Thunder Xtreme (US Market) Wintergreen Strong - Review (Discontinued). 19 August 2019

NOTE:  This product has been discontinued and is no longer for sale.

At the end of 2018, Swedish Match did something US consumers have been asking for for many years now - they released new snus products domestically in the US: Thunder Xtreme Original, Original Strong, and Red Strong. And not just that, these were available in higher nicotine strengths than their flagship General Snus line.  You may be asking, "How can this be?" Remember in 2017 when Swedish Match purchased V2 Tobacco? Apparently, V2 Tobacco went through the approval process for  some products under the Thunder Xtreme label many years ago, and these products were grandfathered in through the FDA. Nothing was ever done with them, but after Swedish Match purchased V2, they made the move to release them in the US.  I imagine the new Wintergreen and Mint flavors were grandfathered in the same way, but I haven't confirmed that.  Now, they're introducing two new Thunder Xtreme products: Mint Strong and Wintergreen Strong, which I think dippers and snusers are really going to enjoy.

These products are set to launch nationwide on October 1st, 2019.  I don't have a flavor description yet for them, but I can see the can weighs 20 grams and has 20 portions, which is 1 gram each.  Thunder Original Strong and Red Strong had a nicotine content of 12mg/g (1.2%), so I imaginer these are much the same, which would also be 12mg/portion.

I've had quite a few people ask how close this one tastes to the Thunder Wintergreen Original Portion Snus that's been available online for years now. It's pretty close, to be honest.  The aroma of this one is a straight up, in your face, lightly sweet, American wintergreen smell.  If you're a dipper, you're going to dig this.  The portions are plump, moist, and have a quick flavor release when you put one in your lip.  The flavor is a bold, present flavor of wintergreen.  It is lightly sweet, but not overly sweet like Camel Winterchill, for example.  The nicotine on this one feels stronger than a regular strength snus, but not in your face, super strong.  It's right there in that sweet spot in the middle.  I find the flavor, on average, lasts up to about 45 minutes.

I'm not a big fan of wintergreen, so this isn't something I'd probably use again.  But, for those who are, you'll dig this.  Especially if you're a dipper.  I think this was an incredibly smart release by Swedish Match and I can't wait to see what people think of it when it launches.