Goteborgs Rapé Summer Edition Hjortron Snus Review

UPDATE 8 Dec 14:  Swedish Match announced today that Göteborgs Rapé Hjortron White Portion Snus will be returning and Back to Stay in January, 2015!

Check the Goteborgs Rapé Product Page at the SnusCentral.com Snus Shop for GR’ Hjortron between Week 2 and Week 4, 2015 to purchase.

Yes, I said Göteborgs Rapé, I will wait while you get over the giggles about doing bad things to a poor defenseless goat which are illegal in most states . All better now? Good.

[EDITOR’s NOTE: the Rapé in Goteborgs Rapé is pronounced “ra-PAY”….a variation of the French word râpé, meaning shredded. Leave it to the stupid French to make shredding tobacco sound so wrong. I’ve also heard it pronounced “RA-pee”. I use the latter since I hate everything tainted by France. Now back to Mick!]

As you all know, at least those of you that have read my ramblings before, I am a fan of many of Swedish Match snus. I have visited their factories, broke bread with them, count some of their current and former employees as friends (at least by the Facebook definition of friend).

Swedish Match makes many great products, some pretty good ones and some absolutely horrible ones (can anyone say Probe Whisky? I thought you could.)

A couple times a year Moe Unz, with help from the SnusCIA, smuggle some samples of new snus to my door. To show my appreciation, I dutifully write up my thoughts on a few snus to try to sell a few cans so Moe can continue to be employed drink and hobnob with the rich and famous of Sweden.

All this is a long winded way of saying I got my cans of Göteborgs Rapé Summer Edition Hjortron free. Moe and Swedish Match freely acknowledge that my opinions are not filtered by that fact. If I hate a snus I will tell you right up front and take my chances of annoying my benefactors.

Having said all that; Yes, I like Goteborgs Rapé Summer Edition Hjortron but as a treat. I don’t believe it’s a good all day every day snus, but I don’t feel any of the Göteborgs line, excepting Prima Fint, is.

I’m not a fan of Juniper flavor, reminds me to much of Gin which I hate, and I don’t like sweet in my snus more than sometimes.

I will take a minute here to discuss the can. The label is the usual Goteborg’s blue, with lighter patterns that remind one of clouds or a rippling lake shore. Quite artistic in the presentation, I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen with it at the local art gallery. It is vague enough to allow one to add their own interpretation to the art.

The physical can itself is the new rounded edge, large catch lid that SM is using all their portion snus. I like the rounder edges as it leaves a less obvious Skoal Ring on my hip pocket and maybe take a tad more abuse than the older design.

I primarily use the catch lid to keep a second type of snus separate from whatever is in the main portion of the can, I really appreciate the larger space available. I can fit 5 portions in comfortably, where I could only get 3 in the old design.

“Enough already! How is the snus?“

I know, your first question was “what in the wide wide world of sports is a Hjortron”??!! It is a Nordic berry, like last year’s Hawthorn limited edition or the ever popular Göteborgs Rapé #2 Lingonberry. The English translation of Hjortron is Cloudberry.

I thought, being a child of the 70’s, that cloudberries were a sugary part of a long forgotten breakfast cereal. Turns out it is actually a real berry.

I have no idea what a Cloudberry or Hjortron is supposed to taste like but in this snus I have to say it’s similar to an American Raspberry. Note I said similar. It tastes like what I imagine lingonberry and a raspberry would taste like if one would cross breed the plants gently.

Goteborgs Rapé Summer Edition Hjortron is a good snus. It has all the elements we are accustomed to in Göteborgs Rapé.

The Cloudberry adds a touch of sweetness peeking out, from time to time, behind the standard juniper and tobacco flavor. I would guess that Swedish Match did the snus flavoring equivalent of bashing the standard Göteborgs Rapé recipe with a bunch of Hjortron berries and then mixed it up again.

If you like any of the Göteborgs family of snus you will like this Limited Edition. I plan to buy a roll or two before summers end.

MICK HELLWIG

Snuff Takers Ephemeris Magazine
WHAT I THINK at SnusCENTRAL.org