Greetings Snustopians!
Late Autumn, early Winter has always been my favorite time time of year here in Snustopia. Why you ask? Well, there’s a couple of reasons, the first one being that the leaves start to turn colors and here in Snustopia, it gives the forests a kind of surreal and calming look. Another reason is that the holidays are not too far off and my favorite one, Christmas, is getting ever closer but the main reason I like this time of year is that each November, a new Kardus is introduced to the snus loving world!
Now I know what you’re all thinking, “Why would you get all excited over Kardus Snus Guy? They come out with it every year!” Well, for those Snustopians that are new to snus, Kardus is an exclusive and ever changing snus! What I mean is that each year that Kardus is released, it has a new theme and flavor so, it’s a bit like waiting for an early Christmas present in November in a way. After we complete the review of Kardus Superior Blend, 2010 edition maybe you’ll understand a bit better so, grab a pris and a warm beverage and let’s begin!
Swedish Match has been creating Kardus Superior Blend every year since 2005 with a release date of around November 1st. Why wait until the end of each year to release it, you ask? Well, it's due to a couple of reasons. The first reason being how much time goes into creating Kardus and two, Autumn is typically when snus manufacturers introduce new flavors or brands. “Snus Guy, it can't take that long to make a new snus brand. After all, it's just tobacco and flavors right?” Actually, in the case of Kardus, it can take up to 3 years to make it from start to finish! From deciding what each year’s theme will be, what type of flavors will compliment the theme and which tobaccos to use to achieve the final taste can take quite a bit of time.
Kardus is also produced in an entirely different way than normal snus. It’s made the way Swedish snus would have been manufactured 200 years ago, entirely by hand! “By hand Snus Guy? This you have to explain”. Well, by hand I mean no machines to package the snus, no grinders to grind the tobacco or fancy, high tech flavor vats. Each edition of Kardus is cut by hand using centuries old cutting techniques that can take years to learn and are usually taught by father to son. There are not many people in the world that know how to cut tobacco in this fashion which is one of the reasons Kardus is an exclusive, limited run snus.
Flavoring is also done the traditional way by soaking the cut tobacco, in it’s primary flavorings, inside wooden barrels for several months, allowing the flavorings to penetrate deep into the tobacco and creating a unique, mellow flavor. After the flavorings are absorbed, which can take up to 18 months, the new snus is hand packaged in a special way so the tobacco doesn’t settle. As you can see, alot of time and passion goes into creating Kardus and why I get a bit excited when Autumn comes! Ok, now you know the basics behind the creation of Kardus, let’s take a look at this year’s offering!
This year's Kardus is unique since, in the past, multiple tobacco varieties have been used, while Kardus 2010 only uses one. The tobacco that has been chosen is from the island of Java, which is an island in Indonesia just south of Singapore, that is known for producing the world's finest teas, coffees and a unique type of tobacco that can only be found there. Along with the Javanese tobacco, Batavia Arrack (a liquor distilled from sugar cane with flavor components similar to Rum) is added to enhance the tobacco's flavors and give the finished product a well rounded taste. While we'll get into the flavors in more detail later, this is the basis for Kardus 2010. Let's take a look at the packaging for Kardus and get closer to seeing why this edition is a bit more special than past editions!
Fore the past 3 years, Kardus has been packaged in hand crafted, oak boxes made by the renowned Swedish cabinet maker Ulf Mellström but in this year's Kardus theme, it makes sense. Embedded in the lid is a shard of Qing dynasty porcelain that was recovered from the wreckage of the Swedish East Indian company's Götheborg sailing ship. On September 12th 1745, she was returning to her home port from China with her hold full of teas, spices and fine Chinese porcelain when she struck underwater rocks and promptly sank to the bottom of the sea. The crew and 1/3 of the cargo was saved but the majority of the porcelain was destined to be stuck on the seafloor until 1905 when it was finally recovered. It's this sunken treasure that makes up the shard of porcelain embedded in the lid of each box of Kardus! The box continues it's sea faring theme by being made of Oak, the same wood that made up the hull of the Götheborg. To cap it all off a smoked hemp cord, that would have been found on the ship, keeps the lid on the box. “Jeez SnusGuy, after all these months you still have box OCD! Who’d have thought!” I know, I know but the box is pretty special and the 100 year old shard of Chinese Porcelain is a part of this year's Kardus theme but, you’re right, let’s find out how it tastes and feels.I was pretty excited when the UPS box came and I saw it was from Sweden. I was hoping it would be my box of Kardus and, lo and behold, it was! I couldn't wait to see, and taste, what this years offering would be like but, the minute I opened the plastic that protected the box, I know I was in for a unique ride. The first thing that greeted me when I opened the plastic was the scent of smokiness. Not like the box had been on fire at some point but, a smokiness I can only liken to a Scotch nasal snuff! I thought to myself "Wow! This edition is really going to be powerfully flavored since I can smell the main tobacco flavor without even opening the box!" Well, I was wrong about that. In fact, the smoky scent was coming from the cord that was keeping the lid on the box but, while the smokiness is in the tobacco's flavor, it kind of put me in the correct mind frame. I remember going to see an exhibit on the Mayflower and when on the replica ship, there was hemp cord that had the same smoky smell and actually, caused the entire ship to have that light smell. "Ok, enough reminiscing of days past, let's get back to the review SnusGuy!" Right, on to the flavor.
Kardus 2010's flavor is pretty unique from the past offerings due to only one type of tobacco being used in it's production. In the past, a mix of two or three different varieties of tobacco have been used in order to create a unique flavor unlike any other. This year, the use of a unique, Javanese tobacco called "Ranjangan Pakpie Karang Jati", which is grown only on the east side of the island, is the only tobacco used. The tobacco is harvested, leaf by leaf, from only the middle of the plant, hand shredded and left to cure in the sun on traditional Bamboo mats. This tobacco has a myriad of complex flavors like earth, leather and bittersweet chocolate but what I taste in the background is a mild black olive flavor! Don't get me wrong folks, I love black olives and think this background flavor mixed with the other main tobacco flavors make this Kardus one of the better versions! It's not an overwhelming black olive flavor, just a hint in the background. The other flavoring is a Rum-like liquor called Batavia Arrack.
Arrack is a distilled alcohol product made from sugar cane or coconuts. The Batavia Arrack used in Kardus 2010 is made from sugar cane and has an overall flavor similar to dark rums that we're accustomed to. The Arrack in Kardus is more noticeable by smell than it is in flavor. In the beginning, the Arrack's rum flavor can be noticed but, after about 20 minutes it's replaced by the tobacco's other deep, complex flavors and almost barely noticeable. It's not a bad thing though, especially if you like a snus that has the ability to change it's character over the 2 hour flavor period. Overall, Kardus 2010's flavor is just what I would expect from the world's most exclusive snus, unique and well balanced!
"So, how does it feel in the lip Snus Guy? Some of us have never tried a hand cut loose snus." That brings up a great point with Kardus, how to get it in the lip. I've tried just about all methods of creating a pris with Kardus! I've used a Prismaster, 5 ml Icetool and the hand bake method and I can tell you that a Prismaster and any Icetool smaller than 5 ml just don't work! The 5 ml Icetool does work pretty well but the best way is the hand bake method or, just take a healthy pinch and put it in the upper lip. Hand baking or pinching allows more flavor to come out of the snus and makes for a more comfortable pris in the lip. Using a tool can compress the snus too much and create an uncomfortable experience. If you've never used a hand cut loose, just take a good sized pinch out of the can, place it in your palm and gently mold it into a pellet. Then place the pellet in your upper lip and enjoy the complex flavors of Kardus 2010!
To sum it all up, Swedish Match has hit yet another home run with this year's Kardus. If you have not tried the previous versions of this "one of a kind", hand made snus you have got to try this one. Like I said in the beginning, Kardus 2010 is limited to only 500 units made and will surely sell out quickly. While this is the world's most exclusive snus, it's also the world's most expensive! Each box of Kardus Superior Blend snus will run you about $79 USD at Snustopia’s only place for Swedish snus, The Northerner, but in my opinion, it's worth every penny.
Well Snustopians, I hope you've found this review of Kardus Superior Blend snus, 2010 edition helpful and informative. As always, feel free to ask and questions or leave me feedback on what brands you would like to see a review on and I'll answer them as soon as I can!
Happy Snusing,
That Snus Guy
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