Montecristo Portion snus, our first “Cuban” snus review!

Greetings Snustopians!

This week, I was sitting here in my office at the Ministry of Information trying to brief my colleagues on the wonderful things that I saw and learned during my trip to Sweden. While we were talking, I decided to grab a can of snus out of my mini fridge and I saw a snus that I had completely forgot about, Montecristo portion snus! You see, when Larry, from SnusCENTRAL, and I first arrived at our hotel in Gothenburg, we decided to find a snus store in the train station below our hotel. We found a small gift shop that had a snus cooler (almost every shop in Gothenburg has a snus cooler of some sort) and decided to take a look. What we saw was all different brands of snus but the Cuban snus is what caught my eye! So, I decided to buy a couple of cans of each brand and try them all! I thought I used all the Montecristo I bought in Sweden but I had inadvertently put one in my checked bag. I pulled it out of the fridge and remembered a quote I had read in an ad that described Montecristo portions snus as the “Champagne of snus”. That’s when I adjourned the briefing and decided we were going to find out why Montecristo portion snus is known as the “Champagne of snus”! So, if you’re ready, let’s begin our review Montecristo portion snus by Taboca AS.



“Hey Snus Guy, isn’t Montecristo a cigar company?” Well, no actually. Montecristo, in the cigar world, is a very famous brand name. The cigars are produced by a manufacturer for the Montecristo brand. The same is true of Montecristo snus. The manufacturer of the Montecristo brand is Taboca AS and the snus is manufactured in Sweden. “But Snus Guy, you said that Montecristo is a Cuban snus! How can a snus be Cuban but, made in Sweden?” Hold on, you’re getting ahead of me! Let me explain a bit. Montecristo snus actually has 3 countries to thank for its taste! The first country is, obviously, Cuba because the tobacco used for the snus is 100% hand selected tobacco from all over the island. The second country is Norway. Taboca AS uses only pure mountain water from Norway to manufacture Montecristo and the last country we have to thank for Montecristo is Sweden! Taboca takes both of these elements and manufacturers Montecristo to the same high standards that all Swedish snus is made so, now you know how a Cuban snus can be a Swedish snus as well and we’ve uncovered one of the reasons that Montecristo portion snus is called the “Champagne of snus”. Now, let’s take a look at the portions themselves!

The material that Taboca uses for Montecristo is the same kind that they use in all of their portion snus and is pretty comfortable under the lip for over two hours. They are also classified as regular portions meaning that they go thru the extra step in the manufacturing process that adds a bit more moisture to each portion but, not just any moisture! This is where more of the pure Norwegian mountain water is used that also adds another flavor element to the snus, how quick the flavor is released in the lip! It only takes a minute or two to taste the flavors and once you do, the flavor lasts for over two hours! Each can of Montecristo has 24, one gram portions as well! “Ok Snus Guy, but what about the Nicotine?” The Nicotine level in Montecristo is another reason to call it the “Champagne of snus” in the fact that there is 11 mg of Nicotine per portion but there isn’t the kick you would expect with a snus that has that higher Nicotine content. While some new Snustopians that are used to 8 mg of Nicotine in snus may feel it more, most Snustopians don’t.

The can that Montecristo comes in is unique as well. It has a metal can that’s painted in the famous Montecristo color scheme that is on their cigar boxes, with the Montecristo logo on the lid and the gold and black chasing around the outside of the lid but, that’s not the only thing making it unique. The paint that Taboca uses almost has a rubberized feel to it that allows you to keep a firm grip on the can even if it were to get wet! Montecristo’s lid also makes a great seal with the bottom of the can that really keeps the moisture in. The only down side to the can is the absence of a used portion compartment. “Snus Guy, you’re obsessing about the can again! We want to know how it tastes already!” Sorry, the can is pretty cool though! Ok, enough about the can, let’s go to the taste.

In the past, whenever I’ve heard the words Montecristo and tobacco together, I would automatically think great cigars. Actually, this is pretty much the norm in the states since Montecristo snus is relatively new in the tobacco world. While the Montecristo brand has been on fine Cuban cigars since the 1930’s and on Dominican cigars since the 50’s, Montecristo snus was launched in 2008. Just like the cigars that share its name, the taste is unmistakably unique! Taboca describes Montecristo as having a rich tobacco taste and flavors of lemon and bergamot. The rich tobacco taste comes from the Cuban tobacco. If you have ever experienced smoking a Montecristo Cuban cigar, you’ll be able to tell the distinct flavor of Cuban tobacco. For those Snustopians that have never smoked a Cuban cigar or, are living in America, Cuban tobacco has a unique flavor that distinguishes it from its cousin Dominican tobacco. Cuban tobaccos tend to have a peppery flavor with earthy, leathery undertones and a touch of flowers that almost give it a black tea flavor while Dominican tobaccos have just the opposite.

The other flavor element in Montecristo is the citrus. While the description states that there are Lemon/bergamot flavors, I can only taste lemon. But that’s not a bad thing. Since there is a smaller amount of salt in Montecristo than other Swedish snus, you can really taste the tobacco and lemon. These flavors combined with the hint of salt and slight flowery elements give Montecristo the taste of a fine Black tea and another reason to be called the “Champagne of snus”. Now what to drink with Montecristo portion snus? This may surprise you.

“Couldn’t we just drink the same things we would with a fine Cuban cigar Snus Guy?” Well, yes and no actually. While the flavor of Montecristo portion snus is unmistakably Cuban, it’s not as strong as it is in the cigars. That and the fact of being able to taste not only the tobacco from the end of the cigar but the flavor of the smoke as well so, drinks that have strong flavors like dark beers, strong liquors and energy drinks will drown out the delicate flavors in the snus. What I did try was my staple Diet Coke first. The Diet Coke’s flavor went well but the artificial sweetener made the snus bitter. Iced Black teas like Earl Grey did extremely well in bringing out the tea flavor in Montecristo. The bergamot in Earl Grey helped to enhance the lemon flavor and the tea complements the tobacco taste and brings the peppery taste to the front more. “But what about drinks like brandy and other aperitifs Snus Guy? Are they too strong?” Not really. I had to enlist my typical band of Guinea Pigs for this part of the review!

I had them try a few different after dinner drinks; one would have with a fine cigar, with Montecristo portion snus and asked them what they thought. The first one we tried was Hennessy Cognac and they all felt that the cognac was much too strong a flavor for Montecristo snus. The next one was rum. While we really wanted to try it with a Cuban rum, we couldn’t get our hands on some so we picked a close match which was a fine Puerto Rican rum, Bacardi Superior. Some sipped it straight while the others chose to drink a Mojito. Both were good but, the Bacardi Superior straight fared better. The last, and best according to my Guinea Pigs, was Grand Marnier! The light orange flavor mixed with the lemon flavor in the snus and the Cuban tobacco to create a taste that is a perfect match. The sweetness in the Grand Marnier also created another depth and helped to round everything out. So, for non-alcoholic drinks, Iced Earl Grey tea is the favorite and for after dinner drinks, Grand Marnier wins out!

My overall recommendation for Montecristo portion snus by Taboca AS Snustopians is this; Montecristo is definitely the “Champagne of snus” in design and taste. For Snustopians that are looking to try a snus that’s truly unique, Montecristo is the one to try. New Snustopians that want to experience a higher Nicotine snus with a smoother flavor than most will do well with Montecristo as well. The downside is that Montecristo is not available to U.S. residents at this time but, if you find yourself traveling to Sweden or other countries in Europe, I really recommend you give Montecristo a try.

For you Snustopians that live outside the U.S., the best place to get Montecristo portion snus is at Northerner.com. They have Montecristo portion snus at a great price and deliver almost anywhere!

Well Snustopians, I hope you enjoyed our tour thru Montecristo portion snus and found in fun and informative. I invite you to ask any questions or leave comments about our tour by clicking the comments link at the bottom of this article. I look forward to reading them and will answer them all as soon as I can.

So Snustopians, until our next review, as always,

Happy Snusing!

That Snus Guy