the hint of citrus is neither intrusive nor, I hesitate to say, "aromatic." It's there, but is there just like it belongs. And it contrasts nicely with the sweetness of the tobacco, providing a pleasant tang.

If I had to choose between 5100 and 5115 as my lighter Virginia, I think I'd go with this blend. 5100 is, of course, wonderful. But this one seems to play more nicely with other tobaccos. I sometimes mix it 50-50 with 2035 with nice results. Of course, I'm thankful that McClelland hasn't caused me to make a choice – I can have both!

McClelland - No. 5115 Old World Classic Cake.

It's a very coarse broken flake, half the pouch needed a full rub because of being whole flakes. The other half wasn't without want for attention, either, but this half was a little more 'broken'. Moisture was good the day it arrived, two weeks after placing the order (I'm U.K., this was a Cup O' Joes order), and it had a subsequent two week wait once it had arrived.

The smoke from it is one that's clearly from high quality Virginia. It tastes 'developed', more than fresh, if that makes sense; I identify a matured sweetness, instead of fresh hay. The added fruit topping makes up for any missing citrus from the Virginia, but in all fairness, would mask it anyway. From the topping I get only citrus fruit, I can't taste the coffee. The smoke has a cool temperature, I get no bite, and it burns well.

The room-note: nice enough, just not 'my thing'. Nicotine: mild.

I think 5115 is a good, well made blend, but it falls a little short of four stars, for me.

Recommended.

If someone had given me this tobacco and told me it was a Lakeland blend I would have believed them. This is not your typical straight American Virginia blend - it tastes scented (but not sugary sweet). Something about the "casing" reminds me of (of all things) Bob's Chocolate Flake. It has a certain perfume-like quality to it that reminds me the tobaccos offered by English blenders with the name Gawaith in them. This is a good "every-once-in-a-while" blend that I can see myself having when in the right mood. The flavor pairs very well with a cup of tea.

A big positive for me is that the nicotine level is VERY mild. If it were not for the unidentifiable scent (I detect nothing fruity about its "fruit-essences") and the need to carefully sip this (it will bite badly if it is not totally dried to a crisp) I might argue this could be an "all-day" blend due to its mildness.

If you like Virginia-based Lakeland blends (e.g., SG Grousemoor) give this a go - you may like it. If you want a lot of nicotine or are bothered by having to carefully watch temperature of your bowl you'll be disappointed I think.

I first smoked this at the Atlanta Pipe Club smoking competition. I won the competition, smoking this blend for 100 minutes in a Randy Wiley bent dublin with only two matches used in the first 5 minutes. The competitors were asked to guess the blend. Not one pipe smoker guessed the blend. Our tobacconist told us that she hardly ever sells any of this bulk blend. That same day she must have sold at least 5 pounds of it. A gentleman came to the shop much later in the day after the competition and bought a gorgeous Rinaldo Fiamatta. He asked what tobacco to use to break in his new pipe. The consensus was McClelland 5115. After several sips, he purchased a pound of this fine tobacco.

Zesty is a fitting description for this blend. Yet, I found that the zest developed into a subtly sweet and fruity (very slight and unoffensive) taste. The VAs harmonize perfectly in this blend. It rounds out on the finish and becomes sweet and smooth. Never complex or demanding, this blend is a delight for all day smoking.

My oil-cured Wiley is currently dedicated to this tobacco. I have smoked it in other pipes (Brebbia, Matzhold, Castleford, and Ardor), yet I find that the Wiley is best suited for this tobacco. I suggest smoking this blend in an oil-cured pipe, as I have had much success in the same.

Enjoy!

I first smoked and reviewed this four years ago. After 6 smokes, I was frustrated, because, like SG BBF, it could be amazing one smoke and "just okay" the next.

Excerpts from my prior review: This has to be smoked dry; when wet, it requires many relights and melts your tongue. The tobacco consists of mostly light tobaccos, Virginias according to the literature. The purported "light fruit topping" was undetectable (only one of 4 "blind" reviewers picked it up (BPTT)- most definitely NOT an aromatic. And, while McClelland makes much ado about the "matured" aspect of the Virginias, it isn't overwhelmingly apparent to me. This blend strikes me as similar to #2010 without the incredible high notes, but a bit smoother and less exciting. The flavor is wheat-like, with a toasty/browned marshmallow mid-range that single-handedly creates a soft spot for this mixture. In spots, the flavor gets a bit "winey", almost acidic, in the way that African coffees sometimes exhibit. It doesn't reach "zesty" because it doesn't have enough supporting flavor, resulting in a certain "stingy" feel. DGT improves this tobacco greatly, producing a smoother, less sharp smoke. For now, I have put my sample in storage to give it a year of age, and I have high hopes for the results, as I honestly believe that this is a high-quality tobacco that hasn't had time to mesh its components. So, to be continued...

OK, I'll continue now, circa 2003. Age does wonderful things to this blend. Smokes well, very consistently. Still lacks the zesty highs that I love in McClellands, but has the caramel-like mid-range. Quite a bit cooler, with little tongue-bite risk, this is the Virginia for people who like McClellands but can't take the heat. Buy enough of this to age!

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As with 2025, I attach some reviews from the blind pipe tobacco tasting group (ASP) from June, 2000 (Sample "A" was 2025):

Blind Pipe Tobacco Tasting group, June 2000.

David Haig.

SHEW! As I mentioned above [this blend is] VERY similar [to #2025]! I had to put sample A away on the second bowl to be sure I didn't smoke the same blend twice! Both bowls were easy to load due to the heavy rubbing out. Two match light again due to the thorough rubbing. I should say that I waited 5 days before trying either blend again just to be sure I could detect any difference in the blends.

The charring light showed the heavy woodsy flavor and aroma of the first blend. The first bowl was almost identical to the first bowl of sample A. I believe it to be spicier and a deeper nuttiness was evident to me. The Thompson has a very small bowl and the smoke was even more complex. For a moment I though I could actually taste the vinegar odor!! Are any of these blends processed with vinegar?

Likes: I must say another McClelland blend. Perhaps Dark Star? McClellands are very distinctive to me so I will be very curious as to what Terry has sent us! Another complex, fantastic smoke here. Heavy VA with some perique perhaps more heavily stoved than sample A. Another high recommendation!

Dislikes: More heavy rubbing (though this is slowly becoming less unpleasant to me). ----------

Greg Hampton

Appearance: This could be a close relative to Sample A. It is mostly dark brown tobaccos with, perhaps, a slightly higher percentage of tan tobaccos. This is also in the form of a broken flake.

Baggie Aroma: Again, very similar to Sample A. The sweet ketchup/vinegar aroma is dominant but not as pronounced as Sample A. This tobacco also does not have a noticeable peppery smell. I'll guess, again, that this a McClelland.

Smoking Details: 1st in a DC 2 Note Rusticated Melos. After the first smoke of Sample A, I was determined to let this dry appropriately (for my tastes), so I rubbed it out to a medium chunkiness. I let it dry for about 45 minutes and packed the bowl, but not too firmly. It lit without any problem. In comparison to sample A, this tobacco is very similar. It has some tang to it and is mildly sweet. There is no detectable spiciness like with A. But enough about A... Through 1/2 bowl the taste has become medium bodied with increasing sweetness and pleasant tobacco taste. The last half of the bowl wanted to bite my tongue a couple of times when I was puffing too hard. The sweetness remained until the end as did the great "tobacco" taste. It burned down to a coarse grey ash with no dottle. I did use 1 1/2 pipe cleaners for this smoke. 2nd in a Savinelli Bulldog. This pipe isn't quite broken in, but it provides a decent smoke so far, so I thought I'd give it a shot. I followed the same preparation as the first time and the results of lighting were the same. The big difference this time around was the climate. I smoked the previous bowl in Wa State, where it has been fairly cool and dry. This last bowl was smoked in central Va State where it was in the 90's with 90%+ humiditiy. I have to say this was a disappointing experience. The tobacco had little taste due to the humidity, I'm speculating. In recent history, there were some jokes on ASP about smoking gym socks. This was what I would imagine smoking a sweaty gym sock would be like. Totally blecchhh. I could only stand it through about 1/3 way. I let the pipe go out and took it into the AC to dry out. The next day, I lit it up. The tobacco was much drier and the day was much less humid. Life was better. The DGT'ing and drying out helped it immensely, in addition to the change in weather. Now the tobacco was proving a nice sweet tobacco taste. Any hint of the ketchup/vinegar was long gone. It smoked to the bottom with a couple of re-lights. There was no tongue bite either. I did end up using 2 pipe cleaners throughout the smoke.

Overall impression: 7 out of 10. I liked this tobacco, but not as much as Sample A. It just wasn't as interesting. I would venture to say that this, too, would age well and could possibly develop into a better smoke. There is nothing bad about this, in fact, it's a good Virginia, just not as good asa some others I've had. I would buy some to put away and try in a year, two, five, etc., but I'm pretty confident that this would not make my normal rotation.