Knekt Original Portion (Old Review) - 13 April 2016.

Note:  This is the old review.  Check out the new review of Knekt Original and White Portion - here!

Knekt is truly an ever evolving snus. I originally reviewed it back in 2011, then again in 2015 because the products went through a redesign and I was told the quality had increased. I noticed the flavor to be better, but it still wasn't that great, in my opinion. I spoke with Fiedler and Lundgren earlier this month and was told that with Knekt's third and newest redesign, the product quality/flavor was going to be tweaked yet again! I figured I would review these new/relaunched Knekt snus products in new articles in case anyone wanted to reference my old reviews to compare to the new products. The product description says, "With a genuine, but gentle, taste of tobacco. A dash of bergamot is added to give the right taste of the traditional, Swedish stuff. Regular portion type for ease of use and handling."

The product design has definitely improved.  The 2011 cans were quite cheap and tacky looking, in my opinion.  The 2015 redesign looked decent, but still wasn't quite that great of a design.  The new look in 2016, however, is great.  I feel that the new design works really well with this snus and sticks to the "tobacco centric" flavor theme.  I give Fiedler and Lundgren props for the new can design, it looks much better than the 2011 and the 2015 designs for Knekt.

When you open the can you'll notice that the portions are a little lighter in weight than your average snus portion. They aren't mini, by any means, but they are a touch lighter in weight.  The product description says bergamot, but I don't notice that in the taste or aroma.  Also, the bottom of the can said salmiak is included in this snus, but I don't notice that in the aroma or taste, either.

The aroma is a clear, well rounded tobacco smell with a little bit of smoke.  It's not as bold as Grov and it's not as earthy/chocolatey as Ettan. I'd say it's right in the middle. There is also a mild smell of smokiness that comes through, but it's not too bold.  The flavor is much improved over the last time I had Knekt.  The tobacco doesn't taste as cheap, it's very well rounded, very present and very clear.  I notice a little more salt in this one that most snus, but that could be due to the presence of salmiak.  The smoke flavor seems to be as present as I've noticed in the past and works really well with the tobacco flavor. It reminds me a little of Offroad Silver but with a better tobacco taste.

I'll say this, the product quality has definitely improved.  The can design looks much better.  Fiedler and Lundgren did a great job with this product.  It's not the best tobacco centric snus on the market, but I would say it's gone from "meh" to enjoyable, and that's quite an accomplishment.