Ok, When I first came to snuff a few months back ordering an " Original " scented/flavored snuff never crossed my mind. I was under the impression Original was just tobacco, which just sounded boring. But I quickly tired of the florals and fruits so I ordered Toque Original, and one of my fav menthols Gletscher Prise. I also received a sample of F&T Bordeux (sp?). First off, WOW!!! Roderick I Love Love Love the toque original. Perfect balance of Tobacco with a nice citrus background. Definately is first in line for me every time i snuff now. For those newbies just browsing or just getting inot snuff make sure you order this or another SP snuff to try out. Now the bad news. The F&T was a big disappointment to me though. The tobacco had this very artificial cologne or perfume smell that just overwhelmed me. Now dont get me wrong, the tobacco comes through better than I expected but I can not get over the aroma enough to enjoy this, I was actually starting to get a headache just from the over-all aroma from the tin. Please note that I still have a noob nose so when I say its bad take that with a grain of salt as I know F&T has its fans and a lot of them it seems so excuse the novice review. So the Toque Original gets 5 stars from me while the F&T Bordeux gets a 2.5 out of 5.

I haven’t tried that F&T. But sit is aside and try it again later, you might change your mind, or it might be a once in a while snuff. If you hate it still, stick it on the trade board.

I think ill let it breathe for a little while and come back, ill never throw out tobacco. If I dont like it im sure I can find someone who does.

Grim, Yeah…don’t throw tobacco out…I keep all mine too. I have a 10-15 year old can of Tube Rose snuff laying around that has saved the day on more than one occasion.

Bordeaux is one of my top snuffs. But then again, some of their snuffs aren’t for beginners. They are heavily perfumed and rather complex. I think you’ll like it later on. I actually bought a tube of Princes Special 4 or 5 years ago and hated it, so I threw it out. Now I have bought more and I love it.

For F&T, I really love the smokey toast flavor in their High Dry Toast. I think it is better then the Wilsons counterpart Irish Toast #22. It is the smoky flavor that is better. It is the hook for me. Try it.

I like the Bordeaux. I like all the F&Ts. However, I understand what people don’t like. For instance, I can understand why some people don’t like onions, even though I love them. Grim, you picked one of F&T’s most heavily scented, that may have been a mistake or just bad luck if you picked one randomly. I did well with my first random pick. I think Seville is the only one more strongly scented than Bordeaux, so I don’t recommend that if perfume in your nose isn’t your thing. I didn’t like either at first, but then found that they are just the right thing for a nightcap. French Carotte is also pretty scenty. Other more expert opinions may chime in, but try Santo Domingo, Princes, Princes Special or Old Paris. Have a look at their descriptions from:The Sheffield Exchange

@ Xander It was a free sample I got from nicotinerush. When you order your given a free random sample of a snuff in one of their smash boxes, id say around the 2-3 gram range. So its no loss for me at all. I was going to buy some F&T at some point and go based off what I read on snuffreviews. In my mind there really isnt such a thing as bad tobacco, who knows maybe one day ill be all out and this F&T will be my saving grace while I wait on another order.

Well there you go then! Samples are a great way to try a lot!

I found the F&T Bordeaux quite interesting, so much so that I sniffed small pinches of it all evening when I first received a sample of it. It’s my first experience with this type of snuff, having been using Plain American Scotches exclusively for the past several months. I liked it, although it’s not going to replace my day-snuffs. Time will tell if I have it on my next order

I love F&T HDT, in fact, it’s the only plain HDT I use. I also love their Kendal Brown, Old Paris and Santo Domingo and always have some doubles in the freezer. I also want to confirm, never get rid of any snuff. You might not like it now but you WILL like it in future!!!

And people are usually open to make trades.

Thats the trick with florals…you generally love them or can’t touch them. I plan on trying them every few months just to see if my tastes change, but so far they haven’t

Stick with the F&T Bordeaux. Like their other offerings, they’re quality snuffs. The only one I now struggle with is the French Carotte, but I used to love it and then went off it!

LIke ive said its only a sample and will definately revisit later. I was like that when I snused mostly. Had a few I tried early on and hated then 3-4 months later revisited and they became my favs. , well most of them at least. I do not think however this is something ill like anyways. Its tolerable and all but it just smells like cheap perfume to me. I can see liking the others based on description but even reading the essential oils in this from the link above I could know ahead of time I wouldnt like it. I will be trying some F&T in the future but probably not this for a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONg time. Seville and Old Paris may be on the list next week, along with Princes I believe

I got Bordeaux in one of my first few orders and REALLY didn’t like it. For some reason I didn’t think I would like any of the F & T’s. Now the HDT is one of my favorites. I’m still not crazy about the Bordeaux but occasionally I’ll use it.

I am not a big fan of most of the F&T’s. I find most are-over scented to the point where they linger entirely too long. Love the HDT though.

Good post, Grim SPs are by far the most popular medium snuffs available. Most tyros try everything out there before settling on SP. I’ve never tired of SP in all the decades I’ve been an aficionado of snuff, and it is one of my few permanent mainstays. It is also the flagship offering from companies such as Wilsons, and it accounts for the bulk of their sales. (If you haven’t already done so then buying sealed drums will be a snuff revelation.) Although Wilsons claim to have the F&T recipe for Bordeaux it is not like the original. It is far too perfumey. The real Fribourg & Treyer folded up nearly 30 years ago, so the nearest you can get to the original Bordeaux is to make your own. This can be done by mixing 4 parts of Wilsons (not F&T) Princes with 1 part Queens or Tom Buck. This is Professor Phillips Griffiths well-known suggestion. He is quite correct as the original F&T made Bordeaux by mixing their Princes with their own SP - both of which were/are similar to Wilsons. I bought my last tins of F&T from House of Bewlay in Piccadily years after F&T closed, and used up the last tin of Bordeaux just a few years ago. I can testify that the recreation is remarkably similar to the real article - and quite unlike the pseudo Bordeaux offered today. Try the mixture by purchasing a few tins and, if you like it, then - please - buy the vacuum sealed drums of Princes and SP as the snuff within is in a different league to the slightly stale tinned stuff most folk content themselves with. The resulting mixture will probably be one of the best snuffs you are likely to obtain and gives an insight into what the much lamented Fribourg & Treyer were really like.

I’ll second that, PhilipS - the Bordeaux I have in my box today is indeed a mix of Wilson’s Princes and Tom Buck, in similar proportions and both from large tubs bought direct from Wilson’s, though I tend to add slightly more of the SP, whichever one I choose to use. I think it is worth experimenting with different SPs in the mix. Having said that, I quite enjoy the current F&T Bordeaux in its own right. I still have a few odds and ends of some the original F&T snuffs, carefully guarded of course!

I third that, I have been advising people to get the bulk WoS for years, they are simply different animals. PhillipS - Are you Prof Griffiths?

“I’ll second that, PhilipS - the Bordeaux I have in my box today is indeed a mix of Wilson’s Princes and Tom Buck, in similar proportions and both from large tubs bought direct from Wilson’s, though I tend to add slightly more of the SP, whichever one I choose to use. I think it is worth experimenting with different SPs in the mix.” Thank you for your input, Tony. An endorsement from a fellow who has possibly sampled more snuffs than anyone still living is a ringing one indeed. The professor himself has difficulty in fine-tuning Bordeaux. The ratio varies from 1/SP - 5/Princes to 1/SP - 4/Princes. I’ve experimented myself and favour the latter. Bordeaux was the first snuff I tried and the olfactory memory of that occasion is awakened by Griff’s mixture. It takes me back 46 years whereas the current F&T awakens no memory at all and, for my taste at least, is too perfumed to enjoy. The other good thing about sealed drums of Wilsons Princes and SP - apart from the quality and value - is that you have, in effect, three classic snuffs at hand. I’ve tried recreating Asthoroth without success and wouldn’t even know where to start with the favourite of snuffy Charlotte - Masulipatam. During the reign of George III this was, I believe, sold in pint bottles with a device like a corkscrew for pulling it out. Along with other F&T snuffs this is now lost forever. “I still have a few odds and ends of some the original F&T snuffs, carefully guarded of course!” I too determined upon saving my last tins (as well as various vintage wines and port), but the deaths of several of my contemporaries made me wonder what I was saving it all for. Consequently everything has been snuffed or drunk. Fortunately Samuel Gawith and Wilsons still produce a few snuffs to keep me happy. Most samples, alas, I either throw away or give to my neighbour.

"PhillipS - Are you Prof Griffiths? " How nice of you to wonder that. No, I’m not the venerable professor and hadn‘t even been born when he first took up snuff.

“I third that, I have been advising people to get the bulk WoS for years, they are simply different animals.” Yes, the flavour and pungency of snuff is lost to a marked degree when sold in tins from WoS. Purchasing in drums not only gives one the taste of freshly milled snuff, but it is also cheaper. One value of tins, of course, is that it allows sampling of what the ‘real stuff’ is like. I believe that the only tins that keep snuff in reasonable condition are the tall F&T ones.

Well, you have a similar depth and turn of phrase, a pleasure to read your post. Yes, tins are good for sampling but with the condition of some of them its more a question of predicting what the snuff is really like, such is the degradation when they have sat around on a shelf for ages before purchase. The F&T ones are good but a little unwieldly. Nothing beats the pleasure of decanting fresh, aromatic snuff into your favourite box; my turn of the century silver snuff has a blend of WoS Rose and Best SP in it, taken from the excellent pound drums. The SP is nearly finished and is very nearly as fresh as when it was first opened 6 months ago.

Ah… Masulipatam. I still have a very small amount of that left and I wouldn’t know where to start if I wanted to try to recreate it. As for sampling lots of snuffs, I guess I’m just a glutton for it! But I know which snuffs I come back to again and again. Unfortunately I’ve never had the pleasure of trying Asthoroth. A shame as it does sound good from the comments I’ve heard.

listening reverently to the old timers

I’d get some too, of course. Another job for the ISTA?

As I understand it, Wilson’s only bought the rights to the 13 F&T blends they still producing. I guess those were (and hopefully still are) the profitable ones. I guess it couldn’t hurt to ask them though.

It crossed my mind a few days ago to ask them the same thing. Maybe if we all asked them we would get better results.

Apparently they do make short runs of snuff to order, providing a minimum amount is purchased.

That’s interesting snuffster. Whether it applies to the others F&T snuffs or not, who knows. I reckon I’ll have to ask next time I order from them. If they don’t have the rights to the other blends then I expect Imperial Tobacco still has them as they bought out F&T in the early 80s.

Excellent thread - has anyone seen Milverton68’s video on YouTube about re-creating F&T’s famous (or mythical) Asthoroth?

Links sir would be nice.

Milverton68’s Asthoroth VideoB4Man75’s response to Milverton68 I’ve seen a few of Milverton’s before this, but the sound is never synchronized with his mouth. Its very distracting for me.

anyone else think that Milverton is patton oswalds secret brother?

He’s fix the synch issues in his more recent videos, and the professor takes some rooster in one of them!

I came across this thread as Sleepwalker mentioned it in a recent post. It bothers me that I have been happily sniffing away at Bordeaux for a good few years thinking I was sniffing an authentic old time snuff! I have just ordered some princes so I can try the mixture above. What else bothers me is that information like this will inevitably be lost. What does any one think about creating a snuff facts sticky? (as opposed to FAQ) to try and keep gems of information like this safe?