Tobaccos McClelland - No. 2010 Classic Virginia

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Peter Piper (41)	2013-09-23		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This may seem very odd to you good citizens of the USA, who make up the majority here. But for a Brit like me this is as exotic as St. Bruno must be to you!

The simple fact is that this is not available over here, at least not through any regular channels. So I am indebted to a good pipe friend for providing me with a sample to enjoy. And oh, what an enjoyment it was!

The rough ribbon cut and high moisture level put me very much in mind of the kind of thing one expects from the likes of Samuel Gawith. And then that "ketchup" thing which I have read about so much and been so intrigued by. Yes, it's there, straight in your face, wow! But in a good way.

Getting down to the business of smoking, well, how good is this stuff? Flavoursome, easy, totally Virginia and yet with that added tang.

I believe you guys can get this stuff by the truckload for a fraction of what we pay for small tins back in the UK, you don't know how lucky you are.

All gone now and unlikely to be repeated any time soon, sigh.

Highly recommended.

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cajomu (80)	2014-03-24		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

McClelland's Classic Virginia is a good Virginia tobacco but not a great one. It has decent Virginia flavor and lots of sweetness but is rather one dimensional. For as sweet a tobacco as this is, it has surprisingly little bite. For someone who wanted to progress from drugstore aromatics to something more sophisticated, Classic Virginia would therefore be a good tobacco to start with.

As others have noted, Classic Virginia takes a fair amount of work to smoke. As purchased, it is quite moist and therefore benefits greatly from airing out for a day or so. The broken flakes are difficult to light so one might wish to rub it out. However, you will get the best flavor if you leave it in flakes and use a bit of easily lit tobacco as tinder to fire it.

Sold only in bulk, Classic Virginia is modestly priced. However, for the same money one can smoke better McClelland straight Virginias like Red Cake and Dark Navy Flake.

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: Recently purchased

Purchased From: pipesandcigars.com

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	al1 (58)	2008-09-20		Very Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

This is actually pretty good for what it is. pipesandcigars.com was so kind as to send me a half pound with a Jeppesen pipe purchase for me to puff on. It is exactly as others described so far as the flavor only hitting the highest end of the spectrum and in a very light way. I smoked this after drying and rubbing and I would advise at least drying. Beginners might think it is plain tasting but there are nuances and hints in the flavor that vets will appreciate. However the flavor does not build or change much at all. Could be boring to some. I do not sense red va flavor, just very mild orange and yellows.

This smoked extremely well and dry for me in a couple different pipes and was mild enough to keep me wanting more. It requires minimal relights and is one of only a few tobacco's that will smoke dry all the way to the finish. So while it may be very ok for a all day smoke it is not going to give you a rich satisfying flavor. I think this makes cake VERY fast for a va flake, making it an excellent new pipe break in tobacco.

I disagree with a previous review that it is like the christmas cheer. Not true in my case- this is much lighter and nowhere as sweet or rich. How that reviewer figured that eludes me at the moment, perhaps mine will develop flavor with age?

The nicotine level was much higher than I expected and it hit me about 15 minutes before the bowl was done. It will not floor you but had more umph than I expected as mild as the flavor is.

The pouch aroma on this is very nice, much like a good fresh bag of brown sugar would smell-only better. The ketchup odor was very hard to detect and very subdued on this one. It has more of tobacco smell. It rubs pretty easily and smokes even easier. I found a breath smoke technique works well. In fact this was very much one that likes to be sipped constantly with a few breaks occasionally as it warms up. Very easy to smoke. Not nippy at all- this one gives you plenty warning when to slow down and smooths right back out.

I will be keeping some of this around and will age some, although I am curious if much age would cut the twang down which is so fitting and controlled in this blend- it could use a little smoothing and I suspect at least a couple months age will make a nice soft smoke. I will be sampling and reviewing more of the Mcclelland bulks as this one is fantastic. I just finished a bowl and could go for another real soon. Thats a good thing when you get tired of having to wait a while for your palatte to refresh after smoking it up all day on stronger blends.

Mcclelland must have simillar tastes to mine as I love most of their bulks and tins. You can pick almost anything they make and find something you like about it.

For an all day smoker this one is great, It leans more towards a cigarettish like smoke I think but in a good way. I like it for the fact it is about as simple and straight forward as flakes get. Also it leaves my mouth in shape for whatever I want to smoke in the evening. Try some just know what it is.

This could be a good blender as well. Update: I aged some for a year and it turned into something very close to christmas cheer. I was very surprised when I opened the jar. Wow it is so much more flavorful now, I see where other reviewers found it this way now.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2004-07-03		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

This straight Virginia has a very "different" aftertaste. It also had a citrus type flavor while smoking that I found to be tart rather than sweet, indicating a mix of bright and Red leaf. Light flavor rather than strong. Nice room note.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3047)	2019-01-30		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

The various Virginias offer some tangy, ripe dark fruit, wood and earth, some sweet and sour, tart and tangy citrus and grass along with hints of spice, very tart lemon, and bread, and a touch of floral. The strength and nic-hit are in the center of mild to medium, while the taste level falls a step or so short of medium. Won’t bite or get harsh, and has few rough edges. Needs to rubbed out and dried a little. Burns cool, clean and a little slow with a mostly consistent, mildly sweet, fairly smooth, lightly sour and tart flavor from start to finish. Leaves a little moisture in the bowl, and requires some relights. Has a pleasant, short lived after taste, and room note. Not quite as complex as my description reads as some nuances are fleeting. An all day smoke that can be used as a mixer, too.

-JimInks

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2017-04-03		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

In going thru my cellar, I found about half a pound of this and noted that for some reason I hadn't shared my thoughts on it here when I bought it a few years ago. Mottled broken flake and with age, much of the signature McClellands aroma that so vexes a lot of smokers was diminished. Dry this stuff out as you would any Virginia flake and most of it goes away anyway.

This is a Virginia blend and reaches all the higher notes of mild citrus behind the red's sweeping tang and orange's clean spiciness. As it's purported to be a less aged version of #22, this one with some age on it bridges whatever gaps there may be between the two. It's a nice smoke but not one of my favorites, as it lacks the dark spice of #25 and the huge depth of #24. But for the smoker that prefers more lighthearted fare, this fills the bill. It improves nicely with age and down each individual bowl. Sufficiently dried out before smoking, it flirts with several flavors and has moderate complexity with no wet steamy taste. A very serviceable Virginia. If you enjoy #5100 but want some extra joie de vivre (and in flake form), you are likely to love this one. Even so, it lacks the focus and depth of 5100, especially when the latter is aged. Tradeoffs abound in the tobacco world! Recommended as a nicely priced and fully acceptable Virginia broken flake.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2016-08-18		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

McClelland - No. 2010 Classic Virginia.

If you've ever wondered exactly what's meant when people describe the aroma from the McClelland blends as being ketchup-like, try a sniff of this! Even though the pouch-note could be considered slightly incongruous, I find it a very good blend.

The broken flake's are still quite wholesome so many folks would probably want to give them a further rub, but that's easy though, the moisture makes that a simple task. And then it gives a very satisfying smoke: to be fair, I get a deeper flavour than I'd expected, I'd prepared for a bit of a 'zest-fest', but this has more depth to it than just zest alone. There's a honey sweetness, with an almost caramel-esc smoothness. I do get a slight liveliness from the Virginia's, but whether that would fall under the caption of Zest (as per the current description), grass, hay, or lemon, would come down to personal predilection I guess! One of the great features of No. 2010 is the burn: it's stable, even, cool, and a pipe can be enjoyed from just one light for a very long period.

I don't recognise much nicotine from 2010, maybe not quite very mild but definitely no more than mild. And finally the room-note: very nice indeed.

This has a bit more character than a lot of straight Va's, and I have to highly recommend it:

Four stars.

Pipe Used: Peterson Sherlock Milverton

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Glorfindel (86)	2008-05-21		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

"2010 Classic Virginia"

The name says it all, it certainly is a classic VA done just the way I like it. Somehow the folks at McClelland must have a palate very similar to mine because I like virtually every blend of theirs I try to varying degrees.

This VA has all the class of their Christmas Cheer series of which I am a huge fan. If you like CC, you'll like this.

VA depth and creaminess with the classic light citrus tang.

Aging? I'm sure it has been pre-aged by McClelland and I doubt I will be able to age any right now - I'm gonna smoke up my 4oz and order more. But, for those into aging, I'm sure it will age wonderfully as most all Quality VA flakes do.

No bite. If you make this one bite, you've really accomplished something.

Highly recommended.

4 stars ()-()-()-()

Good Draw to You, Cheers,

Glorfindel

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2013-08-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

When I first got my sample of bulk about a month ago, it was damp but still very smokeable. My first pipes were somewhat hot and bit some. As this dried and I could keep it lit at a smolder, this turned into a good smoke and without the heat. It could use some time in the cellar. I agree with reviewer "Virginia Lover, 07/09/2010".

Updated 12/29/2014- I just retried this blend after a year in the cellar, "wonderful". Naturally sweet, dark , zesty and no harshness. I'll be ordering more, reminds me of one of McC's better Christmas Cheer blends. The wait time in the cellar was worth it and I'm upping this to 4 stars.

BTW- I also blended this 50/50 with some "5100 Red Cake" and that's a winner also. I've been looking for a way to cut what I perceive as a touch of Lakeland Floral ( not a fan) in the 5100 , adding the "2010" did the trick.

Pipe Used: cob

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Similar Blends: McC Christmas Cheer blend.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	zulujerk (146)	2005-10-27		Medium	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

This flake is the standard by which I judge most Virginias. 2010 has a nice, sweet taste without the addition of a topping, it ages with excellence, like a fine Virginia should, and it only gets better as you work your way down to the bottom of a bowl. I assume this would be an excellent candidate for your DGT effect, though I must admit I am too impatient to bother with the experiment.

I've had some distasteful reactions with other McClelland blends, notably, 2035 and 2025, the former for what I believed to be a lack of taste, and the latter for its incessant tendency to bite. I'm also not much a fan of that vinegary smell that appears to be an intimate part of any McClelland blend. Though I found it a novelty at first, my approval quickly waned to something approaching a mild distaste. You'll find that stench here, but the fine qualities of 2010 quickly outshine any previous apprehensions I initially feared when first sampling this blend.

This is pure Virginia goodness, people. It's not too strong, and not too weak, but just enough to give you a taste of how great the old standard can compare to your English and aromatic blends. You'll get great billows of smoke here for a valued cost. Give this a try. I highly recommend it.

4.0 out of 4.0

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	William H. Hardy (95)	2017-04-18		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This is a bulk Virginia blend that is just as good as any of the McClelland tinned Virginias that I have tried. It's at the same time, light and bright with a bit of grass and a bit more dark, with earthy, fruity flavors. As stated previously, it is a bulk blend, but with this one (Along with 2015, 2025, and 2035) you won't really save much money as compared with the tins. However, it is well worth trying.

I actually bought about 6 ounces last June (2016) and forgot about it after placing it in a mason jar. I opened it in March and commenced smoking it. I smoked it every day for a while, but slowed down after I smoked about 2 ounces of it for fear of smoking it all. Now, it did have at least 9 or 10 months of age on it, but I was pleasantly surprised by it. I've found that it performs better for me with a bit of drying time. I've smoked it straight out of the jar, with a couple hours drying time and have even left it packed in a pipe overnight to smoke the following day. The couple hours of drying time seemed to work the best for me. I've also found that this tobacco favors medium-sized to larger bowls. At least for me.

I'm a fan of other of McClelland's bulk, especially No. 2025. And though I prefer the 2025 (I love the Xanthi in it), this is a close second. So, definitely buy some and jar it up for a while. I plan on buying at least a half pound more to jar up for myself and see what a year will do, then two years, then three. McClelland 2010 has definitely surprised me and become a blend that I look forward to smoking.

Pipe Used: Kaywoodie Flame Grain, Mark Tinsky Billiard

Age When Smoked: 9-10 Months

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capt (339)	2012-12-17		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I like just about every VA from McClellnd, and this is no exception. The pouch aroma is that sour Mc Va, which I absolutely love. Of all the bulk offerings from McClelland, this is by far the easiest to rub out. Also packs well, without a lot of springiness some can have. Lights fairly well, can use a few minutes dry time after it is rubbed out. Has a very bright flavor, and a pleasant toast-like room note.

This stuff still wouldn't bite even if you lit it on your tongue. Very mild mannered, I'd even recommend for a newer Va flake smoker. A very predictable blend, and one I will keep stocked in my cellar

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stogie (26)	2011-09-05		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

My enjoyment of this blend was not unexpected, as I typically appreciate anything touch by McClelland. That said, the comparisons to McClelland VA No. 22 caused a bit of hesitancy as it's my least favorite of their VA's.

I had a 1/2 pound of this sealed in 2oz tins by the Bufflehead shop in 2004, and am now working through my second tin. Visual: A dark brown flake, with some yellow and gold streaks throughout. My tin contained mainly broken flake, no full "sheets". I also noted a few substantial stem sections. Unusual for McClelland...

Texture: Less moist upon opening than what I often experience with this company. Probably as it was a tinned bulk blend.

Pack/Pipe: I smoke this fully rubbed out and paper dryed. Gravity fed with a half-hearted Frank Method bunch pressed on top into a number of my VA pipes. (Peterson Billiard, Moretti freehand & others, all having a typically narrow tobacco chamber). No problems smoking this to bottom of the bowl with no to minimal relights and two pipe cleaners to catch moisture.

Lighting/Burn: Two matches to char, one to light. Burns slowly to bottom and leaves a white/grey ash with a few bits of charred tobacco. Really generates some heat in the bowl. Not a problem, just noted.

1st 3rd: The citrus component of this tobacco is just spectacular! Sharpening the taste buds and ecouraging frequent puffs. I tamp this a bit more often than others to keep up the consistent burn.

2nd 3rd: Smoke becomes a little cooler here but maintains citrusy zest. No real depth, and none expected. Needed a pipe cleaner to catch heel moisture. More tart than sweet for sure.

Final 3rd: Loses just a bit of tang here. No pronounced ashiness, and still producing a bit of moisture in the heel.

Notes: Glad that this has not lost it's pronounced tang with 7 years in the tin. Like all McClelland flakes, fantastic quality. If you enjoy the citrus element of Lemon & Orange Virginia varietals - this will deliver by the ton.

Stogie rating of: 7 Heavenly Hoyos

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2006-03-06		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a very good straight virginia broken flake tobacco. It is comprised of moist dense chunks of brown flake and requires some amount of rubbing out and possibly some subsequent drying to prepare it for smoking.

The flavor characteristics tend towards the citrusy and fruit like tastes often found in virginia tobaccos, although I did not find it overly tangy. This blend seemes less sweet than many other virginias although it does have a small amount of sweetness present. Overall the flavor is right in line with what I like from a straight virginia. This blend doesn't seem nearly as bitey as other virginia tobaccos that I have tried, but it provides a good solid flavor nevertheless. It's tasty enough to keep you reaching for more and mild enough that you can keep doing so.

This, along with 2035, are my favorite bulk McClellands that I have tried so far. I prefer 2010 over 2015 personally because I think that 2010 is a bit more flavorfull (although somewhat more bitey also). All in all, 2010 is a highly enjoyable virginia flake and the bulk pricing is just icing on the cake.

I filled up a couple small jars to cellar and intend on getting more of this excellent tobacco. If you're trying out virginia tobaccos then get some of this to try for sure.

UPDATE 1: I just cracked open one of the small jars and am enjoying the first bowl from it. It was aged about 6 months and it is very tasty.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sangagor (80)	2022-04-18		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Unnoticeable

One could say there was fruity topping in it. No. I have sample at least five years old. Sweetness was like cherry vanilla and honey compote. Broken flakes was too dry to smoke, but still usable.

Smoke was sweet peppery and fruity. Don't need relights. This VA has most pleasant room note from neutral tobaccos I have tried. One of the best VA out there.

Pipe Used: BPK Stanislaw, MM

Age When Smoked: 5 years

Purchased From: gift

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jorge Soler (203)	2018-02-01		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

This is not your regular virginia blend. After a few bowls, I am still trying to get my head around it. For starters, it is rich and dark, but not quite full-bodied. It has a slight tang to it, but it is not overtly sweet or zesty. Then, there is this mellow component going on in the background that comes and goes so difficult to describe. I cannot detect any perique, and yet it is somewhat peppery and full of flavour. Also, it is reminiscent of some oriental tobaccos. Call me "crazy" if you like. Having said that, I think these flakes will probably benefit from some cellaring time. I am not quite sure this particular tobacco would be my cup of tea, but I am finding the smoking experience so amazingly complex and entertaining that it's gonna get a gold sticker.

Edit 03 March 2018: After smoking 2oz of this tobacco I'd like to add the following: it is now that I begin to realize these are probably one of the best flake virginia tobaccos I have ever smoked in my whole entire life. Because the sui generis nature of it, I've never had anything quite like it, it has taken me for some time to realize this. Alas, McClelland is closing down, so in a manner of speaking, I feel sorry I've come across such good quality tobacco, for you can never miss something you never had.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2015-10-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

It's perfect for autopilot, smokes easy and doesn't suffer if you forget about it for a while. Just a simple straight Virginia for everyday puffing, what could be better?

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: local shop

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2015-06-16		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

ORIGINAL REVIEW 6-16-2015

A very solid Virginia offering from the Virginia masters. I was given a generous sample of 2010 from a forum friend and immediately knew I would be reordering.

The Virginias are a bit rawer and less refined than the flagship tinned Virginias offered by McClelland, but still carry that taste that is unique to McClelland Va.'s. Call it ketchup or whatever you want; I like it. I found this to be a little lighter in that essence than those blends. I also found 2010 to be a little earthier. My sample consisted of about five bowls and I really enjoyed all of them.

Whether it be Blackwoods, Christmas Cheer or 27, I find it difficult to point too much difference between the varying McClelland straight Virginias. I find 2010 to differ more drastically from these and in a good way. I plan getting a pound of this to cellar as I bet that with some age, this will be out of this world.

UPDATE 1/22/2019

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder and I just experienced this. I just finished up a two ounce bulk sample of this I jarred shortly after I reviewed this about three years ago. I used the jar as my truck blend, so it lasted a while.

Popping this was the first McClelland Virginia that I have opened since they stopped production. At opening I was immediately me with that familiar smell that I come to expect and it excited my senses with what was to come. At light up, the sweetness of the Red Virginias was like heaven. That first bowl was one of those transformative type of smokes that just seems to elevate you in ways in which you wish would last forever.

Now, I will say that it did present the common characteristics of a McClelland broken flake Virginia such as being a bear to rub out, properly pack and light up. But for this smoke those things never crossed my mind. The thought that kept going through my mind was that it is a damn shame that the next generation of smokers will not have the opportunity to buy as much of this as they want. Another thought also went through my mind, "how in the hell did I just give this three stars?" This is heavenly. Manna. Fruit of the gods.

To bring myself in proper focus, a hole in my regular rotation opened up for a Straight Virginia and I had to check myself. So I decided to pop a tin of Christmas Cheer 2017. On my first bowl of that, I had my answer. This is why I gave 2010 three stars. Both, in a world that truly lacks of good Red Virginias to smoke, are incredible, but in the world of McClelland, the 2010 is still an inferior budget friendly alternative.

So the three star rating does remain, but if you have not tried a McClelland Virginia, then this is a four star blend for you. Not worth selling your kidney over, but if you are at some B&M that still has some 2010 in a jar, by all means, buy it. Even the 2010 bulk Virginia is a better Red Virginia than any other that is available today.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrT999 (318)	2013-08-09		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

A nice straight-forward VA. The broken flake is easy to deal with and burns nicely. No complexity. If that's what you are looking for, this deserves a chance. It's not for me, however.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Virginia lover (218)	2010-07-09		Mild	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Nice light smoke with a decent amount of flavor. No casing detected and the vinegary smell is mild and doesn't transfer into the smoke. Zesty, tangy yet smooth and slightly sweet, to be enjoyed slowly as it tends to bite with fast puffing.

Virginia lover

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipemanuk (76)	2009-06-18		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

when I bought a pound of this about a year ago I smoked some and jarred the rest...14th June 2008 as it happened. My initial thoughts were that this was a rather ragged, sharp and hot smoke and I was a bit dissappointed to be honest. However a couple of days ago I opened a jar (I mature my tobacco in small 4 ounce jars which I find much better than 8 ounce)and the scent had grown deeper, richer and far more rounded in that year of maturation. Now it still demands gentle smoking and concentration but the rewards are a rich sweet taste...very very very pleasant. You can tell the absence of red virginia but the lemon and orange are truly delightful. This with at least a year on it is highly recommended.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-09-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Just a few words to add to previous reviews. The trick with this one is to age it for a year at least. At this point it is transformed from something rather bland into a sweet, tasty and truly enjoyable flake in the McClelland tradition. Wonderful stuff!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-10-05		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is my first experience with 2010. I have previously smoked a tin of McClelland #22, to which 2010 is often and favorably compared. I enjoyed #22 very much and on the strength of that experience purchased a pound of 2010.

Virginias and Virginia/Perique blends are my personal favorite tobacco genre. 2010 yeilds an excellent smoking experience and with the price is now one of my top two, alongside 2015.

There is not the Perique component. And the Lemon Virginia adds a lightness that 2015 does not possess. It arrived a little more moist than I prefer, but that is easily remedied. I have found no stems or stem shards. It is a quality tobacco. One or two matches gets me through a full bowl.

It burns well, tastes good on my palate and I find the scent of natural tobacco smoke that it produces pleasant to my nose. I have had little problem with "gurgle" despite the moisture level.

It is a Virginia and I have to smoke it slowly, or it will begin to warm my tongue. This is also similar to the new Bufflehead Virginia Ruddy Duck. I also smoke Stokebyes Luxury Navy Flake and enjoy it. But I naturally gravitate to 2015 and now 2010.

With three sons in college I have to watch my dollars and so rarely purchase tinned tobaccos. And I see little need to. My 5# of 2015 only gets better with age. I expect the same will be true of 2010. This is a winner for me and I intend to buy more when this pound is exhausted. When the kids are on their own, perhaps I will be more adventuresome and indulge in more tinned varieties. Aaahh, the possibilities!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	thebriarbear (5)	2023-05-16		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I stumbled across this tobacco by accident. Earlier on in my pipe journey, I was graciously introduced to McClelland tobaccos from a very nice old tobacconist named George. He sold me tins of Christmas Cheer starting in 2011 and later, bulk 5100 (RIP). One afternoon in 2017 I walked into the shop to buy more 5100. I grabbed the jar and smelled it and then grabbed the 2010 jar and looked it over. In the end, I decided to go back to 5100, and told George I wanted a half-pound. He nodded and returned with a half-pound of 2010, and I accepted. I didn't have the heart to tell him, and I am very glad I didn't.

This jar got lost in the cellar and I rarely opened it once McClelland closed their doors, thinking of it as my bit of gold stashed away from the Klondike rush. Finally, I decided not all good things last forever and that I might as well open it and smoke through it and be thankful for what once was.

Six years in the jar has done wonderful things to this tobacco. After drying and further rubbing out the broken flakes, I was treated to a delightful yellow-orange VA. I'd be surprised if there was any red in it. The smoke is smooth and there's a caramel-nutty sweetness coupled with a strong note of black tea. Every once in a while the citrus-sweetness shows up, but is more like a clementine than lemons. There is a fair amount of spice, particularly on the retrohale, and after the mid-way through the bowl a toasty, woodsy note shows up alongside the varying sweetness. The last third of the bowl is probably the best, and once it was done I always wished there was more.

Cheers, McClelland.

Pipe Used: Briar, Cob

Age When Smoked: 2017-2023

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (561)	2022-12-05		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Jar note of ketchup, spices, and tangy fruit. The tobacco brown flakes have flecks of tan in it. Tobacco is damp, drying out may be needed, but rubs out easily enough. Burns slow with many relights. The strength is mild to medium and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and super consistent, with notes of tangy sweet grass, lemon zest, spicy, mild sour bitter fruit, earth, wood, spiced dark fruit, mildly floral, orange peel, a mildly sweet bready background note, and a fairly peppery retro. Room note is pleasant, and aftertaste is great

Pipe Used: 1987 Peterson Mark Twain

Age When Smoked: 5 years

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2020-04-16		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Tolerable

Luckily I came back into pipe smoking before McC shut their doors. When the announcement became official, I ordered a couple of their bulk blends to jar up as a cost-effective means to have some to enjoy in years to go.

This week I was working on organizing my cellar and I found my jar of 2010 Classic Virginia. The lid opened with a nice pop and I instantly smelled the wonderful (to me) McC signature jar note. I decided to treat myself to some to smoke this week in my rotation and transferred that to a smaller jar for smoking before sealing the large one back up into storage.

I smoked this in several of my 320/author shaped pipes over the last few days as i find this a great combination.

Like most of their flakes this one is broken, but can still benefit from a little bit of shredding or cubing in my opinion before loading. The moisture content was good, did not require drying out. It does require some effort to get lit and get going, but once lit it stays going and requires minimal relights.

I found it to be a sweet smoke with lots of high/mid notes. It's not very complex, which to me makes it a nice smoke while working from home. The flavor is consistent throughout the bowls. No tongue bite and the slow burn makes me want to slow my smoking rhythm down to sips.

The Nicotine to me is very mild. The room note according to the wife is better than that campfire crap (aka Latakia).

I'm glad I grabbed some of this when I did as I feel it will only continue to improve with age and I look forward to doling it out in small doses for years to come.

Pipe Used: sav 320, fat authors

Age When Smoked: 2 years

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	OhioTony76 (59)	2018-12-02		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

The description is dead on. This is a zesty and spicy Virginia. It’s a bit of a challenge to get lit, but after that the rubbed out flakes burn slow and pretty cool for a straight va tobacco. This builds in body and mouthfeel pretty quickly. The mild citrus and zest builds up to a nice medium pepper like spice that prickles the tongue and keeps it interesting. Smoking this tobacco reminded me of a Screwdriver (OJ & Vodka), the citrus with the kick of the vodka in the background. I wouldn’t call this one note. Maybe two or three note, but it’s is a flake. That happens. For the red Virginia fans, no this doesn’t have any. To me it’s not missed in this one. I love red va, but it has a habit of getting hot, wet and drab for the last 1/3 or so of the bowl. This smokes cool and dry and holds its flavors all the way down.

Age When Smoked: 1 year

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Goose55 (33)	2018-03-13		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

2010 was one of the very first McClelland Virginia flake tobaccos I ever smoked back in the Spring of 2016 when I took up pipe smoking successfully due to the help I was afforded by online forums.

I never did buy much 2010; only 1/2 pound but the lid puffed up in that lone jar, indicating some serious fermentation going on.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2018-02-19		Mild	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This broken Virginia flake offers a good, fairly complex smoking experience filled with the world of the orange/red flue cured Virginias. This blend offers a natural sweetness that I would define as caramely, and is delicious. Upon working my way through the bowl, what I found was a zesty, musty, bready/toasty blend that only offered some brighter citrus notes every so often. This blend seems to sit right on the cusp of the orange-red divide with only a bit of yellow in there, and even gave me a bit of spiciness that was not unpleasant.

I was, in fact, a bit surprised with how dark this blend actually was, which is perfect for me as one who favors orange/red Virginias (à la McClelland 5100). This blend could probably benefit with age, as all Virginias would, that would make it a bit smoother. As always with McClelland, leave it dry for a bit longer, due to the way their blends retain moisture. I found this blend smoked and tasted the best fully rubbed out as well. Nicotine level is mild.

Overall, this is a good mild Virginia, especially for the price point and the fact that you can get this in bulk.

Pipe Used: Briar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	point9 (114)	2016-09-27		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I have not try my CC, but I have a tin of Boston Peretti's Oxford flake and I find them really similar. Nicely formed intact and semi-broken flake with various virginia pressed, it smoke more young with an edge than in OF. Good all day stright VA. Though not complex or deep as FVF, but enough to satisfy my VA eager.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sweet Leaf (8)	2015-08-10		Very Mild	None Detected	Very Mild	Pleasant

Had to let us try out for 24 hours but it was well worth the wait. This is an incredibly sweet Virginia and only gets better deeper into the bowl.

Pipe Used: MM cob / EA Carey magic inch

Purchased From: Smoking pipes

Similar Blends: Hearth and home anniversary cake.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bluesmoke (75)	2014-11-30		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

A very mildly sweet and calmly caramelized flake. This can burn a little hot if you get too excited, but some vigorous puffing will leave your palate all the better since it brings forth a greater depth of body and flavor. Mostly though, this works best for me with light to moderate sipping. Classic McC aroma in bag and burning bowl while delivering a good amount of smoke to roll in your mouth and off the lips. Wonderful room note.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Michael N. (10)	2014-11-06		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm not as eloquent a writer, nor as experienced with straight Virginias as many of the previous judges. I'll just say YUMMY. I have been trying MANY Virginias this year, on a quest. This one STANDS OUT. Will make it into my regular 'rotation'. It tastes great, no bite, very sweet, very smokable, enjoyable, AND, no AFTER TASTE. I'll concede it is somewhat harder to light initially. Maybe it's me: I've tried all ways. But, IMHO, it is great all the way down afterward. I'd give it a #4 rating, but I'm STILL HUNTING for nirvana !

Pipe Used: Peterson, Caminetto, Ben Wade.

Age When Smoked: 3+ months

Purchased From: P&C, on net.

Similar Blends: a few others, but I'm not a pro.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigCasino (27)	2014-02-14		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

nice pungent odor, nice dark looking broken flake, I rub mine out and smoke it as is, and some times let it dry, both with very good results, dried a bit might have a tad more hay like sweetness

Pipe Used: Castello Sea rock

Purchased From: Alegheny Smoke Works

Similar Blends: McClellands Christmas Cheer.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Past Master (20)	2012-11-15		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'll give this one three stars. It isn't one that I will feel I must keep in my collection, but it was pleasant. It had little to no bite. Of forty reviewers prior to me, most (18) have given it a three-star rating. But, twelve have given it four stars, so it does have its adherents.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth Vader (110)	2011-10-27		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Very Pleasant

Good solid Va. Agree with comments regarding it being somewhat similar to Xmas cheer. Just not as fruity or quite as good. Still an easy smoke though.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-05-18		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Initial impressions are that this is a fine Virginia, medium in tone, with lots of brown VA giving it a bit of a caramel taste. I don't get tongue bite, but it does sensitize the roof of my mouth, so I wouldn't be able to smoke multiple bowls of this in one sitting. Great flavor, but definitely a one bowl per day type deal for me because of the mouth sensitivity.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-06-26		Medium	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

A straight forward pressed Virginia broken flake that is sweet and soft. Sip slowly or it will nip at your tongue. A Very nice sweet Virginia that is sure to please. Also, please let this tobacco breath in the open bag for about a day before trying it out. No Perique here and no flavorings, just plain old good Virginia tobacco like the colonies produced. Update. 2010 is an excellent mixer with Low Country Cooper. 1 part 2010, 1 part Cooper.

Similar Blends: G and H Curley Cut Deluxe..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-08-11		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I am very new to english tobaccos this being my first actually. I see that a lot of experienced smokers really don't like this, but I really do! I find it to be mild and a nice transition from aromatics. I would recommend this to people who want to try an english blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pgmrdan (5)	2009-04-11		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have tried several McClelland blends and have liked them all until this one. It's not the worst tobacco I've ever had but it was the worst McClelland blend I've ever had. This was truly a disappointment.

It has a nice citrus tanginess to it and there is no tongue bite.

The taste was, well, bad.

I'm glad I only bought 2 oz. of this. I truly gave this blend a chance by aging it and smoking the 2 oz. stretched out over a considerable time. I will not be buying any more of this blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-01-20		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

This is my every day smoke...the flakes prevent it from drying out as quick. I love the way it stinks. Crumble it up...stuff it in...toast it...take a long sip of hot coffee and fire that bad boy up.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-12-23		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have been working my way through a a 2 oz. sample of this over the past couple years. as other have noted below, it gets better with age. It has a nice spice to it that reminds me a bit of Perique. Tasty stuff but has a tendency to bite even if dried.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-08-29		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

In my "never ending journey" down the Virginia super hiway I decided to stop at the 2010 McCelland Rd. A pleasant stop it is. I have sampled, and reviewed several of McC. bulk blends lately. All have been good/great. 2010 comes as a broken flake.......mostly brown, some golden/red. As with most Mc blend, I find that drying, and fully rubbing out this blend benifits it greatly. Flavor is semi-sweet, mild, and yes.....zesty. This may not be my #1 choice, but it is amoung many that I like. Will it get better with age..probably. I have enough faith that it will. that I will be cellaring some. At this price I don'y beleave that I can go wrong. For now I rate This at *

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2007-10-12		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

With a pouch aroma of this broken flake exhibits a typically fermented scent.

The flavor runs from gold to red virginias with orange in between. It starts off sharp, but smoothes out a bit as the bowl runs out.

Fresh from the blender, this is a flavorsome, if simple, flake.

Chamber Gauge: Narrow

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2007-05-17		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

While this is not my favorite McClelland, I like it pretty well. Sometimes, I find that just stuffing it into a pipe without much concern does best, although I've tried rubbing it and drying it as well. Nice flavors, nice strength, nice natural tobacco. I can't complain, especially for the price.

update::: just smoked the last bowl, and decided that this is really better than I thought, though I'll leave my rating as is. Detected a little onion powder and soy sauce after thinking about it a little, around midbowl. This will have you wondering whether you're eating dim sum or smoking a pipe at times, but the tobacco won't leave you hanging.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2006-06-25		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

A very nice straight forward virginia. Typical McClelland aroma due to their fermentation process. 2010 ages very nicely and quickly, so I recommend putting some aside for a few months or more. The aging brings out a sweeter fuller smoke; the "new" stuff is a little weak. Also, allowing the batch to air seems to make a difference. Mixing some perique produces some great Cajun Half-n-Half.

aj

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2005-05-01		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I'm working my way through a quarter pound of this delightful, straightforward Virginia and enjoying every puff. For me, a straight V is something I like for a couple or three bowls a week, mainly when I'm relaxing in front of the TV in the evening. 2010 fills that need perfectly.

I like to take a generous pinch of the broken flake and rub it out vigorously and thoroughly until it's literally in ribbons and load it into my big 30-year old Ben Wade freehand. A two-match lightup, and I'm good for nearly an hour of pure enjoyment.

In the pouch, the aroma is not ketchupy like some of the other McC blends, more herbal and citrus-y. On first light, it's quite mild, but with a fine assortment of flavors. A little spicy, a little zesty, a little herbal. By about a third of the way through the taste becomes more robust, the flavor more uniform, but also just a little ashy. I particularly like it's very low tendancy to bite. It finishes softly, leaving me looking forward to my next round.

I highly recommend it, especially to those beginners who have not yet savored the delicate flavors of a pure Virginia.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2004-06-26		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

A straight up virginia flake, and damned good at it. It's called a classic virginia; I'm not sure in regards to what, but I like to picture some of the founding fathers taking up a pipe to smoke something not a whole lot different than this. And hey, I'm a Libertarian, so I can tell you those guys knew their stuff. ;)

Virginias were of course the first type of tobacco, and if you ask me, McClelland has successfully made them the best. This is a no-nonsense rich, meaty smoke with no crap to get in the way of the excellent tobacco. Doesn't bite as much as some virginias I've seen, even other McC blends, but of course it still bites a bit (not as much as my friend's fire hot sauce: take it like a MAN!). I seem to favor the lemon virginias a little more, but this and Nightcap bulk are turning into my staple smokes. Unless I see something I really want to try, I might never buy a tin again! Four stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2002-05-20		Medium	None Detected	Mild	Strong

2010 is a beautifully cut broken flake that smokes exceptionally well with almost no bite. Unfortunately, it has a strange bitter taste and aftertaste that I find unpleasant after a few bowls. Too bad. This one coulda beena contenduh.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	NEWMAN (305)	2002-01-29		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable to Strong

A nice brown/yellow flake that has been partially rubbed out. Moisture content is just right for easy packing and a long smoke without relights. This one is straight VA. Beyond my wife's complaining about the room aroma, I just didn't enjoy the taste and the lingering aftertaste. One dimensional and very flat in all bowl sizes and various pipes. In addition, although I experienced no bite by puffing very slowly, after several pipes my mouth felt extremely dry. McClelland has other blends in their line that I enjoy much more.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2016-01-21		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This is an entirely competent lighter sweet Virginia blend, pressed into fairly thick flakes and served up broken. As many others have mentioned, it's not the blend you want if you're looking for heavy VA body, 2010 plays on the yellow and orange end of the VA pool.

Construction, as always with McClelland, is flawless. It burns very cool and very clean. It can easily be stuffed as broken flake or broken up further. It never burns in a temperamental way, doesn't require many relights, and burns to good ash.

This is a perfect component to add to red VAs or for lightening up a heavy blend. I use it primarily as a blender, and it's well suited for that. It is very useful for bringing down the temperature of a hot blend or for adjusting the burn rate of finer cuts. It also presses and stoves well with other VA, although if you stove it long it'll lose some of the high notes.

I give it a solid two stars, it's super easy to blend with and brings a lot of desirable traits to a home blend, even though it's not going to knock anyone's socks off alone.

Pipe Used: basket pipe

Age When Smoked: various ages

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Smoke_Ring (158)	2013-05-02		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

McCelland Bulk No. 2010 - Classic Virginia [small cake cut]

Star Rating = 3

Rating Scores - 10 is the Best and 0 is the Worst

Pouch Note = 6

Room Note = 7

Flavor = 8

Bite = 8

Burn = 5

After Taste = 8

Raw Score = 42

Rated Percentage = 70%

Comment = Smooth, * Ketchup Pouch Note, Good Flavor, lots of BTU's needed to ignite

* Foot Note: McClelland famous "Ketchup" aroma and / or taste comes from the natural fermentation of unstoved / non flue curded Virginias that are aged in cakes.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	bent-1 (39)	2009-08-05		Very Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

This is the first McClelland VA to disappoint me. Just can't get any noticeable flavor out of the blend. Tried it in my usual VA pipes (3/4" bore), larger bores, & smaller. Not tried it in a meer, that will be next. Dried, not dried, rubbed out, broken flake, folded, no difference. It's just too light, and I find my self smoking faster witch makes it hot attempting to squeeze out any flavor. Maybe some 5100 will perk it up? I've not cracked the code or it just doesn't work, either way, 1 1/2 stars to date.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Haebar (52)	2009-04-02		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

I dried a bit of this tobacco for almost an hour before smoking it. I could taste the sweet taste of the Virginias but there just wasn't enough of it to satisfy me. There was little body and volume to the smoke. If there were "light" versions of pipe tobacco, like there are light beers and light cigarettes, then this blend would be a light Virginia.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipe4ever (204)	2008-09-26		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Wonderful flavor and typical ketchup aroma a la McClelland for this top quality virginia flake. this is one of my favorite McClelland virginia blend along with red cake and BWF.

No one can make virginia like McClelland. its unique and original.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-07-10		Mild	None Detected	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This flake came to me via one of the websites in bulk, the site escapes me...well they delivered quickly and the booty was in great shape.

I found this flake to be slightly wet, no big deal, and slightly broken. After breaking it up a bit more and drying it for about an hour, I found it packed and lit well. Medium volume of smoke while sipping this flake.

Basically this is an unremarkable flake. Very mild and forward in its mildness/blandness. Recently I have been smoking heavily stoked latakia blends as well as stronger VAs. There is the typical VA flavor, but it simply is not strong enough to really affect my palate. I would have thought this was because my palate has been so inundated by the English and Balkan blends I typically smoke, but in comparison to Dunhill's light flake this is a loser for me.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2007-08-10		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Like several others in here, I've noticed that 2010 improves with a bit of aging. Even a few weeks will improve this one.

My sample arrived as very thick, broken flakes. The flakes are a tough rub out but the best smoke seems to come by stuffing some chunks into the bowl.

This is a nice, mild, sweet smoke. Nothing earth shaking but a pleasant enough virginia experience at a bargain price. Could be an all day smoker for the budget minded mild virginia fan.

2010 might also be a good blending virginia if you want to work hard enough to break it up.

*

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2007-05-19		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant

A fellow smoker sent me a 1 ounce sample that is a couple of years old. I'm used to latakia blends but I do smoke an occasional Va. This one is very good. Pleasant taste and smell. I didn't rub it out -- just packed the bowl and lit it up. It did take a couple of tries to remain lit but then it stayed lit throughout. I will probably purchase some more when I smoke up the rest of my sample.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2007-04-13		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This is a good light virginia. As with all McClellands I've tried, it needs airing and rubbing to avoid being harsh and wet. For me, 48hrs was about right.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Philo Beddoe (221)	2006-12-12		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Shallow! This is the first Virginia I have ever had, that had absolutely no body. I kept expecting the fullness of flavors from a normal Va. but they never appeared. I did get a cool, crisp upper note with a pleasant taste. But I was so distracted by the lack of depth I was unable to really enjoy this tobacco.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SopwithCamel (255)	2006-08-31		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild	Tolerable

If you are looking for a decent bulk Virginia, that's on the mild side, here is the ticket. The price is nice too. It doesn't have enough character for me to spend too much time with it, but it is good.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2006-08-23		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is a probably a pretty good virginia, with age. Straight from the supplier, it was very sharp and lacks a some depth. Not bad, just not ready. As is it's pretty far from 'classic'. I'll have to update this after aging some.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	romaso (45)	2006-08-09		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

This is a good quality Virginia, which leans much more to the lemon & golden end of the spectrum, rather than the orange-red end. It's too light for my tastes, but was less likely to bite than other light Virginias I've tried. I much prefer the fuller, sweeter flavor of their 5100 Red Cake. When I'm in the mood for a light Virginia, I greatly prefer Mac Baren's Virginia #1 or Virginia Flake.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	dualkarnain (75)	2006-03-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This virginia seems coarse and unrefined. It's hot and edgy, but it does have flavor.

I much prefer the Heart Virginia at pipesandcigars.com or Peterson's University Flake but this tobacco isn't bad.

It has a unique taste and I appreciate the citrusy near-oriental after-smack.

Slow-smoke it though; it's got some teeth.

Images evoked by smoking it are that of a goblin plucking his teeth with the femur of a slain teenaged fawn.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sasha (228)	2006-03-12		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This tobacco has a wonderful presentation: beautiful pale and dark brown flakes, very thick but easy to rub. The smell is classic Virginia: sweet, slightly pungent with just a touch of McClelland "ketchup". After having rubbes the flakes the packing and lighting are easy and the burning proceeds without any problem. Pay attention to smoke it slowly, because it can easy become hot and moist. As expected, this tobacco doesn't deliver a great amount of flavour but it keeps consistent throughout the bowl: it's a really classic Virginia, sweet, tangy, a little cigarettish. Neither too good nor too bad, just too simple to reach a top score.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2006-02-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is my first shot at a straight VA blend, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I had massive trouble keeping it lit, which frustrated me because I was so enjoying the smoke! Still, once rubbed out and allowed a little extra time to dry a bit, this blend is gonna be great I can tell. Sweet without being cloying, and also without the use of casings. Natural tobacco as I think natural tobacco should probably taste in this kind of a blend. I am looking forward to future smokes with this one.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2005-09-28		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Classic Virgina - the name sums it up. 2010 is a straight-forward, no frills affair, I like it when I'm in the mood for a VA that doesn't demand too much attention. Nothing spectacular but an entirely decent smoke. It's got a simple, earthy taste that is pretty enjoyable. Yep, tastes like Virgina leaf. Like many McClelland bulk blends, its a good smoke for the price.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2004-08-13		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Strong

I like this tobacco but cannot figure it out. I keep tasting deer tounge in this blend. Maybe my taste buds have fliped but I do sense there is more to this tobacco than Virginia leaf. Other than that it comes in very thick dark, almost gray flakes. It rubs out well,but I recomend rubing only lightly. The room aroma will run most everyone but a pipe smoker away,as this has a cigarette acrid, and cigar-y aroma. The Virginia is creamy at times,and the other componet is well, weird but good.

Update; What I thought was Deer Tounge,is only the zesty taste of the lemon leaf. So rest assured there is no deer tounge here,only exceptional high quality Virginia leaf. I have never seen a Virginia flake burn so well either.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-10-30		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Very Pleasant

I should of tried this earlier, this seems like a "2 stroke " version of 22, similar but without the basso woodsy notes of same. Actually its smoother & a little more McC fruity as well. great caramel room aroma. Unrubbed , small-bowled slow-smoking seems best for it.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-09-17		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I'm a big fan of flakes and an even bigger fan of Virginias, but I've got to say that for some reason this tobacco doesn't agree with me. The flake rubs out well and the smell of the tobacco is great, but the taste while smoking seems ashy to me and there is a definite aftertaste that stays with you for a long while. I really want to like this tobacco and have gone back with different pipes on different days, but nothing seems to have done the trick. I find I have to force myself to finish the pipe and when I do I wish I had been smoking something else. Perhaps I just got a bad batch and I will probably go back and buy more from a different batch, but for now my introduction to 2010 has not been a positive one.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-08-01		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Along with McClelland 2015, this is the best tobacco for the money. But, it's not cheap tobacco; it's high quality VA broken flake that never fails to satisfy. I buy it in 5 lb. bulk and age it in Mason jars. I just never seem to tire of this wonderful tobacco. I like it much better than its cousin, #22.

I really like the citrus tang that complements the sweetness. It starts out light and builds as the bowl progresses. I find it pretty complex, not in a Haddo's way, but in a straight VA manner. It requires a slow "breath smoking" method to pick up on the subtle flavors. This is probably not a VA for newbies, but one for experienced slow smokers. It could easily be an all day smoke.

I recommend that you smoke the broken flakes whole, without rubbing them out. Also, put some up in Mason jars and come back in about a year.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-04-05		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

UPDATE NOTE: To date, this tobacco has four "favorite" ratings and two "not my cup of tea" ratings. Conclusion? You will love it or really dislike it, but the odds are 2 to 1 in its favor. A great tobacco!

2010 (bulk) is very close to McClelland #22 (tin). It's naturally high sugar content could sting the heavy puffer, but for those with good Virginia technique it is a joy. A zesty, almost refreshing blend, the sweet, lemony high range develops and richens throughout the smoke. The mid-range features a lovely toasted marshmallow/caramel character, with a light creaminess that works well with the top range. The bass flavors are more of an extension of the mid-range elements, but tend towards light brown sugar as the bowl burns down. The flavor develops and gets better as you go, and it is with regret that I bid the final wisp of smoke goodbye.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-04-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Hey, this is some tasty pipeweed. If you like your Virginias on the citrus end of the specturm, the orange and spice in this blend will knock you out. The weed smokes fine as is out of the bag, but some may prefer to give it a good rub and some air time as well. Either way, it smokes clean with no dottle. The standard Virginia bite warnings apply. The taste remains fairly constant, with some intensifying at the end, but mostly it's a straightforward toasty-sweet orangey-citrusy blast from start to finish. If you want complexity and refinement, try #27. If you want something to whap into the old pouch for the long day ahead, this should do the trick. Hard to beat this kind of quality and flavour at this price!

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2002-09-06		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The very definition of "an honest Virginia." I prefer this to its more expensive sibling, McClelland's #22, probably the tobacco it most closely resembles. It is more robust, sweeter, and more consistent (though less subtle and varied) than #22. Almost as good as Blackwoods Flake -- which at bulk rates makes this an incredible bargain. Not as smooth As Blackwoods, nor as sharp as their recent Christmas Cheers, 2010 is a great "baseline" VA against which others can be judged.

It comes in a broken-flake form and, as with most McClelland flakes, it does not rub out easily. So unless you like your flake on the "chunky" side (as I do) a little extra work is required. As with all McClelland VA's, it requires careful smoking.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2001-03-29		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

A nice switch from my normal Latikia's. This beautifully blended tobacco has a wonderful Virginia flavor, well blended, with a hint cedar. I filled an old Savinelli and tapped it lightly. After the initial match, I relit the tobacco and it stayed with me for over an hour as I drove a mountain road.

Now, maybe it was the beautiful morning, or the pines glowing in the morning light, but this was a really fine smoke. It burned perfectly, not too hot, with very little tounge bite. I will smoke this regularly, especially when I get into a non-English mood.

Tobaccos like this (and a few of their others) lead me to believe that McClelland really is one of the very best blenders in the world.

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