Camel Snus

[smokingclam]

I think TropicalBob may have said something about this already in his helpful informative posts, but I find these things deliver the nicotine in a more gradual way that tends to builds up over the course of an hour, unlike smoking which delivers it almost immediately in one quick chunk. So, you probably don't want to do that. Certainly not at first when you don't have intuitive experience with the different dosing curve from them.

I've been a two pack a day smoker for many years who has very recently started trying Snus (sampling domestic & Swedish) and I find them at first unsatisfying in the immediate way that a cigarette is, but with a little time the nicotine kicks in fully, and even with my high nicotine tolerance it'd be just too much for me to pop in another after only 20 minutes. Even the Camel Snus with only something like 6-8mg (the Swedish varieties I'm so far liking best have as much as 16mg) I find the nicotine effect gradually builds for as long as hour or so, and I'd suggest waiting at least that long before reaching for another. At least while first getting used to them. Even a heavy smoker like me.

I just got some Swedish snus in recently that came with some high nic stuff. The strongest I've tried so far was some 12mg Grov Black. I have to say I was expecting to get whalloped by this but that wasn't the case at all. It just seemed to last for quite a while longer than the regular 8mg stuff I was using. It works great for those bad after meal cravings or first thing in the morning. Don't think I'd be using it all day long though.

 

[radiokaos]

Radiokaos: I think Marlboro snus are now off the market. A major complaint was that they weren't nearly strong enough. Regular snus users pegged them at about 2mg each. Maybe these aren't for you if you reacted poorly to a Marlboro. All others are stronger.

Bob:

I was ready to go to the ER and had such a major reaction from the Marlboro one. I don't think I could handle a higher dose. Up until I started vaping I was a 2 pack a day of Full Flavor Marlboro Menthol 100's. I did not realize I was a light weight.

 

[TropicalBob]

I didn't mean to imply you're a light weight. Your cigarette consumption was not light weight. My guess is that you reacted to something besides nicotine in the Marlboro. It was a very strange snus, much disliked by most snusers.

 

[Jammi98]

I tried the Camel Frost the other day too. It did make me feel a little sick to my stomach at first, but that passed after a few minutes. I doubt that snus will ever be my main way of getting nicotine, but I can see where I could use them in places where I wouldn't want to vape.

I always hated menthol analogs, but I quite liked the Frost flavor. It seemed more spearminty to me than peppermint.

 

[Mohave]

My guess is that you reacted to something besides nicotine in the Marlboro. It was a very strange snus, much disliked by most snusers.

That sounds most likely to me as well. I doubt even someone who'd never smoked would get a big reaction just to the small nicotine content of those things.

...but I quite liked the Frost flavor. It seemed more spearminty to me than peppermint.

You're probably right; spearmint may be a more accurate description than the peppermint label I gave it. I really wouldn't know the difference. It happens to be too sweet for my personal taste preference, but I didn't hate it, it did have enough nicotine to mostly relieve me of a need to smoke for close to an hour, I would probably adjust to the sweetness of the flavoring, and I could use it if I had no other choice.

...The strongest I've tried so far was some 12mg Grov Black. I have to say I was expecting to get whalloped by this but that wasn't the case at all...

As you may already know if you've researched these products Thunder Extra Stark is probably the strongest snus for nicotine delivery (but not necessarily overpowering taste) at 16mg, and I'd use that as the high strength baseline for comparison. I tend to think of the 12mg Grovsnus Black as medium strength, though it may be described in some places as a “strong portion” or “stark” snus, as opposed to an “extra strong” or “extra stark.” But I'm still experimenting with them too.

I play poker, in sessions which can last for quite a few hours at casino poker rooms in which smoking is not allowed, missing hands while going to “the rail” for cigarette breaks has the effect of taking money out of my wallet, and losing concentration even a little bit during play of a hand because I'm overdue for a cigarette break can cost me even more. So far I've found that “stark” snus of around 12mg are about the minimum that I require to really eliminate that problem for more than an hour. Strangely, the Camel Mellow does seem to almost but not quite do the job. So far I prefer Thunder Extra Stark for both flavor and effect most of all among those I've tried, but I do still have others to sample. I imagine this or the other “extra stark” or “extra strong portion” varieties could be too much for some of those who are or were medium to light smokers, but it is just mildly pleasant for me.

 

[TropicalBob]

Tolerance will build. It's an insidious part of being a nicotine addict. Dependence and tolerance. Pretty soon, the starks won't bother you -- you might actually want more. But your use of strong snus is right on. The nicotine doesn't spike your blood level immediately, as a cigarette does, but raises it slowly to a very high level and holds that level for more than an hour. Smoke a cigarette, and you want another in 30 minutes. For your poker games, the stronger snus will give you the concentration benefits of nicotine without the need to leave the table periodically.

Good choice.

 

[Bub-n-J]

I was a market research guinea pig for the Camel Snus. Boy, some of the ones they had us try were absolutely disgusting and felt like they were going to burn a hole in your lip. I thought most had a saccharine-sweetness to them that was unappealing. It sounds like they went with the formulas that were the mildest. I still have most of my unused samples that I keep for emergencies.

 

[JeremyJames]

I am loving the Camel Snus, Can someone give me a recommendation of a sweedish snus to try that resembles the camel snus the most so I am not paying out my tush...

Thanks

 

[dEFinitionofEPIC]

Snus is an awesome alternative to smoking. I'm just worried that it will be banned if the FDA is allowed to regulate tobacco.

 

[TropicalBob]

Maybe not. Big Tobacco is buying every snus maker on the planet that can be had for big bucks. Unlike e-cigs, snus is a tobacco product - and that's Big Tobacco's bread and butter.

Snus could get hit with nicotine content restrictions, however. In Sweden, Oden is at 17mg per pouch! And Thunder is 16mg per pouch. Those are some powerful nicotine hits. We might foresee the FDA allowing no more than 4mg per pouch.

And expect taxes, of course, to rise on all smokeless products. The Florida Legislature has a bill that raises cigarettes $1 a pack, but ... adds $1 an ounce for all other tobacco products, including snus and snuff. Most importantly to me, a 14-ounce tin of Carter Hall pipe tobacco is now $17. It will be $31 after the tax hike.

 

[Mohave]

I am loving the Camel Snus, Can someone give me a recommendation of a sweedish snus to try that resembles the camel snus the most so I am not paying out my tush...

Thanks

Not really. But.

I have been experimenting with snus for less than a month, and I have many more varieties to try, but I'll try to answer as best I can from my limited experience. I have not yet run across a Swedish product that has anywhere near the sweetness of Camel in either the Frost or Mellow version. In general, I'm finding a wide variety of subtle flavor differences in the Swedish snus, but as a group the flavor is quite a different experience than the Camel products. Most tend towards a salty or peppery flavor. Some have flavor influences which are quite pungent at first. None I've tried so far are sweet. The nicotine content of Camel's snus seem roughly equivalent to "regular portion" or "mini portion" Swedish snus, which are at the lower end of the range of strength available.

There are a number of Swedish snus available with fruit or mint flavors, according to product descriptions and reviews, and some of them may be more like the Camels than those I've tried to date, but I doubt they will be closely similar based on my experience so far. I do however have two more shipments on order which include some of those types.

The snus vendor Northerner.com includes a lot of very descriptive reviews posted by users for many of the items they carry, as well as their own useful product descriptions. I think it's a good place to look around doing some window shopping to get a sense of what's out there. The discussion board snus.com also has a lot of product specific information from experienced users. You will probably find a general, but not quite universal, dislike of the Camel snus among that group of long-term regular snusers.

Something you may want to know is that it is apparently very common for one's taste in snus to shift a lot after using them for a time. I found some mention of that as I researched the matter before trying them, and now it has already happened to me in the time I've been using them. So, I suggest getting a sampler pack of "portion" snus (I don't think a new user would want to start by messing with "loose" snus and "packing a pris") and fooling around with them. Then, don't discard what you don't like or put in an order for a whole roll for something you do, but instead go back after a while and retry them, then re-retry them once again. It seems common for tastes to change a lot and something you first thought was terrible may become a favorite after your taste adjusts to using snus and you come back to it later. And that thing that was good first time you popped it in may now be yesterday's cat piss.

Here are examples of sample packs available from different vendors:

The Northerner, snus, purified, white mini portion, mini portion, portion snus, loose, swedish snus, tobacco, general, wise, roda lacket, goteborgs rape, ettan

Snus - Swedish Match Tasting Kit MINI (8 cans)

Brand Samplers - GetSnus.com

And I think this is a particularly good try out offer (even though I do think the regular prices on this site are excessively high) because their sampler only costs $9, gives a decent variety, and they don't charge for shipping it:

Try out Starter Kit

As far as paying out the tush, I've been pleasantly surprised by the value for the money I'm getting from snus. They last longer than I would have guessed, and the Swedish snus include more than half again as much product at a lower price. But I think you are wise to want to start small, because it is an acquired taste, and there's really no telling up front which of the tastes you'll really end up acquiring.

 

[dEFinitionofEPIC]

And expect taxes, of course, to rise on all smokeless products. The Florida Legislature has a bill that raises cigarettes $1 a pack, but ... adds $1 an ounce for all other tobacco products, including snus and snuff. Most importantly to me, a 14-ounce tin of Carter Hall pipe tobacco is now $17. It will be $31 after the tax hike.

That is a ridiculous tax hike on the Carter Hall. Hope you have deep pockets TB (Apparently they believe all tobacco users are rolling in the dough ). I was really enjoying how cheaply I could buy camel snus compared to a pack of cigarettes.... I guess all good things must come to an end. I've never purchased snus from overseas though I was planning on doing it in the future... I wonder if FDA control would prevent this option.

 

[TropicalBob]

That's probably way down the road. I hope so.

On the Camel front, Mohave is accurate. There is no Swedish snus as sweet as this one made that way for "American tastes." The closest Swedish brand is CatchDry. They are minis and the spearmint is sold in select tobacco stores in America.

But Mohave is also right about tastes changing. Some snus that I initially disliked were put in the refrigerator, only to become favored a week later. Fortunately, mistakes are not expensive, so try a variety of portion, white and mini snus.

 

[Frankie]

I would like to say that the problems of loose snus for beginners are grossly exaggerated as far as I can tell. I decided to try loose due to a very cheap offer I encountered and even though I was completely new to the snus experience in general, I foung no problems with loose. I use a small (1cm in diameter) syringe with cut-off end. I push it into the snus until 0,5 ml is filled, then plug it with my thump, press the plunger hard to compress the "pris", place the end under the lip and press the pris out of the syringe. And that is all. Nice mini portion placed, better taste and only a quarter of the price of portioned minis. Plus, you can adjust the strength exactly and do not have to use what they give you in a prepacked pouch. I think this is not a problem at all, especially if you use it at home as I do.

More to the topic, though: I could not fing Camel snus in a shop selling to Europe. The Swedes frown on it and do not carry it. Do you have an idea how to get it here to Slovakia? I think I would like to try it. Even though I like tobacco taste a lot, candy one might be refreshing, too. I tried some of the oomph/Wise brand, and they were rather nice, albeit not for constant use.

 

[smokingclam]

I've also been using the los lately myself. Hand baking turn into a complete disaster but I invested a whole $2.00 in a prismaster and have been loving it since. Definitely a nice bang for the buck at 45-50 gms per can and more comfortable on the mouth than the pouches. Tend to use pouches during the day when out in public and los when I get home.
As far as sweet Swedish snus I haven't found many either. Roda Lackett is pretty good kind of fruity sweet. My new favorite has become the General Oynx portions.

 

[Mohave]

My new favorite has become the General Oynx portions.

Just got my first taste of General Onyx. Like a complex very fine wine, and worth the extra cost. If you enjoy Onyx then definitely try Claq Qui too if you haven't already.

Frankie, I don't know how to get Camel snus outside of the US. I looked at the shipping policies of the website I know of that sells them online, and they don't ship to non-US addresses. The company's site for the product has a store locater that lists only US locations.

 

[WerkIt]

I am really diggin the snus myself. Well, I am really digging the Camel faux snus, known as SNUS. I have one tin each of the frost and mellow. Now, in the mornings, I rush to eat breakfast so I can get to snussing. In some ways, it is as if the snus is taking priority over the e-smoking. I keep a portion in for two hours minimum.

I placed my first order for Swedish snus, which shipped last night. I have 11 cans coming, all mini portions in assorted flavors, with each containing 4-5 mg of nicotine per portion. (I am a lightweight and I know it.) I have a feeling the real deal is going to blow me away, once I get adjusted to the flavorings. I am about to wet myself just thinking about the pomegranate and licorice flavored snus. Given I am only using 2 portions a day, $45 bucks and some change, including delivery, is a cheap price indeed to pay for 220 portions.

Is it really simple to make one's own pris from loose? I was under the impression is was more of an art form that took a bit of practice to get correct. I would much prefer to be able to control both size and nicotine content by using loose. If I could manage that, I would even venture into higher nicotine snus.

 

[Frankie]

WerkIt, if you do it using your fingers and palm, the result might crumble while you are putting it under your lip, and you will have to wash your hands beacuse they will be dirty from tobacco and its juices. At least I had. If you cut the end off a small syringe (or buy one of the specialized tools), there should be no problems at all. The only problem I encountered with loose was its removal. For the first weeks I had to rinse my mouth to get rid of the crumbs after I removed the pris with my finger. Nowadays I do not do it every time, because I learned to remove it almost in one piece, but both removal and "baking" (it seems like injecting something under my lip, which is exactly what I am doing, but people might get wrong ideas ) in public is still a problem for me, so loose is almost exclusively for home use for me. But I work at home...

I can only recommend you to buy some and try it. I do not think you will be disappointed. Especially if money is a factor. There is equivalent of 90 (!) mini portions in a single tin of loose. I use it virtually all the time. One tin lasts 10+ days for me. Plus you will have the taste, a bit stronger than the portions. The downside is that you cannot play with the snus, suck on it, lick it, etc. (unless you are *very* careful), because it would cause the tobacco to slide down and a mouthful of snus is almost the oposite of its usual taste - burning, acrid, not pleasant at all. Yes, and loose is said to go bad in summer much sooner than portions, especially white ones, if not refrigerated. That includes transport. I should be out of snus just in the middle of summer, so I hesitate whether to buy a loose taster kit (8 different tins) now or wait to use all and then buy some Oliver Twist + whites to last till October or so.

One mini portion is roughly equivalent to 0,5 ml in the syringe. I use a tiny bit less than 0,5, because I get the tobacco in by pushing the syringe into the snus in the tin, so it is rather compacted before I start pressing it to get the final shape. I am lightweight, too.

If a mini portion is sufficient for your needs, going into higher nic loose might be a problem. You would then have to make really, really tiny pris. It can be done with the syringe (or Icetool, I presume), but there will not be lots of taste from such a small amount. Just nicotine.

 

[smokingclam]

Is it really simple to make one's own pris from loose? I was under the impression is was more of an art form that took a bit of practice to get correct. I would much prefer to be able to control both size and nicotine content by using loose. If I could manage that, I would even venture into higher nicotine snus.

My few attempts at hand baking turn into mud mouth . Not one to waste anything I spent $2.00 on a prismaster and it works great everytime with no mess. Well worth the price.
Today I just got my ice tool from Northener and I'm loving this thing after the first use. You can control pris size easier and it makes a nice comfortable pris on the gums. Bad part of the ice tool is it's $38.
If you have a hard time baking a pris try the prismaster first. Made all the difference for me anyway.

 

[ninjapuff]

I tried Camel Mellow a few weeks ago. I liked it, but it was too sweet, my mouth would start watering, I'd get too much "snus juice", and after swallowing some of it, I'd get the hiccups. A little after that, I got the Camel Frost... same enjoyment, but same problems as well.

I ran out of both of them a few days ago, and got some Camel Spice from a different tobacco store. The Spice has been discontinued, but when I opened it, I instantly noticed that it was very fresh and still moist. The Mellow and Frost that I got were all dried out and hardened clumps within the pouches. When I tried the Spice, it was just as sweet, but I didn't have near as much of the mouth watering problem, and never got the hiccups. I think the quality of the snus you get from local stores is going to depend a lot on if they're storing them properly.

I got most of my first order from northerner.com today. I got 2 tins each of Mocca Pomegranate, Catch Mint Vanilla, and Oomph citrus/menthol. I'm waiting on 2 tins of Oomph Energy (they were out of stock). I'm still trying out the 3 flavors I got, but so far I like them. They're just sweet enough for me. They have a good taste, but not so sweet that your mouth waters uncontrollably. I'm surprised at how tiny the Oomph portions are. They taste pretty good too, and they're 6mg and 24 portions per tin. The Catch Mint Vanilla is 20 portions of 4mg and the Mocca Pomegranate is 20 portions of 5mg, and all 3 flavors that I've tried so far are strong enough to keep the nic fits away for over an hour and a half. The Mocca is a nice metal tin, while the Catch and Oomph are plastic cases that each have little spaces to hold your used snus for when you're out & about.

A big thanks to TropicalBob for posting about snus. I like snus about as much as e-cigs, and switching off between them is working much better at keeping analogs away then e-cigs alone.