McClelland Yenidje Highlander

Yenidje Highlander is the blend in which McClelland's Grand Orientals series pairs the Yenidje variety with Latakia. Yenidje leaf, grown in Western Thrace north of Xanthi, is joined by both Cyprian and Syrian Latakia, matured red Virginia, and a bit of Maryland to help regulate the burn. Records indicate the blend was built as a nod to the old Balkan Sobranie style; both the company and this source of Yenidje leaf have since disappeared. Yenidje's bright, faintly smoky, only slightly sweet character merges with Latakia's sooty base; the result is a Balkan structure with no harsh edges but high flavor intensity.