Mint, menthol and 'freeze': what the words on the can mean

Mint and menthol are not the same word for the same thing

Mint and menthol are not the same thing. Mint is the flavour of the plant; menthol is the compound that creates the cold sensation and can be added without any mint flavour. Names like 'ICE' or 'freeze' are brand-level shorthand for a stronger cooling load, not a set standard — two cans both labelled 'ice mint' can feel very different.

Our stock shows the difference clearly. NOIS Blueberry ICE Light is flavoured berry, yet it still rates 5 out of 10 for mint and 6 for sting, so you get the cold without the mint taste. ACE Cool Mint Light, by contrast, is flavoured mint and rates 8 for mint with a sting of 5. If you want actual mint flavour, check the tasting notes rather than the word 'ICE' on the can.

Sting is what tells you how cold a pouch feels. NOIS Cherry ICE Light rates just 2 for sting, while NOIS Extreme Light rates 9 — both are NOIS, both are 'ICE', and they sit at opposite ends of the spectrum. Choose by the ratings, not the label.

What 'ice', 'freeze' and 'frost' actually promise

Freeze, ice and frost are brand-level shorthand for cooling, not a measurement. No standard governs them, so the same label can appear on cans with very different cooling. The tasting data we publish separates mint flavour from sting, and the two don't move together.

XQS Citrus Cooling Light, which has 'Cooling' in the name, rates only 4 for sting. VELO Sour Lime Mini, with no cooling label, rates 5. Both are fruity, so the name didn't predict which one feels colder. Similarly, VELO Bright Spearmint Mini has a sting of 4 and a mint of 6, while NOIS Cool Strong Light has a sting of 6 and a mint of 7. The cooler pouch also happens to be mintier, but that's not always the case — the point is the name alone never tells you.

When a can says 'ice' or 'freeze', read the two tasting scores, not the name.

Why two cans with the same name feel different

Two cans both labelled wintergreen can be almost opposites. In our tasting data, NOIS Wintergreen Light scores sting 2, mint 3 and fruit 7 out of 10 — it lands as a soft, fruity pouch with only a faint coolness. XQS Wintergreen Light scores sting 5 and mint 6, so it comes across as a proper cold mint. Choose the NOIS if you want a mild, fruit-forward wintergreen; choose the XQS if you want the cooling to be the main event.

The same nicotine strength on the label doesn't guarantee the same feel either. VELO Bright Spearmint Mini and VELO Dark Cherry Mini are both 4 mg per pouch, but the spearmint pouch weighs 0.5 g and has 8.0 mg/g, while the cherry pouch weighs 0.42 g and has 9.5 mg/g. The cherry delivers the same labelled dose in a smaller, more concentrated pouch, so the physical experience differs even though the can says the same thing.

Reading a flavour name properly

In a product name, "Light", "Strong" and "Extreme" are line names, not dose labels. Every NOIS can we stock is 4 mg per pouch, yet the range runs from NOIS Cherry ICE Light (sting 2) to NOIS Extreme Light (sting 9). The difference is the cooling, not the nicotine. "Light" here means a particular product line, not a lighter effect.

The flavour word comes first, but it doesn't promise the dominant taste. XQS Blueberry Mint Light Slim rates fruit 7 and mint 5, so the blueberry leads despite the mint in the name. NOIS Mango ICE Light rates fruit 6 and mint 3, so "ICE" adds only a background chill. For a fruit-forward can with almost no cold, NOIS Cherry ICE Light is the better choice; for a strong cold hit with fruit in the background, NOIS Extreme Light fits.

The only part of a name that reliably describes the physical product is the portion shape: Slim for most of our ACE, NOIS and XQS cans, Mini for VELO. But even the same shape can vary in pouch weight — XQS slims are 0.5 g, while some VELO minis drop to 0.42 g — so check the per-gram concentration if you care about how concentrated the dose is.

Where to start in the mint family

The useful split inside mint is between mint flavour and cold sting. ACE Cool Mint Light rates mint 8 out of 10 and sting 5, which makes it the mint-forward choice. NOIS Cool Strong Light sits close with mint 7 and sting 6. If you want the cold to overshadow the taste, NOIS Extreme Light rates sting 9 but only mint 5.

For a first can, ease in at the low-sting end. VELO Bright Spearmint Mini gives you a soft spearmint (mint 6, sting 4) in a mini pouch. NOIS Wintergreen Light barely reads as mint at all — sting 2, mint 3, fruit 7 — so it's a mild introduction. When you know you want a real cold hit, NOIS Extreme Light is the one.

Strength follows a similar ladder. ACE Cool Mint Light is 3 mg per pouch, the only 3 mg mint on this page; every NOIS and VELO mint here is 4 mg. Choose the ACE for a lighter dose, the others when you want the standard 4 mg.

Common questions

How many pouches are in a can? It depends on the brand. NOIS cans hold 30 pouches, while ACE, VELO, and XQS cans hold 20. Since every one of these cans is CA$14.00, NOIS works out to CA$0.47 per pouch and the others to CA$0.70. If you use several pouches a day, the larger NOIS can is the better value; if you'd rather not commit to 30 pouches of one flavour, the 20-pouch can is the easier size.

Total nicotine per can follows the same logic. A NOIS can at 4 mg per pouch adds up to 120 mg. A VELO or XQS can, also 4 mg, gives you 80 mg, while an ACE can at 3 mg gives you 60 mg. So even though NOIS, VELO, and XQS are all 4 mg per pouch, a NOIS can contains more total nicotine than a VELO or XQS can — you're buying more nicotine for the same price.

Keep going: our full nicotine pouch range, every brand we carry, shipping right across Canada, frequently asked questions.