As mentioned previously, I’ve been an aromatic, and strictly aromatic, smoker since I first picked up a pipe. It’s wasn’t for lack of wanting to try different variations of pipe tobacco, but rather a safety net of sorts. I had never tried anything other and I was a skeptic as to branching out, fearful it’d ruin things for me.
Recently, however, I became motived to seek something new. I read through various reviews of different blends, as well as lurked through the forums over at Pipes Magazine. There were plenty of suggestions and offered advice for one such as myself (i.e. wanting to step outside of the box) and one name that kept cropping up was that of McClelland’s Frog Morton line.
After a little more digging, I hunkered down and decided to give Frog Morton’s Cellar a go. For one, it seems to be the more popular of the line’s blends currently on the market. For another, I’m a sucker for whiskey and as the tobacco blend is aged with stave cubes (chunks of cask from whiskey barrels) it naturally piqued my interest.
I have to say, I’m glad I took that leap of faith!
Once my package arrived, I greedily tore into it, popping the tin with eagerness. The first thing I noticed is the campfire-like smell with a hint of whiskey and sweetness underneath. I had ordered the 100g tin, and in order to preserve some in case I didn’t particularly care for it I broke it up into two different mason jars; one to tuck away for a while and another to take from. One thing I found to be a surprising novelty is the inclusion of an actual stave cube in the 100g tins, keeping that whiskey-ness along for the ride.
The tobacco was all but ready to go right from the tin. I let it dry for 20-25 minutes before loading up my bowl, letting that aroma waft around me in the interim. Upon setting flame to leaf, an earthy and smoky, yet spicy, flavor hit my palate with eye-opening interest. Although smoking aromatics had me searching for the different flavorings this was something totally different. Although a reportedly mild blend for “English” offerings, being new to this side of the fence offered me a completely new experience.
The smoke was relatively light but husky. A hint of whiskey was present in the background but not prevalent. It was somewhat ‘meaty’ in taste…like that charred crust sitting on top of a steak on the grill. With the inclusion of latakia for the first time in my smoking experience, I found it added a little extra kick to take it up a notch and gave my palate something new to toy with.
As the bowl smoked down, I found the blend to become a bit thicker in consistency, mellowing out as it went along allowing the Virginian leaves to come more to the forefront with their sweet taste.
The tobacco itself burns relatively cool and took to flame easily. My first smoke of this blend was in a fresh Nording Clear Point Freehand and after several days of smoking and letting the briar pick up some of that latakia more of its essence became prevalent in each bowl. Going out on a limb and deciding to dedicate the new pipe to latakia-based blends I found to be an enhancing experience and from what I understand tend to ghost bowls for those who shuffle between tobaccos with other varieties of leaf.
All-in-all, after the Frog Morton line being hailed as “cross-over” blends for aromatic smokers wanting to try “English” blends, I can understand what they mean. Frog Morton Cellar has enough kick to shock the aromatic smoker’s palate with its inclusion of latakia. Enough latakia, in my opinion, for someone to decide if the “English” blends would be something worth delving deeper into. For me, I can’t get enough.
After several bowls now, I’m ready to try other latakia-laced blends and those fruity, casing-heavy blends are looking to be the occasional ‘treat.’ If you’re wanting for something new as an aro smoker, give it a whirl, you just might enjoy it…I know I did!
The Rustic Briar 