Kapnismologist
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Just posted the following review on TR. Reproduced here for your edification
McClelland Anniversary
A mix of short dark brown, mottled, and black broken ribbons, the tin nose is rounded and sweet with a slight dark smokiness. Given the relatively short cut, it packs and burns with relative ease and is not a particularly finicky preparation.
Comprised of a mélange of matured Virginias lightly seasoned with Cyprian Latakia, in the bowl Anniversary offers a pleasant combination of ‘sweet-and-smoke’. Possessing a subdued tanginess, it offers rounded notes of black cherry, wood, light brown sugar, and just a bit of pine smoke. The mouthfeel is soft and the finish dark and sweet with just enough of the classic McClelland matured Virginia tang to remind one of its provenance. Medium bodied, it has a pronounced smoothness. Not an overall complex affair, it is nonetheless a nicely balanced mixture which is as charming in its simplicity as it is impeccable in its presentation.
Harkening back to an earlier form of McClelland packaging, the original release of Anniversary was wrapped in heavy ecru paper with maroon printing and finished with a red wax seal. A limited run of some 3000 100g. tins, it was released in 2002 in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the founding of the company. Although in company promotional literature of the time this special issue was called “25th Anniversary Blend”, both the outer paper wrapper and the tin label simply noted the blend as “Anniversary” and the series mark being “Special Occasion”. Like the original Christmas Cheer which was released in 1992 in celebration of the company’s 15th year in business, Anniversary was intended to be a one-time, limited edition release. The popularity of the blend, however, led to it being rereleased, in 2005, in the exact same 100g. tin packaging but this time the paper wrapper bore the date span 1977-2005 and featured a green wax seal. The 2005 issue, still readily available as of late 2009, is comprised of a holdover from the 2002 batch held for further aging before it was tinned and shipped in 2005. Once this current batch is depleted there are plans to release the mixture again with a different color wax seal. This review is based upon a tin of the 2005 tinning bearing the factory date stamp of 092005. Well worth cellaring for both its investment value and, perhaps more importantly, its liability to retain itself in good form for an extended period of time.
McClelland Anniversary
A mix of short dark brown, mottled, and black broken ribbons, the tin nose is rounded and sweet with a slight dark smokiness. Given the relatively short cut, it packs and burns with relative ease and is not a particularly finicky preparation.
Comprised of a mélange of matured Virginias lightly seasoned with Cyprian Latakia, in the bowl Anniversary offers a pleasant combination of ‘sweet-and-smoke’. Possessing a subdued tanginess, it offers rounded notes of black cherry, wood, light brown sugar, and just a bit of pine smoke. The mouthfeel is soft and the finish dark and sweet with just enough of the classic McClelland matured Virginia tang to remind one of its provenance. Medium bodied, it has a pronounced smoothness. Not an overall complex affair, it is nonetheless a nicely balanced mixture which is as charming in its simplicity as it is impeccable in its presentation.
Harkening back to an earlier form of McClelland packaging, the original release of Anniversary was wrapped in heavy ecru paper with maroon printing and finished with a red wax seal. A limited run of some 3000 100g. tins, it was released in 2002 in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the founding of the company. Although in company promotional literature of the time this special issue was called “25th Anniversary Blend”, both the outer paper wrapper and the tin label simply noted the blend as “Anniversary” and the series mark being “Special Occasion”. Like the original Christmas Cheer which was released in 1992 in celebration of the company’s 15th year in business, Anniversary was intended to be a one-time, limited edition release. The popularity of the blend, however, led to it being rereleased, in 2005, in the exact same 100g. tin packaging but this time the paper wrapper bore the date span 1977-2005 and featured a green wax seal. The 2005 issue, still readily available as of late 2009, is comprised of a holdover from the 2002 batch held for further aging before it was tinned and shipped in 2005. Once this current batch is depleted there are plans to release the mixture again with a different color wax seal. This review is based upon a tin of the 2005 tinning bearing the factory date stamp of 092005. Well worth cellaring for both its investment value and, perhaps more importantly, its liability to retain itself in good form for an extended period of time.
