When I started vaping I was very much into a commercial strawberry milkshake. Then I moved into DIY and failed to create any strawberry recipe that tasted well to me, either I tasted no strawberry or it didn’t taste good. Two weeks ago I gave strawberries another chance and prepared different recipes “Naked Unicorn”, “My dude”, “One milk to rule them all”, “Rose Milk”. I was so happy, I was enjoying them. A couple of days later, I almost cannot taste the strawberry anymore. I have tried switching to other non-strawberry liquids and then going back to strawberry the day after. Nothing, I cannot taste it, or just very subtle, not something enjoyable. Anyone has gone to something similar?
There are factors that will affect the flavoring. When the steep process begins some strawberries loose their kick. Give it some time. Too much creams or custards will mute strawberries. Over doing the percentages will also mute the flavor.
FWIW I have Strawberry issues as well.
As shake and vape these juices were great. Then, I waited for an entire week to let it steep. After that week it tasted great and I was vaping them the entire morning (working from home). Then it started to taste strange, like black olives, and all the juices started to lose their strawberry flavour. That makes me think it was all in me not in the recipes. During the following days I have given these juices other tries, and nothing. Sometimes a little bit, but not much strawberry flavour. It’s frustrating to have Strawberry issues! Maybe our strawberry receptors desensitise quickly
I also have problems with strawberry. The best thing for me to do is when I start not being able to taste strawberry I won’t use strawberry juices for about a month. Then I go back and the flavors back. I also don’t try any strawberry juice right away. If a juice makes it through the month steep and I can still taste the strawberry, then I know I have a winner for me.
I have tried lots: TPA ripe, TPA str, CAP sweet str, INW shisha, FA Red touch, Straw. kiss, and some others. I am starting to think the problem is not only not tasting some strawberries, I think is also a problem with receptors desensitising: I was enjoying this recipes until they just muted to me. I will leave strawberry for some weeks and try again later
De-sensitizing could just be the common vapers tongue. Or not… I dunno.
For vapors tongue though I drink lots of water and stick my face in a can of fresh coffee grounds. I’ve also used a Neti Pot on occasion.
It might just be me, but I find that if I had to describe Boysenberry as what its similar to - I would describe it as a kinda strawberry smell, with a kinda sour (just under ripe, green with the first blush) strawberry taste. Which is why I tend to add it to anything I make that has strawberries as it really compliments strawberries and enhances the strawberry-ness.
I’ve also found adding .2% of Pomegranate and .2% of Grapefruit really helps “pop” the other flavours and a dash, .1%, of Kiwi for a bit of zing.
It should be noted that I use Real Flavours SC for all my flavours, so adjust accordingly.
I’ve included a screen grab of one of my mixes as my mixes tend to be adjusted continuously so I usually keep them private…
Thanks! I’ve also read that some people add a bit of dragonfruit to help the strawberry.
I am curious, why you only do Real Flavours SC? I tried also their strawberry, in my notes I have “tastes to strawberry, not delicious though” but I am not a great taster and find myself changing opinion constantly
I guess I’m more of a taste person (which is odd after years of wonderful self abuse with sweat inducing hot curries and chilli’s) than a smell person.
I find that while other makes have great/strong smells (RF in vape clouds isn’t a strong smell), the tastes (especially a single drop on the skin that’s licked) I find are much to “chemical” in nature and some are down right disgusting.
Now I realise that a licked drop is not the same as a diluted mix, be that water or VG/PG, but I figured what the heck I might as well go all natural if possible. The only exception is the Key Lime, as the UK flavour stockist I use doesn’t carry a RF lime.
Yeah, and raspberry can really help boost the strawberry too. Have you tried adding maybe 0.50% CAP Super Sweet? That can also help boost fruits like strawberry.
Speaking of Real Flavors there SC Strawberry Milkshake is pretty damn tasty. I like RFSC strawberry too but generally use it between 1.5% and 2%, too much and it can get weird. Same thing with INW Shisha SB, too much and I am not a fan but use a boost for both to highlight it if that is what’s called for. Marshmallows can also help strawberry when used low as an alternative to super sweet or any other sweeteners.
I mix a lot of strawberry in many different styles and types of recipes. It depends on what my aim is as to what I use to boost the strawberries.
In candy type recipes I use a combination of TPA Sour, Citric acid and Dragon Fruit. For example:
But in creamy or bakery recipes I have found Flavorah Boysenberry to work best for me to help bring them forward. I didn’t find DF to be the best in this situation and I was never game to add sour/ citric acid to creams. I also rarely use just one strawberry at a time.
I found a Lemonade/strawberry biscuit mix that was 12 months old the other day and the strawberry was still very forward in the mix. Lemons also work in very small amounts.
Just adding my two cents for the sake of it, SB is a quest by itself and we all know about it, but whether we like it or not, it’s the number 1 flavour in the top list… always!
You’ll find thousands of post about it and this one just proves it, so my first advice is “Search” on the site, there are umpteenth posts on this subject… just write Strawberry… it never ends…
I think, but can’t remember where, even I that I’m not an SB fanatic, wrote a long post on the subject.
I saw you used the classic ones (and are good enough) but didn’t see MF or FLV Alpine or FW or RF (VG) did you try them?
Now let’s have a look together at the probable issues…
One simple answer is you’ll have to build your own layer and usually is a mix of three SB Ripe/Shisha/Alpine or Ripe/organic (MF or Nature’s/Red touch thousands of combos we all have our own.
One SB won’t work, it just won’t work, the compounds on a real SB are very complex and they change when the SB ripens, if you find my post (or if I do I’ll link it) there is a very thorough explanation on the subject and that’s why most of us use a layer of more different SBs.
Strawberry fades, no doubt about it, with steeping it fades, so if you mixed it with something else that takes a long steep, consider adding the SB at a later steeping stage, if a cream took over your mix that could be the “Strange taste”,
Maltol… if you go and have a look at the technical data sheet of the manufacturer compounds used for the SB you’ll always see an heavy dose of Maltol in it, but (sounds like Monty Python here) if we put too much Maltol in our mix, e.g. Bavarian Cream is another classic heavy maltol based…or malted milk, the mix will mute and we might just do go over the top without even knowing it…
So you have to be careful at the compounds used by the manufacturer and the mix as a whole.
Just another thing, Federico… where are you from? Sounds like an Italian name.
Thank so much, guys, lots of useful information. I indeed searched a lot here and there about this problem, what I was surprised is about this sudden mute to SB after enjoying it for a couple of hours.
I may buy other strawberry flavours, but I already have 8 and the more I buy the more frustrated I get. After many tries I think I cannot taste Ripe Strawberry, so I think that’s out. In the latest recipes I tried TFA SB + CAP sweet SB (+ sweetener), and TFA SB + CAP sweet SB + INW shisha SB (+sweetener). Was so happy about them… until suddenly stopped tasting them.
(I am from Spain, if you heared me speaking you would notice a strong accent immediately - four years living in UK but still not struggling with English… not easy to learn a language after certain age)
Well your is English looks better then mine… and I am English… (Got Italian parents…)
Unfortunately by the sound of it, looks like @TorturedZen could have been right… Vapers Tongue…
Reset your tongue, to do this, one method that can work, is to put some (a lot of) lemon juice on your tongue, keep it there without swallowing it, for as much as you can, do some mouth wash, at the end spit it out, wait a bit and repeat… wash your mouth, don’t eat, vape, drink coffe, mints, do nothing for half an hour and see.
Naturally under a full moon… not really, just kidding, I know it sounds like mumbo jumbo, but for lots of people this method works… it might for you as well.
But this is just one of them… you’ll find quite a few around, this one seems to work.
It’s very good!
(Got Italian parents…)