Ok guys, I just got in a small order of snuff that I placed with Mr. Snuff (great service as always Dave) ….so I thought I would share my reflections on what I received. The order was comprised of odds and ends that I have wanted to try for quite some time.
I started with the De Kralingse Choco (Molens)
This one is the Virginia based [there is a Choco that uses the same flavoring but with the Latakia (AO 1860) base]. This is great and just what I was looking for: a no frills, no fruit, just straight chocolate snus. It smells like sniffing a tin of coco with a very nice sweet backing by the Virginia base. It is about the same grind as say Gingerbread (finely ground for a Molens snuff but medium grind for everyone else). Is a delight to take and fills the need for a deep chocolate snuff in my rotation.
Next was Sternecker Echt Fresco 100g (look at the price $8.81 for 100g)
This is a Schmalzler style snuff which means it is fermented and usually scented with dark flavors and spices. Sternecker Snuffs are produced by one man (Alfred Sternecker ) in small batches in Germany and this one (the Echt Fresco) is the best Schmalzler I have had (Echt Fresco means genuine fresco in German).
Let me add that many Schmalzler tend to be heavy in flavor, heavy in moisture and heavy (or course) in grind. They can be hard to get into the nose and hard to keep from rolling out of the nose. That said, Echt Fresco is a joy to take. The moisture and grind is just right. It is almost fluffy. The way it handles is very much on par with the Molens Virginias—maybe with just a tad more moisture.
But the scent is where this one steals your heart. It is full rich and deep, like walking into an old world bakery where you are greeted by the warm smells of fresh baked walnut raisin bread with spices and a touch of brown sugar….And yet the flavor is not overwhelming or cloying. It is the closest thing to an all-day Schmalzler that I know of. If you have yet to try a Schmalzler or have yet to try a Sternecker….you owe it to yourself to give this one a whirl. It is truly an old world masterpiece and my snuff discovery for the year
Samuel Gawith Black Coffee
This one brought tar to mind…..or maybe a French roast….but it was not what I was expecting. It is dark and smoky with a very nice tobacco base coming through…..It is good tobacco but does not really say coffee to me. I’ll let this one breath a bit and come back to it
The best advice that I have found for a coffee snuff is simply to grind some bean and add a bit it to a natural or already coffee flavored snuff
Edit: after meditating on this a bit the smell reminds me of Gawith Hoggarth Kendal Brown (which is not anything at all like the usual flowerily KB). Anyway the tobacco base seems to be very similar to which is added a wet coffee filter and a cigarette butt. If you like French Roast, no cream, and smoky tobacco you will like this…….but if you are looking for a snuff to remind you of the cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee you had this AM…….keep looking
Samuel Gawith Red Crest 25g
All the offerings in the Crest line are good (Blue, Yellow, and Red) the Red is the darkest in color and smell. The grind and moisture are about like that of a Wilsons SP (so not a dry fine toast by any means). The profile is that of a natural tobacco (as are all the offerings in the Crest line). Of all the Crests my favorite is the Blue. It has a very distinct hay smell that is great. Yellow is sort of in between the Blue and Red but unless I have the Blue and the Yellow back to back I can’t really remember the difference between the two…..except that the Yellow has more of a traditional natural tobacco scent whereas the Blue has got that whole hey thing going on. But back to the Red: The Red is probably named “Red” because the tobacco is a brownish burgundy color. I’ve heard some say it is smoky……..but whoever said that has probably never had a toast or a Scotch snuff. I get no smoke here at all. Instead, the scent is that of a tack room: old leather saddles and reins hanging on the wall, warn wood floors, a bit of hay lingering in the background, and the humidity of a summer morning working its way through the whole mix. It is very very nice. If Blue is sun dried hay in a bright field, then Red is the damp and musty stable just down the lane.
Bottom line:
All but the SG Black Coffee are highly recommended.
The Black Coffee is good and I can see myself coming to like it very much…..but only after my original expectation fades and I am able to let it be what it is
Happy sniffing
I started with the De Kralingse Choco (Molens)
This one is the Virginia based [there is a Choco that uses the same flavoring but with the Latakia (AO 1860) base]. This is great and just what I was looking for: a no frills, no fruit, just straight chocolate snus. It smells like sniffing a tin of coco with a very nice sweet backing by the Virginia base. It is about the same grind as say Gingerbread (finely ground for a Molens snuff but medium grind for everyone else). Is a delight to take and fills the need for a deep chocolate snuff in my rotation.
Next was Sternecker Echt Fresco 100g (look at the price $8.81 for 100g)
This is a Schmalzler style snuff which means it is fermented and usually scented with dark flavors and spices. Sternecker Snuffs are produced by one man (Alfred Sternecker ) in small batches in Germany and this one (the Echt Fresco) is the best Schmalzler I have had (Echt Fresco means genuine fresco in German).
Let me add that many Schmalzler tend to be heavy in flavor, heavy in moisture and heavy (or course) in grind. They can be hard to get into the nose and hard to keep from rolling out of the nose. That said, Echt Fresco is a joy to take. The moisture and grind is just right. It is almost fluffy. The way it handles is very much on par with the Molens Virginias—maybe with just a tad more moisture.
But the scent is where this one steals your heart. It is full rich and deep, like walking into an old world bakery where you are greeted by the warm smells of fresh baked walnut raisin bread with spices and a touch of brown sugar….And yet the flavor is not overwhelming or cloying. It is the closest thing to an all-day Schmalzler that I know of. If you have yet to try a Schmalzler or have yet to try a Sternecker….you owe it to yourself to give this one a whirl. It is truly an old world masterpiece and my snuff discovery for the year
Samuel Gawith Black Coffee
This one brought tar to mind…..or maybe a French roast….but it was not what I was expecting. It is dark and smoky with a very nice tobacco base coming through…..It is good tobacco but does not really say coffee to me. I’ll let this one breath a bit and come back to it
The best advice that I have found for a coffee snuff is simply to grind some bean and add a bit it to a natural or already coffee flavored snuff
Edit: after meditating on this a bit the smell reminds me of Gawith Hoggarth Kendal Brown (which is not anything at all like the usual flowerily KB). Anyway the tobacco base seems to be very similar to which is added a wet coffee filter and a cigarette butt. If you like French Roast, no cream, and smoky tobacco you will like this…….but if you are looking for a snuff to remind you of the cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee you had this AM…….keep looking
Samuel Gawith Red Crest 25g
All the offerings in the Crest line are good (Blue, Yellow, and Red) the Red is the darkest in color and smell. The grind and moisture are about like that of a Wilsons SP (so not a dry fine toast by any means). The profile is that of a natural tobacco (as are all the offerings in the Crest line). Of all the Crests my favorite is the Blue. It has a very distinct hay smell that is great. Yellow is sort of in between the Blue and Red but unless I have the Blue and the Yellow back to back I can’t really remember the difference between the two…..except that the Yellow has more of a traditional natural tobacco scent whereas the Blue has got that whole hey thing going on. But back to the Red: The Red is probably named “Red” because the tobacco is a brownish burgundy color. I’ve heard some say it is smoky……..but whoever said that has probably never had a toast or a Scotch snuff. I get no smoke here at all. Instead, the scent is that of a tack room: old leather saddles and reins hanging on the wall, warn wood floors, a bit of hay lingering in the background, and the humidity of a summer morning working its way through the whole mix. It is very very nice. If Blue is sun dried hay in a bright field, then Red is the damp and musty stable just down the lane.
Bottom line:
All but the SG Black Coffee are highly recommended.
The Black Coffee is good and I can see myself coming to like it very much…..but only after my original expectation fades and I am able to let it be what it is
Happy sniffing
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