McClelland No. M-27 Three Cherry Blend

Oh Boy, I get to be the first to review this product! Three Cherry Blend represents one of many steps I have taken along the road to finding the ideal cherry blend. Some are too flavored, and some, like Three Cherry Blend, are not enough. Somewhere out there is Baby Bear's blend- just right.

This is a typical offering from the McClelland's Bulk American Aromatics series. It purportedly consists of lemon virginias and black cavendish. If that is indeed the case then the virginias are on the brown side and so is the "black cavendish". Going from visual appearances, the virginia component dominates. The cut of this tobacco is a combination of ribbon with a sprinkling of well broken flake. My half pound arrived in beautiful condition, not sticky and not over-moist. (Note that a certain unnamed internet tobacco dealer sells 1/2 lbs for about 60% of the cost of a 1/4 lb. Is this intentional? If not, I hope they do not wise up!)

There was also a notable lack of cherry aroma, which was why I bought it in the first place. So, that was kind of a let down. I stuffed most of it into a quart jar and let it sit for about a month. Upon subsequently opening, I got a better cherry aroma, though still not quite what I was hoping for.

So... How does it smoke? Well, upon initial light, I would have to say that there is a hint of a cherry taste, just a tad underwhelming, but definitely there. There is a bit of added sweetness as well, but nothing like a drug-store cherry blend. The smoke retains a hint of cherry in the background throughout most of the bowl, and behaves well near the end, with just a bit of somewhat oily dottle. Gurgle has not been a problem.

The room aroma is less that of an aromatic cavendish than a virginia with a whiff of fruit. This is not one that pleases my wife, though admittedly she is picky.

The tobacco experience overall is quite satisfactory but not distinguishing. McC clearly did not overdo it on flavoring/sweetening this one. To someone looking for a virginia with a hint of aroma, this is probably just the ticket. I will continue to come back to this (heck, I have a 1/2 lb to smoke up) but shall continue my search for the ideal cherry aromatic.

Wow!!! What a nice change of pace in cherry aromatics! Opening the bag, I caught a nice whiff of cherry, not too heavy, riding on a base of good Virginia tobacco. A little sweet, but light and pleasant. The tobacco was ribbon cut and packed nicely. The texture was thick and moist, not flaky or oily. The tobacco lit easily and burned all the way down in one light. Glorious clouds of smoke on lighting. Immediate pleasant hit of sweet cherry flavor and golden Virginia. I was surprised that the flavor did change a bit as the bowl progressed and that I could detect all three cherry flavors: there were areas of pure sweetness contrasted with others like rich fermented maraschino and more rarely, tart black cherry. Nothing overpowering, just balanced and thoroughly enjoyable.

There was a light pleasant cherry smell over the Virginia, very true to the pouch aroma. I certainly recommend Three Cherry Blend. It's a complex, subtle and pleasing smoke for cherry aromatic lovers to have on hand.

This is a great cherry smoke for all day or indoor with family and friends. Did not seem to bite. Aroma and taste continue all through the bowl. Does not have a cheap artificial cherry aroma like the drug store brands. The cherry aroma in this blend is full and natural. I could not stop at one bowl. I had three in my meerschaum. Very tasty and pleasant aroma. If you are looking for a good cherry blend try this one.

Next to Pipeworks Cherry Cavendish, this is the best Cherry blend i have had as far as bulk Cherry blends go. No bite or gurgle. String cut no hassle lighting, excellent to break in a new pipe as the high sugar content builds a cake fast and the cherry flavor masks any harshness a new pipe creates. Good quality tobacco from McClelland and price to boot.

My first foray into "Cherry" tobacco.

It smells like a can of merachino cherries, and gives off a similar room note. I taste a bit of tobacco, but mostly cherries. It's more aroma than flavoring though. Good for if you have anti-tobacco company over, or for a change of pace.

I find the cherry flavor to be fairly subtle on this blend (to me it's more like a "hint of cherry"). Overall, it's a pleasant, mild to medium tobacco, with very little bite. I got a pound of it the last time I ordered; I probably won't buy that much at one time again, but I'll keep it on my list to buy from time to time. If you like a cherry-flavored tobacco, and have found the flavor of most of them overpowering or too sweet, this might be the right blend for you.

This tobacco has my favourite pouch scent of all the tobaccos I've yet tried. It's a very fine cut ribbon, which leads to a slightly different smoking experience that the thicker cut ribbons I'm used to. A very nice even smoke, pleasant but not spectacular. I'm satisfied with it. I'll come back and amend this review once I've tried other cherry aromatics.

My favorite cherry blend by far. The cherry topings are done right. They taste and smell of real cherries, not fake manufactured chemicals. The tobacco is high quality, and there is a decent tobacco taste here, not just toppings.

It comes very moist, and could benefit from a little drying, otherwise it will leave the bottom of the bowl soaked. If you are looking for the "go to" cherry blend, this is it.