I don't claim to be a DIY'er. Hell, I'm not even that great a cook. But GV had this big sale, it is fun to try to create flavors, so I went for it.
This review will be of the two flavors I created. Vanity gets expensive; I'm afraid that by the time I actually get both of these flavors to where I originally expected them to be, I'll have to mortgage the cat. Neither is bad, in fact they're both pretty good. However, they're not what I expected.
I use a report card grading system, where a grado of A is perfect, F is horrible.
Ciego's Balkan Sobranie: I used Latakia as a base, with Shade and Light tobaccos as mid-notes, then added 10% anise. I chose a 90% PG/10%VG carrier and ordered the juice at double flavor.
Goal: Balkan Sobranie cigarettes were unfiltered gems sold in little flat white tins of 10. I cannot find them anymore, anywhere. I loved them despite the fact that at the time they cost four times what domestic nname-brand smokes cost. Since I haven't had one in nearly 30 years, recreating the taste was problematic from the start.
This cigarette flavor isn't great. A grad of C+ is the best I can do. The anise was a mistake and despite its 10% proportion, it overpowers even the strong Latakia flavor. Whoops. Vapor production sucks, but the throat hit is devastating. I'm hoping this will mellow with age. I'm guessing it won't.
Old Fashioned Horehound Drops: This one was *supposed* to recreate the taste of the Claey's brand Horehound drops which were sold in the 1970's. My recipe, worked into a 50/50 PG/VG carrier included 20% Honey, 60% Horehound, 10% Cherry and 10% Sasparilla.
It tastes *nothing* like the horehound drops I remember. But... it's an excellent root beer taste, and my wife can't get enough of it. The VG makes it produce mighty clouds of vapor, even from my li'l ol' Ego with a normal resistance 510 atty...and I mean clouds. Throat hit is gentle from the relatively low PG, but it still has quite a bite from the sasparilla. I can't taste the honey at all...I mostly taste an altered sasparilla. Not bad, just not what I expected. B-minus.
Ah well, back to the old drawing board. LOL
OTOH, they do sell a couple flavors I can't get enough of. Maiden Coffee is amazing, especially in the 70%PG/30%VG carrier I selected. It's sweet without being cloying, has caramel that doesn't overpower, and the coffee flavor is superb. A+
Another tasty vape from GV is the Tropical Lemonade. I chose a 50/50 PG/VG mix. Wow! I ordered it with double flavor, which won't be necessary when I order this again. It's amazing. Pure grad A. Try this one: Guava, Mango and Orange (10% each) are added to the lemon. It's refreshing, sweet, has a nice bite even with the low PG level and a great TH.
Notes:
* All juices were ordered with double flavor. It turned out to be unnecessary.
* Nicotine levels all at 18 mg./l.
* All juices were created the week after Christmas, 2010.
* I pay for my damn juice. Nobody gives me anything. If I review a juice I get for free, I wouldn't trust myself to give you an honest review, so why should you trust me>? I swear some reviewers would give puppy pee high marks, just because they got it for free. The exception I make to this is for a small sample that's included with merchandise I've paid for. For instance, I did a review of KBV Warm Sugar Cookie. If I hadn't spent $23.00 with them on the same order, I would have felt a bit guilty.
This review will be of the two flavors I created. Vanity gets expensive; I'm afraid that by the time I actually get both of these flavors to where I originally expected them to be, I'll have to mortgage the cat. Neither is bad, in fact they're both pretty good. However, they're not what I expected.
I use a report card grading system, where a grado of A is perfect, F is horrible.
Ciego's Balkan Sobranie: I used Latakia as a base, with Shade and Light tobaccos as mid-notes, then added 10% anise. I chose a 90% PG/10%VG carrier and ordered the juice at double flavor.
Goal: Balkan Sobranie cigarettes were unfiltered gems sold in little flat white tins of 10. I cannot find them anymore, anywhere. I loved them despite the fact that at the time they cost four times what domestic nname-brand smokes cost. Since I haven't had one in nearly 30 years, recreating the taste was problematic from the start.
This cigarette flavor isn't great. A grad of C+ is the best I can do. The anise was a mistake and despite its 10% proportion, it overpowers even the strong Latakia flavor. Whoops. Vapor production sucks, but the throat hit is devastating. I'm hoping this will mellow with age. I'm guessing it won't.
Old Fashioned Horehound Drops: This one was *supposed* to recreate the taste of the Claey's brand Horehound drops which were sold in the 1970's. My recipe, worked into a 50/50 PG/VG carrier included 20% Honey, 60% Horehound, 10% Cherry and 10% Sasparilla.
It tastes *nothing* like the horehound drops I remember. But... it's an excellent root beer taste, and my wife can't get enough of it. The VG makes it produce mighty clouds of vapor, even from my li'l ol' Ego with a normal resistance 510 atty...and I mean clouds. Throat hit is gentle from the relatively low PG, but it still has quite a bite from the sasparilla. I can't taste the honey at all...I mostly taste an altered sasparilla. Not bad, just not what I expected. B-minus.
Ah well, back to the old drawing board. LOL
OTOH, they do sell a couple flavors I can't get enough of. Maiden Coffee is amazing, especially in the 70%PG/30%VG carrier I selected. It's sweet without being cloying, has caramel that doesn't overpower, and the coffee flavor is superb. A+
Another tasty vape from GV is the Tropical Lemonade. I chose a 50/50 PG/VG mix. Wow! I ordered it with double flavor, which won't be necessary when I order this again. It's amazing. Pure grad A. Try this one: Guava, Mango and Orange (10% each) are added to the lemon. It's refreshing, sweet, has a nice bite even with the low PG level and a great TH.
Notes:
* All juices were ordered with double flavor. It turned out to be unnecessary.
* Nicotine levels all at 18 mg./l.
* All juices were created the week after Christmas, 2010.
* I pay for my damn juice. Nobody gives me anything. If I review a juice I get for free, I wouldn't trust myself to give you an honest review, so why should you trust me>? I swear some reviewers would give puppy pee high marks, just because they got it for free. The exception I make to this is for a small sample that's included with merchandise I've paid for. For instance, I did a review of KBV Warm Sugar Cookie. If I hadn't spent $23.00 with them on the same order, I would have felt a bit guilty.
