Count Murari snuff has never been discussed in its own thread here on Snuffhouse and not mentioned at all except for being mentioned in passing in but 4 posts, one of those being from myself and the other three being from @Faust It is a shame that it is so little known, for it was a fantastic snuff. Back around 1980 to 1984 or so, Count Murari snuff was billed as the most expensive tobacco (not just snuff) in the world. As you can see from the photos below, it came in small 5 gram bottles and those 5 grams cost $5.95 and then later on, it cost even more around 1984 or so (I think around $6.95). That was a quite lot to pay for 5 grams of snuff back then, to be sure. I know that Café Royale has been referred to as the most expensive snuff but according to what we were told back then, Count Murari was both the most expensive snuff, and tobacco, in the world. Count Murari was also, far and away, my favorite snuff at that time. And when it was no longer produced, I mostly lost interest in snuff as a pursuit, as nothing else I had tried was even close to it, although my experience with snuff was limited. I have but one bottle of Count Murari in my collection, the one you see photos of below. According to my memory, Count Murari was sold through Tinder Box tobacco shops in the USA. I was an employee of a Tinder Box in Ohio for several years. Count Murari snuff was supposedly made by a guy by the name of Murari who supposedly lived in, I think, Austria. I also seem to remember that the owner of the Tinder Box for which I worked said that Murari claimed to be a real Count but I could be wrong about this. And that is all I know about Count Murari snuff. Has anyone else ever tried, or heard of, Count Murari? And also for the sake of my education and curiosity, can anyone add any information to what I mentioned above? Whatever you can add will be appreciated. Thanks. Or… Would you be in possession of some Count Murari that you would be willing to sell? [-O<

What did it taste like?

What did it taste like?

Good question @doctorbeat. I seem to have a somewhat functional memory for olfactory and gustatory sensations, having written several articles (and a book) about pipe tobacco tasting (both the new blends and the decades old tobaccos). I also worked in the wine business for several years where I conducted dozens of formal and informal wine tastings (many of them blind) and authored a wine newsletter that included many wine reviews (that of course, include the aroma or bouquet of the wines reviewed). I am by no means exceptional in my tasting skills but I would say that I think I have a fair sense of taste and smell and a somewhat decent memory for such sensations. And that is what makes me bold enough to write what follows. Please forgive my sharing that personal experience above. But the reason I mention this tasting background is because I seem to have a rather clear memory of the taste and scent of Count Murari the way it was back in the early 1980s. I could be wrong of course, but I will give it a go anyway. As I recall, it had a wonderful base flour that included a fair amount of complexity. It was quite smooth, and just a touch sweet, but where the slight sweetness came from I never could tell–it might have been the base flour or it might have been added. It also had a slight but pleasant background of a spearmintish/wintergreenish flavor (I never could identify it) that balanced well with the rest of the blend. Now, with approximately 30 years of aging, the wintergreen/spearmint effect has become dominant and much of the complexity has been lost. In other words, it has not aged well in my view. But it is still quite pleasant and I would rate the Count Murari snuff in the bottle that I have as 4 stars out of 5. I remember now that the Tinder Box owner (and good friend) that I mentioned in my original post on this topic said that he met the Count himself at a Tinder Box convention and the Count said that the snuff came from an old secret family recipe. Not surprising… In my opinion, Count Murari snuff was never as good as, for example, some of Nigel’s or Sir Johnny’s creations, or Roderick’s Spanish Gem, or Dholakia’s Shot of Rum, for example, but it was very good in its day. Just my opinion nothing more. Meanwhile, last year I found a photo of Count Murari on the internet but I don’t remember what website I found it on. I just recently pulled it out of my photo collection. This Count Murari snuff is in a different bottle. I do not remember ever seeing this type of Count Murari bottle in person but I thought I would post it just to see if anyone else may have encountered it. I sure hope that there are some Snuffhouse members out there who can add to, or correct, my information and/or impressions of this snuff. Perhaps @Faust can correct any mistakes or add to what I have said?