Wilderness Review

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TheDesertPiper

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 5, 2021
137
538
Arizona
I've managed to amass a few tins worth of McClelland Wilderness now through buying stuff second hand. Wilderness was never the real reason I made any of the purchases. It was always an extra that was included in a lot of tins that had something I really wanted, so I hadn't yet bothered trying it until today. If I am being completely honest I didn't even know what was in until I looked it up 20 minutes before smoking it. The internet said Syrian and Cyprian latakia with some oriental stuff that I couldn't ever hope to spell correctly. I do usually enjoy me some latakia and tobaccos I can't pronounce, so I decided to give it a go.

Tin note was a wonderfully strong and sweet leathery goodness. It tickled my nostrils and made my mouth water. I packed a bowl in my Savinelli Bing's favorite and lit up. This is a complex blend. From first light I was getting all sorts of different flavors. There was a subtle, but lovely smokey sweetness that melded together with wood to form a very mesquite like flavor. There was earth and leather, with a very light herbal flavor. I may have tasted dark fruit? I felt like flavors in the front were moving around quite a bit while the latakia was ever present in the background. About halfway through the bowl I started getting a lot more of a floral taste with a just a little spice mixed in. The tobacco burned slow and mostly cool. The smoke wilderness produces is thick and creamy. The kind of smoke I personally enjoy watching slowly rise up out of the bowl. I don't know what the actually nicotine content is, but it felt pretty mild to me.

Wilderness is definitely an above average blend in my humble opinion. My only real gripe is while you are getting a lot of unique flavors they're all soooo light, almost fleeting. I wanted the flavors to come on strong and really punch me in the taste buds, but instead its like they are just lightly grazing them before disappearing into the night. Even with that said, if you haven't smoked wilderness and you get the chance definitely take it. As someone who started smoking right after McClelland closed shop I shed a tear every time I smoke one of there blends. Don't get me wrong, there are tons of amazing blends still out there, but it still saddens me to know there will never be more of these exact blends produced. It makes me even sadder knowing If I ever want more ill have to sell a kidney or something to afford it. RIP McClelland, taken from the world too soon.
 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Sounds good. I'm into my last few bowls of Dark Star, which is a fine dark Virginia blend that really appeals to this old burley devotee. It has always been criticized for being hard to light and keep lit, but I conquered this with a hand grater to make the pieces smaller so they dry better. And voila, what a difference. It burns as well as any blend or cut, and is a real joy, everything good about a solid Virginia blend, sweet and sultry, rich and true. Likewise, I won't be having any more of this, but I have two other tall tins of McC's. It's fun to salute this fine blender as it fades into history.