Today I received an invoice from Bernards for the final, elusive order we were promised. We are not getting everything we asked for but were are getting everything they have left.
This means we will probably be the last man standing selling Bernards but more importantly, it means we will be able to hold back sufficient samples to allow Project Lazarus, our effort to clone the best of their range, to go ahead.
Full disclosure: we will be adding a small premium to the price in order to fund Lazarus. We hope to have new designs and develop new style packaging, and the extra we make on the last of the Bernards will go towards those setup costs.
This is great news! Any idea when it’ll be live on the site?
Honestly, though, I hope the “premium” is indeed small, because I waited a long while to order from MrSnuff when Toque still had some Bernard’s in stock.
This is great news! (As much as it can be, all things considered).
I think project Lazarus is a great idea and important, to keep snuffs alive in some way.
Kinda how ft HDT etc was.
Different makers helping to keep it alive is very nice
I will try to get the money together to pay the invoice as soon as possible because I know we have loads of people waiting. Cash is very tight, because of all the recent price drops, and the invoice is huge, because we asked for everything they had, but I will do my best.
Honestly, my advice would be to buy from Toque right away, I wouldn’t wait because who knows what we will actually get from Bernards in the end? The company is in its death throes so I am not banking on anything despite the encouraging noises.
Ultimately, if we do get something you want, and the price is still acceptable to you, then we would love your business, but I wouldn’t hold back if you have the opportunity to get any now. Once the Bernards is gone from the marketplace, it really will be gone.
I have no idea, truth be told, although I am putting myself through a crash course right now. Can you explain the difference please.
Talking of which, assuming we pull it off, I will be relying on Friends of Mr Snuff to help me test and refine the products.
We need to get them to the point where an experienced snuffer would say, during a blind test: “I don’t know what it is but it is just like Bernards [xxx]”.
They sold out of most Bernard’s a while back, actually. I probably should have jumped on the few I wanted while they were still in stock there, but since you were waiting on more I thought I’d just wait do one bigger order. I also held off an order with you for the same reason… Maybe not the best decisions in retrospect! Glad you’ll be getting some in, anyway.
Rustica is from genus Nicotiana Rustica, where as commercial used tobacco is from Nicotiana Tobacum (what most mean when speaking tobacco and what is mostly used mainstream).
They are like cousins?
There’s different types of Nicotiana Tobacum, Burley is one.
Rustica is usually just all classified the same, but I’m sure there’s many types aswell.
Tobacum can be like 0.3-3% nicotine (usually around 1-2% it seems) , whereas Rustica can go all the way to 9% nicotine!! (Usually it’s around 3-6% it seems) .
Very strong, pure Rustica might be too strong for many, or something you couldn’t pinch alot of. Why it’s usually in a blend with other tobacco/s (and tastes etc)
A Burley and Rustica tobacco blend sounds nice imo.
Some compiled info if curious on more vs them :
Burley and Rustica tobaccos are distinct varieties with notable differences:
Origin and Growth:
Burley: Primarily cultivated in the United States, it’s known for its mild flavor and low sugar content. Burley tobacco is air-cured, which gives it a smooth taste.
Rustica: Originating from South America, particularly regions like Peru and Brazil, Rustica tobacco is more potent with a higher nicotine content. It’s often sun-cured, leading to a stronger, more pungent flavor.
Nicotine Content and Strength:
Burley: Generally has a lower nicotine content compared to Rustica, making it suitable for milder tobacco products.
Rustica: Contains higher levels of nicotine, contributing to its stronger and more robust flavor profile. It’s often used sparingly in blends due to its potency.
Flavor Profile:
Burley: Offers a subtle, nutty flavor with hints of cocoa or coffee. It’s valued for its ability to absorb flavorings and additives well.
Rustica: Has a distinct, earthy flavor with a noticeable sharpness. It can be quite intense and is often used for its strong nicotine hit rather than for its mild taste.
Usage in Tobacco Blends:
Burley: Commonly used as a base in pipe tobaccos and cigarette blends due to its smoothness and ability to complement other flavors.
Rustica: Used sparingly in blends, primarily to enhance nicotine content and add a kick to the tobacco mixture.
Cultural and Historical Significance:
Burley: Integral to American tobacco farming traditions, often associated with mainstream tobacco products in the US.
Rustica: Historically significant in indigenous South American cultures, where it has been used ceremonially and medicinally for centuries.
Will Lazarus snuffs be made from Indian tobaccos from Indian Brands like Snuv was made?
Maybe a coarse ground moist Madras would be close to Gekachelter’s impostor but that’s already a stretch. An Indian attempt to that style. That may be completely different from Gekachelter in result but still a nice snuff
Just to expand on ALLex’s comment, I could see the likes of Magic Moments, Winterpris and Klostermischung working really well on the tobacco used in the Snuv Black range
I would say, following original formula to T, virtually any brown / dark brown base would work for such a heavily aromatized snuff like this F. You just need to make a pine bomb with some menthol and camphor. Dark air cured or dark sun cured anything would do it, just dob’t make it silly fine, don’t make it on a regular Indian black snuff base and don’t use white snuff base, @Jonny.
For schmalzlers, do them on dark air cured or dark sun cured. Again, don’t make them silly fine etc.
Just do follow Bernard compositions to T (all bar the cherry-flavoured one, Postillion and some other the name if which I cannot remember are disclosed on BMEL data base), strictly to a T, and don’t allow Vikas to make them in an Indian fashion. The grind is important, they might need to use different grinders than they are used to.
I can see the difference’s have been explained between tobacco’s. When it come’s to testing send out a sample with the original for people to try I’d give out a 1g-1.5g of both to test should be a good amount for a good test. I’d be happy to try some to compare.
Just mark the bags A & B don’t say what they are and see what people say about each bag. Not sure how many you want to test it I would make about 40/50 samples to get a good idea across a fair amount of people. You could do less but I think for testing you should get a good amount doing it.
If I were picking flour I would use 70% burley & 30% rustica get some more nicotine in there. or maybe 60 to 40
I have a few tins of many of the real thing, I’d be happy to do some testing (happy to pay for the samples too and will grab some more Bernards if I get the opportunity).
The only complaint with these is poor nic apart from that some are quite enjoyable but would be nicer if they had that little extra nicotine.
Never really bought much because of it due to that also avoided other snuff’s because of the same shite nic so added some indian white snuff to some to fix it lmao
We were hoping to commission McChrystal’s to help us clone them up. We are tossing around ideas here, thinking about a new MrSnuff branded range that will include the best of Bernards and Rosinski
We are also considering adding in the German only Poschl products we mostly fail to import. They are great sellers but almost impossible to keep in stock.
Rosinski snuffs would be good, but for that. I would ask him if you could buy the recipes from him, help support him could lead to future snuff ranges? He knows how to make great snuffs.
From a commercial perspective I think using anything other than a similar base to the originals would be unwise. People didn’t buy these products for strong nicotine content and straying from the original may limit appeal to a very narrow market.
With all due respect to McChrystals, I don’t see anything in their range which leads me to believe they’d have a hope of blending anything close to a Rosinski snuff.
I like the idea of some sort of partnership which allowed continued Rosinski production - this is one guy who couldn’t overcome bureaucracy and all indications are that he’d much prefer to still be in this line of business. The idea of cloning his products doesn’t sit right with me and would serve only to compound his misfortune.
If it were just the same. Think I would just stick with sharrows snuffs and the others I enjoy. I think a blend is the way to go myself best of both tobacco’s. Whatever happens some will buy it, some won’t. Some will love it, some could hate it. Like any product. Just nice seeing new snuffs been made.
