Thanks out to Leah from Chefs, I’ll be mixing these up shortly, and after some steepity, steep, steepin’ we’ll get into them. https://forum...................../images/emoji/apple/slight_smile.png?v=12
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Thanks out again to Leah at Chefs for sending these flavors out for review. For this second round, I’ll be testing at the same 1.5% that worked out great on the first round, using a SteamCrave RDTA v.1, with dual 24 ga. Kanthal 7 wrap coils. All testing done at 65 watts, in a 70v/30p/3mg carrier. Steeped approx. 1.5 weeks before testing.
Apple (Green) (CSC) 1.5% (7-23-22) – With this flavor being the first, in Round II of the Chef’s Super Concentrates line, I was anxious to get into it, and them, as I’d had some unexpectedly great results in Round I. My biggest current issue with Green Apples has always been harsh notes, and almost a chemical taste that I get from some of the brands. Thankfully for me, neither were present in this one. Chef’s actually did a GREAT job with this one, balancing out the three big nuances, Tart, Sweet, and Crisp. It had just enough of each, without having TOO much of any of them. This presented as a fresh, crisp Green Apple with an equal share of sweet, and tart. At 1.5% it wasn’t overpowering, and could probably be pushed a bit higher if needed. Sweetness was a few ticks below mid level, and it leaned heavily to a natural green apple. No off-putting notes, no heavy handed artificial or chemical notes could be found. I think getting green apples right, isn’t easy, but Chef’s did a pretty good job, and if your current green apple is leaving you wanting, this one might just solve your issues. Placing this first flavor in Round II handily at a
9.3/10.
Biscuit (Shortbread) (CSC) 1.5% (7-23-22) – After reading @NeonKoala’s thoughts on this one, I was indeed anxious to see what was what with it. Now every time I review a “shortbread”, “cookie”, or a “biscuit” I have to keep in mind my audience(s), and many are in the US, and some are in the UK, and depending on where you are located, the three aforementioned can take on VERY different profiles. Because this is from Chefs UK, I assume that the “biscuit” part of this is more of what we’d call a “cookie” in the US, as I did get a super delicious, somewhat sweetened cookie element in this one, AND, it was perfectly paired WITH, you guessed it, a shortbread. Now wait just a minute, why not call it a “Shortbread Cookie” ?? Well, hehe, it’s actually just a bit more than that. There was a very nice, authentic bakery, almost grainy element in this which almost reminded me of a pecan sandy-ish type cookie, and then there was a much more of a shortbread wash that finished it out. There was some butter, but I wouldn’t call it overtly “buttery”, but it was in there. About mid-level sweet, and tasted perfect at 1.5%, and continued testing, kept me thinking that it could really just be solo’d and it really didn’t leave you wanting. Despite getting no obvious “pecan” tones from this, I kept going back to the pecan sandy-ish cookie as a great comparison. Wow. This one was great, and I didn’t feel like anything was missing, and more importantly, I didn’t feel the need to ADD anything to it to fix it. Always a great sign. Not a true vanilla cookie, but there may have been some Van elements floating around in the mix. All in, this one was about as perfect as it could get, for a Biscuit/shortbread. I could see numerous uses for it, and it almost SCREAMED to be jammed up with some delicious jam to take it off in another direction. If you would like to pick up a pretty damned unique biscuit/cookie/shortbread, I don’t think you can go wrong with this one.
9.9/10.
Cheesecake (CSC) 1.5% (7-24-22) – The FEAR is real, and it never goes away when I’m testing CC’s, because you never know. Right out of the gate, I could tell this one was quite crust/graham heavy, and the filling was going to play second fiddle. The graham crust, might just be one of the best ones I’ve tried to date, with some moderate hints of coconut, wrapped into a fairly dense graham cracker crust. The pie or filling portion was not quite as stellar, and although I did get some minor cheesy notes, and some rich creamy-ness, it didn’t always sell me on a cheesecake. At times I almost got more of an eggy-ish custard which had a slight astringent-ness to it, much like a Coconut Custard I had tested before. Not terrible, but not great, would be fair here. No wet socks, or curdled cheese to offend you, but just a bit of ehhhh. Now, surely you could push/pull this filling as you saw fit, and let the graham crust ride as it was, but as a whole, the cheesecake could use a little work. At 1.5% it had a super rich, creamy mouthfeel, and did not feel overpowered at all, just somewhat lacking. I detected no over BA coming through with the creamy-ness so that was a plus. All in, stellar graham crust, with a healthy dose of coconut, and a somewhat lacking cheesecake topping/filling. It felt good @
7.10.
Cream (Whipped) (CSC) 1.5% (7-24-22) – Oh yes, this IS whipped cream. Or Cream (Whipped), hehe. I had suspected this one was going to be good while smelling it when mixing, and that assessment was correct. Whipped Cream flavors are typically very light, and can be hard to judge, and this one made it a little easier, by being more present than many others. Nicely sweet, and pretty spot on were my initial take away on this one. VERY accurate for a light, whipped cream in about every sense. Mouthfeel was above mid level, as was the sweetness, and that worked out just fine. Slight hints of Vanilla could be found, but in no way overshadowing the cream, so this was NOT a Vanilla Cream, it just had slight aspects of it. I am not sure if it has Triacetin like TPA’s does, nor how well it would fare as a blender, but solo’d this really didn’t leave any stones un-turned, and you were not wanting in any regard. Creamy, light, sweet, and really did convey the light and airy “whipped”-ed-ness in a convincing way. Nothing off-putting, and it was pretty spot on @ 1.5%, and almost impossible to mark down.
9.8/10.
Dulce De Leche (CSC) 1.5% (7-24-22) – I remember the FIRST time I used a DDL, it was for the “Grant’s Custard” recipe. I use it from time to time, but NEVER solo’d it, so HERE goes !! Think that DDL is just Milk and Sugar ??
Think again. Some have vanilla, and others cinnamon. This one presented as a very accurate DDL, with an almost light cinnamon sugar kiss. Very complex, very good, and very authentic to my tastes. Just below mid level sweet, and surprisingly rich, and full at 1.5%. Some milky undertones, caramel-ish notes, but the cinnamon sugar kiss off on the end really made it unique. Nothing off-putting, and I had a hard time putting this one down, and I think you will too. I could see numerous uses including baccos, deserts, bakeries, etc. Right up my alley, and just too damned good to not
10/10 this one.
Forest Fruits (CSC) 1.5% (7-25-22) – Of COURSE I was thinking of another brand’s FF when waiting for this to steep, wondering, would they be similar ?? Absolutely NOT !!! Chefs billed this one as a mix of black and rasp berries, currants, and plum berries ? I’ve no clue about plum berries, but I can tell you this was a DELICOUS new take on Forest Fruits for me. Any time you consider picking up a new one, it’s helpful if they are unique, and not like others on your shelf, and this one will probably fit that bill. This one presented with the main notes of both currants on the top, but there was something else going on beneath the surface, and I assume maybe the black, rasp, and plum berries, bu they remained fairly hidden, but their impact in the overall mix was still there. Tart, punchy, somewhat sweet, this one really WAS a good, newer take on a fruit medley. Perfectly strong at 1.5%, and with no off-putting notes, this one’s complexity is what kept it interesting. It leaned towards a more red-ish berry flavor, but tempered with the darker berries. Wow, smartly done, very interesting to taste, and it stayed that way. It’s really a perfect pairing of red and black currants, with some subtle darker berry undertones. Easily a
9.8/10.
Grapefruit Pink (CSC) 1.5% (7-29-22) – As soon as I got into this one, the first thought was, “Wow, Chef’s is really getting these fruits right”, and that feeling never waned during this test. Smelling it first, just screamed “authentic”, and you could almost literally taste the oil from the skin. NOW, I don’t mean it was oily, but when you peel one, it releases some of the oils and zest from the skin, and THAT was what revealed during smelling it. Testing it revealed that aspect, and even more. It really did convey a delicious pink grapefruit, that leaned slightly to the sweet, but had just enough tart backing to round it out. Much like a real
Pink Grapefruit there wasn’t really any sour or bitter notes, but just a few ticks above mid level sweet, tart, and about everything grapefruity you could want. At 1.5% while full, still felt slightly relaxed, and there were no off-notes, or anything that remotely resembled artificial. I don’ think I’ve ever tested a “pink” before, and if you need one, this one is the one. Minor take-offs for slightly relaxed-ed-ness, and NO take-offs for flavor comp. Take this one to the bank, @
9.25/10.
Hazelnut Cream (CSC) 1.5% (7-29-22) – If you’ve ever eaten, or used, a great Hazelnut, you know that they can have very nice creamy undertones throughout. This one actually improved on that, by adding MORE creamy-ness into the mix. The hazelnut note(s) were on point, BUT, lacking any of the sometimes unwanted bitterness. The creamy-ness carried through from beginning to end, and was about perfectly balanced, to accentuate the hazelnut, but without overpowering it in any way. Chefs stayed just below the threshold to where it would turn into an ice cream, or milkshake, which worked perfectly, as the hazelnut stayed the star of the show. Throughout the test, I continued to get almost chocolate-y undertones, and that just made things even better, more enjoyable, and interesting. This one could DEF. be used as a choco booster/enhancer. All in, it was probably one of, if not THE, creamiest Hazelnuts I have ever tried. It was below mid-level sweet, and felt perfectly full at 1.5%. If you could use a deliciously creamy hazelnut, with zero bitterness, delicious chocolate-y undertones, you may want to add this one to your racks. With only a very slight dry-ness at the finish, this one had no off-putting notes. Easily placing this one high @
9.75/10.
Lemon Custard (CSC) 1.5% (7-30-22) – I know I had more than a few people waiting for the review on this one, and I was as well, as who doesn’t love dah Kustad !!! OK, this one was kind of a mystery to me, as I couldn’t always tell what it was trying to be. More often than not, it presented almost as a Creamy Lemon, or almost a lemon cream filling. Perhaps I expected a heavier, more IYF (In Your Face) Custard. The custard-ish notes were much lighter than expected, and somewhat comparable to FA’s Custard. The lemon favored more of an FE Lemon, but not entirely, but it was heading in that direction. It took quite a bit of testing to try and determine that it leaned more towards an artificial lemon than natural. It DID however hold it’s own in this flavor, and stayed front, center, and present throughout all of the testing, and at 1.5%, the flavor as a whole felt plenty strong, without any off notes of fatigue. At times, the custard was almost more pudding like, as there were no heavy/ier eggy notes, which I typically associate with custards. Now obviously YOUR tastes will decide for you, not mine hehe, but was it a show stopper ?? Not really. Not terrible by any means, and I could see countless uses for it. Sweetness was at about mid level, and it suited the flavor perfectly. If your Lemony Custard needs fell more into a lighter custard style, similar to FA’s custard, with slight pudding notes, and with a solid mostly artificial Lemon, this one will work for you. For my tastes, it seemed pretty solid at
7/10.
Madeleine (CSC) 1.5% (7-30-22) – I wish I’d ever tried an actual Madeleine cake so I would have something to compare this to, but I have not. Going by taste alone, this one presented as a somewhat generic yellow cake-ish cake/cookie. The bakery elements were very nice, and had an almost grainy-ness to it, that added to it’s authenticity. Maybe some light butter, maybe some light vanilla floating around in there, but fairly light. Having never tasted them, I had to do some
research and found that they were indeed a fairly generic cake with almost cookie / darkened edges. Not burnt, but you could really get the darker outer edges in this flavor. Sweetness was at about mid level, and it felt perfectly strong at 1.5%. All in, it was a very good, yellow cake-ish cake/cookie, that perfectly portrayed the slightly darker edges. It felt solid at
7.1/10.
Man Pi (CSC) 1.5% (7-31-22) – OK, I’ll admit it, the whole time this was steeping, I WAS thinking about Custard PI. This however, was NOT a custard LOL. According to Chef’s it is
Strong raspberry red fruits with a touch of citrus and lychee.
That was pretty spot on. The red raspberry took the lead, with NO florals or off notes common to raspberries, with the lychee playing second fiddle, and finishing with a light citrus punch. Now, the Lychee MAY add just a smidge of funky-ness at the end, and that may be a decider for you, but to my tastes, it just worked. It was an interesting flavor medley, and not a profile I have tried before. The citrus finish was very light, but just strong enough to provide an interesting kiss-off at the end. The raspberry/red fruits were very clean, natural tasting, and tasty, and the lychee was accurate, WITH, a slight amount of funky-ness. All in, this was an interesting combination, and probably not like anything on your racks currently, and could find a unique place there. It tasted nice and full @ 1.5%, and sweetness was a few ticks below mid level sweet. I struggled over the lychee slight funky-ness as to the rating, and throughout two full testers, I decided that little “twang” just worked, and therefore, this one felt great @
9.0/10.
Mango (CSC) 1.5% / 3.0% (7-31-22) – Not EVERY one can be a winner, right ? Well, this one, rather underwhelmed at 1.5%, and it did so in a CURIOUS way. Now it’s POSSIBLE that doubling this MIGHT fix some issues,. This one didn’t have much smell when smelling, and on the inhale, had a very rich, “yellow-ish”, sweet, and tart-ish taste, but upon exhale, it was BLANK. Yes, tested, and re-tested, and the same effect. Very LITTLE taste on the exhale. Doubling this to 3.0% did improve it SOMEWHAT, but it was still a “low lier”. Fairly fresh, nicely sweet, with some good fleshy notes, BUT, it was still very, very relaxed, even at the doubled rate. Not terrible by any means, but if you were looking for the Mango ONRUSH, it wasn’t here. Felt fairly placed at
5/10.
Meringue (CSC) 1.5% (7-31-22) – Wow, this one WAS a wow-zer right out of the gate, but let’s see why. Could this be the ONE, that could UN-perch FA Meringue from it’s Ivory Tower ?? Maybe, just maybe. There are plenty of Meringues out there, and much, much fewer GOOD ones. This one did present as almost THE most spot on Meringue out there, BUT, for one thing. There was a distinct almost cereal note thoughout, and during the finish. Very diminished, but it was always there. I typically don’t read other reviews before testing, but I did this time, to see if anyone else got this note, and only ONE person did. The cereal note was a faint, almost looper-ish note. Overall it was fairly low, did not distract, and added some weight, and almost grainy texture to the Meringue. Light, fluffy, accurate, and with some mid-bodied heft (the cereal note), it was VERY hard to mark this one down. After extended testing, I think the cereal note DID work in it’s favor, and that kept this one, in a very rare air space, with maybe only ONE other, possible two. With lower than mid level sweetness, no off notes, and a almost grainy aspect, this one was literally JUST almost perfect. Leaving it at
9.9/10.
Peach Apricot (CSC) 1.5% (8-2-22) – This one took a bit to settle down in the SteamCrave RDTA before I could get a good look at it. Once it did, WOW. Simply, it was a perfect juicy, yellow peach, just ripened enough, and tempered with (you guessed it) a great Apricot. The pairing of the two was done pretty smartly, so the Peach was maybe 75% with 25% Apricot which really allowed the Peach to shine with JUST enough assist from the Apricot. Succulent, yellow, and juicy were my take always from the Peach, and the Apricot was very fresh, and had just enough punch to assist the peach. I’ve been using apricots to boost peaches for years, and it works really good if done right, and Chefs did it right with this one. Almost mid level sweet, felt really good and full @ 1.5%, and no off-notes could be found. The sweetness level was just below a “syrup” which would allow for even more uses. Overall it tasted VERY natural, with no artificial-ness. Even though it had only two main profiles, it could be solo’d without boredom or fatigue. Simply, and nicely done, and again, hard to mark down. If you’re in the market for a pre-boosted peach, you should try this out. To good to fault, and felt right @
9.75/10.
Plum (CSC) 1.5% (8-5-22) – After a little Jury Duty delay, BACK on track with these reviews. I know @NeonKoala was waiting on this one. Good news was, it was WORTH the wait. This flavor really pushed what could be done, with a realistic Plum flavor. Very accurate, and natural tasting with nothing artificial about it. It centered more around the fleshy body of the Plum, but there was JUST enough of the slightly tart darker purple skin to keep it interesting. It was just above mid level sweet, and rock solid @ 1.5%. While suffering through my Jury summons LOL, I had time to really get into this one throughout multiple tankfuls, and it just stayed consistently accurate, tasty, and non-fatiguing. Again, Chef’s proves they can really get the fruit flavors right, and this one was more proof of that. No take-offs, with only a SLIGHT desire for a smidge more of the dark purple, tarty skin, but that was it. Easily a
9.5/10 here people.
Red Fruits (CSC) 1.5% (8-5-22) – If you read my review of Chef’s Forest Fruits, you know that Chef’s is getting REALLY good at fruit medleys. This one DID continue that trend. They billed this one as a mix of Raspberries, Strawberries, and Cherries. Dammit, that’s EXACTLY what it is. Now what was interesting here, was that there was NO real start of the show, and that kept it REALLY interesting. It was like all 3 were equally sized up, and mixed. Throughout numerous testers, at times you would get slightly more of one or another, and later it would be another one. VERY smartly mixed if I do say so. It did have an overal “red” hue if that makes sense, and all of the flavor profiles were very natural, with not a single off note, floral, or medicinal note to be found, which IS saying something, especially with Raspberries, and Cheffies. Because they were so evenly combined, nailing down EXACTLY the type of each was almost impossible, but summed together, they worked perfectly, and a sea of Red Fruit. Sweetness was just below mid level, and it was great @ 1.5%. I’m matching this score to the aforementioned Forest Fruits @
9.8/10.
RY Castle (CSC) 1.5% (8-6-22) – OK, maybe I SHOULDN’T admit this, but I will. I loaded it into my trusted SteamCrave RDTA v.1, and JUST started to taste test, and take my notes, and WHAMMO, I put my rig down, and IMMEDIATELY mixed up a 60ml. Now, why in the hell would I do that ?? Well, in a word, WOW. This one WAS a showstopper. Typically I’m not a bacco vaper, and some can argue whether or not RY’s are, or are not baccos, but this one really wowed me. It presented (as billed) as a slightly roasted bacco, with much, MUCH more. Chef’s billed it as having a milky coconut and caramel, and that seemed accurate, but I kept almost getting a delicious grahamy/bakery rush with every taste. Yes, I could pick out the coco, and cara, but as a whole it really took on an entirely profile. The bacco did have an almost roasted, slightly darkened note, and at times I almost got a slight nutty undertone. After two full testers, it became obvious this one one of, if not THE, top flavor in this run. Absolutely in One-Shot /Standalone territory here. Just below mid level sweet, perfectly full at 1.5%, and I could find NOTHING I didn’t like with this one, not even a teeny nit pick. The reaction I had to this reminded me of when I tested Sobucky’s Caramel Biscuit. All in, it was a creamy, roasted bacco with light nutty undertones, swirling in a gravy of coconut, and caramel, with some great graham/bakery undertones.
10/10, no other choice.
Strawberry Jam (CSC) 1.5% (8-5-22) – Getting near the end of this series, and a HUGE fan of the Jam, I was looking forward to jamming it up with this one. Now, with that said, this one did not entirely get me to Jammy Street. It was a VERY good strawberry, WITH some lighter jammy notes, BUT, the majority of the experience was almost a “fluffy” strawberry. I know, I know, WTF right ? Not a whipped strawberry, not creamed, but it had this very light and almost fluffy taste to it. For my needs (and current favs) I need a sharp, punchy, almost pectin-y note which solidifies something as a Jam, and this one just didn’t seem to have that. There were HINTS, but no main notes to that effect. A great strawberry still, and it leaned 60/40 from natural to artificial. Maybe even a somewhat strawberry pink candy will help better describe it. It clocked in at about mid-level sweet, and was very present @ 1.5%, and no off notes could be found. For a Jam, I don’t think it works well, but as an almost Pink Strawberry Candy, it excelled. With some take offs for lack of jam, jam, jammy-ness, this felt good at
7/10.
Wafer (CSC) 1.5% (8-9-22) – This flavor required some additional testing, to try and fully flush it out. At first, I did indeed get a Waffle Cone-ish flavor, but there seemed to be something else, that was along for the ride, that was a little tough to nail down. 2 tester tanks later, it really felt like a “weighty” bakery, almost a carrot cake-ish element, that was tempering the waffle cone. Now it wasn’t bad by any means, but it was that “other” element/elements that kept distracting me from the Waffle Cone, errrrr, Wafer. The waffle cone/wafer flavor was fairly spot on, below mid level sweet, and although recessed in the overall mix, was actually quite good. A THIRD tester tank down, trying to better narrow down the “bakery element” just kept presenting almost as a carrot cake-ish, brown bread, almost heavy/dense bakery that was swirling around WITH a nice Waffle Cone / Wafer. Overall it was actually a pretty good, AND interesting flavor, but I have to admit the “other” elements, did distract from the namesake profile. I have had some great success with Waffle Cones, so I know a great one when I taste it. This felt fairly placed @
7.1/10.
Yuzu (CSC) 1.5% (8-13-22) – Finishing out this series, and a huge thanks out to @Leah from Chefs in sending these out for review. This flavor was a great, fresh way to close out this series. Being fairly unfamiliar with
Yuzu, it was a fresh flavor to get into. A fairly unique flavor for me, and presented almost like a triple pairing of a Grapefruit, Orange, lightly kissed by a Lemon. What was interesting as none of the three main profiles were dominant, and the overall effect was a perfect, evenly matched paring of the three. The grapefruit notes easily pulled this away from simply being a Lemon Lime, and kept it very interesting from start to finish. Because of the three pairing the grapefruit was hard to nail down exactly, whether yellow, or pink, but probably a mix of the two would be close. The orange notes favored a nectarine primarily, and the Lemon while light, presented as a fresh, natural one. The sum total was perfect at 1.5%, with below mid level sweetness, and was PERFECT for a summertime vape. Just enough sweet, and tart to keep it freshly interesting without too much of either. Fresh, and natural tasting were the two aspects that I continued to get from this one throughout. I could see numerous uses for this one, as it really did span across three different citruses, and with no off-putting notes, and a very fresh, lighter taste, it did so very well. Freshly finishing this series with the Yuzu, and placing it squarely at a
9.5/10.
