McClelland St. James Woods

Wow! This is a geat blend. My experience with perique thus far has been limited to petersons irish oak. Which I love' its in my rotation but wouldnt be an all time everyday smoke. So with St. James I was looking for more of the pepper pop but was surprised of the cool and mellow of this blend. It is mastefully blended with top quality va and just the right amount of perique that doesnt over take the blend. Its not in your face aggressive like irish oak can sometimes be. In fact the buttery smooth taste of sweet va reminded me of hal of the wynd so much I thought i must have packed the wrong tobacco.

I aired this about 6 hours as its quite moist from the tin. The broken flakes are very moist and dark with a great fruity Va smell. This is slow easy burning with no bite. Smoking flvours lasted throughout the bowl. I recommend this for newbie VaPers like me. But its a tremendous smoking experience no matter what your usual taste are. Im very impressed with McClelland, and this blend will only get better with age. Med level of nicotine.

The expected McClelland tin note. Presentation is semi-moist, dark, broken flake. This one will benefit from being rubbed out and dried for 30 minutes or more. Ideally, this blend would be jarred and aged for at least a year. The longer the better with McClelland Virginias. Since that's not always practical, I suggest at least 30 minutes drying time, if not an hour.

Very smooth smoking VaPer with a touch of creaminess on the charring light that is vaguely reminiscent of GL Pease's Fillmore, though not as stout or as Perique-forward. This soon gives way to the classic McClelland Virginia tang.

McClelland blends three very similar VaPers: Beacon Extra, St James Woods, and Bayou Sliced. And I would recommend them in that order. But all three are excellent choices and I recommend this one to any VaPer smoker without hesitation.

Up until now, I haven't been a Vaper smoker. St. James Woods has changed that for me. It's slightly sweet, bit spicy, peppery, started off on the mild side, then moved to a more of a medium bodied smoke with the spiciness from the Perique building and becoming more prominent through out the bowl until the end. No bite, an overall good smoke. I can easily see this as part of my rotation!

The best of 3 MC tins I've had so far, and the best Vaper, but for me that's not saying much. I blend using perique, and the presence of that element is not at all strong for me in St. James. It is however likely part of the spice-along with that ketchupy note everyone smells with MC but somehow don't taste. (Pipe tobacco is such weird stuff, and no one would ever smoke a tomato blend regardless of if whether it tastes like tomatoes or not, but they will smoke a chocolate blend which doesn't really taste like chocolate.)

Virginia is what I get from St. James, with the perique further back. That's as it should be, given that the perique is the condiment.

The flake looks like the barky stuff people like to put around the bottom of trees and shrubs. I can't help but thinking there is something quintessentially North American about this tobacco. Redwood. Bacon. It's rustic. There's nicotine here, but it's nothing severe, and not a bit of tongue bite. It does however need to be dried for several hours.

It's true that it's not the easiest thing to keep lit, but that is also perhaps a selling point. The lady in my life (an ex cig-head) has no problem with smoky aromas; rather she dislikes voluminous clouds of smoke. St. James does have a very smoky flavor, but doesn't blast out clouds.

I rub it out because I like a nice pack. Overall, St. James smokes kind of slow and cool- kinda like a peat moss fire. It goes with whiskey and late night hours. I don't turn to it a lot but I do turn to it, and I'm sure I'll order another tin when the time comes. I'm giving it 3.5 stars, even if it's not my go-to. How about this question- should your go-to be your favorite? My go-tos are not- I tend to save my faves for more special occasions.

Someone else here wrote about the other 2 Vapers MC does; I need to go back to that for future reference.

Really, my other two McClelland blends have impressed me little. I have to say that this one grew on me, even if it took it's sweet time to do so. Another thing- the price is really right on this, and the other more expensive MC offerings simply haven't measured up. This is another prime example for me that "you get what you pay for" is often a lie. The amount of money spent on tobacco is absolutely no indication of quality; I know this well from the cigar world.

I have a dozen or so McClelland blends hanging around that I’ve been meaning to try. I wish I would have gotten to them sooner, so I could have stocked up before they closed their doors.

I really enjoy Blackwoods Flake, and this is similar in both taste and presentation. It has a slightly spicier mouthfeel due to the Perique, but it has the same McClelland broken flake appearance and vinigary McClelland tin note that I sometimes love, sometimes dislike, and will miss forever.

If you like tangy red virginia Vapers without the citrus sweet bright notes, this is perfect. The black Virginia’s add a caramelized suger and toasted spice note that differentiate this blend from the pack. It’s a shame I didn’t pick up a spare tin or two.

Very good blend here. I just finished a healthy sample of this one, but ordered a few more tins right after the first bowl of the sample. It is another great Virginia product from a brand that excels in treatment of that leaf.

It does have the familiar scent that one would associate with a McClelland Virginia, but it is tempered by a goodly, but not overwhelming, amount of Perique. The perique is what differentiates this from 2015 IMO. Where the perique is subtle and, I think hidden, in 2015, the perique stands out in SJW. It gives the already sweet Virginias a nice spicy note that gives it a unigue taste amongst vapers. It also gives this one a decent amount of nic strength which is something that is often criticized in the McClelland blends.

If there is one knock on this one is that it can tend to get a little one note and, perhaps, a little boring in a large bowl. I am giving this one three stars for now until I get a chance to break into one of the new tins I now have in the cellar.

Appearance: Mostly dark, mottled broken flakes, average thickness. Also average moisture. Looks like a virtual twin of Blackwoods Flake.

Aroma: Very sweet, ripe Va. Aroma, with a noticeable tingle of Perique. Very little of the vinegary smell noted in many McC blends.

Packing: Rubs out easily to any desired degree. Can be packed int any reasonable size pipe.

Lighting: Typical flake lighting. Always needed a charring light, someimes needed two.

Initial flavor: Excellent Va/Perique flavor. The Va is definitely on the dark side, and yields mostly low notes, with the Perique adding the higher register with some raisin and fig flavors.

Mid-bowl: Smooth but highly complex assortment of flavors. Some are subtle, others are dramatic. Almost no tendency toward heat unless you puff too rapidly

Finish: Dry at the end, no noticeable difference, except less complex. Nice clean ash.

Summary: An excellent blend of Va/Perique. Could be an alternative to Escudo, or a change of pace.

Yes the tin note is ketchup but if you let it out to dry for 20 min that aroma is gone. Rubs out almost to a ribbon cut. Even after drying it is a bit hard to keep lit. This is prob the sweetest va/per I’ve smoked. Deep and dark Virginia tobaccos. Perique is mild/med. Very easy smoking and anytime of day blend.

This is based on a full tin of St James Woods purchased a couple of years ago and just opened. SJW greets that nose with the usual McClelland fermented scent and like many McClelland's it arrives far too moist to smoke. After rubbing out the broken flakes it dries fairly quickly. Overall there are things I like about this VaPer and things that I find to be just OK. First off, like all McClelland blends, the quality of the tobacco appears to be great. The flavors really build nicely throughout the bowl. SJF is lightly sweet and the Perique is just right for me. As the bowl progresses, the sweetness is more pronounced. I wouldn't call it a negative, but for me; SJW lacks the body/strength that I prefer in some of my favorite VaPers. It is the one thing that will keep it from my regular rotation. When it comes to the McClelland VaPers that I have smoked, I prefer the Blackney's Bayou Slice a little bit more. Overall, I would recommend SJW to any VaPer lover, especially if you prefer your VaPers with a lower amount of Lady N.