McClelland -- Blackwoods Flake

Brand: McClelland
Blend: Blackwoods Flake
Style: Virginia
Pipe Used: Savinelli Rusticated Oscar #313
Price: $7.80/2oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 9
Room Note: 7
Value: 9
Overall: 9

I bought a tin of McClelland's Blackwoods Flake a few months ago and was pleased to discover that it was packaged in 2005. Given the four year head start I had planned on aging it for a few more years. But last night I really wanted a nice dark Virginia and I was out of all of my usual suspects so that tin was just begging to be opened.

I cracked the tin and was immediately met by that standard McClelland aroma that's been variously described as ketchup or vinegar like. It's never bothered me and I've always felt that the smell is that of natural fermentation and is even a bit hoppy in character -- not at all unpleasant.

The flake tobacco was fairly moist and consisted of a mixture of Red and Black Stoved Virginia leaf. All of the flakes were fairly uniform in size and appearance and looked good enough to eat. I broke a few apart and then set them aside to dry for the afternoon.

By the time I was ready to load up my Savinelli Rusticated Oscar #313 the tobacco blend was in perfect smoking condition. It took a few additional charring lights to get all of the tobacco tendrils evenly flat on the top but once it got going the pipe stayed lit right to the bitter end and required no tamping or fussing of any kind. Since I was sitting outside watching the rain fall I could see the ember glowing in the bowl and it just refused to go out.

Straight Virginias are among my favorite tobaccos and while I don't typically find them to be very complex blends the best of them can offer a truly rewarding smoke. From my first taste of the Blackwoods Flake I knew that I had found smoking nirvana. Whereas light Virginias tend to be almost cloyingly sweet at times, this dark blend was much more savory yet still plenty sweet -- almost like a traditional Christmas pudding.

The combination of Red and Black Stoved tobaccos is a real winner here with the Red offering a delicate sweetness while the Black lends a taste that's faintly reminiscent of grilled steak. These two taste profiles make for a delightful smoke as first one then the other moves to the front. These flavors also remain consistent from start to finish.

The room aroma reminded me of a nice smoky BBQ and while I certainly enjoy that smell it could be a bit much in small indoor spaces. The smoky character also lingered in the air for quite a while.

Like I mentioned, the Blackwoods Flake was a well-behaved tobacco that stayed lit and burned evenly right down to the ash. As with many Virginias there was a bit of tongue bite whenever the pipe was smoked too fast but that was easily remedied by slowing down.

McClelland's Blackwoods Flake is a wonderful straight Virginia blend that offers up a very high quality smoke at a reasonable price and rewards the patient pipester with a rich, full flavor and a well-mannered smoke. This tobacco is sheer delight in the pipe and is very highly recommended.

"The Hobbit"

I was watching the 1977 Rankin & Bass animated version of "The Hobbit" on DVD last night with my kids and was floored by the sheer number of pipe references. Those hobbits sure knew how to enjoy their pipeweed!

Pinkerton -- Half & Half

Brand: Pinkerton
Blend: Half & Half
Style: Burley/Virginia
Pipe Used: Cob
Price: $2.85/1.5oz.

Appearance: 8
Taste: 7
Room Note: 8
Value: 9
Overall: 8

Half & Half is one of those classic drugstore blends that has been enjoyed for well over a hundred years. Easily dismissed due to their easy availability and low price, these codger classics are quite often worth a try and this one is no exception.

Upon opening the pouch I was hit with one of the finest pipe tobacco aromas I've ever experienced. Some have referred to it as a rum raisin type of smell but to me it seemed more like IHOP butter pecan syrup topped with a bit of lemon. It almost made me want to grab a spoon and eat the stuff!

The tobacco consisted of a medium-brown, ribbon cut blend of Burley and light Virginia and was a bit moist right out of the pouch. After leaving some to dry for a bit I loaded up one of trusty cobs and gave it a light.

The tobacco lit easily, burned evenly, and only required one relight as I neared the bottom of the bowl. The blend also refused to bite even when I found myself smoking it fairly fast. The ease of smoking is one aspect of these old classics that I've really come to admire.

The flavor profile was about what one would expect from a quality Burley/Virginia mix -- a rich nutty taste complimented by the sweetness of the light Virginias. And while the pouch aroma was evidence of the addition of some toppings, whatever was added didn't adversely impact the flavor or burn characteristics at all. There was even a faint touch of spice that I could feel as a tingle on my lips and tip of my tongue. Half & Half displayed a consistent flavor profile from beginning to end which is just fine for this type of inexpensive, everyday smoke.

The real test for me with these drugstore blends is in the aftertaste. Too much humectant or artificial flavoring can lead to an off-putting taste in the mouth long after the pipe is finished. In the case of Half & Half the aftertaste was primarily that of good tobacco but I did also detect a slightly chemical undertone that forced me to knock down the flavor score by a point.

The room aroma was that classic pipe smell that is enjoyed by most folks whether they be smokers or not and didn't have the harsh, cigarette-like edge to it that I often find with Burley blends.

Half & Half is a good pipe tobacco and if it was repackaged as a new product in a fancy tin it could easily sell for much more money. As it is, we pipe smokers should be glad that it's available for just a couple of bucks a pouch at most corner drugstores. I enjoyed it very much and it may well replace some of the other Burley/Virginia blends that I currently smoke. Score one for the codgers.

G.L. Pease -- Barbary Coast

Brand: G.L. Pease
Blend: Barbary Coast
Style: Burley/Aromatic
Pipe Used: Cob
Price: $8.75/2oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 10
Room Note: 7
Value: 9
Overall: 9

I've owned this tin of G.L. Pease Barbary Coast for almost six months but had been reluctant to open it since this blend gets a lot of mixed reviews and even those who love it tend to comment on how difficult it is to smoke. Today I decided to put my fears aside and pulled the tab on that tin. What greeted me was a slightly moist dark, cube-cut Burley mixed with some ribbon-cut Red Virginias. The rich aroma of brandy and dates was delightful as well.

Since I was expecting trouble I decided to try this blend out in one of my trusty old cobs. Taking the advice of the many brave souls who came before me, I gravity fed the pipe with no tamping, skipped the charring light, and set about getting this thing a burnin'.

The soft flame of my Xikar Pipeline just wasn't up to the task so I switched to my Zippo with a single flame butane insert and tried to get some combustion. Even with that heat of the sun lighter it was still difficult to get the tobacco going. Boy am I glad I went with a cob on this as I don't want to think about what all that flame-throwing would have done to a briar pipe.

Once I got the Barbary Coast burning I was greeted with the rich, nutty taste of a fine Burley mingled with the sweetness of the Virginia leaf. The advertised Perique was noticeable in a tip of the tongue tingle which added a bit of zest to the blend. This is first and foremost a Burley blend with the other components adding some nice ancillary taste.

While the brandy is very noticeable in the tin aroma and room note I only caught glancing hints of it on the occasional exhale. It does, however, act to take the edge off the otherwise harsh Burley room note.

As expected, this was a very high maintenance tobacco. If I set the pipe down for even a moment it went out and required some serious puffing and torching to get going again. This of course led to a hot smoke and a hot cob but, oddly enough, no tongue bite. It also provided for a very dry smoke.

So then why should one bother with Barbary Coast if it's so difficult to smoke? In a word, bliss. Every now and then you're lucky enough to come across a tobacco blend that really puts you in the pipe smoking zone. For me, G.L. Pease's Barbary Coast does the trick. I found it to be a sublime, transcendent smoke that takes the best characteristics of Burley, straight Virginia, and even aromatic blends and marries them into a deceptively simple smoke that kept me fully interested and with a grin on my face from beginning to end.

I flat out love the taste of this tobacco and even if I never find a way to make it smoke easily I'm more than willing to put up with its idiosyncrasies in order to enjoy all that it has to offer. But until such a time as I can tame this beast, Barbary Coast will remain a cob-only blend.

A Perfect Afternoon

I'm usually a one-a-day pipe guy but with the start of the NCAA Tournament today I found myself watching the TV and the live feed on the computer simultaneously and enjoying pipe after pipe after pipe. Butternut Burley flowed into Full Virginia Flake followed by Squadron Leader and topped off with a relaxing bowl of Westminster. What bliss! Plus, my Michigan Wolverines won their first round game which is realistically all I was hoping for.

Peterson -- Sherlock Holmes

Brand: Peterson
Blend: Sherlock Holmes
Style: Virginia/Oriental
Pipe Used: Trypis Rusticated Dublin
Price: Gift

Appearance: 7
Taste: 7
Room Note: 7
Value: 7
Overall: 7

Since it's St. Patrick's Day I decided to get my Irish on with some appropriate pipe tobacco. I settled on Peterson's Sherlock Holmes which is billed as being made from an Irish recipe dating back to 1880 and is produced by the venerable Dublin company.

The marketing blurb for this blend says that it's a straight Virginia but the tin itself states that it includes some Burley as well. The tobacco is drawn from a variety of orange and red Virginias and includes some Mysore and Brazilian leaf.

Upon opening the tin I was greeted with a blond colored ribbon-cut tobacco of uniform size and the aroma was that of fresh-cut hay and a dash of citrus and lavender. The tobacco was also bone dry.

I loaded up my Trypis Rusticated Dublin (as close to an Irish pipe as I own) and proceeded with my charring light. The tobacco lit right up and started giving off a lot of smoke which is indicative of a very dry blend.

The initial flavor was typical of a light Virginia with that classic hay-like sweetness. Slowly sipping on the pipe kept thing firmly planted in that Virginia realm and I soon found myself becoming rather bored with the blend.

But after I started smoking a bit harder some more complex flavors became apparent. The citrus and lavender that I smelled out of tin started to emerge and the blend took on a taste very reminiscent of Earl Grey tea with its bergamot undertones. Unfortunately the harder smoking also led to some unpleasant tongue bite.

The room aroma was fairly mild for the most part but any furious puffing soon resulted in a harsh edge to the smoke that was off-putting.

The pipe stayed lit from beginning to end but the bowl did get a bit hot and the tobacco burned out rather quickly. This pipe typically makes for a 45 minute smoke but in this case I was down to the ashes in 20 minutes.

I still don't know how to classify this blend. For the most part it's a straight Virginia and I never noticed any of the advertised Burley but the bergamot and lavender aroma and taste put me in mind of a classic Oriental leaf. There don't seem to be any added toppings that would otherwise be responsible for that flavor profile.

Peterson's Sherlock Holmes is seemingly two tobaccos in one. Slow sippers will be greeted with a mild-mannered Virgina while fast puffers will be rewarded with a fine Oriental-style blend. Unfortunately the smoking technique needed to access the full flavor also leads to a hot pipe, some serious biting, and a fast and furious smoke. Whereas most tobaccos require a bit of drying before smoking this one seems to require a bit of hydrating if you happen upon a tin as dry as mine.

John Middleton -- Prince Albert

Brand: John Middleton
Blend: Prince Albert
Style: Burley
Pipe Used: Dominique Signature (Jeantet) Dublin
Price: $2.50/1.5oz.

Appearance: 7
Taste: 7
Room Note: 8
Value: 10
Overall: 8

"Do you have Prince Albert in a can?"
"Yes."
"Then you better let him out!"
(Hilarious squeals of laughter)

I knew of this classic crank telephone call well before I ever tried the tobacco. Heck, I probably even made a few such calls myself during my misspent youth.

Prince Albert is truly one of the classic American pipe tobaccos -- what are now referred to as drugstore or codger blends. It's been around since 1907 and is still going strong some hundred-plus years later.

This is the one and only tobacco that my grandfather smoked and just the faintest whiff of its sweet aroma is enough to send me right down memory lane. For this very reason I long put off trying Prince Albert because I didn't want to alter those memories in any way.

But a few weeks ago I was placing an order and on a whim I threw in a pouch (sadly not a can) of the Prince. It was time to finally break down and give this classic a try.

Advertised as a crimp cut, Prince Albert is a light to medium brown ribbon cut Burley tobacco blend. Right out of the pouch it's dry enough to smoke immediately and gives off a pleasant nutty aroma.

I loaded up an estate Dominique Signature 1/8 bent Dublin (manufactured by Jeantet of France) with the tobacco. I'm trying to break in this pipe after a thorough cleaning and supposedly these classic Burley blends are just the ticket for that task.

The tobacco lit up easily and stayed lit for a good long time requiring a relight only when I left the pipe unattended for five minutes or so. This is definitely a fire and forget it tobacco.

The flavor was about what one would expect from a classic Burley blend -- nutty, mild, and unobtrusive. For an all day smoke this type of consistent, unchallenging flavor is perfect. If it was good enough for granddad then I guess it's good enough for me.

While Prince Albert is billed as a straight Burley blend and there are no heavy casings in evidence there does seem to be a little something in there with added sweetness. It could just be a particular tobacco that they use but I certainly taste and smell something above and beyond any Burley I know.

As for the aroma, Prince Albert gives off that classic pipe smell that's likely to elicit favorable responses from those around you who grew up with pipe smoking grandfathers like I did. If puffed too fast and furiously the smoke can get a little too dense and begin to smell like a foul cigarette but you wouldn't want to abuse your pipes like that anyways.

I tried hard to make this stuff bite but it just refused to lash out and remained mellow from beginning to end. This is one well behaved tobacco.

Prince Albert has long been one of the top pipe tobaccos in this country and with good reason. It's an easy burning, fine tasting, good smelling, and inexpensive blend. I suppose that explains how it's lasted unchanged for over a hundred years.

I enjoy exploring the wide world of tobacco too much to ever chain myself to one exclusive blend but the Prince has found a place in my rotation. This almost unbelievably easy smoke is perfect for when you want to concentrate more on the task at hand than on your pipe. Its mellow flavor also makes it a perfect blend for mixing with other tobacco.

Anyone who enjoys a relaxing smoke should give Prince Albert a fair shake. Just because it's been around forever and can be purchased over the counter at your local drugstore doesn't mean that it hasn't rightfully earned its place in the pantheon of great pipe tobaccos.