2011 Kardus Review

November is the time of year when it begins to get colder out, the days get shorter (here in the Northern Hemisphere at least!), and I begin to sleep longer at night. Fortunately, it is also the time in which Swedish Match releases their limited edition yearly Kardus. Since last year’s Kardus was delicious, I was quite eager to try this year’s Kardus. Just a few days ago, I got my wish when a package of Kardus arrived at my doorstep from the folks over at BuySnus.com.

The 2011 Kardus!

The Kardus came in a beautiful wooden box stained yellow to match the Brazilian Carnival theme. The word Kardus is etched on the top of the box rather than on the bottom like last year’s. Inside the box is a sealed plastic container which holds 100g of snus.

This year, Swedish Match has revealed that they have only added salt and the Brazilian beverage cachaça to the Kardus tobacco. After adding the secondary ingredients, the tobacco is allowed to sweat, which pasteurises the snus and makes it slightly milder and tastier. The tobacco selected for this year’s Kardus was harvested in Rio Grande do Sul Brazil and is organically grown.

When I first opened my box of 2011 Kardus, I was greeted with an aroma of cachaça, with slight undertones of oak and tea. The cut on the snus is long cut, however it is not as coarse as the 2010 Kardus was. The snus didn’t hold together well in my IceTool, so I took a pinch and placed it in my lower lip like I normally do with dip. I find the slightly finer cut than last year creates a bit more saliva, but it is nice not having to spit unlike when I dip.

The 2011 Kardus is a Long Cut

The flavor of this year’s Kardus was quite tasty. During the first ten minutes of having a pinch in, I detected a dominant spicy flavor which slowly revealed undertones of sweetness over time. The flavor wasn’t as strong as last year’s Kardus, but it definitely had a nice burning sensation to it and I was able to keep my pinch in for about half an hour. I’m not entirely sure, but I’m pretty certain that this year’s Kardus has a similar nicotine level to last year’s which seems to be slightly stronger than regular loose snus.

The 2010 and 2011 Kardus Boxes, Beautiful!

In conclusion, I’m enjoying this year’s Kardus quite a bit. The minimal ingredients included in the Kardus really allow for the natural flavors of the tobacco to come through, and the Caraçha adds a delicious tinge of sweetness. If you’re interested in giving this year’s Kardus a try, I highly suggest ordering soon as it is only available in limited quantities. Only 100 boxes are to be sold online, with 600 boxes being sold in shops in Sweden and 200 in Norway.