That’s helpful
Well I’ve spent enough time barking up the raspberry tree. It’s just not that criticle to me. There is a much better selection of strawberries and I can mix almost any other fruit with strawberry.
I just looked and I have 12 raspberry flavors for some reason. I honestly don’t know which I like best. I used tfa for a long time and liked it. I most likely bought them for different recipes along the way.
When I first tried DIY, I just got some TFA flavors (I had no idea about brands) I was disappointed with the Lemon but recently got Lemon Sicily and they work well together. Same for Berry Mix (nothing against it, just I like darker berries) I got PUR Boysenberry preserves (which is OK for a "jam") and the Berry Mix brightened it up. I don't have much to work with but made the best of it anyway.
Think about what you’d like to try for mixes and you can get a better idea what you need for flavors.
2 bills are coming up for a second vote here on the 30th. One is a flavor ban and the other is a “temp” sales ban. I gotta do some fast thinking. PITA
@FranC, I know you said you were done thinking about raspberries, but I found the following in my notes and thought you might be interested:
@AngeNZ says, "1% FA Raspberry and 3% PUR Raspberry - after a 3 day steep the florals are gone, and I've got a ripe, plump juicy raspberry that is perfect."
@Letitia has had this to say about raspberries, "INW raspberry Malina and shisha. Both singles are good. Have only used them is one mix, the malina is strong. I'll have to drop it down to .75%. Between the two they make for a nice raspberry and steep faster than Purilum. For creams I believe I will stick with the Purilum and FA beryl. The INW and RF for me will most likely be for straight up fruit mixes or bakery blends.
"Purilum Raspberry is beautiful. Just a good clean fruit, will take over a mix with long steeps if use above 2%. 3% is my sweet spot for a simple raspberry & cream.
"Purilum raspberry shines brighter with a steep, one of my favorite raspberries. Word of caution, it gets stronger with time and can take over at 3%. That's a good percentage for a small batch though. Stands up beautifully with heavy creams. Okay in 10 days, enough to tell if you'll like it. Just keeps getting better, about 4w is where I like it. I'll mix 90ml 2.3% with creams, cheesecakes, pull off 15ml to vape and forget the rest for a few weeks. With straight fruit mixes 1-3% depending on where I want the raspberry to sit., week is usually enough for those. I would do a pairing with your boysenberry. The Purilum is bright and not candy sweet imo. I add 2 drops raspberry to the 15ml I pull off the 90ml."
And here are @PJReid's flavor notes on raspberry:
FLAVOUR ART
FA Berryl Raspberry
Tested at 2%. HIC’s Notes: "This is a little stronger than most FA flavors, and it tends to make itself noticed in recipes, so go light with it. Even 0.5% can stand out in a recipe with mild flavors, and 2% will overwhelm most recipes. This is a natural berry flavor with mostly sweet and a little fresh-tart flavor. It is not candy-sweet, but it’s easily made into candy flavors when used with sweeter flavors. “ It is a fairly full raspberry, both sweet and tart. It tastes like a VERY ripe raspberry. I do pick up some floral notes. The sweetness doesn’t go to syrupy, the tart is mild. The flavor itself is strong so more than a little would overpower a mix. What I don’t like are the floral, bitter notes. Best at 1% in a mix.
INAWERA
INW Raspberry (Malina)
Tested at 2%. This is, to my taste, an authentic raspberry – perfectly ripe. Some people tasted a jammy, candy flavor. To me, it is a bit tart and fairly true to a fresh raspberry. The flavor is full-bodied and dark. This is very concentrated so a little will be enough. I don’t get the perfume or bitter notes with this one as I do with The FA Raspberry. If I could only choose one, between FA and Inawera, it would definitely be the Inawera, BUT they are probably interchangeable in a recipe. .5% in a mix is probably enough.
ONE DROP FLAVORS
Raspberry
Tested at 7%. This is not identical to TFA Raspberry Sweet, but it is close enough that it can easily be subbed in a recipe that calls for TFA Raspberry Sweet. Very weak but fresh.
TFA
Raspberry Sweet
Tested at 7%. This is a fresh tasting raspberry – light and maybe a watery flavor – the flavor is weak compared to Inawera or FA. It is very sweet, so not a good choice for an authentic raspberry in bakeries. It is perfect for a hint of raspberry in raspberry lemonade. It won’t give you an “in your face” raspberry flavor but does impart a hint of raspberry in mixes. 3% to 4% in a mix.
VAPE TRAIN
VTA Shisha Raspberry
Tested at 2.5%. This is a nice, sweet raspberry. Not terribly vibrant or intense (FA and Inawera are intense raspberries, by comparison.) It tastes fresh without cloying sweetness or overwhelming tartness. This could be used, IMO, anywhere you would use FA or Inawera, but at a higher
percentage – probably 2% here rather than the .5% of the other two.
@AngeNZ says, "1% FA Raspberry and 3% PUR Raspberry - after a 3 day steep the florals are gone, and I've got a ripe, plump juicy raspberry that is perfect."
@Letitia has had this to say about raspberries, "INW raspberry Malina and shisha. Both singles are good. Have only used them is one mix, the malina is strong. I'll have to drop it down to .75%. Between the two they make for a nice raspberry and steep faster than Purilum. For creams I believe I will stick with the Purilum and FA beryl. The INW and RF for me will most likely be for straight up fruit mixes or bakery blends.
"Purilum Raspberry is beautiful. Just a good clean fruit, will take over a mix with long steeps if use above 2%. 3% is my sweet spot for a simple raspberry & cream.
"Purilum raspberry shines brighter with a steep, one of my favorite raspberries. Word of caution, it gets stronger with time and can take over at 3%. That's a good percentage for a small batch though. Stands up beautifully with heavy creams. Okay in 10 days, enough to tell if you'll like it. Just keeps getting better, about 4w is where I like it. I'll mix 90ml 2.3% with creams, cheesecakes, pull off 15ml to vape and forget the rest for a few weeks. With straight fruit mixes 1-3% depending on where I want the raspberry to sit., week is usually enough for those. I would do a pairing with your boysenberry. The Purilum is bright and not candy sweet imo. I add 2 drops raspberry to the 15ml I pull off the 90ml."
And here are @PJReid's flavor notes on raspberry:
FLAVOUR ART
FA Berryl Raspberry
Tested at 2%. HIC’s Notes: "This is a little stronger than most FA flavors, and it tends to make itself noticed in recipes, so go light with it. Even 0.5% can stand out in a recipe with mild flavors, and 2% will overwhelm most recipes. This is a natural berry flavor with mostly sweet and a little fresh-tart flavor. It is not candy-sweet, but it’s easily made into candy flavors when used with sweeter flavors. “ It is a fairly full raspberry, both sweet and tart. It tastes like a VERY ripe raspberry. I do pick up some floral notes. The sweetness doesn’t go to syrupy, the tart is mild. The flavor itself is strong so more than a little would overpower a mix. What I don’t like are the floral, bitter notes. Best at 1% in a mix.
INAWERA
INW Raspberry (Malina)
Tested at 2%. This is, to my taste, an authentic raspberry – perfectly ripe. Some people tasted a jammy, candy flavor. To me, it is a bit tart and fairly true to a fresh raspberry. The flavor is full-bodied and dark. This is very concentrated so a little will be enough. I don’t get the perfume or bitter notes with this one as I do with The FA Raspberry. If I could only choose one, between FA and Inawera, it would definitely be the Inawera, BUT they are probably interchangeable in a recipe. .5% in a mix is probably enough.
ONE DROP FLAVORS
Raspberry
Tested at 7%. This is not identical to TFA Raspberry Sweet, but it is close enough that it can easily be subbed in a recipe that calls for TFA Raspberry Sweet. Very weak but fresh.
TFA
Raspberry Sweet
Tested at 7%. This is a fresh tasting raspberry – light and maybe a watery flavor – the flavor is weak compared to Inawera or FA. It is very sweet, so not a good choice for an authentic raspberry in bakeries. It is perfect for a hint of raspberry in raspberry lemonade. It won’t give you an “in your face” raspberry flavor but does impart a hint of raspberry in mixes. 3% to 4% in a mix.
VAPE TRAIN
VTA Shisha Raspberry
Tested at 2.5%. This is a nice, sweet raspberry. Not terribly vibrant or intense (FA and Inawera are intense raspberries, by comparison.) It tastes fresh without cloying sweetness or overwhelming tartness. This could be used, IMO, anywhere you would use FA or Inawera, but at a higher
percentage – probably 2% here rather than the .5% of the other two.
Last edited:
RF black raspberry
Lb blue raspberry
WF boysenberry raspberry
Vta juicy raspberry
FA raspberry berryl
Cap raspberry
Inw raspberry (malina)
Tfa raspberry
Inw raspberry (wera garden)
Vta raspberry jam
Tfa sweet raspberry
Inw shisha raspberry
Vta shisha raspberry
Steeping is the process of differing molecules bonding with each other. Flavor molecules need to bond with each other as much as any other ingredient. So yes to your question.
Similar threads
