Snus without salt?

[Xan_e]

Is there any snus that doesn't have any salt?

If there's not, what snus is the least salty?

I love the smell of Ettan, I just wish it tasted like it smelled. Ettan loose tastes like play-doh to me. Don't lie, I know you've all tasted play-doh.

(If you seriously don't know, it tastes like a teaspoon of table salt mixed with dough)

It just seems like salt is the dominate flavor in all the snus I have tried, with just a hint of other stuff.

IMO snus would be better without salt. It's still good though.

[Zero]

Snus all have salt - it's a basic part of the recipe. If you want something sweeter I might suggest Probe - it's quite sweet and has a whiskey flavour to it. If you want something with a powerful flavour, then anything by Offroad is very heavily flavoured - if you can't taste those, then you can't taste anything :lol:

I guess it is just a matter of letting your tastebuds and nose adjust, though. Snus flavours are kind of like wine or beer - it takes a bit of patience to get to learn the subtleties between them. Some might say that red wine just tastes of alcohol or that beer all tastes the same, but when you get to know them a bit better then all sorts of character comes out of them that you begin to notice. I guess it's like tea as well - I had a friend who I gave an excellent cup of fragrant Taiwanese green tea to and all she said was "It tastes like tea - it all just tastes like hot water to me". Go figure. She was a smoker, mind you, so maybe it's just leftovers from smoking that kill your sense of smell. With time it will come back.

In the meantime, I'd say Probe or Offroad might be worth trying :idea:

[Xobeloot]

All snus has salt added as a flavor enhancer. I have been using snus for a couple months now and dont notice the salt much at all. Now dont get me wrong, it is definately there, but it tends to bring out the other flavors. Kindof like salting a nice cut of beef

Ettan is one of the oldest recepies. It simply contains water, tobacco and salt. General has a nice peppery and flavorful taste to it (but yes, you can still taste some salt). Gotlands yellow has a delightful taste to it with hardly any noticable saltiness, the heavily flavored snuses (cranberry, mint, cola, etc) taste like what the flavor is... little tobacco taste, little salt.

It is all a matter of trial and error.

I hope you find something that works for you bud.

Edit to agree w/ Zero. Probe is also a wonderful snus. Sweet with a mellow hint of whiskey.

[darkwing]

I thought the salt was needed to release the nicotine from the tobacco?

[Xobeloot]

I thought the salt was needed to release the nicotine from the tobacco?

I don'd think it is so much to release it from the tobacco. It will, however, help to agitate the gum tissue a bit for faster absorbtion. At the same time it can double as a flavor enhancer/preservative.

Someone please correct me if I am wrong.

[mwood72]

Zero - Do they use salt/soda ash in Snus to freebase the nicotine in the tobacco or is it just that the Swedish like savoury tastes? I'm sure I read somewhere that they do something to the Snus's Ph to freebase the nicotine.

Having a savoury rather than sweet tooth the taste works well for me (except for the 1st recipe for Phantom which was too salty for me)

[Anti]

Xan_e, are you new to snus?

When I first started, I didn't care for the salt/citrus flavor. But, after a few months, I find myself licking at the portion to bring out more of the flavor.

[yummi4tunekookie]

I've actually got my first snus EVAR in right now--Offroad Strong Cranberry portion--and I kinda like the saltiness. I was kind of apprehensive after I first read your post, but I guess because I was expecting a massive SALT EXPLOSION, this isn't bad at all. Yaaaay!

[Xan_e]

I've been snusing with camel for about a month, and just started last week with swedish snus.

With each portion the salt taste is becoming less noticable, which is definitely a good thing. They only get salty now when I've had them in for awhile.

[Xobeloot]

Zero - Do they use salt/soda ash in Snus to freebase the nicotine in the tobacco or is it just that the Swedish like savoury tastes? I'm sure I read somewhere that they do something to the Snus's Ph to freebase the nicotine.

Having a savoury rather than sweet tooth the taste works well for me (except for the 1st recipe for Phantom which was too salty for me)

http://www.gothiatek.com/bazment.aspx?page_id=168

"Additives

When making Swedish Snus by GothiaTek® the main ingredients except for tobacco are water, salt (table salt) and sodium carbonate. Flavour additives and humectants are also used.


Salt is added mainly for its effect on taste but also has a preservative action which contributes to improved shelf life of the products. Sodium carbonate is used to give the products their characteristic flavour profile but also brings the pH value to the slightly alkaline side. Sodium carbonate will convert to baking soda immediately after it is added.


Flavour additives in general are natural or artificial flavour compounds that comply with food regulations. Flavours are usally dissolved in alcohol when added. Most of the alcohol evaporates during production. Only trace quantities remain.


Humectants are added to protect the products from drying out. We use two types: glycerol and propylene glycol. Both of them also have a preservative effect since they lower the water activity of the product, thus preventing micro-organisms from growing."

[Zero]

To add to mwood's question - it's the lowered pH due to the sodium carbonate that freebases the nicotine, so it's that and not the salt that does it. Salt is for taste and acts as preservative.

[mwood72]

Thanks for the info Xobeloot/Zero.

[atxJIM]

Ettan is quite a bit saltier than most.
Prima Fint is definitely less salty, as is Roda Lacket.

[rustic]

Ettan is one of the oldest recepies. It simply contains water, tobacco and salt.

Actually, they stick some artificial flavors in Ettan as well. One flavor that's definitely there is the whole artificial smoke flavor (which shows up in a ton of snus, and might make them taste a little saltier to new users as well).

I believe Gotlandssnus Yellow doesn't have the smoke flavor, if you want to try one without it.

Like many others in this thread, I noticed the salt at first, but it quickly stopped being noticeable.. I wonder if salt is there just for flavor, or if it has a preservative effect on snus as well?

- Jeff

[aj01]

salt

Swedes/Finns/Norwegians love salt. Try licorice in the Nordic countries, and it's loaded with salt.