McClelland St. James Woods

You know how you see something worth having just when it is too late. You how when you meet just the woman you had always dreamt of and thought she did not exist and then you find out you are late. She is already married to someone else. But the evening’s interlude lingers in your mind. Her eyes are etched in your mind, her laughter rings in your ears and her smell comes to you in whiffs and reminds you of summer rain. You think of her over your coffee on a lazy weekend morning when the house is still quiet. You think of her in the middle of all your stress at work or perhaps during the rush of a moment. You wonder about what it might have been. She comes in snatches and glimpses at the most unlikely moments even without willing it. And then in about a month it sort of goes away. You heave a sigh and move on, but remember that evening with much fondness. Over the last month that I had been working on a special investigative report, St James Woods has been just that. She was with me through the frantic monrings, hectic evenings and stressful afternoons and saw me through. She was there every time I needed her. She was there without questions, without complaints. The report comes out tomorrow. But alas she is gone, never to come back. My first and last tin of St James Woods. I had discovered her too late for cellaring. I will cherish this month for ever. Farewell my lovely!

I don't see the big deal of this blend ! Yuck ! A lousy excuse for latakia ! This is no Penzance, Sobranie, or anything comparable. I'm not a fan of frog Morton but I'll take that over this ! No flavor, blah. Taste like I'm smoking frankincense with no tobacco ! Where's the tobacco ?? Where's the VA ?? I like English but this is terrible. Come on all you English lovers, you can't be serious giving this 4 stars ? I think too many were drinking the kool aid when smoking this ! This is lousy, don't waste your money ! I like both aromatics and English and this is the worst English I ever had ! Totally bland no flavor all incense aroma ! No tobacco taste whatsoever ! Give me three nuns any day over this slop !

opened a tin of this a couple of months ago and filled one mason jar full to cellar and put about 4-5 bowls worth in another jar to try. and now i'm done my first bowl. wow.

like some people have noted, it doesn't roll out all that well so i packed it as flakes and topped with some loose stuff that i rubbed out. a little trouble with the lighting at first but once it got rolling it delivered on a lot of levels. each puff truly fills your mouth with exotic flavours of dried fruit and hints of pepper; a perfect marriage of these flavours. i love the mouth feel of this tobacco, a very sensual experience. and it keeps delivering from start to finish. the VA has a nice sweetness but not too sweet, kinda peeks out to say hello just when you need it.

it's quite a smoky tobacco but is likely the reason why it's so mouth filling, and lends itself to slow sipping. nicotine is on the high side but not overwhelming and had no bite throughout the whole bowl.

i've got some escudo on the way so very curious as to how it's going to compare but regardless of how it stands up to other VaPer's i can't imagine ever doing without this lovely tobacco in my rotation.

highly recommended.

and as far as the tin notes that everyone speaks of when it comes to Mc's, all it speaks to me is about style. they've picked a style, which i respect in any blending craft, and stick to it. it's a signature as much as anything. and regarding the ketchup tin aroma, i get (as i believe someone has said before) more of a dill/canned pickle aroma. and i can deal with whatever the tin notes deliver as long as it smokes like this.

My opinion of this tobacco has changed, for the worse, the more I have smoked it. My first time with St. James Flake was like having an exotic new lover. I thought I had found my mate for life, my new favorite tobacco. Perhaps I overindulged, smoking this blend frequently over the next couple of months. If it had been a one-night-stand, I would have been left with romantic memories of an exciting blend. But the bloom is off the rose.

Upon opening the tin, the odor is strong and harsh: not really ketchup, and not just vinegar...Heinz 57 steak sauce? It is as if the tobacco has been soaked in Heinz 57 prior to packaging. And contrary to what many reviews say, the Heinz 57 never completely goes away, no matter how long you dry it, or how long it is opened. I can still taste it at the end of the pipe. And after emptying the ashes, the pipe smells of burnt ketchup for some time. After making my way through almost 100 g of this stuff, I wonder if the tobacco is actually cooked in the sauce.

The broken flakes are thick and beautiful, black and brown, and feel quite moist. The tobacco burns well with occasional relights. It is slow burning. No matter how I try, I can not get it to burn hot or bite my tongue. It is smooth and easy to smoke. I recommend rubbing it out well, then letting it dry for some time, otherwise you will be left with chunks of charcoal instead of ash.

The Perique dominates, indeed overwhelms the rest of the blend. It may be heresy, but I think there is too much Perique in this mixture.

Medium nicotine content, and one of the easiest tobaccos I've ever smoked. But I am still bothered by the ketchup-steaksauce-vinegar flavor. What is that?!

I probably won't be smoking this one again. I like my VaPer straight. Hold the ketchup.

I've been learning to appreciate VAs more and more lately. Although this is a Vaper, it's a great way to ease into VAs. It's a medium-dark broken flake that looks just like Christmas Cheer except just a tad more broken up. Typical McC ketchup aroma that leans more toward A-1 steak sauce, with a great sweetness and a tiny hint of the Perique lurking in the background. In other words, it smells great!

I packed it lightly in a chubby Savinelli Author, and it burned well right out of the tin. The Perique manifests itself more during the first third as the familiar tang in the nose, but the VA sweetness shines through. This is a rich, wonderful smoke, and I marvel that it's me writing this since I have not been a big VA fan. But I'm learning...

The pipe lasted more than an hour. The Perique spice settled in and melded nicely during the last two-thirds, becoming the condiment that it's designed to be. The VA flake is obviously very high quality. My tin says it was canned in 2006 so it's had some time to age.

As a typical English blend lover, I can heartily recommend St. James Woods and will certainly be buying several tins to age even further.

I flat out love this blend! What can one say? Far in the background there is cedar freshly cut. A little closer but still far off is the Italian Roast coffee and cinnamon. Then the spice really begins to tickle the tongue and the flavor opens into a full symphony of Virginia's warm sweetness which is complemented perfectly by the soft tingle of what must be the Perique...never more noticeable nor more enjoyable than in this blend. This one must be smoked in a large bowl and the first true light needs to be a good, long, even one. Once it really catches, it offers a nice long smoke. The bowl stays cool and there is no discernible bite. To my tongue, Latakia feels cool and Perique feels warm and this is the warmest smoke I've ever enjoyed. Definitely four stars!

The dominant flavour here is of the red Virginia, with a decided Périque buzz on top of that, not unlike Wessex Sovereign Curly Cut. It's a combination I love. This has a bit more body at the bottom, but it also has a pronounced McClelland ketchup stink in the tin which is sometimes tasted in the mouth. I don't love that. This would have been a good three-star choice except for it.

This va/perique combination has awoken my tastes to another deminsion in this genre of tobacco chemistry. The flavor= interplay between the va's and perique are complex and rewarding. Honey, cinnamon, and smoked almonds meld with powerful notes of figs and prunes. With each puff I got various degrees of the formentioned. When rubbed partially and gravity filled, I get a consistent burn rate accompanied with a complete burn. Very pleasing in the nose when exhaled. Some try to compare 2015 to st. james but, I find them to be on opposite sides of the universe in depth and flavor spectrum. The only thing that I have to say that is negative in nature, is soley relate to the fact that I am kicking myself for not trying this blend earlier.

Typically pungent in the tin with McClelland VA funk behind which the perique is noticable.

Typically fine red and black VAs mix well with a generous amount of perique. This deepens very nicely down the bowl.

This is yet another excellent McClelland VA flake and works best in a narrow gauge chamber.