V&You Nicotine Pouches: Citrus - Review. 20 September 2020.

Today we're talking about another, you guessed it, nicotine pouch product. I know, it seems like that's all I review lately, but that seems to be what all the new products are right now. These are from a new company called V&You in the UK.  I recently reviewed their CBD Pouches, and today we're going to talk about their nicotine pouches.  The CBD pouches were called "&Chill".  These are called "&Boost" and "&Focus".  Probably named because of the nootropic effects of nicotine.  I actually recently did a video with Leo & Longevity on YouTube in which we talked about it, if you're interested in checking that out.

As far as this product goes, I couldn't find a flavor description for it, but the can says "citrus", so I'm going to go with that.  Each can has 20 nicotine pouches.  The 2/4 strength one is 6mg/portion, and the 3/4 strength one is 10mg/portion.

V&You &Focus: Citrus (6mg)

When you open the can, a bright citrus smell greets you that seems to be a mix of lemon and lime.  It's lightly tart, and mildly sweet.  The portions are slim, soft, and quite comfortable under the lip.  When I put one in, I get a light burn, and then a little cooling presence, as well.  The flavor is, of course, citrusy.  It seems to be have a tart presence of lemon and lime, but also a touch of orange.  There's a light sweetness to it, but it's not overdone by any means.  The nicotine strength on this one feels to be a touch below the regular strength range, and the flavor lasts about 40-50 minutes, on average!

V&You &Boost: Citrus (10mg)

This review will be quite easy.  Everything I just said about the last one - it's the exact same for this one.  The only difference is the nicotine content.  This one is a little stronger, 10mg/portion instead of 6mg/portion.  It does feel just a hair above the regular strength mark, but it's not going to knock you out or anything.  See?  I told you that was going to be an easy review.  Also, another note on these two products.  Being a citrus flavor, I like pairing these with beer, because the flavors compliment each other quite well.  I paired this one with a local Arkansas beer, Lost 40 Rockhound IPA, and it paired quite well!

Rating

For this rating, I rated the two of them together.  The only difference was the nicotine strength, so I just did an average of that one.

Packaging - 3.5/5 - Great looking cans with a premium, modern design.

Aroma - 3/5 - Bright, enjoyable aromas of citrus.

Mouthfeel - 4/5 - Very comfortable, slim portions!.

Flavor - 3/5 - Present, tasty flavors of citrus.

Nicotine - 2/5 - The 2/4 felt a little weaker than regular strength, and the 3/4 felt a little above regular.  I averaged the two together and came to 2/4.

Flavor Longevity - 3/5 - A solid 40-50 minutes for both of them.

Overall Rating - 3.08/5 - A solid nicotine pouch, with a clean design, and a tasty citrus flavor!

Final Thoughts3

I enjoyed these.  Both had great flavors, a clean design, and paired great with an IPA.  If you're a nicotine pouch fan, I suggest checking them out!

Shiro Mojito (Nicotine Pouches) - Review. 20 September 2020.

AG Snus in Denmark has recently released three new Shiro products, each with a distinctive alcohol flavor scheme: Shiro Piña Colada, Shiro Cuba Libre, and Shiro Mojito! Today, we're going to be talking about the Mojito version!  First, if you're not familiar with nicotine pouches, they're a relatively new trend that has taken the market by storm.  These products contain nicotine, but are completely free from tobacco.  AG Snus says that Shiro is made of "pure plant fiber".  And the name, Shiro, is Japanese for "white", which makes sense - as this is an all white product.  The flavor description for this product says it has a "taste of fresh mint with a hint of lime".  If you aren't familiar with a mojito, it's a cocktail with rum, sugar, lime juice, soda water, and mint!  Each can weighs 12g and has 24 portions, for 0.5g portions. The nicotine strength is 12mg/g (1.2%) or 6mg/portion.

When you open the can, the aroma that greets you is a mild, tart lime aroma with a light touch of mint.  The portions are slim, moderately soft, and comfortable under the lip.  There's a mild cooling presence under the upper lip, as well, due to the presence of mint.  As far as the flavor goes, it's relatively mild.  The lime isn't as present as with Lyft Lime (Strong), for example.  There is a mild mint character, but it doesn't overpower the lime by any means.  The nicotine strength feels to be a little below regular strength, and the flavor lasts about 30-40 minutes, on average.  Also, since it's a citrusy type of snus, you know I had to test it with a beer.  Today, I tested it with Norfork Brewing Company's Scurvy Dog IPA, a favorite of mine.  And I'm happy to report, the flavors pair quite well.  So, that's a bonus!

Rating:

Packaging - 3/5 - A good looking, clean design to the can.

Aroma - 3.25/5 - Nice lime aroma, but a little mild in presence.

Portion/Mouthfeel - 2/5 - Light in weight, and moderately soft to the touch.

Flavor - 3.5/5 - Great taste, good mix of mint and lime, but a little on the mild size.

Nicotine - 2/5 - A little less than regular strength, so not as strong as I usually use (regular).

Flavor Longevity - 2/5 - Flavor didn't last too long, only about 30-40 minutes.

Average - 2.63/5 - A pretty tasty nicotine pouch.  A little mild in flavor, and I wish the portions were more plump and the nicotine was a little stronger.  But all in all, not bad!

Final Thoughts

I liked the taste of this one.  It was a nice one to pair with an IPA, as well.  I wish the portions were a little more plump, and I wish it had a little more nicotine to it.  But, even with the milder taste, it was still enjoyable, and I ended up finishing a whole can of it.

Bergan Snus (Phillipines) - Review. 19 September 2020.

Today, we're talking about a new, and truly international product - Bergan Snus!  I say international because it's a Swedish Snus, made in India, sold in the Philippines, and has a design inspired bya city in Norway.  Bergan Snus is produced by Dholakia Tobacco in India, makers of Paz Snus, and Paz Nicopods.  This is what they had to say on their website about these products:  “The name Bergan is inspired by the key ingredient in all our snus - bergamot.  The design takes inspiration from Bergen, “the city between 7 mountains”, the capital of Norway back in the 13th century”.  In this review, I'll be reviewing two products, the original flavor and the mint flavor!

Bergan Snus (White Portion)

Flavor Description - “Indulge in a long lasting moment with the subtle taste of bergamot and tobacco.”

Can Contents - 14g, 20 portions, 0.7g each

Nicotine - 15mg/g (1.5%), or 10.5mg/portion.

When you open the can, a peppery citrus aroma greets you.  It also seems to have a light spicy sweetness in the background.  The portions are nice and plump, moderately soft to the touch, and feel comfortable under the upper lip.  The flavor is pretty tasty.  The bergamot flavor is clear, and gentle.  There's a pepper hint in the background, along with a mild tobacco character.  I also notice an interesting spice to it, which has kind of an Eastern flair.  The nicotine strength feels to be just a little above regular strength, and the flavor lasts about an hour on average.

Bergan Snus (Slim Mint White)

Flavor Description - “Refresh your senses with the fresh taste of mint and vanilla.”

Can Contents - 14g, 20 portions, 0.7g each

Nicotine - 15mg/g (1.5%), or 10.5mg/portion.

I know, I know, another mint snus.  But mint is incredibly popular so it makes sense that Bergan will launch with the two most popular flavors:  one traditional, and then one mint.  When you open the can, the aroma that comes through is a clear, sharp, fresh smell of peppermint.  The portions are slim, moderately soft, and fit great under the lip.  There's a mild burn at first when I put one in, then a gentle cooling presence.  The flavor is pretty good, and refreshing.  The peppermint flavor is sharp, bold, and present.  It's lightly sweet, and not overdone.  It has a light herbal taste in the background, and a mild touch of tobacco.  The nicotine strength feels to be a little above the regular strength mark, and the flavor lasts about an hour, on average.

Ratings

Bergan (White Portion):

Can Design - 4/5 - Awesome mountain themed design.

Portion/Mouthfeel - 2/5 - Regular sized, moderately soft.

Aroma - 3/5 - A traditional aroma with an interesting spice to it.

Flavor - 3/5 - Traditional in taste, but the spice does make it a little different.

Nicotine - 4/5 - A little above regular, but with a steady delivery.

Longevity - 5/5 - Long lasting flavor, up to an hour.

Average - 3.5/5 - A pretty good tasting, traditional Swedish Snus flavor profile.  That interesting spice taste adds something unique.

Bergan Mint (Slim White Portion):  

Can Design - 4/5 - Awesome mountain themed design.

Portion/Mouthfeel - 3/5 - Slim sized, moderately soft, great fit.

Aroma - 2/5 - A sharp smell of peppermint.

Flavor - 2/5 - Standard peppermint flavored snus.

Nicotine - 4/5 - A little above regular, but with a steady delivery.

Longevity - 5/5 - Long lasting flavor, up to an hour.

Average - 3.33/5 - Pretty standard mint tasting snus.  Not bad, but not amazing.  But still solid.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed trying these products out.  I love the can design, and I'm glad folks in the Philippines have access to quality snus.  If you're interested in buying, check out SnusHouse.ph!

White Fox (Peppered Mint) - Review. 18 September 2020.

GN Tobacco has released another new nicotine pouch product in their White Fox line, this one with the flavor of, wait for it, mint.  Come on, did you expect anything else?  This is the fifth release in their White Fox line, they already have three mint flavors and one neutral/tobacco type flavor.  I grabbed this snus from SnusMe.com about a few weeks ago, but it took me a little while to get around to it - it seems like a lot of new products all launched recently!  If you're not familiar with nicotine pouches, these are products that are similar to snus, but different in one key way:  they don't contain tobacco.  These products usually contain some form of plant fiber and nicotine, and are a good alternative for people who are looking to quit tobacco but still enjoy nicotine!

The flavor for this one is described as "black peppered slim all white portion mixed with spearmint".  Like others in the White Fox series, each can weighs 15g and has 20 portions, for 0.75g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 12mg/portion.

When you open the can, open the can, a subtle, mildly sweet aroma of spearmint greets you along with light hints of black pepper.  The portions are slim to the touch, and soft under the upper lip.  They have a mild burn at first, and then a gentle cooling presence.  The flavor is much like the aroma:  mint and pepper.  Makes sense, given the name Peppered Mint.  The mint flavor is a mild, lightly sweet, gentle taste of spearmint.  It's present, but not in your face or super bold in nature.  A light touch of black pepper in the background contributes a light spice nature to this product.  The nicotine strength feels to be around the strong level, and the flavor lasts about 45 minutes, on average.  

Rating

Can - 3.5/5 - A great looking can.  Mrs. Snubie loves these and always steals them when I'm done reviewing them.

Aroma - 2/5 - As promised, an aroma of pepper and mint.  Unique, given the addition of pepper.

Portions - 3/5 - Slim, comfortable under the lip.

Flavor - 2/5 - There's a million mint flavors out there, but the addition of pepper did at least make this one unique.

Nicotine - 3.5/5 - I prefer regular strength to strong, so it's nice that this one isn't one of those in your face mega nicotine products.

Longevity - 3/5 - The flavor lasts a solid 45 minutes, like with original portion snus.

Average - 2.83/5 - There's a million mint products out already, but this one was a little different given the inclusion of pepper in the flavor profile

Final Thoughts

With a ton of mint products already on the market, it's hard for me to get excited about new ones.  But, I did like the inclusion of pepper in the flavor profile to make this one different from others.  If you like mint nicotine pouches and want something a little different, you may enjoy this one.

Live Free Hemp Snuff: CBD Pouches - Review. 17 September 2020.

Thanks to Mrs. Snubie, I've been getting more into CBD lately and doing reviews of CBD pouches. I've reviewed Cannadips CBD Pouches (10mg per pouch),  as well as V&You &Chill CBD Pouches (20mg per pouch).  Today I'm going to be talking about Live Free CBD Pouches which, wait for it, clock in at 133mg per pouch!  More on that later.  Live Free Hemp Snuff is a company based in North Carolina that produces 100% USDA Organic hemp.  As an American reviewer, I'm always excited to review products that are made here in the good ol' US of A!  If you're new to CBD, or CBD pouches, let me do a quick run down.

What is CBD?

CBD, or cannabidiol, is a chemical compound from the hemp plant.  The CBD in these pouches comes from the hemp plant, but it doesn't contain enough THC to have an intoxicating effect.  Live Free Pouches contain less than 0.3% THC.  CBD is kind of a miracle drug, in my opinion.  It has a lot of great effects for the human body.  From the Live Free website, some of these effects include "stress management, anxiety relief, reduction of pain, reduction of inflammation and sleep improvement."  Mrs. Snubie uses it for back pain, cramps, headaches, and insomnia.  

Now, as I said before, each pouch contains 133mg of CBD.  Before I wrote this review, I was like wait, how much CBD can the human body handle?  Is that too much?  I, as always, did a little research, and found a medical study that answered that question.  This study on the safety and side effects of CBD found that "continuous use of CBD, even in high doses like 1,500 mg a day, is tolerated well by humans".

Each can of Live Free CBD Pouches weighs 1.2oz (34.02 grams) and contains 15 pouches, which weigh 2.26g each.  This means they're much more plump than I'm used to, as most snus portions are 0.7-0.9g each.  You can see that they're also quite moist.  They feel great under the lip, and have quite a quick release of flavor!  They are more moist, so I can usually keep them in for about 45 minutes, like original portion snus.  The CBD content is 2000mg per can, which would clock in at 133mg per pouch.  

Live Free Pouches:  Atomic Cinnamon

Flavor Description:  "Each pouch is filled all natural cinnamon flavoring that has a sweet, woody fragrance plus a kick for those spice lovers out there."

Review:  When you open the can, the aroma that greets you is a lightly sweet, rich smell of cinnamon with a light spiciness.  In the flavor profile, the cinnamon is quite present, and has a nice spiciness to it, along with subtle tones of wood, and a spiciness to the flavor profile.  

Live Free Pouches:  Berry

Flavor Description:  "As soon as you taste our berry pouches, we promise you'll be a fan. They're a perfect mix of sweet and tangy with raspberry, blueberry and wildberry accents that will have you craving more."

Review:  The aroma of this stuff is quite nice.  It reminds me of grape, but I also pick up blueberry tones in the aroma.  It's lightly sweet, but not overly sweet.  The flavor is really good.  It's not a cheap or weak berry taste.  I pick up mild tones of raspberry, as well as a blueberry presence.  It's lightly sweet in nature, and not too artificial, either!  It's a pretty well rounded berry taste!

Live Free Pouches:  Citrus Mango

Flavor Description:  "Our Citrus Mango pouches are the perfect combination of both sweet and sour with real mango extracts."

Review:  This one has quite an interesting smell to it.  At first, a citrus smell greets you, which reminds me of lemonade.  It has a warm sweetness behind it, and then a fresh touch of mango in the background.  This one has a really nice tropical/citrusy type of taste.  It's got some tartness going on, but also a little sweetness.  The citrus flavor reminds me mostly of lemon, with some mild peppery tones in the background, then a tropical touch of mango!  

Live Free Pouches:  Honey Bourbon

Flavor Description:  "The perfect mix of sweet honey and smoky bourbon gives these pouches a hearty and rich taste."

Review:  This one smells utterly amazing.  Warm tones of honey jump out of the can as soon as it is opened, and then a nice touch of bourbon.  It's not cheap or boozy smelling, either!  As far as flavors go, this one definitely takes the cake.  It is beyond delicious.  The warm honey tones are up front in the flavor profile, accompanied by tones of bourbon, a light smokiness, and a mild wood note.  It's really tasty stuff.

Live Free Pouches: Wintergreen

Flavor Description:  "Our Wintergreen pouches are bursting with minty, refreshing elements that will give you a cooling tingle."

Review:  Preface, I don't use a lot of wintergreen products.  It's more of an occasional thing for me.  This one definitely captures that traditional wintergreen presence.  The aroma, right off the bat, is that lightly sweet, American wintergreen smell.  This one has something the other ones don't - a mild cooling presence when you put a pouch under your lip.  The flavor is, of course, wintergreen.  It tastes very much like your traditional American wintergreen dip product.  It's lightly sweet, and not overdone.

CBD Content, Rating, and Final Thoughts

CBD Content

So, these are obviously much stronger than other CBD products I've reviewed before.  I turned to Mrs. Snubie, our resident CBD guru, for her thoughts on these.  She noticed the same thing.  These are the strongest CBD products we've reviewed so far.  The CBD effect comes on quite quickly, and it's much stronger than the usual CBD pouches.  Yesterday, Mrs. Snubie had a bad headache, and reached for one of these to knock it out, and found that it worked quite quickly!

Rating

For my rating, I'm averaging them all together to come up with one rating for the entire Live Free line.

Packaging - 4/5 - I love the look of these cans.  The designs are sleek, and very bold.

Aroma - 3.5/5 - Present, and enjoyable aromas.

Mouthfeel - 3/5 - I like the moist format, because it releases flavor much more quickly.  They are a bit plump, so some may be turned off by the pouch size if they aren't formers dippers.

Flavor - 4/5 - I really enjoyed the flavors of these.  Honey Bourbon was my favorite, of all 5.

CBD Content - 5/5 - 133mg of CBD per pouch.  You can't beat that!  A quick release, and a solid release of CBD.

Longevity - 3.75/5 - Pretty long lasting flavors, usually 45 minutes on average like original portion snus.

Average - 3.88/5 - Solid CBD pouches with a great CBD content, nice flavors, and a moist, plump portion!

Final Thoughts

I was really impressed with these CBD products.  I like the moist pouches, the flavors were all great, and the CBD release was top notch.  If you're a CBD user, you'll probably dig these.  I think American dippers are going to like them as well, because they remind me a lot of pouched American dip products.  

Velo Polar Mint (Nicotine Pouches) - Review. 16 September 2020.

For those seeing this and saying, "Wait, is this that horrible Velo product sold in the US?", no, it isn't. Velo is a brand name owned by BAT, which also owns RJ Reynolds, maker of the US Velo product. This is the same product as the Lyft nicotine pouches made by Fiedler and Lundgren (also owned by BAT), but branded as Velo. I saw these for sale in Germany on Snuffstore.de, but I've heard that eventually the entire Lyft line will be rebranded as Velo.  In this review, I'll be talking about two versions of Polar Mint, one with the "Easy" nicotine strength and one with the "Medium" nicotine strength.  Comparing it to Lyft, this one reminds me most closely to the Lyft Easy Mint flavor.

The flavor description for these products says: "Sweet, refreshing, cool spearmint".  Each can weighs 14g and has 20 portions, for 0.7g portions.  The Easy one has a 6mg/g (0.6%) nicotine strength, which is 4.2mg/portion.  The Medium one has an 8.5mg/g (0.85%) nicotine strength, or 5.95mg/portion.

If you're not familiar with nicotine pouches, I'll explain. These are products that contain nicotine, but no tobacco. In the case of Velo (and Lyft), these have eucalyptus and pine fiber in them instead of tobacco. These are a good alternative for people who may want to quit smoking, or tobacco in general, but not nicotine. This picture shows a look at what is inside the pouch itself. Here you see the cans, portions, and even what is inside the pouch, and can see that it looks similar to regular snus, except the portions and the material inside the portions are all white. Everything else about the experience is similar to regular snus.

Since these two are basically the same other than the nicotine strength, I'm going to review them together. When you open the can, a sweet, smooth spearmint smell greets you. It's a little sweeter than most mint products I've had before. The portions are slim, soft, and comfortable under the lip. There's also a nice cooling presence under the lip when you put one of these in. The flavor is quite refreshing. The spearmint flavor comes through clearly, and is smooth, and a little on the sweeter side. The flavor generally lasts about 45 minutes, on average. In terms of nicotine, the easy one feels to be a little less strong than regular strength, and the medium one feels to be about regular strength.  If you like mint nicotine pouches and are looking for something on the sweeter side, you'll probably enjoy these!

Velo (Ice Cool) Nicotine Pouches - Review. 16 September 2020.

For those seeing this and saying, "Wait, is this that horrible Velo product sold in the US?", no, it isn't. Velo is a brand name owned by BAT, which also owns RJ Reynolds, maker of the US Velo product. This is the same product as the Lyft nicotine pouches made by Fiedler and Lundgren (also owned by BAT), but branded as Velo. I saw these for sale in Germany on Snuffstore.de, but I've heard that eventually the entire Lyft line will be rebranded as Velo.  This product is the same thing as Lyft Ice Cool (Nicotine Pouches), but sold as Velo Ice Cool (Nicotine Pouches).

The flavor description for these products says it has a taste of "intense peppermint".  Each can weighs 14g and has 20 portions, for 0.7g portions.  The nicotine content is 14mg/g (1.4%), or 9.8mg/portion.

If you're not familiar with nicotine pouches, I'll explain. These are products that contain nicotine, but no tobacco. In the case of Velo (and Lyft), these have eucalyptus and pine fiber in them instead of tobacco. These are a good alternative for people who may want to quit smoking, or tobacco in general, but not nicotine. This picture shows a look at what is inside the pouch itself. Here you see the cans, portions, and even what is inside the pouch, and can see that it looks similar to regular snus, except the portions and the material inside the portions are all white. Everything else about the experience is similar to regular snus.

When you open the can, a sharp, present smell of peppermint greets you with a light menthol hint in the background. The portions are slim, soft, and comfortable under the lip. When you put a portion in, you'll encounter a mild cooling presence under the lip. The flavor is a present, sharp taste of peppermint. It's mildly sweet, and has a touch of menthol in the background. The nicotine strength feels to be between the strong and extra strong level, and the flavor lasts about 45 minutes on average.  If you like mint products, this one is pretty popular in the Lyft line.  It has a strong mint flavor, and a solid nicotine kick.