American Straight Virginias & VaPers:Suggestions Please.

What have you tried already?

What did you like?

What didn't you like?

Jay, my favorite American VA by far is GL Pease's Union Square. Whereas McClelland has that vinegary smell/taste, Union Square has a very clean, clear VA flavor. It's a little bit sweet (naturally sweet), a little bit "bready" or "yeasty" and has a bit of warm spice. Decent nicotine as well -- much more so than McClelland's. As far as I know, it has minimal casing and no additional flavoring, so it has a very natural VA taste.

Mcclelland Personal Reserve series: Blackwoods and St James Woods.

Mcclelland Beacon and Beacon Extra, Mature Virginia #27 and #24, Boston 1776, and Epitome.

Watch City Cigar Co.'s house blend, Old Dominion. (They ship to Great Britain.)

Yeh, as much as I think Greg Pease is a genius, he is a genius with latakia... in my opinion. GLP and C&D just don't tickle my taste buds with their Virginias. But, I do love aspects of what they do. Now, McClelland is the master of Virginias in my opinion. But, once you've gotten past their Matured #27 and Red Cake, the nuances of the subtle differences in blends such as Sundown, Aurora, and such might get lost on the new to Virginia tongues, as the tastes in flavors are very subtle.
MacBarens Pure Virginia is an ok little flake. And, if you like FVF, you'll find a lot of similarities.
The rest, you'll just have to try.

Well put Michael, I concur.

While Greg is the master of Latakia, he's produced some fine Virginia, Va/Per blends as well. Union Square, Telegraph Hill, Fillmore - which has a touch of Latakia in it - come to mind. And his Haddo's Delight is one of my all time favorites. McClelland's Virginia's are justly prized and love as much for their vinegary ketchup taste as for anything else. McClelland's Virginias are classics. McCrainie's Red Flake and Red Ribbon are two of the finest single crop Red Virginia blends made today, tangy, funky, and delicious. Hearth&Home offers up some very fine choices and one of their most popular is Anniversary Kake, a delicious Va/Per.

For pure VA tobacco at a wonderful price it's hard to beat D&R's PenHooker, although it is comprised of 50% Canadian grown leaf.

http://www.tobaccoreviews.com/blend/3497/d-r-tobacco-penhooker

McClelland Personal Reserve Dark Star and Blackwood's Flake, IMO, are both truly exceptional straight from the factory and only get better with age.
McClelland introduced many variations on the VA/Per theme after they released Personal Reserve St.James Woods, but none very much better, IMO. The same comment about aging applies. If anyone has any 2015 that is at least two or three years old they will send you, I think you will like it. I used to be a volume smoker, and I smoked a lot of it, but it has to me a sharpness that goes past the usually welcome tang that mellows out with modest age. I had a little bit that I managed to hoard for 8 years and it was as good as any VA/Per I ever smoked. Most McClellands need a little drying time.
As with others, I am convinced that the characteristic smell of McClellands is a good thing. A very good thing. With only one exception, I have found contemporary Continental and UK Virginia's to be too acerbic for my taste. They are, in many cases admittedly if you do much research at all, chemically processed African and Indian tobacco's that purport to be from Virginia seed. YMMV
One quick note, I have not smoked any C & D blends in many years. Those that I did sample were Latakia forward, including Friedman and Pease. I knew Craig Tarler from his attendance at many, many pipe shows, and I always thought, and do, that he was a man of great integrity, committed to delivering a quality product. So, whatever I have to say about McClelland should in no way be taken as saying anything negative about C & D.

Agree with Blackwoods

St James Woods VAPER

Jay, I too love those SG flakes. I like McClelland virginias even more!
Straight VA:

McClelland Blackwoods Flake
Vaper:

McClelland St. James Woods

McClelland 2015 (jar it up for a year or two, at least)

H&H Anniversary Kake

Jay, my favorite Virginias are Capstan, Wessex Campaign Dark Flake and Gawith Best Brown. For VaPers it's Escudo, Dunhill De Luxe Navy Rolls and, of course, St. James Flake.
Edit: Oops, you said American-- disregard the above :/

I agree with Watch City Old Dominion is an outstanding VaPer. Watch City 558 is also an outstanding VaPer, but its been discontinued I believe.

A lot of people really like Cornell & Diehl's Bayou Morning for a stout American Va/Per. I say stout because the batch I had really knocked me out, and I don't mean in a good way. The Perique was a bit much for me, as was the nic hit. That being said, I can see why Perique lovers favor this blend. It seems to be iconic, and from an iconic American tobacco house. Dunhill DNR restored my faith in Va/Pers, and that is my go-to. I will give Bayou Morning another go as it wouldn't be the first time a blend worked better for me the second time around. I think for straight Virginia explore the lovely list from McClelland, as nicely outlined in this thread. They really seem to have the touch with straight Virginia. That being said, it's hard to beat FVF! I am smoking a bowl right now in a Comoy's billiard. Brit baccy in a Brit pipe is just grand.

Knowing Jay's taste in some blends and genre. Just forget about Bayou Morning. I didn't find it very stout in nicotine at all, but that's not the reason. I just don't think that You would enjoy this one very much. I'm not it's biggest fan either. I cannot taste any natural sweetness or flavors of the dry, bland Virginias that they use over the burley and perique heat. There is something unusual about C&D's Virginias, not in all of their blends but in most. They taste air cured, not flue cured. Very course, without any sophistication to them.

Now, don't get me wrong, C&D are masters at what they are good at and the best in others. But, there are so many other Virginias and VaPers out there. It's ok though. Not everyone can be the best at everything. ::

Bayou Morning, my go-to morning smoke 6 out of 7 days. When I want a change, D&R Rimboche A.P.

Check out:
Iwan Ries & Co
Pipeworks & Wilke
Kramer's (also available on Smokingpipes.com)
4 Noggins
These are smaller than McC, et al, but well respected and enjoyed. I believe they are all in-house blended; please correct me if I am mistaken. I am sure that there are many others that I am not aware of. I wonder if there is a directory or list of blenders by country?

Sounds like a fun hunt you are on.

Since you state you are after American Virginia's, McClellend's really is the master of these. I would definitely try the Christmas Cheer before it's gone for ever, it's a single crop straight Va, as well as McCranies Red flake or ribbon. McClellend's Blackwoods flake is another great one. The secret to McClellend's is you have to pop a tin, put the plastic lid back on it and let it sit undisturbed for about a month before you actually try it, or there really isn't alot of flavor. There is something magical that happens in that month. There is a tangy quality to american Va that there isn't with SG FVF and such.