Strawberry Candy Type (SSA) 1% / 2% (11-5-24) – Last one on deck in this small series, and the first one, I decided to double. I started the test at 1%, and although OK, it clearly needed some more. It improved somewhat at 2%. Even doubled it wasn’t what I would call a screaming flavor. My initial thoughts were a mix of a somewhat candied Strawberry, and a generic Pink Candy. I had hoped by doubling it, the fairly generic pink candy would have morphed into a juicy Starburst, but that never really took shape. The pink candy tasted fairly smooth with no real spark or sparkle to it, but it was nicely contrasted by the SB which had some nice, juicy sharpness to it, and helped to almost pull, or elevate the semi-bland pink candy UP in the mix. I didn’t get any other notes, other than the two mentioned.
At 2% the flavor worked much better, with about a 30% increase in overall strength from the initial 1%. Sweetness was a few ticks above mid-level, but not cloying, and expected for a candy flavor. The contrast of the smooth pink candy, vs. the tarty, and sharp SB worked very well together. No off-notes or complaints other than the somewhat relaxed-ed-ness at 1%. All in, a pretty good Strawberry Pink Candy, and I blew through 3 testers before remembering to score it. I was originally going to leave it at a flat 9, but the sharp punchy SB inclined me to push it up, to a 9.5/10.
Starting off here with the smell… It smells EXACTLY like a pink Starburst. @3% the flavor is coming through well. I bumped it up from 2% and glad I did. It does not taste “Exactly” like a Pink Starburst, but the finish/exhale sure does. Candy strawberry, yes and no. It is not like vaping a piece of sweet strawberry candy, but more like a nice, juicy strawberry.
Bakery Orange (SSA) 1% (6-20-25) – Wow, this one stood out from EVERY other orange flavor I had, right out of the gate. Gone were all of the bright citrus-y notes typically found in navel oranges, and in their place were some very deep, dark, and almost caramelized notes. Sobucky did a VERY good job with this one, as baking oranges, reduces them somewhat, darkens the sugars, and almost caramelizes them, which is exactly what this tasted like. It also tasted a little condensed, or denser than a typical lighter orange flavor. It wasn’t over saturated at all. After the entire initial onrush of dark orange notes started to fade, a very accurate dark orange citrus oil (almost zest but not quite) finished it out.
VERY impressive, and I have NO other flavors like this on any of my racks. In thinking of the somewhat denser, somewhat condensed aspects, it did had a slightly syrup-y quality, BUT, not like a sweetened syrup. Hard to explain, but great when tasting it. For a HYPER accurate “Baked” Orange, you cannot go wrong with this one. Dark, reduced/condensed, with an almost syrupy quality, and a delicious citrus oil finish (almost a zest), is what this one was. Very good. Perfectly strong at 1%, and sweetness was surprisingly a few ticks below mid-level. I tested this one silly before writing this review, and I could not find a SINGLE thing to complain about. Release the Kraken, 10/10.
Heavy Cream (SSA) 1% (6-22-25) – I hadn’t seen a lot of reviews for this one, so I figured it was time. I think it was @Lynda_Marie that called it, “Whipped Cream on Steroids !!”, and I think that get’s you in the ballpark. What I found missing were some of the brighter, vanilla-y top end notes typically found in whipped creams. Now what replaced them were more mid, and lower creamier notes, and who says no to that ?? !!! Mouthfeel was pretty good, but not overly thick. There was no mistaking this was a cream, and at times it had an almost marshmallow thickness, but without the mallow. 1% was a great SFT weight, and despite rolling through the entire tester, I couldn’t find any off-notes or complaints. Sweetness was just below mid-level, and that suited this flavor fine.
All in, I could see a LOT of uses for this one, bolstering (duh) whipped creams, creamy toppings, but also layering into creamy/creamery mixes as well as custards. It was just non-descript to really open up it’s uses. While not as super dense as Hangen’s Italian Cream, it will be able to handle a large portion of the creamy-ness in mixes. I don’t know the DAAP status of this flavor, and am “assuming” that it doesn’t contain any, or if so, very little. About my only "want’ would have been just a bit more thick mouthfeel, but that was it. Nice and creamy. 9.1/10.
In a drink, I’ve used it in sprite/lemonade/citrus mixes because I was wondering the same thing. I have if, might as well use it. I’m pretty disappointed in it tbh.
For me that is what makes this flavor so good. A Heavy Cream with no vanilla , caramel , buttery notes. A cream that can build on. Not the thickest cream out there by any means. It is what i consider a Heavy Cream though. You want a buttery cream add it, you want vanilla notes add them. We build our bases with multiple creams to achieve the best all around cream and with this one you will get a perfect plain cream to build upon. I use this from 1 to 2.5pct. I rarely use just one cream in a recipe anyway.
