Just spotted a photo of some new (?) Viking tins on Reddit. It seems that Viking switched to WoS type cans and shrink band seal…

I enjoyed the struggle trying to finesse the old cans open

Reportedly, mfg date code format now is the same as that of WoS - XXX XXA. It’s on the bottom of the tin.

It would be a pitty. I really like the SG cans.

Keep the stuff in there fresh for a long time. At least much longer than the WoS cans. It is due to the rubber seal at the SG cans that keep the content longer fresh than in most other tin types.

Yet another reason to buy bulk

If Wilsons are now making Viking it will soon become apparent as they wont be able to replicate the ‘fluffy’ SG grind.

@Hoffwell, true. Have you tried the new WoS Kendal Brown yet? I’m dying to how it compares to SG one.

@volunge No haven’t tried it. Have had the now defunct KB Special but not the regular brown. Are we to understand SG are finished then?

Thanks for bringing this up @volunge! What’s the consensus here - whose tins are best and worst? I think best is Toque’s F&T and maybe Toque’s 10g. I think worst are the tap tins and Second are the slip tins like pictures. The vac tins though are something else. Not above average for regular use but I could get a 3 or 5 year old SG or GH and it still be moist & aromatic. I personally am not a fan of the change of tin. I’m trying my best to assume they will keep the old facilities and suppliers to keep making the SG/Viking as we love it today

I hope that they introduce all regular 25g Vikings in 100g tins instead of only 0,5 kilos. Those 100g plastic tubes seems to be fine for storage ime and helluva lot cheaper than smaller tins.

@ar47, I’m not a fan of the change either. As revealed by some ex worker of J&H W, shelf life of snuff in unopened vac tins is up to 4 years. Small tins up to three months. Interesting detail - in older days retailers returned non sold (“expired”) tins to manufacturer for “re-mixing”.

Full quote of @gillybean129 revelation: "Definitely airtight containers, Wilson’s airtight time had a shelf life of 4 years (until they were opened of course!), pocket boxes would have a limited shelf life of three months and will lose their flavour and top notes after which time they were classed as old stock and would be returned the mixing process… " http://snuffhouse.com/discussion/comment/160290/#Comment\\_160290

@Johano, good news, all Vikings are already available in 50, 100, 250 and 500 g tubs. Bad news, at the meantime all sizes are available only at mysmokinstore:  https://www.mysmokingshop.co.uk/index2.php?mod=category&nm=The%20Viking%20Snuff&nc=SNUFF&man=451&cat=82

@ar47, worth checking other @gillybean129 posts.

An alloy of F&T tubs is prone to corrosion (be careful with Santo Domingo and Princes, better store them decanted), but they are great for dry snuffs. Toque tins are definitely better than WoS-type.

Toque tins(10g) are my regular snuffboxes.

The best tins are the SWS aluminum ones!(15g)

@tobaccobob I agree, plus SWS dont tend to bend in some places like Toques. Must be made of thicker alloy or something

I just recieved an order including a Viking Blonde, Brown, Dark, and Thor’s Hammer and all were the vacuum sealed tins. That doesn’t mean the change isn’t coming…just that it hadn’t occurred as of my order. 

@volunge RE:F&T I was referring to the vertical medium and large tins that Toque sells F&T in rather than the squat tins that WoS usually comes in. Which are you referring to? I’ve certainly had those corrode shut on me. Most any dark WoS/F&T I would love to get 50g versions of Thor’s hammer in the US

@brandaves how is Thors Hammer compared to my favorite Viking Dark?

@ar47 the tins I bought were the 25g tins. I decanted them into glass as soon as they arrived as I was afraid the moisture content might not be great for storing long term in the tins.

@ALLex to be honest I’ve only dipped into each of them once so I can’t really speak to how the flavor of the Thor’s Hammer compares to the Dark with any confidence. Give me a little bit with them and I’ll get back to you.

@brandaves of course mate, take your time enjoy them and i will appreciate to tell me whenever you feel ready!

I’m pretty sure Thors Hammer is just a 50/50 mix of Viking Dark and Viking Blonde.

@ALLex VD got a bit coarser grind than VTH, Also, There are some citrus/floral notes (Im not good at describing scents tbh) in Thor’s Hammer, but suprisingly good and mild. I think ammonia is a bit weaker than in VD. Its hard to tell which one is stronger in nic, but with Thor’s Hammer you wont be dissapointed - it deserves this name!

@ar47, I was referring to vertical tins. I only had two of them in old days (2010-11), HDT and Santo Domingo. HDT tin was intact, but Santo Domingo corroded after six months and contaminated the snuff so bad I had to ditch it (half of the tin). I wanted to save the tin, but I didn’t manage to scrap off corrosion neatly. Here’s the image of only slightly corroded tin (not mine) - note those pale-yellowish “pimples” on the rim:

@Johano Thanks mate, I ll definetely try some Thors Hammer

Curious case - just opened my vacuum sealed box for an already opened tin of Thors Hammer after dinner. To my surprise - I couldnt open the tin with bare hands !! Turns out the box (which I pumped out of air after placing in it) sucked the air in the tin and made it vac sealed AGAIN!

@ALLex I’ve given both the Viking Dark and Thor’s Hammer a decent trial run and actually find them very similar. The Vitamin N in Thor’s Hammer is only slightly more by my gauge but the flavors are very similar to me. I’d wager if you are a fan of Viking Dark that you’ll likely enjoy Thor’s Hammer as well if you wouldn’t mind a slight bump in nic. I would recommend them both to friend. Each has a wonderful natural tobacco flavor which I enjoy.

@brandaves nicee

Funny now WOS have started making a Kendal Brown again. Then viking coming in WOS tins. May be a bit of quid pro quo…?

@beantin, I thought the same.

mysmokingshop.co.uk has just restocked on Kendal Brown Original and Celtic Talisman (or Firedance; I can’t recall which one of those two was missing there along with KBO for a good while…). Elmo’s still not there. I wonder which tins these come in now. And how does KBO compares to the new WoS Kendal Brown (side-by-side).

Someone somewhere (here or on Fb) has mentioned broken chain of vac tins supply; GH has switched to another type of containers for their pipe baccy. Could be related…

Anyone know a way to tell the difference from gawith made Thors Hammer and the current maker? Are all the gawith made vikings(in tin) that vac tins and any not in a vac tin the current maker or was there some overlap? I have a tin that I bought in 2020 that is a vac tin.

Easy to tell. Your vac tin is old Samuel Gawith, as the current production all come in the WoS slip tins.

Thank you Demigros. How does the current compare to the gawith made, if youve had both? Was planning on getting a 100gr tub. TIA

Well, it would depend on one’s expectations I suppose. In my opinion, the old SG-produced Vikings were much superior to what WoS now makes under the same names. They are actually rather different overall (some more than others).

However, at the same time the newer WoS versions are still all good, solid snuffs. I like most of them, and do not hesitate to keep them around and use them. If one had never had the originals, in fact, I imagine one would be quite satisfied with them. If one is looking for something on par to the old SG-production, disappointment is likely.

My perspective is that at least they are in production and available, which is better than nothing at all!