I looked into making an order from VSO and although the prices are good the postage and customs fees are just extortionate from the US to the U.K. and with Christmas around the corner it’s a no go so I still live in hope that VSO will return to our shores one day soon as I really want to try them.
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Damn you @SwaggyShane, damn you to hell !!! Hehe, Shane over at VSO hooked me up, and doubled my order, and included the other entire line of his “Raw” flavors, which look to be VERY interesting. NO dilutants, no PG, and Ultra Concentrated. Soo much so that he recommends, 0.15-0.50%. Can’t wait to try them, and thanks @ShaggyShane.
Apple Cider (VSO) 3%
*Apple Raw (VSO) 0.3%
*Blueberry Raw (VSO) 0.3%
Caramel Apple (VSO) 14%
Corn (VSO) 3%
Eggnog (VSO) 3%
Fig (VSO) 3%
*Grape Raw (VSO) 0.3%
Harvest Moon (VSO) 14%
Oatmeal (VSO) 4%
Pumpkin (VSO) 3%
Raisin (VSO) 3%
Sabayon (VSO) 14%
Soul Warming Cider (VSO) 14%
*Strawberry Raw (VSO) 0.3%
The Great Pumpkin Fudge (VSO) 17%
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Sorting percentages, mixing shortly …
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Apple Cider (VSO) 3% (11-22-21) – It seemed fitting to start out with this one with the onset of Fall/Winter upon us, and an Apple Cider was just what the doctor ordered. At 3% this one was present, but somewhat relaxed, and it rapidly became obvious that this WAS a great cider. Now here’s the thing, it wasn’t spiked in ANY form, meaning, no spices or any alterations, just a simply clean, authentic Apple Cider. You could (and probably should) start to spike it up with whatever you desired, and it screamed for some Cinnamon, Clove, etc. Now, even in it’s unadulterated state, it was very accurate, with some punchy apple notes, and some sediment. Wait, what ?? Learning about the difference between Apple Juice and Apple Cider will help explain that. The “sediment” as I"m terming it, adds to a darker texture, and pulls it from a clear Apple Juice into the cider that it is. Not really fermented, but just a nice, darker cider is really the only way to describe this. I may have to mix up another with some FLV Rich Cinnamon, a hint of Cream, maybe a few others JUST to see. As it stood, it was very good, and clean, accurate, and blank slate kept coming to mind, and that’s a real plus for us. If you want it straight, use it straight, if you want cinnamon, other spices, you can do that as you see fit. First one in Series II, was a surprising wow-zer. Nicely done Shane, and placing it at a 9.2/10.
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Apple Raw (VSO) 0.3% (11-24-21) – Be advised, these “Raw” flavors are Ultra concentrated, with no dilution, and should be used VERY low. Starting out my FIRST ever VSO “Raw” flavor test, with Shane’s Apple. As stated, mixed this very low at 0.3% and it tasted really good at this weight, and MIGHT even be able to be increased to 0.5% depending. At 0.3% it was slightly subdued, but very tasty and accurate. After just having tested the Apple Cider, this one was similar, but without the darker, sedimentary notes found in the cider. NOT an Apple Juice, so it wasn’t spiked with sweetener, and was actually lower than mid-level sweet. Not a Fuji for sure, but was maybe a mix of Red and Golden delicious, but even that, was a guess. It was very unique in the apple realm for me, and couldn’t really think of a direct comparison for it. Very natural, smooth, accurate, and a very good, somewhat lighter apple experience. Because it was so accurate, and clean, could see this one getting a lot of uses, depending on your needs. No seeds, no stems, just a very clean apple here folks, no other way to put it. If time permits, I might mix it up @ +0.20% to 0.50% just to see what happens, hehe. As billed, it is a definite Apple, and a really good one at that, that straddled just maybe, a Red and Golden delicious paring. A delicate flavor, but still very good. Solidly leaving this @ 9.5/10.
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Blueberry Raw (VSO) 0.3% (11-25-21) – Just in case you missed it, I was VERY smitten with Shane’s
Original Blueberry
and this one just continued that trend, almost identically, except at 0.3% it was more relaxed than the aforementioned. I think I might re-try this one at 0.5% as well, just to see. Literally almost verbatim to the Blueberry, with a very enveloping Blueberry experience from top to bottom of a very natural, clean, accurate blueberry. No musk, no fuss, nothing off-putting. If you’ve never tasted a really clean, natural (extract) blueberry and have been using artificial ones, you really need to try one, and probably this one, because the experience you get with a great natural one, blows away any/every artificial one away. Sweetness was below mid-level, and the room note on this one, was utterly stupid, as an added bonus. As with the Blueberry, couldn’t find any takeoffs, but at 0.3% it felt like it was lacking a little presence, which could probably easily be solved by pushing to 0.5%. As it stood at this testing weight, would place it nicely at 9.5/10.
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Corn (VSO) 3% (11-25-21) – Right out of the gate, I knew what this was. It wasn’t popped corn, creamy corn, canned corn, corn on the cob, it was s delicious KERNEL of corn. Wow, that was a surprise. Often times we are insulted with an AP “corny” solution, but since @SwaggyShane uses natural extracts, maybe this shouldn’t have been AS surprising. Clean, accurate, and somewhat light at 3%, and with nothing out of place to be found. A few clicks below mid level sweet, this one was a very clean corn. Half way through the test, I was kicking myself for having NOT picked up VSO’s Cornmeal at the same time. Because it was somewhat light at this percentage, I think you could bump it up maybe 1% just to see how it bloomed, but even still, at this weight, you knew what you had. Having a VERY small list of corns to compare to, this one was at, or near the top. If corn is what you want, and AP is not, this one will work wonders for you. If I get a chance to score the Cornmeal I will update this thread, and I encourage anyone else who does, to post it up as well. All in, a smartly done, clean corn kernel flavor from Shane. Nicely done. 9.65/10.
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I have it, teehee, but haven’t tried it yet.
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Eggnog (VSO) 3% (11-28-21) – A number 1 nutmeg. YES, Nutmeg people. I know what you’re thinking, but it’s JUST the primary note here, and it’s delicious. This one is a deliciously crafted Nutmeg driven Eggnog. After the initial nutmeg rush, there are other secondary spice notes, all completely encased in a nice creamy eggnog finish. What’s interesting here is the leveled balancing OF the different notes. Mouthfeel, and creamy-ness were there, but not overwhelmingly so, spices were there as well, but again, not in an overwhelming manner. Sweetness was about mid level, and it really felt perfect here, and at 3% it wasn’t overppowered, and might even be able to be smidged up, maybe 0.5-1.0%. At times I almost got a slight effervescence, almost soda like, but as soon as it peeked out, it was gone. I’m thinking that was probably a booze-y note. All in, this was a PERFECT flavor for the holidays, and craftily done at that. If you are looking for a very unique approach to an Eggnog, that (as most other VSO flavors) is clean, accurate, and not overbearing, this one should end up in your cart. Two testers down, non-fatiguing, nothing off-putting, and hard to fault. Don’t fear the Nutmeg, embrace it !!! Squarely placing this at 9.85/10.
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Fig (VSO) 3% (11-27-21) – Figgy McFig, how do I love thee ? A HELL of a lot !!! We have a fig tree in the yard, to ANY fig flavor, is going to have a tough go of it here, for sure. I’ve found it very hard to find an accurate Fig, that was clean and natural. First things first (as expected) this one was very natural tasting, somewhat relaxed @ 3%, and very tasty. Nice and centered around the fleshy body, without any skin, which just worked. Sweetness was almost mid level and there were no off-putting notes to be found, which left you with plenty of figgy body to enjoy. Like a few other VSO’s in this second series, this one was somewhat relaxed in a SFT at 3%, and it might benefit from maybe a 0.5-1.0% bump, just to add to the experience. It’s too bad it’s Winter, or I’d run out and grab one, just to compare the two. If you’ve been let down by other fig-ish fig flavors, and need a natural one, this one should be on your list. Easily a 9.3/10.
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Grape Raw (VSO) 0.3% (11-28-21) – First thoughts, “Damn, … that’s good”. End of review !!! I have a Grape Soda, that I move a lot of, but it relies heavily on FW’s Gape Soda, which is a coil gunker, so I’m always on the lookout for something I can use to boost, or replace that in that recipe. Now, this one wasn’t a soda-er, but damn, it was a DAMN fine Grape. I’ll tell you what, if you love grapes, and you buy this, and you CAN put it down, LET me know. Not candied, jammed, or sickly sweetened, this one presented as an almost medley of a white and concord grapes. Not either, but not neither. 
I think that will greatly increase it’s usefulness as it’s right smack dab in the middle. @ 0.3% it was about two ticks above mid-level sweet, but that didn’t slow it down. It so enveloped you IN the grape experience, I kept checking to make sure it wasn’t purple (it’s not, it’s clear). Since I mentioned my Grape Soda mix, the question becomes, what grape soda, might this one favor ? I would have to say a Fanta Grape, as that would be RIGHT up this one’s alley. Nothing off-putting, nothing out of place, and a solid grape brick, RIGHT to the face. I cannot go lower than 10/10 on this one.
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Yes yes and yes I have been saying Shane’s grape is purple but he swears its a green one and other people say the same thing shane does …I had the original and figured Shane changed it so I had to give the bottle to Eyemsam just to make sure my tasters werent crazy …
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@fidalgo_vapes oh it DOES lean to the Purple !!! I did get some white, but it’s almost impossible to determine the White/Purple split, but let’s just say it’s Purple HEAVY !!!
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Where is everyone getting the VSO flavours from ?
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Oatmeal (VSO) 4% / 7% (12-1-21) – For the FIRST time in this second series, I was able to run TWO different strengths for testing. At the first rate of 4% the flavor was good, but as mentioned by @whthek, it wasn’t very full, enveloping, etc. I cranked it up to 7% and now things started to look better. Much fuller, more bodied, and more, well, Oaty. The flavor itself is a very relaxed flavor, so it never slammed me with Oats, but it clearly WAS Oats, and good oats at that. Very natural, with an almost slightly creamy, somewhat sweet contour. Were they Steel Cut ? Hehe, that’s hard to say for sure. Because it is/was such a relaxed flavor, 7% did really improve the overall experience, with still no off-putting, ceiling smashing notes. In comparison to other artificial oat flavors, many of which had clear NOT natural overtones, this one remained calm, clean, cool, and collected throughout the entire dual weight test, and never offended my sensitive oat palate. All in, a VERY clean, accurate, and natural Oat flavor, that was fairly relaxed, and seemed to thrive much more at a higher 7%-ish rate. Not too bad, not too bad at all. It felt really good at 8.1/10.
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Pumpkin (VSO) 3% (12-1-21) – I’ve read TWO different takes on this flavor. 1. Naked, Raw Pumpkin Meat. 2. Pumpkin Filling w./ Spice. Now, what makes this hard, is I’ve never eaten raw Pumpkin. I mean does anybody do that ?? I have however, mowed down many a Pumpkin Pie, so let’s see what’s what. OK, to my tastes, this was not a pure, raw (just) Pumpkin, as it presented more of a Pumpkin Filling. Now it wasn’t overly pumpkin-ly, but it was still very present. I did get a little spice from it, maybe clove, maybe nutmeg, but it was blurry enough to avoid absolute detection, but I did get some, and I’m leaning towards nutmeg. It was about mid-level sweet, and it did have an overall smooth-ness, which implied a slight creamy-ness, almost like (you guessed it), a Pumpkin Filling. Now, even though again, it didn’t SCREAM Pumpkin, it was very implied, and it was quite good. I could see maybe punching in some other Pumpkin Spice, some crust, and maybe some cinna/nutmeg to really push it up. As it stood, it was a very satisfying flavor, and very full, and almost rich, just by itself. Hell you could indeed use this solo, and you wouldn’t be completely wanting, which was interesting. My take was not a raw pumpkin, but a very good pumpkin filling, that you could easily move into a full pumpkin pie, very easily. Tastily placing this at a 9.2/10.
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