What is it that you would consider a "premium" eliquid. Does the flavor have to have a mystery behind it? Multiple flavors? Heavy VG? Glass bottles with droppers? What allows you to pay the premium prices? If you under no circumstance would pay premium then this thread is not for you. I am trying to get a handle on what is considered premium although a lot of companies use that term. Thoughts? Thanks.
What makes a premium E-liquid
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Honestly, I think the idea behind "premium" would be better ingredients, and more artistic, well thought-out favor combinations.
For instance, a vendor that makes their own flavorings, offers premium e-liquid in my book. Also, a vendor that offers well-thought out flavor combinations, that mix perfectly, is premium.
A vendor that uses flavorings from one or more of the major flavor companies, and sells tons of basic e-liquids like peach flavor, blueberry flavor, chocolate flavor, etc, would NOT be premium in my book .
For instance, a vendor that makes their own flavorings, offers premium e-liquid in my book. Also, a vendor that offers well-thought out flavor combinations, that mix perfectly, is premium.
A vendor that uses flavorings from one or more of the major flavor companies, and sells tons of basic e-liquids like peach flavor, blueberry flavor, chocolate flavor, etc, would NOT be premium in my book .
premium juice, to me, is a specific flavor profile the "chef" is after. this person is fully aware of what they want the end-product to turn out as. sometimes, this can take months and months, if not years of trial and error to completely perfect.
I prefer these style of juices and would consider them a "premium" based on the time put in as well the persistence it took to achieve a desired result.
I prefer these style of juices and would consider them a "premium" based on the time put in as well the persistence it took to achieve a desired result.
Yes.
Here's my very, very brief opinion. Of course any company can say "premium," but the designation is ultimately made in the mind of the consumer. How about this: Premium is a designation in the mind of the consumer that justifies higher prices. Or, for products, premium is when a product has a higher value than competitors. Not value as in "bang for your buck," but in more desirable, costs more to make, etc. For brands, it's related to their products, but with an additional marketing component.
To me, "I like the taste a lot" is not premium. I happen to enjoy Tombstone frozen pizza quite a bit (why am I embarrassed to admit that?). Tombstone is not a premium frozen pizza. There are local restaurants which I would agree sell a "premium" pizza, but I don't care for their pizza. But whether or not I like the taste is not directly related to my perception of how premium their pizza is. It's about the quality of ingredients and attention to detail. Mass production tends to lessen a product's image as premium as well, though not always, and scarcity tends to increase it. Like the difference between a good craft beer and a Budweiser. Bud doesn't suffer from a lack of QUALITY so to speak, and I drink it plenty. But I'm willing to pay a bit more for the craft beer, which by my definition makes it premium I suppose. But there's nothing wrong with liking a juice and not considering it premium. I consider my ADV non-premium.
For brands or companies, as opposed to specific products, there's a marketing or "branding" factor as well. It's about how the company presents their image, with things like their website, juice descriptions, packaging, and just overall marketing. This is subjective, but I'm put off by flashing or scrolling banners, vivid neon colors, grainy low res logos, and ridiculous vapor clouds everywhere on a company's website. Difficult to navigate doesn't help. How about the stock pictures of people in lab coats in a fake laboratory? Not impressed, in fact it's a negative. It may not matter to many, and that's fine. But it impacts my "feel" of the company. It takes more money to have a fancy package and website, which makes the juice price higher, which then ADDS to the "premium" image. This is pretty basic marketing, and it works on many people, including me, for a reason. For the same reason, many instantly reject "high-end" marketing as just a fancy-pants excuse for overpricing. A brand image as premium REQUIRES premium products though, or it is quickly recognized as fake.
A side point: I remember reading about a "silver spoon" study a year or two ago from a university, in which people were given identical food on various different utensils, and hooked up to a brain-monitoring apparatus. Identical food eaten with the silver spoon actually tasted better to the participants vs. a plastic spoon. This was not a survey after eating, their brains literally perceived the food as tasting better while they were eating it. Worth a Google maybe, don't take my word for it...
nothing, it's all the same ingredients and have yet to find someone show me that one PG is better than another PG...vg, nicotine...etc....and even then if it's difference in quality then your saying one brand is contaminated, because these chemicals all have the same chemical make up no matter what
then it comes to flavors and that is all subjective, does complex flavor make it premium? hardly, we can all mix different flavors and come up with stuff, it's not hard to take strawberry, kiwi, mango, and guava and call it something like "summer bliss" jackpot!
anyway, at this point your better off ignoring "premium" even "made in america" doesn't mean anything when it comes to ejuice, if i mix two dekang juices can't i say my creation was "made in america"
then it comes to flavors and that is all subjective, does complex flavor make it premium? hardly, we can all mix different flavors and come up with stuff, it's not hard to take strawberry, kiwi, mango, and guava and call it something like "summer bliss" jackpot!
anyway, at this point your better off ignoring "premium" even "made in america" doesn't mean anything when it comes to ejuice, if i mix two dekang juices can't i say my creation was "made in america"
In a way, you're right about MOST of the synthetic USDA flavors being the same. But some companies use NETs or juices with naturally extracted Oak flavors, etc., which might not be the same across the board.
Another thought: let's say you give both me and pick-your-favorite-celebrity-chef an identical basket of various food and say "make me breakfast." Who's concoction will you pay more for? It's obvious who commands the premium price tag for the "same" stuff.
If all they were to give us was an egg and tell us to scramble it, you'd probably be right. But when the flavors get complex, artisinal mastery can't be matched by "we can all mix flavors and come up with stuff." But if one just vapes a plain grape flavor, I suppose you're right.
Cost of ingredients will contribute to a flavor being "premium" versus "regular", as well as the time & effort to produce a blend. These has to be figured into the equation & will be a determining factor.
This is what my distributor tells me. That doesn't necessarily mean that the premium e-juices are better, that all depends on the consumer's taste buds. I've had both & this is simply my opinion, many of the regular blends are just as good, if not better, than the higher cost premium flavors.
In fact, I've never had a premium e-juice that I've stuck with, not because of being a cheapskate, these simply just didn't taste good to me. There's others that if the premium tag were placed on, I'd still purchase, because these are good tasting vapes. Some distributors will take advantage of this & tag these as premium, just because they're in high demand.
The rule "you get what you pay for", doesn't always apply to e-juices.
Though I don't consume alcoholic beverages any more, when I did, I found the best ones to be the mid priced, mainstream brands, all of the high priced, imported ones tasted crappy to me.
Like with many other consumable items, "premium" is a matter of personal preference.
Cat
This is what my distributor tells me. That doesn't necessarily mean that the premium e-juices are better, that all depends on the consumer's taste buds. I've had both & this is simply my opinion, many of the regular blends are just as good, if not better, than the higher cost premium flavors.
In fact, I've never had a premium e-juice that I've stuck with, not because of being a cheapskate, these simply just didn't taste good to me. There's others that if the premium tag were placed on, I'd still purchase, because these are good tasting vapes. Some distributors will take advantage of this & tag these as premium, just because they're in high demand.
The rule "you get what you pay for", doesn't always apply to e-juices.
Though I don't consume alcoholic beverages any more, when I did, I found the best ones to be the mid priced, mainstream brands, all of the high priced, imported ones tasted crappy to me.
Like with many other consumable items, "premium" is a matter of personal preference.
Cat
i see your point....however if you and i made scrambled eggs, you added ham and green peppers to them....it wouldn't be difficult for me then to add the same things, even if you weighed your ham to 8oz and i only used 6oz's of ham, we'd still come up with something that no one could tell the difference of
i also can't call mixing juices as an art form or something to master...throw it together, if it's good then awesome, if its not then vape it anyway haha
Gourmet to me means that it is a product made by a specific person. More over, who took the time to experiment to see what works and what does not. they will test and improve. Like cooking. They will put their name on the product. I have had 2 of them, Darn they were good. Well that's how I see it.
Complexity of flavor is what makes a premium juice for me. For example, the creams from the Suicide Bunny line taste much more complex and rich compared to a "similar" flavor from say, Mount Baker Vapor. I could care less about packaging as long as it shows my nic level and PG/VG ratio, but it seems as though "premium" juices always come in glass dropper bottles now. I feel like this just ramps up the price even more, and I personally hate the glass dropper bottles.
Regardless though, I've been trying to stay away from "premium" or rather "nearly $1 per ml" juices. Maybe it's because I'm a poor college student, but no liquid is worth that much to me. I pretty much only buy premium brands if I can try it before hand, and can guarantee that the flavor will be so amazing that my eyes will roll back after every hit lol
Regardless though, I've been trying to stay away from "premium" or rather "nearly $1 per ml" juices. Maybe it's because I'm a poor college student, but no liquid is worth that much to me. I pretty much only buy premium brands if I can try it before hand, and can guarantee that the flavor will be so amazing that my eyes will roll back after every hit lol
i'm with you, the glass bottles is a good idea, but it's a pain, i have two bottles of organic juice and filling kayfuns with those things is a pain, dripping is ok but even then it's hard to keep track how many drops i'm using
I'm with you; I've got a couple flavors that, to me, qualify as "premium" -- they taste EXACTLY as the description says, they didn't *require* steeping (though both improved somewhat because of it), and yeah, they're a bit more costly than the cheapies I usually look for -- but I had the opportunity taste them first, to see for myself that they *really are* that good, and that made it worth paying slightly more for them -- if I hadn't been able to taste them first, I'd never have known how great they were, because I normally would never pay $12-$15 for a 15ml bottle of eliquid. ($12 if I buy them online; $15 at the B&M, but that saves shipping (and waiting), so the cost may actually be about the same.)
Andria
Premium juice...knowing how to pick the very best flavorings and how to mix them is something of a skill, a skill that commands a premium to experience.
A steak for example is little more than a cut of flesh, picking the perfect cut and cooking it with just the right heat and spices is not always enough, meat requires a curing process that makes it just right.
Premium juice is for lack of a better description, the best grape (Or any flavor or combination of flavors) available regardless of price or sales pitch.
Sometimes price has little to do with it, but presentation, and the customer service will effect price. A class winning grape flavor isn't going to attain premium status if the company has horrible customer service and the product is packaged in leaky reused film canisters.
Maurice
A steak for example is little more than a cut of flesh, picking the perfect cut and cooking it with just the right heat and spices is not always enough, meat requires a curing process that makes it just right.
Premium juice is for lack of a better description, the best grape (Or any flavor or combination of flavors) available regardless of price or sales pitch.
Sometimes price has little to do with it, but presentation, and the customer service will effect price. A class winning grape flavor isn't going to attain premium status if the company has horrible customer service and the product is packaged in leaky reused film canisters.
Maurice
Nowadays?
A vendor slapping premium on the label or on the website.
Case in point, NOTHING by Mt Baker should be considered premium IMO.
When I think of Premium I think of well established vendors who dont skimp on the cost of ingredients and who put out a quality product. Therefore the cost is a bit higher as well.
Alien Visions, Heather Heavenly Vapes, Velvet Cloud Vaping, Fusion, The Vaper Room, etc.
A vendor slapping premium on the label or on the website.
Case in point, NOTHING by Mt Baker should be considered premium IMO.
When I think of Premium I think of well established vendors who dont skimp on the cost of ingredients and who put out a quality product. Therefore the cost is a bit higher as well.
Alien Visions, Heather Heavenly Vapes, Velvet Cloud Vaping, Fusion, The Vaper Room, etc.
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