Welcome back Snustopians!
As I was taking one of my famous long walks thru the gardens of Skruf Square last week, my trip to Sweden was still on my mind. I was remembering a small park just off the main boulevard that has canals, like the ones in Holland, meandering thru it and had been there for over 100 years. It reminded me of my own gardens here in Snustopia but not as old. That’s when it hit me. Our next review should be on a snus that not only comes from a beautiful place in the home of snus but, have a lot of history that’s tied to that place. So, this week, we’ll be reviewing a snus that comes from the island of Gotland in Sweden and that snus is Jakobsson’s Classic portion snus.
I picked Jakobsson’s Classic for a few reasons. The first one is the fact that it’s made by the folks at Gotlandssnus AB on the island of Gotland and has been made there since 1897. The new plant is actually located only a few miles where Jakob Jakobsson’s family farm is and where he came up with his recipe for his snus! While the basic recipe for Jakobsson’s Classic is more than 100 years old, the version we’ll be reviewing today was launched in 2008 with only a few changes. The second reason is because Gotlandssnus uses tobacco that’s grown right there on the island. This tobacco is called Alida and is grown only on the island of Gotland. So, now that you know a bit about the history of Jakobsson’s Classic portion snus, let’s get to the review!
Like we learned in the beginning, Jakobsson’s Classic is a regular type portion snus made by the folks at 
Gotlandssnus AB. Regular portions, as you all remember, are portions that go thru an added step in the manufacturing process that adds a bit more water to the portion’s material. “Water Snus Guy? Are you sure it’s water? We thought it was a type of juice made from the snus!” I thought the same thing until my trip to Gothenburg but it is just plain, filtered water. The reason we think of the liquid being a “snus juice” is the fact that while the regular portions are in the can, the bit of added water helps the flavors in the snus to marry together and release its flavor faster when it’s in your lip. The byproduct of this is the portion material turning brown and that’s where we got the whole “Snus Juice” myth! Ok, back to the review.
The material that Gotlandssnus uses for Jakobsson’s Classic portion is the same soft teabag type material that they use in all of their snus and is pretty comfortable under the lip for about 2 hours. The Nicotine content in Jakobsson’s Classic is at the same level as all Gotlandssnus brands which are 9 mg per portion. Now, I know you all really get antsy when I describe the different cans that snus come in but Jakobsson’s Classic had a pretty unique one! If you’ve read the Jakobsson’s Ice Fruit review, you pretty much know what the can looks like but, since we may have some new visitors to Snustopia, I have to give the can its due!
Jakobsson’s Classic’s can is, quite possibly, one of the most unique cans I’ve come across. While its makeup is basic black plastic with a plasticized paper label, it’s the designs in and on it that make it unique. Gotlandssnus wanted the cans for the Jakobsson’s line to reflect where the snus came from so, since Gotland is a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea, they decided to give the cans a nautical look. If you take a look at the top of the can, you’ll notice that there are notches on the lid that mimic the directional points on an antique compass! There are even degree hash marks between each directional waypoint. If you lift the center of the compass, you’ll find the used portion compartment underneath it and Gotlandssnus even embellished the bottom of the compartment with an old mapmaker’s directional key. The inside bottom of the can has the same mark. “It’s a pretty cool can Snus Guy! But, does the snus taste as good as the can looks?” Well, let’s take a look!
Gotlandssnus describes Jakobsson’s Classic as having a classic, memorable taste of snus, with an undertone of 
citrus. I know what you’re saying “Snus Guy, what does classic and memorable taste like?” I agree that using “Classic” and “Memorable” as taste descriptions really don’t make sense to Snustopians that have never tried snus or, seasoned Snustopians that haven’t tried Jakobsson’s before so, let’s try to describe it in a language that everyone can understand! The main taste in Jakobsson’s Classic is, obviously, tobacco but Gotlandssnus uses Alida tobacco along with other hand selected tobaccos from around the world so, what you taste is the earthy, leather flavor from the other tobaccos and a light herbal, grassy flavor that Alida tobacco is known for. Alida also imparts a slight sweetness that kind of offsets the light peppery flavor the other tobaccos also have.
The citrus flavor is another unique thing in Jakobsson’s Classic because it’s more of an orange, lemon flavor rather than the typical bergamot taste that is used in most snus when referring to “citrus”. When you combine all the flavor elements in Jakobsson’s Classic, you get a portion snus that is balanced in flavor and definitely Gotlands! The downside to Jakobsson’s Classic is that it has the same characteristic that all of Gotlandssnus’ snus brands do regarding the length of time the flavor lasts. I’ve had a portion in for about 2 hours and suddenly, the flavor gets bitter. I look at it this way, The Swedish use a portion for anywhere between 15 minutes and 45 minutes and swap it out for a new one. Gotlandssnus was created for use in Sweden so; anything over 45 minutes with the flavor is a definite bonus! Now, what to drink with Jakobsson’s Classic!
My staple drinks of Diet Coke and Monster Energy drink were the first I tried and I have to tell you that Diet Coke and Jakobsson’s Classic went really well together. This was due to the lemony notes in the snus that actually made a taste close to a 
Diet Coke with Lemon. The acidity in the Diet Coke also helped to bring out the tobacco flavor as well. The Monster didn’t do that well since its flavor was a bit too strong for the snus but the one thing that did go well with Jakobsson’s Classic was an Arnold Palmer! “Hey Snus Guy, how could a golf pro go well with a snus?” No, no, not that Arnold Palmer, the drink! For those of you that don’t know what an Arnold Palmer is, it’s made with half sweet iced tea and half lemonade. It’s named after its creator, Arnold Palmer, and really goes well with Jakobsson’s Classic. The iced tea flavor helped to enhance the tobaccos and the lemonade brought out the citrus. It’s really the best combination!
My overall recommendation for Jakobsson’s Classic portion snus, Snustopians, is this; Jakobsson’s Classic is truly an historic snus that’s unique to Sweden due to the Alida tobacco. Snustopians that want to experience a snus that has the classic flavors of tobacco and citrus but, like a portion that’s a bit lighter in flavor, Jakobsson’s Classic is the snus for you. Seasoned Snustopians will find Jakobsson’s Classic’s orange and lemon mix a refreshing change from the normal bergamot as well but, I’ll let you decide! At approximately $3.19 USD a can at Snustopia’s favorite snus shop, Northerner.com, you really can’t go wrong by adding a can or two to your next order! Just be sure to tell them That Snus Guy sent you and get 10% off if you're a first time customer!
Well Snustopians, I hope you enjoyed our tour of Jakobsson’s Classic portion snus and found it informative and fun and encourage you to leave any questions, comments or suggestions you may have about Jakobsson’s Classic or any snus! I look forward to reading and answering them as soon as I can.
So, until our next review Snustopians, as always,
Happy Snusing!
That Snus Guy
http://www.snustest.com/
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
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Welcome back Snustopians!
I thought today we’d continue our tour of the fascinating way that snus is made by sharing with you another experience both Larry from SnusCENTRAL and I had while touring the Swedish Match factory in Gothenburg, Sweden. Not only did the wonderful folks at Swedish Match let us tour the factories, they also showed us the different processes that are involved in creating the flavors we all like and how new ones are developed. In this review, we’ll be looking at the flavoring process but not in a way that you would think. I think, by now, you know how they did it just by the title of the review! Yes Snustopians, Swedish Match actually let Larry and I create our own snus flavors and this review will be on a snus called “That Snus Guy’s Own” Vanilla Berry loose snus! “Snus Guy, they let YOU create a flavor? Really?” Now, be kind! Remember, I just review the flavors! But it was pretty cool to do and see so, without any further self promoting from me, let’s review the flavoring process and how my snus turned out!
If you asked me before the trip how snus was flavored, I would have said 
that artificial flavors were used and that the final product was developed by some scientists in white lab coats and poured into the flavoring drums. But now that I’ve personally experienced the process, I know that this way is not entirely true. While there are white lab coats and a scientist or two, Swedish Match gets a lot of input from their customers while researching new flavors. And as for artificial flavors, there are a lot of natural flavorings and extracts used in the making of Swedish snus! “So Snus Guy, are you saying that ALL Swedish Match snus is flavored with natural flavorings?” Not really and here’s why!
As we were being told about the flavoring process by Conny Andersson, probably the most passionate person I’ve ever met regarding flavors and how they intermingle and react with tobacco, I began to realize that some flavorings, in their natural state, may not be practical to use like mint leaves or raw ginger for example. Some are just not strong enough to taste without using massive amounts of it like Vanilla beans or just do not exist naturally like Tutti-Frutti. “Tutti-Frutti Snus Guy? We think you may have stayed too long near the Probe Whiskey vat!” Actually, it’s one of the flavorings I used in my snus but, I’m jumping ahead!
You see, sometimes artificial flavors and extracts are needed in order to create the flavor combination you want. It’s like baking a cake. Let’s say that you want to create a lemon flavored white cake with mint frosting. Some people use natural lemon juice and lemon zest to flavor the cake but, the high temperature can cause the lemon flavor to bake out. Some people really don’t like the texture of chunks of lemon zest in a cake and it can turn the color of the cake yellow. Here, lemon extract is used to get the flavor since the extract will withstand the heat and provide the lemon taste, without the chunks and coloring! With the frosting, mint leaves just plain don’t work and Mint extract would be the practical solution. “We get it now Snus Guy! So, how did you do it with your snus?” Let’s go into that now.
The first step in flavoring anything is getting a good base. With Swedish snus, the base is quality tobacco. Like we talked about in the last review of the manufacturing process, Swedish Match uses handpicked tobacco from 
many different places in all their snus. In my snus, we used Ettan loose as a base because its flavor is just pure tobacco and salt with no other flavorings. The next step is to decide what exactly you want your finished product to taste like. Here, we see the different types of flavorings we had to use. At first, I just added the things that I thought would make a good tasting snus. Boy was I wrong! I added Vanilla beans and rum extract, thinking this would really taste good! Well, I forgot that one of the things I like about loose snus is the smell. My first attempt at snus flavoring was horrendous but I did learn something. Never jump right in and I realized why it takes snus manufacturers so long to develop new flavors! My second attempt turned out much better because I took the time to think how I wanted the snus to taste and smell! It was here that I designed “That Snus Guy’s Own Vanilla Berry Loose snus”!
Yes, I know it sounds weird but, let’s see if I can do it some justice by reviewing the flavor for you! Since the base is Ettan, the dominant flavor is pure tobacco but it’s the only remaining element from Ettan that’s in Vanilla Berry. My goal for Vanilla Berry was to make a loose snus that would have the flavors I would like to see in a snus which is Vanilla and Red Berries. Kind of like a cross between Offroad Vanilla and Röda Lacket but a little sweeter. What I did was added real vanilla beans and the ingredient we talked about before, Tutti-Frutti flavor!
Tutti-Frutti is a flavor that has the scent of a mix of red berries with a light, almost non-existent, black licorice
smell. The taste is really close to Juicy Fruit gum but when it’s added to tobacco, takes on a completely different flavor! The Ettan has a leafy, peaty almost leathery taste by its self. When you add the vanilla and Tutti-Frutti flavors, the vanilla gets mellowed while bringing out a bit more of the licorice flavor in the Tutti-Frutti! “So, you basically made a Vanilla and Black Licorice flavored snus, Snus Guy?” Not really. The licorice flavor is still barely noticeable like it is in Röda Lacket but with the vanilla and berry flavor mixed in; the entire combination is pretty complex! Imagine sitting in a just raked pile of fall leaves while eating a bowl of mixed berry sorbet with a portion of Grov Svart in your lip and you pretty much have Vanilla Berry! I know, long way around a simple explanation but this still goes to the tremendous amount of work that goes into creating snus flavors! I only had an hour to make Vanilla Berry so, just think what the guys at Swedish Match will go thru when it’s time to make a new flavor! So, let’s take a look at what drinks would go well with Vanilla Berry!
I’m telling you, Monster Energy Drink was phenomenal with Vanilla Berry! It actually added the one element I needed that wasn’t on the flavor table, bitterness! The Monster’s bitterness mellowed out the fruitiness a bit and allowed the vanilla to come thru. Diet Coke just drowned out the Tutti-Frutti flavor but did help the tobacco flavor a bit. The second best thing though was Sweet tea! The sweet tea brought the vanilla flavor out as well but helped it to mix in with the other flavors and added the sweet element that I was looking for.
I know that here, Snustopians, I usually tell you where you can buy the snus we reviewed and what my recommendations would be but, since I highly doubt that “That Snus Guy’s Own” Vanilla Berry loose snus will be in your favorite snus shop anytime soon, all I can tell you is this; those Snustopians that want to try your hand at flavoring your own snus, should use a snus that is just pure tobacco flavor, like Ettan. Remember that some natural flavors, like mint or ginger, have another set of challenges if you use them like weird texture issues and the possibility of going bad sooner that the expiration date on the snus can and that artificial flavors can be your best bet! Another thing is to use your imagination to make the flavor that you like because; you have to be able to describe it to people!
The final thing Snustopians is, have fun with it! Thanks to my friends at Swedish Match, I now have a snus flavor I can call my own and had a blast making it! I hope this inspires you to try your hand at it and that I reviewed the process and my snus well enough!
If you do give it a try, leave me a note in the comment section! Who knows, I may ask you if I can review it!
Until our next review Snustopians, as always,
Happy Snusing!
That Snus Guy
Welcome back Snustopians!
I’ve been sitting here in my office at the Ministry of Information all week, recalling all the beautiful things I saw in Gothenburg and the wonderful people I met, trying to figure out how I would communicate all of this to you. While it all seems like some wonderful dream, I was having a hard time believing it actually happened! As you all know, it’s been my ultimate dream to be able to go to Sweden and actually see, with my own eyes, how Swedish snus was made so I could tell everyone here in Snustopia and it finally came true via the great folks at Swedish Match. But how can I make it feel like you all have been there and put what I’ve learned in a format that everyone could understand? That’s when it hit me! Why not take everyone on a virtual tour!
“Hey Snus Guy, are you going to make us wear those goofy looking 3D glasses or have us buy some expensive helmet to do this?” Well…….while I wish I had the funding to do that, I think putting this article in my typical review format, and include pictures for each step in the process, we can forgo the expensive equipment and still get the point across! So, if everyone’s ready, grab a glass of your drink of choice, a comfy chair and a tin of snus and we’ll begin our tour of the way real Swedish snus is made!
Before we begin, I’d like to thank all the great people at Swedish Match AB’s Gothenburg and Kungälv factories as well as the guys from the Stockholm Headquarters for a fun and extremely informative tour! Without their willingness to share the Swedish Experience with me, this review would not have been possible. Tack så mycket! With that said, since the factories I toured were Swedish Match’s, we’ll be referencing their brands in this tour but, the basic manufacturing processes, save a few proprietary ones, can be said of most Swedish snus that follows the GothiaTek standard. Ok, let’s begin!
As with all Swedish snus the first, and most abundant, ingredient is tobacco, but not just any tobacco. Swedish Match uses a blend of tobaccos from around the world in their snus. Tobaccos from Nicaragua, South Africa, 
Spain and America are used just to name a few. Once these tobaccos are air-dried, blended and packed, they are shipped to the factory where they are taken to the grinder and ground to the specifications of the snus they happen to be making. The picture to the right shows the bales of tobacco being prepped prior to entering the grinder! “Hey, is that you Snus Guy smelling the tobacco? How does it really smell?” Yes, the one in the middle is me. The guy on the right is Larry Waters from SnusCENTRAL.org and the one on the left is Andreas Riksén, Master tobacco grinder and our guide thru the grinding process. Andreas is very passionate about what he does, as are all the great folks at Swedish Match, and allowed us to feel and smell the raw tobacco, something that outsiders rarely get to do! I know, you asked about the smell. That’s something that may surprise you!
Unless you’ve been to an actual tobacco ageing barn or have smelled tobacco prior to processing, it can be very hard to describe all the scents that raw tobacco has. As I stood there, holding the big chunk of tobacco, a myriad of scents began to come out. The first scent was of a pile of autumn leaves, like the kind you would rake up in a big pile and jump into when you were young. The next scent was of raw leather, like a new leather glove or shoe. The final scent was of peat. Peat has an earthy, mossy scent that, when combined with the others, creates a true fall foliage smell that reminded me of when I was growing up in Northern Illinois and playing in the leaf piles my Grandpop would rake up, without the “Hey you damn kids! Get outta there, I just raked those up!” we’d normally hear! This scent is pretty much prevalent throughout the entire factory but was the strongest at the grinder.
Once the tobacco bundles, which are about as big as a small deep freezer, 
are unboxed, they travel up a conveyor to the grinding mills. The grinding mills look just like a flour mill and pretty much work the same way. Since this step was proprietary, I couldn’t take any pictures with exception to the one on the left. The guy in the picture is Joakim, one of the team from the Stockholm office, and he takes this very seriously as you can see by the “Area 51” reference he’s pointing to, so a small flour mill is the best way to describe it! Once the tobacco is ground, it’s moved to a sifting box that shakes rapidly and separates the ground tobacco into sizes. If it’s not the right size, it goes back into the grinding mill until it is. Like I said, the tobacco grinding process is very similar to the flour milling process. From here, the tobacco goes to the steam pasteurizing area.
Here is where real Swedish snus begins! Up until now, tobacco was manipulated by human hands. From here on out, the process is hands free meaning, untouched by human hands until you Snustopians open a can of your favorite and use it! This is where we begin to see the GothiaTek process in action. “Hey Snus Guy, we’ve heard of the GothiaTek process! That’s where the snus has to conform to the same safety standards as food in Sweden, right?” Exactly! You guys have been paying attention! The GothiaTek process was created by Swedish Match and has pretty much become a standard in snus making throughout Sweden. Here, in the pasteurization room, a big rotating dryer actually uses heat and steam to cure the tobacco. American Smokeless tobacco, like Copenhagen and Skoal, uses fire curing to achieve its flavor where the steam does in Swedish snus. This is done at a lower temperature than fire curing and keeps the TSNA’s low.
The GothiaTek part is more of a health and safety process. In the factory there are 3 “zones” where you have to wear certain coverings like lab coats, shoe covers and hair nets. In the picture to the right, we’ve just come out of a “Yellow” zone. You may see someone in that picture you may not know. Although the four of us look like a screen shot from a Marx brother’s movie, the guy on the right, across from me, is Markus, another member of the team from Stockholm. “Yellow” zones mean lab coats and shoe coverings since we are near the machines but, they are sealed meaning you can’t touch the snus.
The area we just emerged from was the paper can manufacturing area for loose snus. This area was one of the most interesting for me since Swedish Match is the only snus manufacturer that still uses paper cans for their loose varieties of snus! Even though this part of the factory is proprietary, I can tell you that the cans start out as rolls of paper and come out cans. It was pretty interesting to see them made! The next part of the factory was the flavoring room!
The flavoring room is where, you guessed it, flavorings are added to the snus! Since this area of the factory 
holds the flavoring machines, it’s pretty quiet and plain. All there is in this part of the factory are large, insulated drums that mix the flavorings in to the snus. There are a few interesting things here though. The first thing is that the machines are actually made by the same company that manufactures Tanks for the Swedish military! This means, to me anyway, that these machines are built to a quality standard and will last a long time! But that’s not the most interesting thing. You see, the flavoring machines are actually on the 3rd floor of the factory! “Snus Guy, why would flavoring machines being on the 3rd floor of the factory be so interesting?” Remember when I said that after the grinder, the snus is never touched by human hands? Well, how do you think the snus gets from the flavoring machines to the packaging line? Probably the same way I thought it got there, by dumping it into a hopper. Well, I was wrong!
The way it gets to the line is when the snus is completely flavored, which can take a long time, it’s ejected thru the bottom of the flavoring machines, via a pipe system, down to the packaging line on the first floor. There are two dedicated packaging lines here at the Gothenburg factory as well as two at Kungälv, one for loose snus and another for portions. The only differences in the lines between the two 
factories are that at Kungälv, they package the portion snus with the “Star” pattern in the can like General Onyx and General White portion. This process is extremely protected and the only thing I can tell you is that it’s pretty cool. They also make all White portion snus there as well. Original portions, like Kronan, Ettan and General Original are made at Gothenburg. That brings us to the process that makes Original or Regular portion snus. I think you’ll be surprised!
Swedish snus is pretty much put into the portion material and packaged by machine. I know that was a no brainer but the speed and complexity in 
which they make a portion is mind boggling! It’s even more mind boggling when you consider that portions are made by the machine at a rate of about 2 per second and the error rate is around 2%! But understand that the errors also include under or over filled cans, misaligned labels and things that will not allow it to pass GothiaTek standards! “Snus Guy, if a can is not filled or a label is crooked, they consider it an error? Why not just add the missing portions or put a new label the can?” While it would be the easy way to reduce an already really low error rate, the GothiaTek standard is still in force here, any snus that doesn’t make the cut, gets destroyed, end of story. I know it sounds cruel but, if sacrificing a few cans is what it takes to be the best, I can live with that! “Snus guy, that’s pretty cool and all, but not that surprising. What are you leaving out?” Let’s discuss that now!
In all the reviews I’ve ever read since I began using Swedish snus, be it in a formal review, a forum thread or from people I’ve talked to that have used Swedish snus longer than I have, all agreed that the distinction between an original or regular portion and a White portion was the extra step of wetting the portion with a “snus juice” during the production process. I’ve even written many reviews on regular portions that have said just that. Well Snustopians, I’ve seen the regular portion production process and am here to tell you that the magical “snus juice” we’ve all been hearing about is………..water! “Snus Guy! It can’t be just water! The portions are just a brown as the snus and the juice tastes like snus, how can it be just water?” I was just as amazed as you are now but I’ve seen the process! But, at the end of the tour it all became clear.
The final process is the packaging and storing of the snus. This is done in a “Cool room”. Once the snus is 
packed in 10 can logs, it’s put in cases and moved into the cool room to rest for at least two days. The room is large but not as big as you may think. This picture is of Larry and I in the cool room at the Gothenburg factory. If I had to venture a guess, they wouldn’t give us the exact dimensions of the room, I’d say it’s about 20,000 Sq. Ft., and holds approximately 4 million cans of snus! “Whoa, Snus Guy, 4 million cans of snus in only 20,000 Sq. Ft. of space? Can’t be!” I thought the same thing until I began to do the math. If you figure there are 10 cans of snus in each roll, and 20 rolls in each box, that’s 200 cans per box! Depending on how many are on a pallet, perhaps 40, that’s 8,000 per pallet so, as you can see in this picture, there are 22 pallets just in this line. There are 176,000 cans just in this line alone so, you really don’t need a lot of space! “Snus Guy, you’re rambling again! What does this have to do with the portions and the wetting process?” You’re right. It was just really intriguing to see that much snus is such a small space! Let’s go on to the end process.
The end process is basically right where we were, in the “cool room”. The snus stays in the cool room for 2 to 4 days to rest. This is where, in the regular portions, the magic happens. During this time, the water melds with the snus to create a more flavorful snus and transforms the plain water into the “snus juice” we’re all accustomed to. This is also when the portion material turns brown from its original white color. From here, the completed snus gets shipped all over Sweden and other parts of the world, including the U.S.!
Well Snustopians, that’s pretty much how real Swedish snus is made. I know we kind of ran thru the process but in future reviews, I’ll be adding other things I’ve learned like the tobacco selection process, the way snus manufacturers select the flavors and the shapes of the cans and many other things!
I really hope you all found this virtual tour informative, fun and a little educational. All these pictures, and more of our trip to Sweden, can be found in the slideshow at the top left of this page! I really look forward to your questions and comments and will try to answer them all as soon as I can! So, until our next review,
Happy Snusing!
That Snus Guy
Welcome back Snustopians!
It was with a heavy heart that I had to say “good bye” yesterday to, quite possibly, the most wonderful and informative trip I’ve ever made in one of the most beautiful cities I’ve ever been to, Gothenburg, Sweden. In the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting articles that revolve around the tours and the trip it’s self. Since I’ve taken so many pictures, you may have noticed that the only pictures on the slideshow are of the town it’s self. As I sort thru all of them, I promise I’ll get them up! I would have Twittered more but unfortunately, the Twitter app on my iPhone decided it wasn’t going to work but, even if it had worked, there was just so much information to give you all, it would have not made sense anyway! But there is a little I’d like to tell you until I get a full review up this week…..
What I can tell you now is that the town of Gothenburg (or Göteborg, as it’s spelled in Swedish) is a very beautiful city as you can see by the pictures in the slideshow. It’s also a relatively young city by European standards. Founded in 1621, Gothenburg has a few period defensive garrisons that kept the invading Danes at bay in the later part of the 1600’s. The architecture in the main part of the city is from the 1700’s and most of the restaurants and night life center around the city’s main street called Kungsportsavenyn or “Avenyn”, The Avenue in English.
“Hey Snus Guy! Sounds like all you did was walk around and eat! What else did you do?” While we did do a lot of walking, we did meet some great people in Gothenburg and made some good friends as well. The people in Gothenburg take a lot of pride in their city and in their work as well. This is evident in the Swedish Match plants that we toured. In the first review I do, you’ll see just why Swedish Match’s snus brands are so popular but the biggest thing that makes it so, is the people that make it! Everyone at both Swedish Match plants, from the plant executives to the men and women on the line, are extremely passionate about what they do and take great pride in explaining each step in the process and their part in it!
In the first review, we’ll meet some of these people so I’ll stop here for now. It’s been a pretty exhausting week and I don’t want to spoil anything by not being prepared for the next review. I do want to say, to those Snustopians from Gothenburg, thank you for a memorable experience and all the information about what makes your snus so special!
Until our next review Snustopians,
Happy Snusing!
That Snus Guy
