The tins do not compare to tubs when it’s fresh. Night and day.
So, cstokes, you are saying that the tubs are even WETTER than the tin I just got from Wilsons? Are you supposed to use a funnel and pour the slurry into your nose?
@cstokes4 I think mine must be the day version because like I said it is WET, BLACK, FLOWERY, SOAPY, and LEATHERY monster of a snuff. But then again I wasn’t asking for your approval as to container size and volume. Secondly and personally I would not buy a tub of snuff that I have never had before. Although I am happy for you and your tub.
@NOmad: Huh?
Huh? I missed something.
@Geraldo The problem with the tins is corrosion. Every tin of Princes and Brunswick I have purchased have been corroded rather badly. I think the tub is probably a tiny tad bit more moist, only due to the freshness of the snuff. The scent is much more pungent in tubs than tins, but once again that is just a product of the freshness.
@Whalen Me too!
I can not see what precipitated that response. My only problem with Brunswick is that I live precariously close to a small Hick town with that name, people see the tin, read the name, and crack up, usually saying " I am not going to sniff anything named Brunswick!!!" Old school snuff, a must have in the rotation.
Georgia?
Maryland.
@csstokes4, thanks for the insight. I haven’t noticed any corrosion yet, but it is still pretty new. I would have thought that tin-plated steel wouldn’t corrode from a bit of moist snuff. I guess I will just monitor the situation and hope for the best. I can move it into a little glass jar if necessary. Either way, I cannot imagine my Brunswick sample being any moister! It seems pretty fresh. I think it is that way because I just bought it direct from Wilson’s. I don’t know if I would buy a tub, but I will see how I feel about it after I finish the tin (25g, and I have so many OTHER snuffs). Heck, I haven’t even tried the other 20 odd snuffs I have from Wilson’s yet…including Mr. Stokes’ beloved Grand Cairo.
If it’s from Wilson’s, no doubt it is fresh, tin or tub. I have only purchased tins from retailers.
@Geraldo: If you plan on keeping it for a while (and with 20 odd other snuffs to go through it sounds like you do) I’d move it to an airtight container pronto. The freshness and moistness will dissipate fairly quickly in an opened Wilsons tin. And as cstokes4 says, the tins corrode fairly rapidly if they have moist snuff in.
I agree with BradMajors: Brunswick (and Princes) snuff is great from a fresh tin fresh from Wilsons - just make sure you use it fast. It doesn’t improve with age, and will rot the tin. As for tubs and tins. I’m sure it’s even fresher from a half pound tub, and will keep longer, but it won’t keep forever if you’re an infrequent Brunswick snuffer (like me!).
O.K. you guys made me anxious enough that I moved the roughly 25g of Brunswick I have from the tin to a small airtight glass jar. The Wilson’s tins aren’t good, as far as design goes - the slip cover isn’t that secure and due to the geometry, it is easy to spill snuff when the tin is full. I wish they would go to screwtop tins like Toque. Mind you, all my Toque tins are 10g ones, so I cannot comment on the integrity of the 25g containers. I am at a loss that Wilson’s wouldn’t have a perfect tin by this point, given that they have been at this for hundreds of years. I did examine the Brunswick tin very carefully (with my hand scope - I have a degree in metallurgical engineering…and I am a bit nerdy) and I didn’t find any evidence of corrosion. Frankly, if the tin coating is intact, nothing in snuff could be aggressive enough to cause corrosion. I would suggest an intact tin coating could easily last for many, many years regardless of the moisture level of the snuff. I suspect that “rusty tins” are due to defective tin coatings, which is a manufacturing quality failure. Anyway, I now have a tiny glass jar mostly filled with coarse, moist, black stuff. It doesn’t look appetizing, actually. But it still smells nice!
Just to reiterate; Be careful not to let it dry out. It will dry very quickly from a snuff box in use. Rehydrating is fine, but store it as it is (wet). Are you not getting the delightful citron spice scent? That’s odd, that’s my favorite part.
does anyone have a fresh sample of brunswick before i order a tube from wilsons? Ill pay any fees through paypal. I have a small tin but its been dry from day one…
@Geraldo: Is it possible that the action of removing and replacing the lid scrapes off some of the tin coating ? I’m no metallurgical expert but I’ve had several Wilsons tins corrode on me and it’s always the dark course moist ones. I’ve had one tin that corroded so badly it was impossible to open it without destroying the tin and losing most of the contents. Toque tins have their fans but I’m not one of them - I’ve always decanted Toque into something more sensible. The metal is too soft and I always have trouble with the threads. Ironically, Wilsons also supply Fribourg and Treyer snuffs which come in the best tins around.
Agreed Brad!
@BradMajors - I agree it is possible to scrape the tin coating off, although a half-ways decent tin plate would withstand hundreds of such actions. Technically, tin on tin abrasion should be miniscule and due to microscopic hardness variation (where the tin plate in one spot is marginally harder than another spot). Sorry to hear about your bad experiences with snuff tin corrosion! For the Toque tins - the 10 g tins have worked flawlessly for me. Haven’t tried out the 25 g tins yet - I have read other reports here that they didn’t perform as well as people hoped. At some point I will order some small, tin-plated, screw top steel tins to try out. I find the F&T tins have the wrong geometry to carry around. Small flat containers fit in a pocket, while those tubes don’t seem to, at least for me. I washed out the empty Wilsons Brunswick tin, and it STILL smells strongly (and good). I don’t like Brunswick as much as Strasbourg, but it is still definitely a keeper.