What makes a premium E-liquid

[stevegmu]

There is quite a difference in purity when it comes to ingredients. Some will say there isn't, but they were probably smoking generic cigarettes or cigarillos and saying they were as good as the name brands... If they offer flavor shots, they can be excluded from the premium list...

 

[Despraci]

To me it's better base liquids and better grade flavoring, but even that doesn't make it premium. It comes down to flavor, vapor production, and overall smoothness. It has to taste like the description (which is relative to the vapor) but there are just some brands that seem to get it right and is good right out of the bottle. My one favorite premium is mr good vape, but I am not a fan of five pawns. So it's really perspective of the user and what you are willing to pay.

 

[Admsteff]

I love semantics and nomenclature. Enjoying people's views. "Any vendor that doesn't offer flavor shots" is great, and has some truth. I still prefer more than a connotation. Premium is something for which one is willing to pay a higher than "normal" price. For any reason. Dusty yellowish water is at a premium when your plane crashes in the desert. Assuming there's ample supply of something like with juice, it needs to be worth more for some other reason like quality, taste, time investment, marketing, etc. Since every item is worth exactly what someone is willing to pay for it, the customer ultimately decides what is "premium." Vendors can try to persuade you that their stuff is premium, but that's all they can do. So for me, premium is related to cost. Something that's worth more than others for any reason.

When seen this way, it's obvious why almost every vendor tries to identify themselves as premium. Customers never want to feel ripped off. Everything has to be seen as being worth what the vendor is asking for it. The premium label is like a little nudge to keep you from walking away after seeing the price tag.

 

[rabernet]

Premium for ME is about the flavor experience. It's about loading up a bottle on my REO and sitting back and enjoying the flavor the way it was intended, not artificially, candied versions of fruits, for example. Real, extracted flavors of the original fruit. It's not difficult to figure out who I think does "premium" flavors best. Last count I have tried over 100 of their flavors and I think I could count on one hand the number out of that 100 that I just went "yeah...no" on the flavor. Not that the flavor was bad, I could tell it was well crafted, it just wasn't a flavor that worked for me.

I try different vendors and always go back to my primary vendor, because the flavors are so much more pure tasting (to me) than other vendors. I still try other vendors from time to time, because I really don't want to put all my eggs in one basket. But it's a tough act to follow for sure!