Thunder Heritage (Limited Edition) - Review. 15 April 2019.

V2 Tobacco has released a new Thunder Limited Edition, this time in the chew bag format!  This means it's not available for the US, but I tracked some down for review because I just had to try these flavors.  I know, it's a bummer we can't get this in the US, but as I've heard from readers in the EU, it's nice that they get a limited edition, which I agree with; I think it's fair.  They have to watch the US get all kinds of new products/limited products, so this is a new little bonus for those who can get chew bags, but not snus.  If you're not familiar with chew bags, they're products that are made basically the same way as snus, but the tobacco is cut instead of ground.  Also, the portion material is thicker so they can technically be "chewed" (which makes them legal in the EU), however I never chew them.  I just put them in my upper lip and use them like snus!

When it comes to the Heritage line, this is how V2 describes it:  "In honoring the Thunder mint tradition, V2 brings out five surprising mint infused flavors.  With these five great limited mint flavors, V2 Tobacco celebrates their proud mint heritage.  All Heritage limited comes in discrete slim white dry portions."

Before we get into the reviews, I want to address the portions, or chew bags, so that I'm not repeating myself 5 times in this area.  The portions, or chew bags, themselves are the white dry type, which means they aren't as comfortable at first, but as they get more moist they do get more comfortable.  They are a little lighter in weight, so I do suggest fluffing them to move that tobacco around a bit.  The white dry format also comes with an added benefit - the flavor lasts a really long time, usually 1.5-2 hours in some cases! 

Thunder Heritage Limited No1: Banana Mint

The flavor description says, "a fresh mint and banana aroma with a subtle cooling sensation when used".  It comes in a 13.2 gram can with 24 portions for 0.55g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 8.8mg/portion.

When you open the can, the aroma is a mild, lightly sweet smell of banana with a light mint tone.  When you put a portion in, you'll also notice a light cooling presence in the lip.  The flavor is a mild, gentle, lightly sweet taste of banana with a sweet hint of mint.  If you've ever had Banana Runtz candy, the banana taste is a lot like that.  The nicotine kick feels to be right at the extra strong level, and I find the flavor lasts up to 1.5 hours on average!  I really enjoyed the taste of this one, it was certainly unique.

Thunder Heritage Limited No2: Spicy Berries

The flavor description says, "a fruity and spicy aroma which creates a unique and new flavor experience".  It comes in a 13.2 gram can with 24 portions for 0.55g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 8.8mg/portion.

Going into this one, I wasn't sure what to expect.  It definitely caught me off guard.  The aroma of this one is straight up pink bubble gum.  I can pull a little berry out of the smell if I try, but I had my non-snusing fiancé smell it and she thought the same thing - bubblegum.  There isn't as much of a cooling presence in the lip with this one compared to the other ones.  The taste is very much the same as the aroma - it reminds me of traditional, pink bubblegum.  I also don't really notice any mint in the flavor.  The nicotine level feels right at the extra strong level, and the flavor lasts around 1.5 hours on average.  Going into this one, I expected a spicy berry and mint flavor, but got a bubblegum flavor.  Am I disappointed?  Nope.  I really enjoyed the flavor of this one, even if it isn't berries and mint.

Thunder Heritage Limited No3: Mentha Lime
The flavor description says, "a fresh mentha and lime aroma with a subtle cooling sensation when used".  It comes in a 13.2 gram can with 24 portions for 0.55g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 8.8mg/portion.

With this one, the aroma seems to be more menthol than mint.  The menthol aroma comes through first, followed by a light hint of lime.  When you put a portion under your lip, you'll notice a light cooling presence, which sticks around for quite a while!  The taste reminds me a lot of lime-menthol cough drops.  It's a relatively mild flavor.  The menthol flavor reminds me of a menthol/eucalyptus character, and the lime flavor is relatively gentle and in the background.  The nicotine feels to be firmly at the extra strong level, and I find the flavor lasts up to about 1.5 hours.  This is one I could go either way on.  It is a unique flavor, but probably not one I would order if available on it's own.

Thunder Heritage Limited No4: Licorice Peppermint

The flavor description says, "a licorice and peppermint aroma with a subtle cooling sensation when used".  It comes in a 13.2 gram can with 24 portions for 0.55g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 8.8mg/portion.

When you open a can of this one, the licorice is more present in the aroma than I expected.  It's very much a black licorice presence, with a hint of tobacco, and a light mint character.  There is a light cooling as well when you put a portion in.  The flavor is mostly that licorice character, which is mild but not weak by any means.  In the background, the peppermint flavor is very gentle, and lightly sweet.  You already know I'm not a fan of mixing licorice and mint, so this is one I wouldn't go for again.

Thunder Heritage Limited No5: Pomegranate

The flavor description says, "a well rounded pomegranate aroma with a subtle cooling sensation when used".  It comes in a 13.2 gram can with 24 portions for 0.55g portions.  The nicotine content is 16mg/g (1.6%) or 8.8mg/portion.

Next to banana-mint, this is the one I was most excited about.  When I first started snusing back in 2009, I loved Mocca Pomegranate.  It was a regular for me for quite a while.  After that one was discontinued, I didn't imagine we'd ever see another Pomegranate snus.  Until now!  Like the Spicy Berries one, I didn't notice much mint in the aroma, it's mostly a mild, gentle smell of pomegranate.  I didn't get a cooling presence in the lip, but there was a nice little burn!  The taste is a gentle, fruity, natural pomegranate flavor.  I don't notice any mint in the taste, either.  Which I don't mind, as I was hoping it would be mostly pomegranate flavor anyway.  The flavor, on average, lasts up to about 1.5 hours and the nicotine feels to be right at the extra strong level.  As far as this one goes, I really enjoyed the taste!

I enjoyed this release and was glad I got to try it.  It was an interesting release, that's for sure.  As far as rankings go, this is where I'd put them:

1.  No1 Banana Mint
2.  No5 Pomegranate
3.  No2 Spicy Berries
4.  No3 Mentha Lime
5.  No4 Licorice Peppermint

If you're in the EU and want something unique, the Thunder Heritage line was definitely fun to try!  Again, sadly for those in the US, V2 has no plans to release a snus version of this at this time.  This appears to be a special little bonus just for those in the EU.