Trying to mimic this old recipe I used to get from this guy.
Stupid questions first; did you ask him what ingredients he used, or is this no longer a possibility?
My initial thoughts (without discounting
@tazzle's initial thoughts; as I almost never use a single strawberry concentrate anymore)...
Most creams, such as Bavarian Cream, require time to come to full flavor. This means patience.
For me, the majority of creams that I have used, require a week before even making their presence known. Two weeks is more realistic; and I won't pass final judgement for at least a month.
I am not surprised, if you are tasting a fresh mix (shake-and-
vape) of any strawberry and Bavarian cream, that all you are getting is strawberry. And, I would further venture to guess, that the strawberry is kind of "off" too. I say that, only because I find fresh/early creams not particularly pleasant, and that they have a tendency to
throw this initial balance off.
Another factor (again, for me... YMMV) I have noted, is that
in general, strawberry concentrates tend to be rather aromatic, and prone to flavor fade... to some point. By this, I mean they are most potent fresh, and tend to diminish (to some extent; more or less) over time.
So, if you take an "early potent" strawberry, and blend it with a "slow developing" cream, it is going to take some time to find balance.
This does not mean that your recipes are, or are not, in/out of balance. And, I would heartily agree with
@tazzle, that sharing specific mixing attempts (amounts/percents/methods of measurements) with specific ingredients (flavor name
and manufacture name) would help us give you a better informed opinion.
However... TIME is also going to play a major key into what you are trying to accomplish in this seemingly simple mix.So please, PLEASE, include resting times (at tasting) along with your recipes.
And please note: I am not scolding for tasting "fresh" (right after mixing) as I intentionally do this with every new (to me) recipe. I believe I benefit by having a "baseline" from which to judge how a recipe is going to develop. But, at the same time, you also have to have the patience (and volume), to stay the course, and taste repeatedly of the course of several weeks.
My "normal" (whatever the heck that is) tasting ritual is:
always fresh right after mixing (to get a baseline/reference point), then again at 72 hours/3 days, then again at 1 week, and each week thereafter. At EACH tasting; I record a note about what I am tasting, and when (related to mixing)... how the flavor/recipe changes. Is it better? Worse? How is it different (something weaker/stronger; is something there that wasn't before, or maybe something is gone)?
I have had some that are true shake-and-vapes: mix 'em, shake 'em, and they are good to go until they are gone. Others need shelf time (often
erroneously referred to as "steep" <shudder> time): a couple of days, a week, a couple of weeks, a month (or even more) before they reach their full potential... but, whatever the initial wait-time is, once that is past it has found stability.
Then, there are those recipes that are truly "best used by" mixes; by which I mean they might be ready right off the mixing counter, or a few days wait, but then after a certain time-period, they change beyond the desired profile. This can mean one flavor dominates, or another flavor fades, but something changes and it once again goes out of balance.
With all of these; ...only time will tell.
