McClelland 2014 Holiday Spirit

(3.14)
This mild, smooth blend of burley, Virginia, and cavendish tobaccos is flavored with dark rum, pecan, and cocoa. It brings a warm glow to the coldest winter day. The aroma of a favorite holiday confection wafts from the bowl bringing pipe smoking contentment.

Details

Brand McClelland
Blended By McClelland Tobacco Company
Manufactured By McClelland Tobacco Company
Blend Type Aromatic
Contents Black Cavendish, Burley, Virginia
Flavoring Cocoa / Chocolate, Pecan, Rum
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 50 grams tin
Country United States
Production No longer in production

Profile

Strength
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Very Pleasant
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Mild to Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.14 / 4
3

2

2

0

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 27, 2014 Medium Medium to Strong Very Full Very Pleasant
This is an amazing aromatic with a room note that my wife and kids even love. When my 13 year olds friends come over for our fire pit nights they always compliment this blend. The flavor is amazing !! The taste of sweet rum and a Christmas cookie blended into one. When you pop the lid off of the tin you literally want to take a bite because it is such an amazing fragrance. I could smoke this year round. Love it from the top of the bowl til the end of the bowl.
Pipe Used: JM Boswell, Radice, Mario Grandi
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: 2014
10 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 30, 2014 Mild Mild to Medium Mild Very Pleasant
The Virginia is slightly grassy, and there's a minor nuttiness from the burley. The black cavendish adds a very mild vanilla note and there's a touch of honey from the gold cavendish. The toppings are not strong, and the rum loses a little of its impact after the half way point. The pecan is more noticeable then, being a little less obvious in the first half of the smoke. The cocoa notes are also very mild. The tobaccos and toppings complimentary meld fairly well together, and as pleasant as it is to smoke - decent burn rate, little moisture in the bowl and no dottle, silky smooth with no bite or harshness - it lacks depth of flavor to be any more than a work about all day mixture. If you like mild aromatics, this may suit you, but if you want a deeper tasting one, it may not satisfy you. Has little nicotine. Two and a half stars.

Apparently, this blend is the same every year, so my reviews for the other versions are the same as this one. I can't tell any differences.

-JimInks
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 16, 2015 Medium Medium Medium to Full Very Pleasant
My goodness , what a great aromatic blend ! The flavorings are stellar and the blend smokes perfectly ! I could rattle off a bunch of adjectives to describe the flavor and aroma but you can read the description for yourself and if you are a seasoned aromatic smoker familiar with McClelland ... you'll get it . If youre just starting with aromatics , this is one to try for sure as it is one of the best
Pipe Used: Quite a few
Age When Smoked: Different years
3 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 28, 2015 Very Mild Strong Medium to Full Pleasant to Tolerable
An outstanding aromatic. Wonderful tin note of chocolate and pecan. The smoke itself is like powdered cocoa. Extremely chocolatey, but not overly sweet. No bite at all, even when smoked hard. A very distinctive blend, and one that I intend to add to my regular rotation. Highly recommended.
Pipe Used: various
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes
Age When Smoked: new
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 15, 2015 Very Mild Medium to Strong Medium Very Pleasant
Great Aromatic for the Holiday Season. Reminiscent of all of your favorite Holiday desserts: Sugar cookies, Brownies, Pecan Roll, and buttered rum all packed into your pipe. Smells great in the tin, room, and beard. This said, there is something missing, oh yeah, tobacco. Aromatic flavors are strong but not to the point of being cloying. I'm the type of guy that likes to taste a little burley from his pipe. You can get the VA/Cavendish and it's good but in the background. This is good stuff while being sociable during the season, everybody loves the smell. No nicotine to be had though, which relegates this blend to pipe candy status.
Pipe Used: old crusty cob
PurchasedFrom: pandc.com
Age When Smoked: 0-30 days
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 13, 2015 Mild Medium Mild to Medium Pleasant
Label: This mild, smooth blend of Burley, Virginia and Cavendish tobacco is flavored with dark rum, pecan and cocoa. It brings a warm glow to the coldest winter day. The aroma of a favorite holiday confection wafts from the bowl bringing pipe smoking contentment. Happy Holidays! Aroma: Nutty and sweet, I didn't detect any cocoa, but the hint of rum was there. Taste: Occassional rum notes, especially when retrohaling. Overall, vanilla more so than chocolate. First there's a sweet taste on the tongue, followed by a touch of spice and a warm nutty flavor. Room Note: The room note is good, though not as nice as some of the aromatics. You likely won't chase anyone away with it. Thoughts: I received a tin as a Christmas present and then smoked it on a long drive to visit family after Christmas. The first bowl was just ok, then the flavor really started to grow on me. The drive is long and seems to drag on, but the Holiday Spirit made the traffic and trip much more bearable. I had a buddy over a few weeks ago and he smoked a bowl with me. He immediately went out and bought his own tin, and I've since bought two more tins before it becomes unavailable. I won't smoke it all the time (even if it were available year around), but for an occasional smoke to remind me of the holidays it works. I'm looking forward to Holiday Spirit 2015.
Pipe Used: Savinelli
PurchasedFrom: pipesandcigars.com
Age When Smoked: Fresh from the store
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 16, 2015 Mild to Medium Medium Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
I bought a can of this for Christmas, and it was my first holiday themed tobacco. It has a strong rummy aroma out of the tin, like a Christmas fruit cake I guess.

My wife rates this one highly on the room note, but I wasn't overly impressed. It's pretty average to me. I'd rather get McClelland's Master Penman.

It's a decent smoke, left a bit of a spicy burn feeling in my mouth and throat the last time I had a bowl of it.
Pipe Used: Missouri Meerschaum Corn cob
PurchasedFrom: tobaccoblends.com.au
Age When Smoked: Fresh
1 person found this review helpful.
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