Worth 1000 words, Röda lös

[ponysoprano]

I'm no lös expert, I'm still on my first order of the stuff, but the pic demonstrates just why I'm crazy about Röda L, aside from her smooth and delicous taste. She's as close as I can imagine to a perfect snus, both portion and lös.

Mind you, I'm new to lös, and this prilla took about 20 seconds from opening the can, to closing it and putting it back in the mini-fridge. Note the lack of residue or bits in my palm.
edit: I just realized it looks like a tiny Swedish meatball.

[cocsp2002]

Yes, the stuff IS good. It's my #2 go to snus. After General. It has just the right amount of sweetness, just enough spice; everything that makes General great without the peppery taste. Great when I want a nice mellow snus.

[mercvrivs]

I agree, one of the first I tried and the first I bought a roll of. It's very nice for baking quickly and into different shapes. It's tied for my favorite snus.

[Frump]

Yeah Röda Lacket is a bit like playdough, you could probably make small animalshapes out of it and it would stick together. Unfortunately I think it tastes about as good as playdough.

[mercvrivs]

It's definitely weird. It starts out mellow, with a predominant salt taste. Then comes a slight undertone of a deep, rich fruit, like figs or prunes. Once the pris starts to come apart (after the 1/2 hour mark), this taste becomes more pronounced, but if you leave it in too long it turns bitter. The stuff is very soft on the gums but takes longer to get going than most types of los. That's why I find it's a good snus to use when I'm at work or need to roll a pris as quickly as someone could take out a portion. Someone elsewhere said that Ettan tastes a little like Roda Lacket. I noticed that the underlying tobacco has a similar flavor. Anyone else?

[RobsanX]

It's definitely weird. It starts out mellow, with a predominant salt taste. Then comes a slight undertone of a deep, rich fruit, like figs or prunes. Once the pris starts to come apart (after the 1/2 hour mark), this taste becomes more pronounced, but if you leave it in too long it turns bitter. The stuff is very soft on the gums but takes longer to get going than most types of los. That's why I find it's a good snus to use when I'm at work or need to roll a pris as quickly as someone could take out a portion. [b]Someone elsewhere said that Ettan tastes a little like Roda Lacket. I noticed that the underlying tobacco has a similar flavor. Anyone else?[b]

Agreed... To me RL tastes like berry flavored Ettan. It is one of my favorites...

[cocsp2002]

Not surprising. Same producer, likely similar recipes. Not to mention that Ettan is frequently billed as a "purely tobacco flavored snus" (despite the fact that there is liquid smoke, and likely some other flavorings, minute though they may be), so why wouldn't the base flavors be similar?

I think General and Roda taste similar, other than General has a very citrus overtone (tastes like grapefruit to me) and a peppery aftertaste. Swedish Match has high quality products, but not a terribly wide flavor range.

[Starcadia]

I liked RL loose initially, because it was easy to bake and tasted good, but I found I enjoyed a much coarser cut. RL tended to get muddy and dissolve on me. Then again, I'm always drinking when I'm loosing, so that's the main problem. After experiencing a bonde of Skruf I found it hard to go back to the fine cuts.

[RobsanX]

Not surprising. Same producer, likely similar recipes. Not to mention that Ettan is frequently billed as a "purely tobacco flavored snus" (despite the fact that there is liquid smoke, and likely some other flavorings, minute though they may be), so why wouldn't the base flavors be similar?

I think General and Roda taste similar, other than General has a very citrus overtone (tastes like grapefruit to me) and a peppery aftertaste. Swedish Match has high quality products, but not a terribly wide flavor range.

I don't know... To me General and Ettan are so different. Even looking at the portions, the General are almost black while the Ettan are a toasty brown... Roda portions only comes in vit, so it's hard to tell what the base is more similar to by looks...

[rollinred]

Of all the snus I have tried, and in my short history, there is only a couple snus's that taste so similar you almost need to try them back to back to bet the flavors.

Those three are

Roda Lacket
Ettan
General

And in my tastes, General actually seems like it is trying to imitate the other two. Kinda like General is SM's flagship because they advertise it as being the best, but maybe it is actually cheaper for them to make, or they get better profits off of it because they can charge more and people still buy it.

Of the three, Ettan simply is the most well rounded, with no standout flavors, and not lacking in any flavors. It is slightly salty, slightly peppery, slightly smokey, but if you try enough of it you will sense a touch of sweetness at certain points.

General is definatly the most... well bitter is the word I am going to use, but not in a bad way. It is a peppery taste, but at times it actually is a little to peppery, like when a chunk slides onto your teeth at the end of a pris and you swallow it. Definatly not smooth at that time like Ettan is. I like general but it does not fit any niche in my snus flavoring. It just doesnt stand out as a very flavorful snus for those times when you need a burst of snus flavor, nor does it fit the time when you want to keep one in for an hour or so and not get that burning throat feeling.

Now Roda lacket has quickly come near the top of my list. It is Ettan in every single point except that it has a "richer" flavor. It just has a bit more sweetnes and a bit more tobacco flavor. Not nearly as rounded as Ettan, but is so satisfying when you need a little more flavor that is not just salty or peppery.


Now all three of these are very good snus. I just find General to be somewhat of a hoax when you compare it to its very close relatives, Ettan and RL. Unless you need somthing inbetween extremely well rounded, and very flavorful. But to each his own, I find that when reading this forum that a lot of people will agree with this but if you havnt tried any of these, get them all on your next order. You will be happy with at least a couple of them.

Keep in mind though, this is all los snus that I am describing. If they are different in portion, maybe someone can straighten it out in that respect.

[mercvrivs]

According to swedishsnus.com (Swedish Match retail site), Roda Lacket has 10mg/g of nicotine.

[bakerbarber]

what a great snus. I killed a can over the past weekend. Keeps together so good. It takes some time to have a good flavor, but when it comes on it is nice.

I'm revisiting all the loose brands and Roda is up there for me with General and Skruf stark for my favorite non-"flavored" snus. I know General and Skruf are technically flavored, but their not mint or berry or anything.

I'm moving on to Goteborgs Rape and Prima Fint next. Then Ettan, Probe, Phantom Classic, and Montecristo.

I killed a can of Grov too the other day. It was too plain for me.

I've had every brand of loose and got stuck on Skruf stark and Phantom blue for a while. I may revisit Gustavus again, but it's so dry.

Roda loose is great, even if it's considered a kid's snus. I'm a kid at heart.

[ponysoprano]

Yeah if Röda is a kid's snus, I'm 12 years old! LOL . I can't get enough of both varieties. It should be noted, and does not warrant a seperate post, but I take back my previously malignant words about Göteborgs Prima Fint. Röda will always have a place in my heart, but GPF just needed some time for me to warm to it. It too bakes easily and it's stayed very moist and fresh ignored under refrigeration. I just baked another of my Mini-meatball prillas with it and I am liking it indeed, so on the lös side, everything I ordered is good and worthy of future orders, Probe, RL, Phantom C Blue and GPF. cocsp2002 swears by General, as do many of you, so that's next on my lös order list.

[cocsp2002]

Haha, thanks for the plug! Nah, if you like Roda, you should like General. It's a bit spicier, but quite tasty.

I killed about half a can of General yesterday, which is fine by me, but it was funny, I found myself missing Roda's texture. General is ground considerably coarser than Roda, so it doesn't hold together quite as well, but the flavor is unbeatable.

[mercvrivs]

I'm finding that while I like Roda Lacket's fine grind for use when I need to be discreet (and it's fun to play with), I'm just liking the course grinds more and more (Gotlands Grasnus and General, to be specific). Seems like I get more flavor out of them, and I like to push against them with my tongue and eat some of the little grinds that come off. I bought a roll of RL and really wanted it to be my favorite, but looks like it's a solid third on my list. Good for at work though, and especially for midsleep snus breaks. Haven't tasted that rich, deep, fruit undertone anywhere else, so this snus is definitely unique in my opinion. It's really strange how my snus buds have changed, but I think I'm finally narrowed in on my solid top three that I've had so far.

Pony Soprano, I've got a ton of RL cans. Let me know if you've got anything you want to offload, maybe we can trade a few since we live in the same state.

I see the comparison of RL to Ettan, due to the saltiness and mellow background taste, but I frankly don't see the similarity to General. For me the citrus and pepper make General very different from RL; it feels cozy and comforting. Roda Lacket to me feels more active, like a snus you use not to relax but while you're out and about. Ettan, on the otherhand, feels like a snus that's plain and all-around appropriate for all occasions.

By the way, why is RL a kid's snus? You have to be 18 to buy it, after all.