New Adventure Sprouting...

I've got 18 seed pots dedicated to tobacco seedlings this year.  

I didn't do a great job of getting just two or three seeds in a pot as you can see, THOSE THINGS ARE TINY.   But they're coming up and I can thin them out as they grow..

18 plants is what i'm shooting for this year.   Should give me 3 pounds of dried leaves, or 6 pounds of 50% hydrated snus, or 60 cans of 45g per can lös.  Total investment thus far, $5 for the seed pots,  The seeds came free from another interested party.

Zen and the Art of Icetool Maintenance

The Icetool is a wonderful, useful tool.   Keeps your hands clean, forms a perfect little prilla of snus and delivers it precisely.  But after a few uses, it becomes sticky, difficult to work.   Never fear, you don't need oils or replacements for the O-ring.  

Here's what the inside looks like after a few uses...  Some crumbs at the end, but those aren't your problem, it's the streaks of stuff on the interior that are causing your issues..   A pipe cleaner, doubled over and dipped in your favorite libation (I use Woodford Reserve Bourbon) will clean that out really quickly.

Here's the pipe cleaner after cleaning out the Icetool.

I used a bit of vodka so the color wouldn't hide the gunk coming off the Icetool.  After cleaning that guy out and a quick similar cleaning of the O-ring, the Icetool works just as good as new!   I don't use oils or wax on the O-ring, as this will encourage stuff to collect on it.   Just give the Icetool a quick cleaning as needed! 

Dr. Starksnus (Or How I Learned to Love the Xtra Stark)

When I was a new snus user, an online snus house sent me a free tin of Skruf Stark Portion.   Willing to try anything, I popped a portion in and began enjoying that clean tobacco taste with a hint of bergamot and rose oil.

30 MINUTES LATER I found myself curled up in a ball sweating trying not to spew.
Mega Vitamin-N overdose.


So when Skruf sent me a trial of the Skruf Xtra Stark, I was naturally nervous, flashing back to my experience with Skruf Stark, and imagining that times two..   but, I gutted up and tried it and realized  "Oh, but that was two months ago", and I've become somewhat accustomed to the hit it seems...

Today, I enjoy the flavor of 2 clicks of Skruf Xtra Stark, with a smooth Vitamin-N hit that builds in 5 minutes and lasts for seemingly hours.   I'm in love with the smooth nature tastes it gives, and the Vitamin-N ain't bad either.    The rose oil is a great addition to the flavor profile, and the bergamot cuts just enough.

I can't say enough about the Icetool and Lös, I run my own company out of my home so most of the day I'm in my private office at my desk and don't have to worry about portions or being able to sub in/out easily.  Lös is perfect in my opinion, portions may be convenient, but at a slight disadvantage to the uninhibited enjoyment that a perfectly portioned lös pris out of the 3ml Icetool provides.  No need for overpowering flavorings or worrying about the benefits of white vs regular vs dripless.

If you're accustomed to a LOT of Vitamin-N, definitely give the Xtra Stark a try.   I will warn you tho, it's definitely not for the weak.

NYHET! Skruf Xtra Stark Lös (and portions)

opened the mailbox today with a SPECIAL SURPRISE from our friends at skruf!

happy to see the lös in there, since i got the icetool, i've been almost exclusively lös..    I'm a little scared tho, at 19mg per gram, I'm definitely doing a 1 click of the 3ml icetool to start out with.    I've not had skruf lös so I'm looking forward to this.

Nice... the vitamin N punch from a little 1 clicker wasn't as scary as I thought, in fact, it's pretty nice..   The flavor is better in the lös than the portion to my tastes.   The vitamin N content means I'll probably wait on this until after a good meal, but it also means it'll go a little farther for my tastes.  A quick check on Northerner shows this available now, while other outlets are taking pre-orders for March delivery.

If you like it strong, you gottta try skruf Xtra Stark!

Skruf Tranbar - not my cup of tea

I've tried a portion or two of the Skruf Tranbär, it's not my gig I'm afraid..   Didn't like it, gave me a sour stomach.   Guess this one will be going into the box pass from hell, I won't be using it.

The taste starts out interesting, tart berry, but turns sour & bitter very quickly.   I'm not a fan of sweet snus, but this one might've done better as a sweet portion.  

Göteborg's Prima Fint

mmm... classic snus.   restrained flavor..  loads of salt in this one.  a very mild snus overall, makes a tight pris in the icetool (I might've overpacked this one as I was coming from Roda Lacket)

from http://www.goteborgsprimafint.com/

Göteborgs Prima Fint was launched in 1919 and is only available as loose snus. It is a mild snus with a pure and slightly sweet tobacco flavour.

So it's a classic!   A prime snus the way snus was meant to be enjoyed.   Easy going, a regular use type snus when you don't want to be bothered with odd/weird flavors or feel like you've stuck some candy in your mouth.

Flavor your own!

Apparently these guys were around for a long time, went away, but are back again. 

Gellivare Snus offers essential oils and base snus for flavoring your own snus!

http://www.gellivaresnus.se/index.php?page=shop.browse&category=&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=53

They're pretty standard flavors, but that does open up whole new avenues for me.  I'm a home brewer, make my own beer and wine at home, so this interests me GREATLY!