McClelland Frog Morton

Last Sunday, I stopped by a Cigar and Pipe store, one of very few left where I live at. I was talking to the guy behind the counter and I was mentioning about Dunhill and he said ‘did you know McClelland closed’? I literally yelled ‘NO’ in the store, it was kind of embarrassing that is how loud I was. I was in a state of shock! February 28 2018, they closed. If I had known months ago I would have stocked up. Vintage Syrian gone, (stocked up), Dunhill, (stocked up) but alas it was not to be for McClelland. I bought the Frog last year and I have smoked it before and it is a very excellent tobacco. Smooth, creamy and slightly spicy. I have one open 100-gram tin of this and I will continue to enjoy it but will not buy any from the black marketeers on eBay. But all good things must come to an end.

One of the saddest days in pipe tobacco history-the closing of McClelland. Iconic Frog Morton. How we love thee. I’ve just opened a 2018 100g tin. Wonderful blend. Smooth, with its deep caramel richness, Smokey campfire Latakia, dark sweet stoved and lighter Virginia’s. Subtle Spicy richness. You shall be sorely missed. I will cherish these last 3 tins for as long as possible to savor on special occasions...or maybe not...so hard to resist. Thank you McClelland. One of the best in the world.

Frog Morton is a masterpiece blend. I am sure this will go down in history with the likes of Nightcap, Golden Slices, Royal Yacht, Balkan Sobranie...you get the picture. This is a truly masterful blend. I had Frog Morton proper after I had tried all of the other in the series. My favorite (I think) is the Cellar edition but it is so hard to say. Here is my review: The tin note is similar to other McClealland tobacco's you get the ketchup/Worcestershire but not nearly as prominent as other varieties in the McClellnd line. The tobacco is a beautiful black and red ribbon with that McClelland "chunkiness" to it The blend claims to be a Virginia and Latakia blend, but I would swear there were some orientals in here. Both the room note and the flavor tell me there are some incense like orientals in the blend, but maybe it is my nose and tongue that are off. This is a consistent smoke, it starts out with the vanillaish sweet caramel flavor profile with the latakia coming to the front and then slightly stepping to the side. throughout the bowl I kept getting the incense coming from my sinus' in both an olfactory presence and a taste. Very complex an satisfying. It was a cool smoke throughout and did need a few re-lights but not many. Disclaimer: I have been on a bender the last few weeks trying to nail down my " preferred flavor profile". I have gone through about 6 bowls a day of English blends from heavy Syrian Latakia blends to other latakia forward blends. Frog Morton (and the series ) keep coming to the top of my list. I could smoke this all day but would be hard pressed to give up my first smoke (Early morning pipe or Escudo...depending on the day). But this is a fabulous tobacco. Bravo Zulu McClelland, Bravo Zulu

A delightful latakia blend that I found very pleasing. This blend highlights the correct use of latakia. One of the very best blends available, I highly recommend this blend.

Love it! A real smooth latakia smoke that can be enjoyed all day. Reminds me of a real good single malt. Did not detect that McCelland ketchup aroma upon opening the tin. Really a nice room note that reminds me of a English library when one could smoke pipes while enjoying good literature. Don't know what all the fuss is about the picture on the tin...don't judge a book by its cover. A great smoke with no bite.

I know this one already has many reviews. But I don't see many from people, such as my self, who have never smoked an English blend before. Having only smoked Aros for eight years I finally took the advice of my local tobacconist and tried this Frog Morton. As I understand it, it is also often referred to as "Frog on a Log".

First I thought the tin note was that of "traditional tobacco". Turns out the aroma is actually from the Latakia, something I had yet to experience. Which as it turns out smokes much better than I had originally expected.

This tobacco is very light in nicotine making it a very good option for an all day smoke.

This being my first i counter with Latakia I could not have been happier. Even my wife, who tends to dictate what tobaccos I put into my pipes, enjoys the "campfire" aroma.

The smoke is very light and does not tend to linger.

Packing the bowl is also much easer than I am used to. It does not tend to expand as much as the Aros I typically smoke. And it burns evenly all the way to the bottom, often with only one or two lights, with out really heating the bowl. Also on that note I noticed I could puff on it like a chimney without suffering from a lava bowl or tong bite.

In short I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good introduction to an English blend. I can only hope it does not set the bar too high for all the others I am now excited to try.

Dark brown and (predominantly) black. Smell: molasses. This is a smooth, medium strength, reasonably full-bodied, well-rounded latakia mixture, with hints of leather, molasses and especially blackcurrant. It is a beautiful smoke. I also love the label art of this and the other froggies, pace emmbee.

Well, this is probably not very fair, but I am writting a review on 16 years old Frog Morton, acquired on eBay a few months ago. Maybe it’s the years of storage, maybe it’s all about the American type of blend, which is quite hard to get here in Europe. But this tin of Frog Morton is totally different from all English/Scottish/Italian/whatever latakia blends I have tried so far. Broad cut, very dark in colour, featuring rich and deep aroma, pleasantly salty and sour in taste. In fact, the taste is so unique, so incomparable to other latakia blends, that I plan to get as much as possible tins for storage.

This is yet another success by McClelland. They seem to be able to take any mixture and keep it from biting. This is extremely important to me and my smoking tastes. If it bites, even partially, I won't smoke it - period.

The Frog does not bite and has a wonderful spice/incense aroma that is best enjoyed with the the "nasal taste" rather than the tounge.

Latakia takes center stage but doesn't dominate. The virginia compliments well imparting a little "grassyness" though not in an unpleasant way.

This is very similar to Black Watch by ThePiperoom.com, which I similar to the Frog.

The two blends have ever so slight a topping, though Frog's topping is stronger than Black Watch and has more "spice" to it - but I like the spice.

All in all the Frog is a winner. Defintely worth a try for any pipe smoker from aromatic to English fans.

This blend is a modern classic. Well done McClelland

Original review (6-1-07, 3 stars)

Update, 10-18-07, 4 stars * * * * !