McClelland: "We're Just Going to Close the Doors"

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mackeson

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 29, 2016
758
2
Very sad news for me/ happy for Mike & Mary. I'm a huge McClelland fan and always took their presence for granted. Luckily my secret santa sent me some #27 and Blackwoods flake (two of my favorites!) Also I have a few others put back.

I discovered McClelland tobaccos about 15 years ago and wish I actually had the foresight to cellar (I don't really "cellar" tobacco, just have a few favorites on hand most of the time).

I want to thank Mike and Mary for the many years of smoking pleasure I've gotten from the fruits of their labor. THANK YOU!! I will miss your tobaccos when my meager stash is gone, but will always have fond memories, and appreciate your contribution. Thanks again for showing me the calliope of flavors from pure Virginia tobaccos.

 

michaelmirza

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 21, 2015
638
0
Chicago, IL
jpmcwjr: Half-joking, but I think the advent of vapes played a big role in sparking the FDA crackdown, and the FDA seems to be a significant factor in the choice to close McClelland (rather than try to sell the company).

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,733
45,228
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Half-joking, but I think the advent of vapes played a big role in sparking the FDA crackdown, and the FDA seems to be a significant factor in the choice to close McClelland (rather than try to sell the company).
Not according to the McNeils. BTW, they had offers to sell their company and they declined to do so because they didn't believe that anyone else would do justice to their blends. Maintaining quality was the most important thing.

 

skydog

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 27, 2017
580
1,536
I'll echo the thanks to the McNeils for all the amazing tobacco they've produced over the years. And hats off to them for never compromising quality for any reason. I've got enough to last me a while at least but I know it will be a sad day when I finish my last tin.

 

barepipe

Starting to Get Obsessed
Aug 29, 2017
134
0
SP still has a few blends in stock, mainly the Frogs, aromatics and some of the lesser known blends. I still see Balkan Blue there as well.

 
I hope that we, the pipe community, bares the brunt of the sadness in losing McClellands, and I wish Mike and Mary a happy retirement, change of course, or new ventures.
When I think of McClellands, I think of that blue whale on their label that their father's father seen on that voyage to the new world full of hope, possibilities, and promise of fantastic new adventures. Pipe smokers are as rare as those beautiful large ocean mammals, and in a way we are just as endangered. We think (some of us anyways) as deep as the deepest seas, and we blow our smoke in joyous reverie for one more dive, taking pleasure in the act of being alive.
Cheers Mike and Mary, may your challenges make you strong, and your paths be paved in merriment. Thank you, thank you, for showing the world what can be done with the wholesome Virginia plant, showing us a flavor for what could be, that no one else imagined. And, thank you for giving us pleasures on the tongue that no one else ever thought possible. You are artists, poets of the leaf, and alchemists who have created never before tasted experiences on the tongue and goodness in the heart. Thank you.

 

kola

Lifer
Apr 1, 2014
1,488
2,343
Colorado Rockies, Cripple Creek region
I guess it's time to fill out The Tobaco Mafia Association (TTMA) application.
I never tried a lot of their blends and of the ones that I did, I can't say I really liked them.
From a business point of view I think they could easily sell their business (for a nice profit BTW) and co-manange it for the new buyer. Hold his hand so-to-speak teaching him about the specifics involved at how they prepared their blends, etc. Take the new owner under their wings for a few years, then step away with a bundle of money. Win-win ?
Maybe someone would be interested in making them an offer they couldn't refuse.

 

filmshooter

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 7, 2017
142
5
I'm going to pat myself on the back. I have resisted the temptation to blow more money on these even though I still want 10 tins more each of cellar and on the town. I did a quick mental inventory last night and realized not only do I enjoy many other blends, I also have many on the horizon that I haven't tried yet. I still keep looking at the stock of the frog's, almost tempting myself to hit the order button, but have thus far decided to let them go. I think for me the real pain will be deciding when to pop a tin I already have. That will be much harder than deciding not to buy. Sometimes I think that those who indulge in instant gratification have it easier, they just go for it instead of agonizing over it, which I tend to do.
I have hours of outdoor work this weekend coming to fix my wife's car. Maybe I'll indulge and pop a tin of on the town and just get it over with.

 

midwestpipesmoker70

Can't Leave
Nov 28, 2011
431
433
IL
Well, I broke down and spent $100 bucks on McClelland blends yesterday. I really enjoy Blue Mountain and only had 5 in the cellar so I bought 5 more. I also bought three different froggy 100 gram tins (Log, Bayou and Cellar). Not too overboard but this last month or so has eaten into my Chicago Pipe Show funds...come on tax refund. Sometimes I wonder if pipe smoking is a hobby or an acquisition addiction for me :rofl: Now I also need to be thinking about Dunhill and what I would like to add to my cellar...it never ends. Has anyone else had the talk with their significant other about how all this unopened tobacco is truly an investment and how the value will only go up? lmao

 
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