A seven (7) year hiatus?

It's been a very, very long time. 7 years... that's some next level slacker shit, to be sure. I've been snusing since 2004... wrote about the experience for a few years, but fizzled out quickly. Why? Well, there's not been a lot for me to talk about. I love tobacco. Moreover, I love tobacco flavored tobacco. During my initial run, I managed to quickly cover all the products that meet this criteria. Sadly, that list is even shorter today than it was 7 years ago. So why am I back? Erm... my therapist says I need a creative outlet (yes, I'm fucking serious). I won't even pretend my motivation is much more altruistic than that. I mean, if I help someone make the switch to snus (from cigs, vape, nic pouches or dip), I'll call it a win, or if I help someone learn to appreciate snus in it's pure (not mouthwash or koolaid flavored) form, even more so... but admittedly, I write primarily for my own amusement. Given there's not a lot I'm interested in reviewing (I do have a few on deck), I will likely be focusing on flavor posts (all puns intended). How, when and why I use snus... helpful hints, tips and tricks... pairings... if it's snus related, it's fair game. Happy snusing!

REVIEW: Standardizing the Process

Okay, so this effort isn't likely to make my review process anymore objective... but, I think it will go a long way to adding some cohesiveness to the process.  In addition to my usual ramblings, I'm going to add a rating system to my reviews.  Yes, I will retroactively add these to previous reviews (might even polish up some grammar while I'm at it *grins*).  The rating system (on a scale of 0.0-10.0) will be as follows:

Appearance -  packaging, presentation
Aroma - *sniff*
Mouth Feel - how the snus treats your lip
Flavor - how it tastes, and how long it lasts
Nic Hit - delivery of nicotine... both content and duration
Drip - how well it treats your teeth
Overall - could be an average, or sometimes weighted (to accommodate something truly special)

Also, I'll be reserving the title "NEW" for snuses reviewed within ~90 days of their release.

***EDIT*** So I got around to adding the scale to my previous reviews.  On my living favorites (where I'm reviewing brands as opposed to cans) I decided to go with just the Overall, too many variables in different formats (white, original, loose, mini etc) for me to be assed with *grins*

About this blog (organization, mission, purpose, and shit like that)

So a couple of weeks into this endeavor, and I'm starting to get into my stride. First topic, organization... since I'm a "only read the headlines" kinda guy, I assume a little categorizing will make navigating this half-assed attempt of a blog a little easier *grins*. The categories are pretty much what you think they are; SNUS 101 is an introduction to new snusers, NEWS new products/legislation, IMHO = in my humble opinion (which is anything but humble)... editorials etc, REVIEWS self-explanatory, and last but not least TASTE--the heart of my efforts, and where the connoisseur in me is most likely to come out. I will say that this blog is largely bereft of any mission or purpose... but if it had one, it would be "a shoppers aid for new snusers, and/or trusted source for experts". To that aim, I will do my best to keep this blog "pure" as in, not becoming a tool for tobacco manufacturers/distributors or government propaganda/special interest... if I'm to be labeled a "tool" for anything, it'll be my personality or what I do for my little lady in the bedroom *evil grins*. So, while this blog may be bursting at the seams with opinion/personal preference etc... rest assured that money isn't a motivator... I'd like to say politics aren't either... but that would be a bold-faced-lie... I'm a huge proponent of tobacco harm reduction, torn between Libertarian and progressive ideals. I do this out of my love for snus and because I love to "hear myself talk" or type... er... you know what I mean *grins*. You'll notice my writing style varies by mood... so some days will be dry and to the point, some will be full of piss and vinegar, some will be funny--but always it will be full of grammatical faux pas... overuse of ellipsis (...), my Wowhead emotes (*winks*, *grins* etc), pop-culture references... so if you're looking for something well written, better look elsewhere. *winks*

TASTE: A matter of preference

Before I start talking about or reviewing snus, I think it's only fair to mention my bias when it comes to these products. I'm not a fan of overly sweetened, or artificially flavored anything. I like my tobacco to taste like tobacco, not candy, or mouthwash, or kool-aid. I drink my coffee black, I drink my tea plain... that said, I only buy the best coffee (single origin fresh roasted beans), tea, and tobacco. I enjoy the nuances and subtle flavors in their most unadulterated states... in a sense, I'm a purist. So you won't find a lot of mint, or fad flavor reviews here... I will get the odd can to mix things up, but as a rule they're just not my can of snus.

Introducing the Snus Taster--Adam

I'm an American, who's been using Swedish snus since 2004. My search began with the aim of ending my 8 year long smoking habit (14->22 years of age)... with smoking bans on the rise, my teens behind me (read: a new found respect for my health)... I knew it was time to quit. I had seen success with smokeless in the past (namely dip, Copenhagen, Skoal etc) but as a junior executive, the unsightly spittoons, bulging lip and general inability to be discreet just didn't make it a good option for me. As a pack and half (sometimes two) a day smoker, gums/patches just didn't have enough "kick" to satisfy my cravings... so I began googling "premium smokeless tobacco", which led me to Skruf los. I made the mistake of "dipping" it, and after a few unsuccessful attempts and more searching, I learned the art of baking a prilla, and placing it in my upper lip. I was pleasantly surprised with the lack of salivary response, the lack of cravings, and the lack of sickeningly sweet kool-aid/mouthwash flavoring (of dip), the lack of development of leather lip (rough patches... from dip)... long story short, I fell in love with everything snus wasn't. To sweeten the deal, I found a can lasting me 2-3 days which made for quite the savings. In today's market it's at least 1/3 of the cost of cigarettes, even after factoring shipping from Sweden. Further research revealed that the carcinogenic content of Swedish snus was dramatically lower than that of US smokeless (and both being monumentally less harmful than smoking). So to recap, I found Swedish Snus to be an alternative to smoking (and US smokeless) that satisfied my cravings, is cheaper, discrete and less harmful... and I've been a happy snus user ever since. Well, that's the abbreviated back story to my love affair with snus... the purpose of this blog as the title implies is to talk about the different tastes/varieties I've come to enjoy, as well as anything else pertaining to snus. If you start a similar journey you'll find a dizzying number of brands, strengths, sizes etc available... hopefully this will serve as a resource to those following in my footsteps! A little more about me, I'm a corporate food buyer, a foodie, with a strong background in cuttings (comparing flavors), and I'd like to think a very refined palate. As such, I get courted by prospective vendors regularly... taken to the finest eateries in the nation... in other words I'm spoiled by fine taste on a regular basis. Call me a gourmet... call me a snob... call me what you will (trust me, someone has already called me something worse *grins*). Of course, you'll be getting more than a smattering of my taste preferences... so take my advice with a grain of salt or koksalt as it were *grins*.