General (Original Portion) - Review. 2 August 2014.

Review Updated: 11 November 2020

General Snus is the king of Swedish Snus, in my opinion, and it's my personal favorite flavor profile when it comes to snus.  When I think of Swedish Snus, my mind always goes straight to the General brand.  From the heritage, to the taste - nothing beats it.  The General Snus line recently got a new look, in the US and in Sweden, so I figured it was time to revisit it!  In this picture, the can sold in Sweden is pictured.  One thing I want to be clear about is this - General Snus sold in Sweden and General Snus sold in the US is the exact same product, only with a different design!  I get that question often, so I wanted to clarify.  At the bottom of this review I'll post a photo of the US can, for comparison purposes.

The flavor description says, "Spicy tobacco character with hints of bergamot, as well as a hint of tea, hay and leather."  Each can weighs 24g and has 24 portions, for 1g portions.  The nicotine content is 8.5mg/g (0.85%), easily calculable to 8.5mg/portion.

The General Snus story goes all the way back to 1849.  In 1849, Johan A Boman started a tobacco company which would, in 1861, become JA Boman and Co. In 1866, he would launch General Snus. The story says that Boman wanted to create the best snus the world had ever seen or experienced. Mr. Boman had a magical nose, and was an expert in blending flavors. He was also very patient. To develop General Snus he spent 1500 days developing developing a recipe with 22 types of tobacco, which came from the world’s finest plantations. It also included the addition of a drop of bergamot oil, which complimented the spicy tobacco blend. This is what we know today as General Snus. Today, it is still produced according to his recipe, which remains a closely guarded secret. Round cans launched in 1967, and the portion format launched in 1977.

When you open the can, a present citrusy smell of bergamot greets you, along with a spicy tobacco presence.  The portions are plump, moist, and quite comfortable under the lip.  The flavor is a present taste of bergamot, an earthy tobacco character, a hint of leather, and a spicy touch of pepper.  The nicotine strength feels right at the regular strength level, and the flavor lasts about 45 minutes, on average!  In terms of snus, it really doesn't get any better than General.  This is the traditional flavor of Swedish Snus, and General is the best representation of this flavor on the market!

 

Rating and Final Thoughts

In my opinion, the General Snus flavor is the best flavor of snus on the market.  And General Original is the most bold flavor of that taste profile in the portion format.  For that reason, it ranks at 4.66 out of 5, one of my highest ratings I've given a portion snus.

If you want to check out the traditional, classic Swedish Snus flavor, this is the one you want to reach for.  It's got it all.  Strength, size, flavor, it hits all the high marks.  There's a reason General Snus has been widely regarded as the undisputed king of Swedish Snus!

This product available for purchase at SnusExpress.com!  Purchase link:  https://www.snusexpress.com/us/en/general-psol-24g-e-com-880.

Footnote:

For comparative purposes - this is what a can of General Snus sold in the USA looks like.  It's important to note that this is the exact same product as what is sold in Sweden, except it has a different design for when it reaches the US.