Welcome back Snustopians!I thought this week we would continue our journey into “Value Priced” snus by reviewing the other low priced brand in the Swedish Match family, Tre Ankare. I know you’re all saying “Snus Guy, what’s up with the low priced snus reviews?” Basically, I wanted to review lower priced snus brands for two reasons. The first one you all may remember from our review of Kronan. Long story short, I want to make sure that Tre Ankare, as well as other value priced snus, doesn’t get the branding that value priced foods and merchandise get which is, that they are typically subpar in taste and quality.
The second reason is that Tre Ankare is a relatively unknown snus brand. I don’t mean that nobody knows that Tre Ankare is a snus brand, just that it’s not as popular as its well known siblings in the Swedish Match family like General and Röda Lacket! So, with that information in hand, let’s begin our journey into Tre Ankare White and Mini White portion snus.
Tre Ankare is, as I said above, another snus brand made by the fine folks at Swedish Match AB. Tre Ankare also comes in both a mini and a regular sized portion. Both types are white portions which, as you all remember, do not go thru the additional wetting step.
The portion material for both regular and mini is the same type that Swedish Match uses in all its white portions and, pretty soft and comfortable under the lip. Each regular White portion has 1 gram of snus and there are 24 portions per can. The Nicotine content is 8 mg per portion. With the Mini White portions, there is about .5 grams of snus per portions and 20 portions per can. Nicotine content in the Mini White portions is 4 mg per portion.
Here, I want to bring up a concern that has been brought up by some Snustopians regarding White portions. The concern is that some White portions can be a bit irritating in the beginning. While I haven’t run into this
with Tre Ankare, I have come across it in a few others and the question remains why. The answer is not necessarily in the material its self, but the moisture level in the snus as well! “Ok Snus Guy, you’re going to have to explain this one!” Alright, let’s get to it, it’s pretty simple!While the quality of the portion material is pretty important, since there is no additional wetting process with White portions, the moisture level in the snus plays a big role in the comfort of the portion too. “We get it Snus Guy but, why does the moisture level in the snus play a big role?” Good question! When the snus has a lower moisture content, it can be a bit grainy and allow the portion to slide a bit under the lip. This can cause some discomfort if the material is of a lower quality. When it has higher moisture content, the snus will stay together better and help the portion to stay put. See, pretty easy explanation! Now, back to the task at hand, Tre Ankare!
The cans with both types of Tre Ankare are made of plastic and have the compartment for used portions on the lid. Another thing about the lids is the cool engraving of a coat of arms! I know, enough about the lids!
As I said, both the regular sized portions and the minis are pretty comfortable under the lip. I had both in for about 2 ½ hours with virtually no discomfort to speak of. What does happen after the 2 ½ mark is that the portion tends to get a bit weird feeling and, can slip down a bit. No discomfort but can get a bit aggravating so, I recommend a 2 hour max with both for full enjoyment! So, what about the taste? Let’s take a look, starting with the Full sized portions!
To be honest, I couldn’t really tell any flavor difference between the full sized portions and the mini portions, only a difference between how long each lasted. I’ll divulge that bit of information later so; let’s get back to the taste.
Tre Ankare’s flavor is pretty mild compared to most of the other snus brands that Swedish Match has. Most of Swedish Match’s snus brands have a strong, predominant flavor of some kind. In General Onyx, you can really make out the citrus and salt within the first few minutes! With Kronan, the dill and tobacco are right up front as well. Tre Ankare, on the other hand, doesn’t have that “in your face” flavor up front. Rather, a very light tobacco flavor with a touch of salt.
Swedish Match describes the flavor of Tre Ankare as “A snus with full bodied and distinct flavor of dark tobacco and dried herbs”. While the taste of the tobacco is the predominant flavor with the background flavor being salt, it’s not very strong. Another very subtle background flavor is there as well but, it took me a while to figure it out. It’s pretty close to parsley or a peppery greens type flavor but like I said, it’s really faint but does go well with the overall flavor! It seems though; the longer a portion is in, the more the flavor seems to come out but the flavor still remains pretty mild. I’ve had a portion of regular white’s flavor last about 2 hours which I recommend as a max and a portion of Mini’s flavor last about an hour which I also recommend as a max. So, what to drink!
I thought that with Tre Ankare I’d skip the Diet Coke and Monster test. “Snus Guy! Are you feeling ok? You review all snus with Diet Coke and Monster energy drinks!” I know, but with the light flavor of Tre Ankare I knew that both of these would really overpower it. So, I decided to try lighter flavored drinks. I tried iced coffee with Tre Ankare and it did go well, much better than hot coffee. The coffee helped to bring the tobacco flavor out but, since coffee varies in strength depending on where you get it, stronger varieties, like Starbucks, completely overpowered the flavor. Green tea, either hot or cold, was the definite winner with Tre Ankare! The light tea flavor brought out the light tobacco flavor while combating the subtle saltiness. In actuality, the Green tea helped me to define the parsley flavor as well so; it’s my recommended drink of choice! My overall recommendation for Tre Ankare White portion and Mini White portion snus Snustopians is this; Snustopians new to the world of Swedish snus would really like Tre Ankare. Its light salty taste and mild flavor will allow you to get used to the Nicotine and the taste of true Swedish snus. Snustopians looking for a Mini portion snus that has a basic tobacco flavor without the mint or fruitiness of other minis will find that Tre Ankare fills that need! Seasoned Snustopians that like the boldness in flavors that Swedish snus is known for, may not like Tre Ankare. You will find that Tre Ankare’s flavor may be too light but, I’ll leave that decision up to you!
Prices for Tre Ankare White portion snus average about $3.45 USD depending on the shop and the Minis average about $3.20. But, if you visit Snustopia’s number one shop for Swedish snus, The Northerner, and it’s your first time buying from them, you can save 10% at checkout on your order by clicking on the banner near the top right of this page! Just tell em’ That Snus Guy sent you!
Well Snustopians, I hope you found our tour of Tre Ankare White portion and Mini White portion snus helpful and informative. I encourage you to leave comments and any questions you may have at the bottom of this page and, I’ll do my best to answer them as soon as I can!
Until our next review, as always,
Happy Snusing!
That Snus Guy
3 comments:
Well since I can't find a answer to what i am experiencing with Snus I thought i would post a comment to you. I get little to no flavor from any type of snus. I have just started reading your blog so bare with me. When you have a snus in is there slight pressure on the portion from your lip and gums because i have no pressure on the bag at all and i think that is why i get no flavor unless i literally squeeze it with my lip and gums. even then only for a second.
any help you could give would be much appreciated. I apologize for asking this here but wasn't sure where else to ask.
Hi Segmond!
Never be sorry about posting a question here. I'm happy to help and offer my opinions to you! :)
Depending on how long you have been using Swedish snus, you may or may not have any pressure on the portion as it sits in the upper lip.
New Snus users, will probably have a bit of pressure on the portion until the upper lip gets used to it being there. It will stretch a bit to accomidate the portion over time. I've been using snus for quite a bit of time and, my lip really dosen't put pressure on it.
What may be happening, in my opinion, is that since the portion sits in the upper lip, it does stay pretty dry up there. When the portion stays dry, the flavor will not be as prevelant as it would if it gets a little moisture. If your new to snus, make sure the portion is as close to the middle of your lip as possible. I keep mine just to the side of the little piece of skin inside the middle of my lip. If you use the outside of your lip as a guide, just to the left or right of the divot under your nose.
If you are keeping it there now, try putting it a little furthur back. This will let your saliva hit the portion and release the flavor. you could also place the portion in your mouth for a few seconds to wet it prior to placing in your lip.
I hope these ideas help and please post back after trying them and let me know if they solved the problem. If not, we can try some other ideas!
Happy Snusing,
That Snus Guy
Many of the Swedish style snus' I have used do have a more delicate flavor. I too wondered about the psychological well being of many of those that would go on about the light hints of this, and the subtle tastes of whatever when I first began snusing. But fear not! It is there.
You see I never believed others as they would point out that things taste better after you quit smoking. I always thought it was propaganda designed to keep me from my beloved cigarette. But about a month after I finally switched full on to snus, I began to taste the hint of this. The very first time I got to partake in the suble taste of whatever, I had to put another in...just to see that I was not loosing my mind. It is there!
In short Segmond, If you are still smoking...quit! and you are almost guaranteed to have someone else give you a blank stare as you bring up the elderflower and boysenberry whisper that resides deep in your favorite snus.
-Talb
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