Newbie snuser, ex smoker, my thoughts so far.

[RealmofOpeth]

if you want a high quality 'candy' brand of mini portions, try Mocca. I haven't tried their mandarin yet (i have it, but not opened it yet), but the pomegranate is great.
nothing wrong with having a liking for the candy brands...yes, there's a lot of 'pure tobacco' purists here as there is anywhere in the tobacco market, but there hasn't been anything personal about it directed towards anybody that I've seen expressed here except for personal taste and not liking it or the general idea that the candy brands are generally liked more by women, but no put-downs if guys express their liking for it. (like you might find at SMpost)
I'm surprised you haven't mentioned the intense burn under your lip/on the gums. That's what pissed me off the most about first trying out snus.
Secondly was that I had a hard time not spitting, even though it's marketed as spit-free.
I've never really had a problem with the salt...it's the burn and spit getting sour in my mouth if i don't spit. The only lip chapping problem I have is when i leave my mouth open to breath in and out the aroma of the snus.


here's a not so all-inclusive review of major brands/flavors..

most salty/lemon flavors:
I love goteborgs rape for it's mosaic of flavor, but it's the absolutely most salty I've had, along with goteborgs prima fint. Also the most lemony I would say is granit. But I love that brand as well. then comes offroad original, then diplomat, then general which are also lemony, with general being the least lemony.

'candy'/sweet flavors:
probe portions are pretty grody...poor quality in my opinion, but the loose is very nice for a sweet whisky flavor.
Gotlandssnus Gron (green) tastes like apples and springtime (like the smell of cut grass)...
Gotlandssnus Gra (grey) is anis flavored (licorice)...if you love licorice (since Onyx has a licorice tone to it) it's the one to get. but if you want licorice in minis, LD salmiak, metropol licorice root, or Mocca Anis (i haven't tried either of those).
Offroad is a brand thati s loved by some, hated by others...but they have a good variety of candy flavors like peach, green apple, cranberry, etc. I personally like them.
Roda Lacket portions are also fruity and very enjoyable. I've never really noticed an overwhelming salt flavor that others seem to be tasting.
I've found the mint snus's to be rather boring, minty at first and lose their flavor quick...that's after having metropol peppermint and catchdry eucalyptus.
LD juniper is good if you like a taste of juniper, (since I never had it, it reminds me of pinetrees)..

'manly' varieties...

Knox used to have mini portions, of which I still have a can...they're pretty good, and a 'manly' variety with that rich tobacco flavor. They are generally a much less expensive brand despite not lacking quality. It tastes a little similar to skruf since skruf makes knox, and also since skruf and N&J/knox all share the same family of rich tobacco flavor.
Ettan is probably the best as far as 'manly' pure tobacco flavor is concerned...it's still salty, but you'll know you have a nice fresh tobacco taste unadulterated by any other flavor. Next comes Grovsnus, which on top of the 'straight' tobacco flavor, seems to have some kind of tangy/sour element to it that reminds me of Copenhagen...which takes on more of the 'manly' feel. Gustavus is a lot like it, possibly more pronounced on the copenhagen/skoal straight sour/tang taste, but overall I found rather subtle.
Lucky strike is about the most subtle form of the manly tastes.
Then there's the in-between ones..the ones that have a general tobacco taste but have some flavoring that doesn't overpower, like LD original, Kronan, Roda Lacket (loose)..then of course the others I mentioned with the lemon flavors. A higher quality in-betweener (flavored with bergamot) is Landstroms but only comes in loose and is a bitch to make a pris with.

I guess if you really want a twisted sort of 'manly' variety, get Level. I've never had it, but i"ve heard repeatedly it's absolutely horrible. maybe you're not a real man until you enjoy it :lol:

As far as loose, like you already know, it's not great for out-and-about usage...until you're an experienced loose user, on your own, around those who don't care, or don't care about people wondering wtf that brown stuff is in your mouth, that's where it is only practically used.
I suggest picking up a prismaster (if offered for free on a buysnus order, or a couple bucks otherwise)....it's what I use. it does the job of compacting the snus hard enough to stay together for a while.

[darkwing]

I struggled with the regular portion size until I found that folding them lengthwise makes them easier to hold in place. My recommndation for a mini portion would be Catch Eucalyptus, refreshing and easy to use.

[databat]

Keep your man card, no judgments here. It all comes down to what makes you happy. Yes, the initial salty taste can be a bit of a shock, but it only took me a couple of days to get used to it. Generally, if you prefer sweeter snus, the salty flavor takes longer to get used to. The salt is used in all Swedish snus as part of the manufacturing process. I've never experienced chapped lips from it though. I have noticed I drink more water since I started snusing.

You're going to love Gotborgs Rape No. 2. It's salt flavor is very very mild, and the taste is wonderful. The lingonberry and juniper flavors are blended perfectly. So far it's my favorite, along with Skruf Stark. I have some lucky strike regular portions on order, so I suppose we'll experience that together.

I don't have any problems hiding a regular portion, but I also have a mustache/beard, so that helps to hide it. From what I've heard from other snusers, tearing open a portion bag isn't the same as using loose. The moisture content is different. I'll find out soon enough as I have some Roda Lacket loose coming in the mail. I too have tried tearing open a portion bag, and forming a pris from it was like building a sand sculpture during a long drought. :P

I sometimes like candy flavored snus, sometimes salty, and sometimes the full tobacco flavor. It all depends on what mood I'm in really. I used to dip Copenhagen before I tried the Camel snus. I never tried the origional, but I did try the spice and frost. I liked them both, but they weren't that great in my opinion. Their flavor didn't last long enough. They do provide a decent nic hit though. I prefer the Swedish snus however. It has many subtle flavors in it that the Camel just doesn't have. The longer you use snus (and the longer you don't smoke), the more you will be able to pick up on these various flavors. It has the ingredients listed on the tin as well as listed on the manufacturers website. I don't have a clue what they put in Camel, and that does bother me a bit.

As far as finding a "manly" brand, you don't have to worry about that here on the forums. We won't tease you. For us, it's all about enjoying snus and sharing our experiences with each other.

[Zofryer]

Welcome to the dark side lol .......Good luck in your quest!

Billy

I keep finding myself popping the Onyx in my mouth. I can't figure out why. Maybe I'm just a sucker for good marketing and packaging. I know I'm going to have to get more.

[Huskysibe]

Welcome to the dark side lol If you dont like Salty you wont like the Roda. I have tried so far the Goteborgs rape and the Goteborgs No 2 andI liked them both but the No2 is my favorite. Ettan is awesome! General Onyx I am getting used to, its ok. The Roda is excellent to me, VERY salty but I love that. And the Gotland Julesnus is the X-Mas blend that pretty good and I tried their Green can and thought it was just ok. I didnt like L&D so much and absolutely hated Level, steer clear of that garbage. So far the Goteborgs No2, Roda Lacket and Ettan are must haves for me. Good luck in your quest!

Billy

[Zofryer]

My entire point to using snus is to quit smoking. This is my progress so far.

So I quit smoking two packs a day with dip. Like a lot of new american users, camel snus was my first foray into the product. I had been using timberwolf and skoal peach and forcing myself to swallow the juice. I work in a place where you are simply not allowed to use any tobacco products while "on the floor", so the dip had to go. So when I got my hands on the camel product advert, I had to try it.

The transition from skoal to camel snus was easy. At first I preferred the original flavor. I didn't mind spice, and I thought the frost was too much like candy. After about a week though, I found myself wanting that candy flavor, and I didn't like the spice and original much at all. They get bitter after about 30 minutes. The frost stays good for an hour. I'm assuming that has to do with heavy flavoring masking the bitter taste.

I had to try the traditional swedish stuff. I had the idea I might be able to find something that tastes closer to the original camel, but didn't go bitter after 30 minutes. I read a bunch of the forum posts here to get an idea what I'd like, and ordered a bunch of portions. Although I think I'd prefer loose snus, it's just not an option. I plan on settling on two brands and switching between them. I started with:

General Onyx
Skruf Tranbar
General Maxi
Probe
Goteborg's Rapé
Skruf Stark
Nick and Johnny

All regular portion size. Initial observations:

1) The camel snus is a mini portion apparently. It's a little harder to hide the regular sized bags.

2) You aren't ready for the assault of salt and lemon in most of these snus's the first time. I don't "love" this flavor at all, but I'm getting used to it.

3) Maybe it's just me, but the salt chaps my lips. I have to keep chapstick on me now.

4) Even though the stark and N&J have more nicotene, I get just as much pleasure and kick out of the mini camel snus because I can play with it and move it around my mouth without getting floored with salt.


Of the first order, I liked the Nick and Johnny the most. And honestly, it's because it doesn't have as much of the salt and lemon flavoring to me. If I could get it without the salt, I'd be much happier.

I find myself liking the Onyx more as I use it. So either it has some secret opiate content, or it's just one of those acquired tastes I'm getting used too.

The probe and the goteborg's rapé are completely disgusting. The General Maxi is too unwieldy. I've actually torn the packets apart to experiment with pris rolling. Looks fun.

Now before anybody gets uppity because I'm a newbie user, and I insulted your favorite brand, keep in mind these are initial impressions of an ex-smoker looking for a replacement. I don't like heavy lemon and salt, and that seems to be what the traditional swedish flavor is.

So, I placed a second order.

Ettan, General White, Rape2, Kronan, Lucky Strike, Roda, and Tre.

And a third order with all the candy snuses.

I'm really hoping I find a "manly" variety of snus I like in a mini portion. Just from reading, it's looking like the lucky strike white mini is a good bet. I'm positive I'll find a candy snus I like. Probably one of the catchdry flavors. And if I happen to prefer the candy snus's, I'll make sure to surrender my man card to the swedish authorities right after I'm done trying on dresses.

For now, I'm popping an N&J in my cheek, and a camel frost in my lip at the same time. Packs a wonderful kick. No desire to have a cigarette. Who knows. Maybe I'll develop a taste for strong salt and lemon, and my lips will stop chapping.

I'll post an update after a few months. But for right now, for the american smoker looking to quit, I'd have to say that camel really did their research before they released their snus offerings. They can't keep frost on the shelves here. If swedish match came up with a line of really great tasting, stark white mini candy snus, and offered it at a lower price than camel snus, they'd corner the market just on word of mouth.

Just my experience. If you are trying to quit smoking, try em all. No reason to not make a best effort attempt to enjoy your substitute.