Lyft Blonde Roast (Nicotine Pouches) - Review (Discontinued). 23 September 2020.

NOTE:  The Lyft brand has been rebranded as Velo.  As such, this product has been discontinued and is no longer for sale.

It seems like most new Lyft products seem to launch in Denmark before they expand to the rest of the market.  Recently, two new Lyft products appeared via Lyft Denmark, Lyft London Flair and Lyft Blonde Roast.  This one, Blonde Roast, is one with a coffee flavor!  This one reminds me of back in 2015, when Epok, precursor to Lyft, first launched.  One of the flavors was called Epok Cafe Creme, which this one reminds me of.  To compare to modern products, it makes me think of Zyn Espressino, which is a dry nicotine pouch.  This is one with a coffee flavor, but in the moist format.  The flavor description for this one says, "A taste of roasted coffee beans and hazelnut as known from a café latte".  If you're like me and not a coffee drinker, a latte is a drink made from espresso and steamed milk.  Each can weighs 16.8 grams and has 24 portions for 0.7 gram portions. The nicotine content is 8.5mg/g (0.85%) for 5.95mg/portion.
   
If you're not familiar with nicotine pouches (pictured right), here's a quick rundown.  They're similar to regular snus (pictured left), but they're different.  Nicotine pouches contain plant fiber, but no tobacco.  They also have nicotine.  So nicotine pouches are a type of product that are free from tobacco, but still allow people to enjoy nicotine.  I don't personally use them much myself, but as a harm reduction advocate I'm glad they're out there for people who are looking to quit tobacco but still enjoy nicotine.
So, I'm not a big coffee drinker myself.  But for some reason, I like coffee flavored things.  So when I heard about this one, I was pretty excited to try it.  Even though I don't drink coffee.  I know, it doesn't make any sense.  When you open the can, the aroma that comes through is a gentle, creamy aroma of black coffee.  It's not super in your face, and it comes with a light sweetness to it.  The portions are slim, soft, and rather comfortable under the lip.  The flavor is much like the aroma!  The coffee flavor is relatively mild in nature.  It has a creaminess to it, and a very light sweetness to the flavor.  The nicotine strength on this one feels to be around the regular strength level, and the flavor lasts up to about 45 minutes, on average.

Rating
Packaging - 4/5 - I've always been a fan of the futuristic look of the Lyft cans.
Aroma - 2/5 - Smells good, but seems a bit on the bland side.
Mouthfeel - 3.5/5 - Soft slim portions, and comfortable under the lip.
Flavor - 2/5 - It doesn't taste bad, but it could use something extra to round it out, like a touch of vanilla or something.  It's not bad, but not amazing.
Nicotine - 3.75/5 - Right around the regular strength mark, perhaps a little less.
Flavor Longevity - 3.5/5 - Flavor lasts a good 45 minutes.
Overall Rating - 3.08/5 - I enjoyed the flavor, but I feel like it’s missing something and could use a little vanilla or something.  But, I think coffee lovers will enjoy it!

Final Thoughts
So, this one wasn't bad, but it wasn't amazing.  The flavor was approachable, but I felt it was lacking in some ways.  It could use from the addition of some subtle hints, perhaps vanilla.  All in all, it's decent, and I think coffee lovers will like it.  It just wasn't for me.

SPECIAL THANKS:  To our friend Jakob in Denmark who helped us acquire this product.

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