General Long Portion - Is it the best snus ever? 20 September 2010.

NOTE:  General Long Portion has been discontinued and is no longer produced.  General XRANGE Slim Large Original and General G3 Original (Normal Strength) have been introduced to take it's place.

To say this is the most anticipated snus I've ever reviewed is an understatement. It's the first snus I've ever picked up a complete roll of without ever trying. Which is a big commitment. It's kinda like getting engaged to a chick on the first date. But since September of 2009, General White Portion has been my staple snus. I carry around a few cans of a bunch of different types, but 80%-90% of my daily snus usage is General White Portion. It's my desert island snus, so to speak. It's interesting, because prior to then, I didn't touch anything with the word "bergamot" or "citrus" in the description. But tastes change, and mine grew from flavored snus only to the more traditional snus flavors, which led me to trying all of them and eventually settling on General White. I found the General recipe to be the most balanced snus recipe available.

When the Lab Series came onto the scene, I thought it was pretty killer. The portions were really comfortable and borrowed the only thing I thought was a redeeming factor of Camel "SNUS" - the portion size. Not that I'm big on discretion - I could care less who notices a bulge in my lip, but these portions are very discreet and very comfortable. The 0102 series had a unique flavor that wasn't like the traditional snus flavor profile, which led a lot of us in the snus community to begin hitting up Swedish Match asking for a traditional flavor profile in the 0102 series. I think Larry at SnusCENTRAL was the first to ask for it, and then a lot of us begin asking for the same. It began development and testing finally to be released this month in the new General Long Portion. If you check out the pic, you can see the difference. Needless to say, it's longer and thinner than a traditional snus portion.

The reason I do mostly White Portions is because I don't like a lot of "drip" and I don't like my snus "running". White Portions don't do that as quickly, and Long Portions in the "Non Drip" formula don't do it hardly ever. (NOTE: Even though called "Non Drip", I've had a few drip. But nothing major). When it comes to flavor, there's been a lot of discussion of what General it resembles. In my opinion - I think it leans closer to General Original Portion, and it's also close to General White Portion. I don't think it's as strong and zesty flavored as General Sterk is, and I don't think the flavor is as bold or overpowering as General ES. That being said, it's the General Recipe. There's a reason the can says "The Real Experience". General Snus is the real deal when it comes to snus. I find it to have a mild citrus flavor, peppery notes, and a clean salt balance to finish it off. The aroma is very mellow and rich, reminds me a lot of General Original Portion's aroma. Needless to say, this snus is just as wonderful as I was hoping it would be. The comfortable portion with the classic flavor of General.

I wanted to mention - for those who have seen this, it's the section for General Long Portion from the Swedish Match Snus Range Catalog for 2010. I didn't pick up any of the "hay, grass, and stable" listed in the product description. I dunno, maybe I've had so many "traditional flavored" snuses that I'm used to it, or maybe this was in the General Recipe to begin with and is just now being mentioned, but regardless - I didn't notice it. Just the great taste of General. To be honest, this snus is perfect in all aspects. It takes all the great things I love about General White and puts it into a longer, more comfortable portion. Hell, they even throw 2 more portions in for good measure. You can't beat that. General Long is everything a snus should be.