Snow Tires: Common vs. Boutique Brands

[DieMarthaDie at aol.com]

Ok, I've had Blizzaks and Arctic Alpins and liked both under different conditions (ice=Blizzakville, dry=Alpinland) and am in need of new snows.  Just FYI, Cooper Cobras really suck in snow/slush/ice... They were on the car (w/95% tread) and I haven't needed to get snows until now.  Being a quattro only helps if the tires grip better than slicks.

So there are lots of choices out there from Goodyear to Semperit.  I want good tires for the MD/PA winters which are mostly slush and ice and less real deep snow.  I want good tires and I'm ready to pay for them.  What I don't want is to pay special pricing for a "boutique" label so I can make people say "huh?" when I say I have Vreedsteens or something.  Unless of course they really are worth it.

I know we've gone round and round about tires, and there are lots of archives, but now its really snowing and people will have fresh opinions.

So, before I go back to Blizzaks or Alpins, please give me your unabashed thoughts on the lesser known brands, like the Nokian, Semperit, Gislavad, etc...  And I really don't care if anyone has ever heard of my tires, I want them to work.

This will be on a 1990 V8Q with 15" rims, most likely.

Thanks for your opinions.  I know there are some out there ;)

John
83CGT Alpins
90V8Q slipnslide Cobras