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Rosinski snuff
Mr. Rosinski, the new snuffmaker from Frankfurt, sent me samples of all his snuffs that are available for sale, plus three samples of snuffs that have not been released yet.
I'll post the reviews in this thread if anyone is interested in reading them. I'll try one snuff a day.
I'll post the reviews in this thread if anyone is interested in reading them. I'll try one snuff a day.
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BTW There is a problem with your jpg - it just shows as a blank image and clicking on it gives a 404 Not Found error.
I look forward to your reviews.
Stargarder: it has a very light brown yellowish color. The grind is on the finer side but yet somewhat gritty. It's dry and very easy to take. I get a mellow, creamy honey scent. This scent is not very sweet and is perfectly balanced with the great base tobacco, it does not overpower or mask it. The nicotine level is low.
Thanks to you all for this great information. I just happen to agree with this artisan's take on volume vs weight. The packaging looks wonderful too.
It's almost Spring here as I'm writing this review and, after snuffing a good amount of this snuff, I stepped outside. The herbal aroma almost completely disappeared and I was hit with a scent I really like - the scent of freshly cut grass. Great stuff.
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Driesener: Coarse, dry, very green in color with a distinct herbal note in the jar reminding me of fresh parsley, basil and thyme among others. I'm not sure if those are additions or inherent in the tobacco. It sits well in the nose with no irritation at all; very comfortable. There’s an anise/fennel note coming through before the scent settles down and presents an aroma similar to a freshly mown meadow filled with wildflowers, clover, wild grass and wild herbs. Outside, in the rain, it takes on a more intense culinary herb quality that is wonderful. Not sweet, more of a savory character that also delivers a nice nicotine hit that is perfect for all day.
Whatever the artisan is doing, he's doing it damn well. This is a keeper. I don't think it will age worth a tinker's damn, so I plan on hoovering it up my hooter quickly. It really is that good.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acephalgic_migraine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scintillating_scotoma
Interestingly, When Nicot first introduced tobacco to Catherine de Medici, it was as a snuff she could use as a remedy for her migraines, which apparently worked well enough that she endorsed the use of the plant as a medicinal herb. Must have been the tabacum species, as the rustica, even if it doesn't blow a neurological fuse, would have left Catherine doubled over with hellish agonies. Even with my high tolerance of nicotine, rustica kicks my ass.
First things first: the packaging. It comes in that inkwell-shaped container with a wide screw top, both "sealed for freshness" and with a seal on top. There's not a better container on the market, IMO, even if it makes the snuff a little bit pricier.
The grind is medium to coarse, tough it doesn't adjust to what you will expect from an average "gros" snuff, as the moisture is on the low side and it's a little bit gritty to touch. "Hum -I thought when I first took a pinch- I don't think this will be nice to my good old nose".
But I was wrong, quite wrong, in fact. Upon entering the nose, it's scent turned from the mellow but "serious", Schmalzler-like smell that it had on the container to a wonderful symphony of natural aromas that blended some fresher characteristics (what you'd expect from a Molens Virginia, like Bolongaro) with an underlying sweetness and a very subtle hint of smoke that is unlike any other "smoky" snuff I ever tried. There's the more obvious smokiness of Latakia AO and Gekachelter Virginie, there's the subtle but disctint smoky undertones of HDT and Viking Dark, and then there's this mysterious but rustic smoky scent that blends perfectly with the dark and sweet tobacco.
As @chefdaniel said of the Driesener, Uckermärker's scent benefits from being taken outside, with the wonderful smell of the tobacco coming to life in even brighter shades of brown and red. The definition of Uckermärker as a "smoky snuff" that Mr. Rosinski himself made , while a perfectly valid moniker, doesn't do justice to the overwhelming complexity of the final product. In fact, this snuff is bound to join the pantheon of "unscenteds" that are far from being just "plain": along with the finest of toasts, the historical Bernard's and Viking Dark, to name a few.
If I have to compare this creation with an established name on the market, that would be Bernard's Klostermischung: some roasted coffee/sweet chocolate notes, along with smoke, are to be found on both of them, but I'd be damned to choose just one. Right now, I'm partial to the Rosinski: less coarse and less of a mess, probably.
I'm quite happy to have the opportunite to witness the revival of the wonderful world of plain snuffs which, upon the demise of the Seville and Italy factories and the undisputed hegemony of the menthol/scented German occupied until now a minor place on the market. But this are good times for snuff, and the number of historical recreations and artisan snuff makers are a good proof of that.
The texture combined with the lack of moisture were confounding at first, and I too was expecting a sneeze fest. Nope. It was as comfortable in the nose as any snuff of greater humidity and didn't set off any mustache staining "forward drip" like some of those snuffs tend to do.
As much as I like Gekachelter, Black Rappee, London Brown, Scotch Black and others in that genre, I think this one is going to take center stage when I'm feeling that familiar craving for "a smoke".
I'd gladly review the others, but as my budget is very very tight I only ordered this. And as you and @mrmanos seem to be very enhusiastic about the brand as a whole (and I trust your judgement because I tend to agree with your criteria) I have even greater desire to try them all.
I agree with you on the cmplexity department: it manages to be attention demanding and ever-surprising but also subtle, well defined scent-wise and very moreish. I bet your wife is going to believe your research to be very hard.
To avoid speculation about the Driesener - no, no rustica involved, just an old East German cultivar that I stumbled across and it turned out to be perfect for green snuffs... Have to grow it myself as it needs a little extra care that does not fit into modern agriculture... This year, I have planned for more of it, so hopefully I will not run out of it before the next harvest.
Stargarder with hot Assam tea with milk and sugar right now. Damn. Great snuff, one that reaffirms my thinking that the true measure of a tobacco artisan is the ability to coax the inherent scents and flavors from the leaf before adding anything. I do detect what seems to be honey, but that could very well be the result of some alchemy on the maker's part.
Just digging into your Pumpernickel Toast again, which I can´t leave my hands off... Wakes up appetites, brings back childhood memories of happy trips to Czech countryside restaurants. That´s what I expect of a good snuff - not to "smell of", but to make you lean back and let your mind wander. Congratulations to this snuff (and your others, as well!), great craftmanship.
Two others I have not put my nose to yet but may tonight.
The other two with menthol I did not order but may in the future.
They are basically ready, but before we release them, we need to open the test batches successively to be sure they always come out in the same quality.
You will see them in the late summer / early autumn, so please be patient :-)