In my humble opinion, the house of McClelland is the finest blender working in the US today. Their latest blend, Balkan Beauty, is a wonderful testament to this claim. Upon opening the tin, one is greeted with the classic nose of McClelland's English blends. Pleasantly pungent, it is at once sweet, woodsy, and slightly smoky. In a word, all that a delicious blend of this type should be. My tin - a fresh 2017 vintage - had a near perfect moisture content. While I normally let each bowl dry 15-30 minutes before loading, my usual pinching test suggests that this would not be necessary. The cut is fairly large so careful packing, especially to avoid overfilling the bowl, is necessary. I do normally end up rubbing out a couple of pieces just to be sure. However, once the tobacco packs down, it is fairly well behaved. The burn rate is consistent with what one expects in this type of blend. A couple of relights are always necessary but the bloom develops nicely and leaves fine dry ash. A white billowing smoke is a big benefit in my book and the Balkan Beauty produces it in great quantities. Of course, the real quality of a mixture resides in taste and this is where this beauty really shines. There is the leathery sweetness of McClellands Latakia, complimented by the pleasant sourness of the Basma leaf. The taste remains complex through the bowl with different flavours coming to the fore, then retreating for a time. As with almost all blends, the claim of this being unlike anything one has smoked are exaggerated. But for my part, I am only glad to find the flavours that I so love in McClellands English and Balkan blends getting a fresh interpretation. The Balkan Beauty tastes like another legend in the making, bearing unmistakable affinity to classics like the Frog Mortons, Wilderness and, Three Oaks. With the latter two now sadly out of production, the Balkan Beauty feels like a rightful heir to their well deserved fame. Gorgeous indeed!
