Tobaccos Butera - Matured Ribbon (Royal Vintage)

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2015-08-07		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

The lemon Virginia is citrusy with some grass/hay and spice. The stoved black Virginia is sweet in a fermented, fruity manner with some spice. The red Virginia is tangy sweet and a little earthy, and mostly dominates the other Virginias. I did catch a slight hint of the “vinegar” at first, but it was gone very quickly. The nic-hit is just past the mild threshold. Needs some dry time, burns slow and a little wet with a fairly consistent flavor. Will leave moisture in your bowl. Won’t bite, and has a pleasant after taste and room note. If you can handle the wetness, it makes a nice all day smoke.

-JimInks

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2014-04-13		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Very nice mottled looking ribbon with each of the VA's cut uniformly, and color ranging from mostly darker brown to black with a hint of bright. Tin aroma was of spice racks and was missing McClellands signature aroma...call it ketchup or silage or whatever floats your boat, it was replaced by this pleasant spicy scent. Rather nice but I missed the typical McClellands aroma, as it always promises an excellent Virginia tobacco.

The flavors are easy to pick out and typical for the constituent tobaccos... the red was tangy and mellow, the stoved spicy and cool, the lemon sweet and on the hay side but not too heavily. But blended together, this was a very interesting stew where the flavors both melded together and stood out alone. Extra sweetness from the stoved, which took center stage at various times, but this is mostly Red's show. The black and lemon were in supporting roles. Overall, however, this is a true Blend, with all parties contributing. It smoked very cool as well, with no hint of bite unless well overdriven. It even stood up to some fairly vigorous puffing without losing too much of its cool. This is a luxurious blend that can be smoked absentmindedly or under close scrutiny. Moderately complex, this one's main focus is one great taste, excellent balance and mellowness. 3 1/2 stars, missing greatness by the thinnest of hairs. Recommended to all VA smokers but especially those that favor dark stoved blends, as a nice change of pace.

Pipe Used: meerschaum and morta

Age When Smoked: 6 years

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (401)	2019-10-14		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Unnoticeable

A friend of mine had this, not sure where he got it but this is one fantastic, smooth rich blend that unfortunately is no longer in production since the closing of McClelland. Another one that makes me wonder if it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. Glad I was able to try some of this really great blend. This was from 2014.

Pipe Used: Briar

Age When Smoked: 5 yearrs

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2017-05-01		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Tart and tangy. Sweet. Notes of citrus and various darker fruits. A touch of earth, a touch of spice and a little toast. Fairly complex for a blend of Virginias. A smooth and satisfying smoke. I tried, but I can't find a damn thing wrong with it. 4 stars.

Mild to medium in body. Medium in taste. No added flavoring. Burns well when dried.

Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2002-04-21		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is a blend of three different Virginias, and all contribute nicely to this tobacco offering. Despite the weight, it burns cool too. I found this to be very similar to McClelland's #27 and McCranie's Red Ribbon. This particular blend carries a bit more spice than the aforementioned other two, and is perhaps less sweet as well.

If you do give this a whirl, do so in a small bowled pipe, it seems to smoke better than in a large one. I tried a variety of shapes and sizes of briars during the course of smoking the 50g tin. Perhaps the Virginia strength became too much for me in a larger pipe.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fr_tom (393)	2017-12-04		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I received an ounce of this from a friend. It had been jarred in 2011 so the review reflects an aged version. The tobacco was fairly dark with a few tan bits. It would appear to be mostly red and stoved Virginias. The cut was a medium chopped ribbon with a few hunks of mostly rubbed out pressed tobacco. Mine was delivered slightly dry, and I smoked it this way.

This has been a good smoke, and I have tried it in a number of pipes, looking for the perfect combo. I am about to finish the sample, and I have not found it yet. It is smooth and slightly tangy. There is a mellow sweet to the smoke and the snork gives a little tickle and spice. The flavor intensifies a little in the last 1/3 of the bowl.

This was enjoyable, and I would smoke it again. It is easy to recommend.

Age When Smoked: 6 years

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Young Piper (304)	2016-01-14		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I really enjoy the Royal Vintage Butera blends as they use McClelland's excellent leaf but adhere to Mike Butera's recipes, Kingfisher and Pelican I missed trying when they were available everywhere and now command Germain premium prices on auction sites :-( I have tried several Royal Vintage blends over the years but for some reason have only reviewed Golden Cake and yesterday I found an unopened tin of Matured Ribbon in my closet that was 8 years old. I popped the tin and my den filled with the unmistakeable matured McClelland aroma (which is divine). The tin was under pressure due to fermenting and sounded like a champagne bottle opening and made my dog run out of the room like a cartoon character.. I dried the ribbons for a half hour and packed a tall deep bowl, first light and I knew this was going to be quite the savory smoke, reminded me of Blackwoods Flake. Sweet and Sour, dark fruit, no bite for me, and when the Red Virginia toasts at the last quarter it's just heaven. My old notes say I thought It was a 3 star blend fresh in 07 but now its even more delicious!

Similar Blends: McClelland - Blackwoods Flake (Personal Reserve).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2015-02-09		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Very nice top and bottom flavors. Initially the smoke is tangy with a sweet and sour flavor, not hard on the tongue. Zesty, but smooth, with a pleasant scent and ample "N". Not grassy or hay like, more McClelland like ,(similar to "Boston 1776" or "Blackwoods Flake"), but with creamy base notes and no vinegar. I've tasted these base notes before? Dark Star? Ashleys #44 ?

Needs drying right out of the tin and maybe a slight rub as it is a little hard to keep lit , but very good on the relight, doesn't get ashy. Grows very dark on the last 1/3 of the bowl, becomes more creamy than zesty. A very interesting smoke throughout the bowl, constantly changing, never bites and never bitter. Has a flavor more like a Virginia that has 3 years of cellar time A solid 4 star

Pipe Used: cob

Age When Smoked: tin dated 6 months old/3 weeks open

Similar Blends: McC's " Boston 1776" or "Blackwoods Flake"), with a touch of Asleys #44, Also agree with those reviewers that find this similar to McC #27.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fmjiii (18)	2014-10-08		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Butera Matured Ribbon (Royal Vintage) tobacco is the prefect collaboration between pipe carver Michael Butera and the McClelland Tobacco Company.

Tin aroma was missing McClelland’s signature aroma vinegary/ketchup.

Matured Ribbon is a nice solid Va flavor with subtle sweet and zesty nuances that will keep your mouth watering. The blend is a very nice, rich blend of Virginias; three different Virginias that burns quite well with no hint of tongue bite. This could easily be an everyday blend. It tastes like McClelland’s No 27. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have several more tins set aside to age. I recommend it highly.

Pipe Used: various briars

Age When Smoked: 2 years

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2013-05-08		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I was fortunate enough to happen upon a tin of this dated to 2000 just last year. It was an incredible experience. Fully coated with crystallized bloom with the incomparable Mcc signature aroma. It was a sight to behold, but I finished my last bowl of it yesterday. :(

I enjoyed every bowl of it the sweetness of the VA was perfect augmented with a slight cider tasting tinge added by the stoved element. A lot like 27 to my tastes and, at least this tin, was superior to the tin of Christmas Cheer 2012 that I have been enjoying since last fall.

I am sure my impressions are due, largely, to the age of this tine, but I have to call it as I see it and perhaps this will change with a tasting of a fresh tin. But four stars for now.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-07-09		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The tin aroma of this medium-cut, medium ribbon is the usual funk associated with McClelland: fetid silage and sauerkraut.

Flavor is, again, typical. Which is to say, typically sweet, strong, and complex matured VAs. The solid and balanced flavor rests on the red VAs with the gold and dark leafs providing punctuation.

This is a delightfully complete, full-spectrum blend. More than yet another red and black VA blend, the gold leaf brings a wonderful variance to a somewhat bloated blend category. This seemed best in a narrow to medium gauge chamber.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-01-09		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I have found Matured Ribbon to be a very high quality tobacco and an exceptional smoke. This blend has the complexity that many other VA's have failed to achieve for me. It's an interesting smoke with the interplay of different types of VA poking their respective heads throughout the bowl.

The tin aroma is sublte and tobacoo fruitiness and the well aged stock of this blend makes its presence known in a very velvet smooth base with some VA tang here and there along the way. A very subtle background of deep sweet aged VA is constant and the other parts of the blend play atop that base.

There was no hint of any topping at all. It has a wonderful taste, does not bite and smokes cool. I ocassionally smoke ths in succession because one bowl just wasn't enough to satisfy my craving for it.

Now my disclaimor. Generally I like a broad variety of tobacco but in the VA's I tend to enjoy the dark mature blends and tend to not like golden, light and yellow blends because of the tanginess and bite (With all due respect to my smoking contemporaries - I don't share the joy of Delayed Gratification - I want it when I'm smoking it and this delivers. I smoke many balkan blends and latakia blends as well and I love the complexity of blends with orientals. I also don't like Marlin Flake the alleged Holy Grail. And, I think that's why I love this tobacco so much because it's deep, dark and complex without being unusually harsh or hot. It is now a regular in my rotation.

Cheers, VC

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pounder 5000 (178)	2003-07-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild	Tolerable

This was definitely blended by McClelland- can you say ketchup? That being said I agree with Pipestud completely- This is a poorer quality version of McCranies Red Ribbon but more expensive. Why pay more for less?

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Knightsmoker (218)	2018-08-06		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Very Pleasant

When I opened this tin I thought well there is a lot of stoved black VA's here and I thought they would completely dominate the blend. They did not. The Red VA in fact is the dominate flavor in this blend. They are sweet, tangy, notes of dark fruit and a note or two of earthiness. The stoved black follows below this but occasionally rises to compete with the reds. The stoved has a slightly spicy note along with some dried dark fruits (think dried dates/figs/prunes) and was rather sweet. The bright VA had brief notes of hay but very little citrus and were usually far in the background only occasionally coming forward. Overall, a good blend that will not bite and smokes slow. The finish is very short on this one making it perfect for the first pipe in the morning or for when you want something in between fuller blends. Great in the afternoon summer heat as the nic is light. The room note is outstanding; smells like a tobacco burning should. It just missed being outstanding 3.5 stars.

Age When Smoked: 1 yr

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	James C. (17)	2017-02-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I was really looking forward to trying this blend and while I was not disappointed it's not quite for me. Excellent quality. Smooth smoking, complex, clean finish, easy burning. Red virginias provide the base and body with stoves and bright augmenting. What this blend lacks that would make it outstanding for me is sweetness. Very dry, earthy, mineral tasting blend with subtle spice. Excellent in that respect. Tang, spice, and earth. Just no sweetness detected. If it's there the tang and spice mask it. I might even go as far as to say it's completly devoid of casings. Natural tasting tobacco.

Maybe a decade or two would make it shine...for my tastes

Pipe Used: Various

Age When Smoked: 2yrs

Purchased From: B&M

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RMBittner (66)	2010-10-18		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My tin was five years old at the time of opening.

I have had mixed feelings about this Royal Vintage line: I highly recommend Dark Stoved, really liked Latakia #1, but thought Latakia #2 was a flavorless failure. To be brief, I think Matured Ribbon is a success, falling just below Dark Stoved in my rankings.

The blend is a very nice, rich blend of Virginias that burns quite well and never poses a threat to the tongue. Well worth seeking out.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-08-23		Medium	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant

This is a blend of three different good Virginias, which all together contribute to the creation of a quite fine tobacco.

Of course there is this constant ketchup taste (since it is manufactured by McClelland).

Though it is easily smoked, easily fills the bowl, does not produce any tongue biting, it does not stay lit. It must go through a procedure of drying, in order to bring about better results. It tastes like McClelland?s No 27.

I will not buy it again because I was not really impressed.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-08-10		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I am tough on reviewing Virginias ! I agree with joe ;this is not a krumble kake' but a mix cut ribbon flake Va! One of my favorite Va's is blended by McClelland's ! This is not it. Its not bad its fair to partly cloudy ;and a little pricey for the mediocrity . I will not bash Butera though;for if you want to smoke a very fine Krumble kake try king fisher! I'm gonna go try to find that old tin now ! Vincenzo

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sasha (228)	2007-04-04		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

A good McClelland Virginia, with all the classic characteristics: a little ketchup flavour, cut in small pieces and easy to pack. Although it smokes pretty cool, it is difficult to keep lit and it bites a little, especially during the first puffs. Good, but nothing I will stock in my cellar.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2007-02-04		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Let's start with the presentation: not a Kruble Kake at all -- there are no less than three kinds of ribbons in the quantities that they appear in this blend, they really do sing.

I like that this is tinned my McClelland and yet is somewhat dry in the tin (more like the Blakeney's and the Syrian's by McClelland).

I've smoked a few tins of this in the last two weeks and am glad to have the stocked up. This could easily be an everyday blend. The lemon is somewhat muted while the stoved really runs the show in the flavor department. The red, as one should expect holds it all together. I think this may be similar to the "sun dappled red" used in a recent Christmas Cheer -- excellent choice.

It is somewhat overpriced typically, but if you like Va's and really liked stoved Va's you owe it to your pipe and yourself to try this very cool and clean burning tobacco.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-03-31		Strong	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is my first review, so I feel justified in gloating a bit. I had the good fortune of receiving a tin of this that was, I kid you not, ten years old. I cannot tell you how that improved it exactly, first because I haven't smoked it new yet, and second because even if I did smoke it new, the blend will have changed somewhat over the years. But in any case this was perhaps the best McClelland blended virginia I have ever had. To me, it was a bit on the strong side nicotine-wise. I tended to get more dizzy on the subway after smoking it than with other blends. But it was delicious. I think most McClelland's blends have some humectant in them, but this apparently did not as it actually got too dry toward the end. Whether that has anything to do with the age on it is beyond me. But anyway that fact may have contributed to this being less prone to bite than some McClelland's blends I have tried. This is definitely worth putting away for some age.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-02-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Matured Ribbon isn't ribbon cut. Well, not all of it anyway. It is a mixture of ribbon and broken flake.

Even if the description hadn't said so, there is no mistaking the fact the this is blended by McClelland. Just open the tin and smell it - the trademark ketchup smell is there.

This is a very good blend of several types of Va - I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have several more tins set aside to age.

Matured Ribbon is a nice solid Va flavor with subtle sweet and spicy nuances. I recommend it highly.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-12-20		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

This is a nice tobacco but nothing special. It smoked very nice and has nice flavors but nothing to get excited about. I could see this becoming a all day smoke for some people. Worth trying but don't have high expiations.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2003-07-09		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

The description above indicates a crumble cake for this respectable blend. The tin I purchased contained medium wide and faily long ribbons that were moist and obviously from the McClelland clan of vinegar-wafted Virginian blends.

This packs and burns acceptably, offering those not fancying flake tobacco a chance to experience a complex blend of matured American tobaccos without the Scandia suger shock.

The flavor does not change appreciably from the beginning to the end of the bowl. This slow burning and pleasant offering is a fine distraction from my regular English/Balkan quest. Remember to puff slow and steady, lest your tongue regrets the experience.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2003-06-12		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I have tried this tobacco on different occasions and came up with the same results, I belive it is from the Zesty Lemon as it irritates me to where I start coughing. It is a fairly good tobacco and does smoke very well in my Eric Nording Moose and Wild Boar. It just makes me cough, but I will try this again later on down the road as it is a very enticing tobacco when you open the lid.

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