I’m looking for ideas on how members here create their original recipes.
@Amy2 started a thread a while ago about recipe ideas and it really helped me learn more about pairing flavors and building vape recipes from actual food recipes. When I build a recipe I try to imagine how this would taste if it’s eaten.
Any replies are welcomed.
Let me start by stating that I in no way consider myself a master mixer!
If you search for top rated recipes you wont find my name on the list, but I have managed to create quite a few I really enjoy myself, and I have devolved a method that might also be useful for others.
First of all I keep all my single flavour tests (SFT), I also replenish these if I run out of them.
I take them all out, take all the caps of, and then I start sniffing. In quick succession either randomly or by plan, I smell different flavours to try and find flavours that work well together. I might then drip a bit of each flavour directly into a dripper, just to confirm what my nose told me.
When I have found lets say three flavours that work well together, I then work out which I want to be the dominating flavour (if any) and which should be supporting flavours, and guesstimate the internal relationship between them like a 4:2:1 ratio. I then mix a few ml. of the SFT in that ratio, drip and taste, adjust, drip, adjust … until I am happy with the result.
When I am happy with my SFT mix, I then look up how much flavour I used in each SFT, calculate how much of each flavour I had in the mix, bump up the total flavour percentage by 25-50% and make my first real test mix.
I don’t always use this method, and I know there are more systematic approaches like working with layers, but I really like this more intuitive approach, and I find it works especially well if you are starting completely from scratch, without any idea of what you want to end up with.
I also find that it cuts considerably down on the iterations you have to go through with your test mixes, as you are much closer to the final result, with your first actual test mix.
i don’t consider myself in anyway to be a master mixer or something like this (i still fail a lot, while i still thank god for bringing us menthol and for that i like menthol for not throwing away all that juice) lol
some people start creating recipes from stuff they like to eat or drink… i mean… “hrm… that cake last night was delicious” or “that smoothie in the park was great” so they start to work on it…
some others (including me) are working kinda in a more experimental way… like “hrm, this flavor seems that it could work with this and that and the other and the next could be like this plus the other”
but in both ways i guess there is always some or more experimentation, while at the same time other than the basic concept of let’s say an apple pie that you will probably need for start a nice apple pie flavor the thing relies also on layering the flavor and here’s the difficult part i guess… and this is where is the “original” term goes imho and the “success” of it or the “failure”
i mean even if an apple pie seems probably a simple recipe there are tonz of options of other flavors to combine
Vanilla, caramel, nuts, apples, creams, additives (like sweeteners or anything else), cinnamon, butter, etc etc
still needs experience with the flavors someone is using (using flavor brands that suit the profile the mixer is trying to make, using the correct percentages, how they can be combined etc) … but that’s the point imho of a “original recipe” since in general way we all almost use the same brands (mostly TPA/TFA, CAP, FW, FA, INW)
well, this seems a good idea, but it doesn’t really work every single time (at least for me)…sometimes it works sometimes not… there are times that a mixer has to think like a chemist, some others like a chef… i mean, you wouldn’t eat a pack of stinkies before you mix, right? or you wouldn’t add honey or creams onn your cigar, right? 
original recipes need much time to be perfected, effort, money etc… all depends on how much “deeper” someone wants to go or how he finds pleasure…
At this point it is pretty much automatic. I like to recreate things i have eaten, or add on to those things.
In the beginning i would sit down and write out the flavors i would need from highest % to lowest depending on what i tasted when i ate the yummilicious dessert. Of course this was limited by the flavorings i had. Once i added billions more flavorings this got more difficult, but just for awhile. Once the single flavor %s were determined, and which i flavor preferred more, everything started to become automatic. If i have an actual food recipe to go by i dont even really have to think about it, my brain cell just knows what flavorings i need and at what %'s.
I used to hand write all of my flavor notes, now i dont even bother as my selection has become so refined, for my tastes, but it was very helpful at the time. Smell, water test and then vape notes, i broke this down by company, one notebook for each. This made it easy to eliminate flavorings i did not enjoy and helped in determine which of the flavorings i liked belonged in that particular mix.
This is part of what my brain cell does on its own now, i can eat a dessert, or often times see a recipe, and start putting it together in my head based on prior experience. Most times it takes 1 or 2 mixes to get it right but of course there are limitations to what we can do and there are some mixes that i have been working on for years, egg fracking nog comes to mind right away.
I generally use a site like this one to find ideas for new mixes… I usually search for dessert or juice type recipes.
Once I find something I’d like to try I’ll copy the ingredients and recreate a vape that I think would best represent the ingredients used.
Just an example… not one of my actual recipes, just showing my process…
Original Peach Cobbler Recipe
2 lbs frozen, sliced peaches (about 6-7 cups)
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg white
1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar
My recreated version for vaping…
Peach FLV 2%
(One of my favorite Peach Concentrates)
Peach INW 1.5%
(Also an excellent Peach to help support/enhance my 1st peach)
Pyure (Liquid Stevia) .5%
(Sugar/Sweetener substitute)
Golden Butter Cap .75%
(Just Butter)
Lemon MF .1% or 1 drop per 15mls
(Best Lemon IMO)
Vanilla MF .75%
(Best Vanilla IMO)
Meringue FA .6%
(Egg Sub, also adds some sweetness and fluffyness)
Rich Cinnamon FLV 1 drop per 15 to 30mls.
(Best Bakery Cinnamon IMO)
Apple Pie FA 2.2%
(Very little apple flavor and a excellent crust note. I usually add a cake note to lighten/fluff the crust)
Mix, Steep, Test and adjust if needed)
This method has helped me make a good juice more often than not.
Mmm, I am old school on this I guess. When I am shopping, I look for desserts or foods that might translate good into a recipe, so I have my little notepad (I like the physical feel of writing, connecting myself with paper and pen) and I write down ingredients and the basic flavor profile of the dessert. The other thing I do is look up different ways to use a certain flavor, like the past few weeks have been ‘Cashew’. I have researched several different dessert dishes using cashews, and currently have several of those steeping that I tried to make into eliquid recipes.
PS: I have a bazillion cashew recipes going right now. 
Not saying my stuff is good, or great for anyone else, but I mix for me (and my husband when he’s got the lazies), so my tastes probably won’t match every Tom, Dick, and Sherry out there.
And really, that there is all that matters.
Mixing the Top Rated Recipes really helps. When vaping a successful mix there is usually a single flavor or brilliant pairing that stands out. I find these inspirational, but it still requires experience when you move outside that box of the original recipe. You may have two “inspirations” (pairings?) that don’t play as intended when you try to whip up something, so there’s no replacement for failure and experimentation. If you’re afraid of mixing a bad juice you’ll never mix your own recipe. Members sharing those fails here on the Forum have been valuable reads.
Absolutely. For me i kinda got tired of vaping high levels of menthol so i got serious about this hobby. I remember going into half ginger rages when i would mess up a mix, now it is just a challenge.
i usually try to replicate a desert , but i also like to try and pair multiple fruits to create something " exotic " , i dont have any particular method to what creams i add because im always trying to use different ones , i do have my staple creams i use and i often try to pair Tpa Honeydew or Cap sweet guava with other fruits because i love both as accent or top notes … When i first think of something i typically pull out 7 to 12 flavors and then widdle it down to 4 to 6 for my first version then build on that ill give you an example today i made a bluberry waffle ice cream cone i grabbed
FW blueberry
FA bilberry
Fa marshmallow
acetyl pyrazine
INW biscuit
LB VIC
LB belgian waffle
FA fresh cream
MF vanilla
FW sweet cream
i think i possibly had a couple more , believe me in my head b4 i wrote it all out i thought this was going to be great lmao then i realize its always overkill so i ended up with
FW blueberry
FW sweet cream
LB VIC
AP
INW biscuit
oh ya my sweetener stone , and off the mag mixer it was very good of course the creams and cone havent developed but im sure it will be a winner im thinking of naming it Smurfettes Cream lol
I have a few recipes where I’ve copied a food or drink. But mostly I just create stuff. And often that creative process begins with a single flavor. I’ll rifle through my mess of a brain and think what would go good with that? That usually ends up continuing till I have a few flavors thrown together and a considerable amount of clutter on my workbench.
And while my method may seem rather haphazard and disorganized, there is one inescapable component common to all successful mixes that don’t happen outside of sheer dumb luck, and that is knowing your stash. Yes, I agree with @BoDarc about experimentation. But we’re talking about building good or great recipes here, and that is not necessarily experimental. At least not totally. There is a determined approach that relies heavily on knowledge gained - everything from pairings, to good contrasts, what flavors dominate vs those easily subdued…really all of it. Until you know your flavors, all successes are just luck. But once you do know your stash, the duds become fewer and farther between, and you’re kicking out more winners than losers.
I will try to explain my thought with my poor English as good as I can.
For me vaping has to be somethink almost ‘‘unique’’ for my taste buds. In general I don’t want to drink somethink that I like to eat. In general I don’t want to eat somethink that I like to drink. In general I don’t want vaping something that I like to eat or drink. For me vaping it has to be a different experience, this why I have to experiment alot. It is a hard task, but this is the fun too. 
Dont worry about your English, bud. You’re doing great. 
More often than not i accidentally combine a couple flavors to make them seem like something ive never tried. But if this is the type of thing you are interested in check out all the spec sheets for TPA flavorings. You can look up different components to get a more detailed breakdown of what each one does at different %s.
This is something that i wish each company would do as component lists would be quite helpful. Ever mixed a few flavors that should work great together but dont? Perhaps it is, in part, because one has double or tripled the quantity of a particular component and at that level it tastes like something completely different.
TPA sells terpenes, perhaps you can create something completely different. A person can easily obtain many of the chemicals used to create these flavors but be warned that some are quite dangerous.
https://shop.perfumersapprentice.com/specsheetlist.aspx
https://shop.perfumersapprentice.com/c-250-terpenes-retail-sizes.aspx
https://shop.perfumersapprentice.com/t-FlavorWorkshopHow.aspx
Anything is possible with the right knowledge and drive.
Yes thats what I do, in fact this is the way that many times I choose my flavors. I will buy Cappuccino in my next order not because is the best caffe but because I need that Pyrazine (Pyrazine <2,3,5-trimethyl->) with Cyclotine and Ethyl Vanillin, Toasted Almond because it has Benzyl acetate (fruity, sweet, with balsamic and jasmin floral undernotes).
I have seen a similar problem with Butyric Acid (Butterscotch Ripple), in high % is like vomit, but thanks to FW spec sheets I can fix my recipe as it needs.
Agreed. My point mostly was there is no shortcut to being more than just lucky. The ability to consistently (and multiplely) create great recipes is either based on a former skilled palate (Culinary) or many many hours of DIY mixification
I use this method I am not a master mixer but this has helped me make some pretty good recipes