Christmas Cheer 2017

Christmas Cheer is the straight Virginia series that Kansas City-based McClelland released once a year, in limited numbers, from the 1980s until the company's closure in early 2018. The series' idea is to present a single Virginia batch selected from that year's harvest on its own; each year is thus considered a separate record, and the year on the tin defines the blend's identity. The 2017 release was prepared the same way, with selected matured Virginia leaf pressed into cake and tinned as broken flake. The 2017 release became the series' final entry, as the company closed in February 2018.

Unflavored Virginia character dominates the smoke: natural leaf sweetness over a bready, herbal base, with a faint tang and a lemony sharpness in the background. Nicotine dose is measured, while flavor intensity is pronounced; it burns cool when smoked slowly, but tends to bite the tongue when rushed. Since the flake's moisture can run high straight from the tin, airing it before packing is common practice. A record aimed at smokers seeking unflavored Virginia who are considering cellaring the tin; not suitable for those expecting an aromatic.