General Kardus (Winter 2018) - Preview. 29 November 2018.

Swedish Match has released General Kardus Winter 2018, another release in the Gastronomy Series and partnership with Karl Ljung and glass manufacturer Orrefors. And, just in time for the holidays! General Kardus Winter 2018 weighs in at 999 SEK or $110 USD, so I just consider this an early Christmas present to myself. This year, only 800 of these have been made, so it is a very, very limited edition. While the Kardus series is nothing new, the General Kardus series has been around since 2015. First came General Kardus Selection 2015, which was a tobacco centric snus with dried fruit/citrus hints. Next came General Kardus Fäviken 2016, which was a collaboration with Swedish chef Magnus Nilsson from the Fäviken Magasinet Restaurant and Hotel located which is located in Northern Sweden. This one had a tobacco centric flavor with hints of lingonberry. Next came General Kardus 2017 (Hernö Gin) which was, of course, gin flavored. Next, we saw the creation of the Gastronomy Series with the release of General Kardus Spring 2018 (Gastronomy Series). This was a collaboration with restauranteur Karl Ljung, and it had a tobacco centric but herb-heavy flavor profile.

Now enters General Kardus (Winter 2018). This product, once again, comes with 150 grams of snus and a nicotine content of 1.2%. The flavor description of this year's release says, "This snus is inspired by General's characteristic flavors with clear elements of bergamot and herbaceous tones. General Kardus Winter 2018 has a dark tobacco character that is recognized by General's main flavor bergamot, but also has shades of rosemary, conifers and flowers."

This year's release is also 100% lamina, meaning only the finest parts of the tobacco are used. The tobacco is single cut, and is cut into strips of 0.72mm which gives a completely different experience and feeling under the lip compared to regular los snus. The tobaccos this year have a more nuanced and wider flavor spectrum compared to last year. This year, tobaccos from Argentina, South Africa, and India were used. From Argentina, a sun dried tobacco with spicy and fruity aromas was used, which is grown at high altitudes in Los Altos de la Cocha Valle in the northern part of the country. From South Africa, air dried tobacco from Cape Province was used which has a dried fruit quality. From India, the sun dried Kurnool Natu from Andhra Pradhes was used. It comes from the southern part of the country and has shared of sweet, dried fruit.

General Kardus Winter 2018 was produced in partnership with Swedish Match Master Blender Lars Öberg and Karl Ljung.  This was the team that also created the previous General Kardus release.  Karl Ljung said "I always strive to create the best taste experience. To achieve this, skillful crafts and qualitative raw materials are required. For this endeavor, Master Blender Lars Öberg and I worked together to create General Kardus Winter 2018."  Skilled crafts and quality raw materials was the motto for this year's release.  This Kardus was the most costly and well crafted snus that Swedish Match has produced.  The greatest care and attention was paid to tobacco quality, flavoring, and manufacturing process.

For this year's release, Swedish Match has worked with a manufacturer that truly symbolizes the Swedish glass industry, Orrefors. Orrefors is the largest glass manufacturer in the entire Nordic region and is the creator of the glass vessel in which General Kardus Winter 2018 will be housed in. The glass vessel is blown by skilled craftsmen at the glass mill in Kosta. Each glass is hand signed. Since the glasses are hand made, each vessel is truly unique and one of a kind!

This release is on sale now at the Swedish Match webstore.  Only 800 of these were made, so I'm not sure if US consumers will be able to buy this or not.  If you want it, make sure and purchase soon before it is sold out!