When I first learned, via the Planet of the Vapes forum http://www.planetofthevapes.co.uk/ that two professional chefs had founded an e-juice company, I was very excited. Good Chefs are renowned for their naturally refined and trained palates. They know flavour; they know what works and what doesn't work. I'd suggest that chefs above anyone else, would be likely to offer unexpected flavour combinations, flavours that arrive on the palate and in the conscious mind at different points in time, flavours that stimulate the reception zones in our mouths and noses in surprising and delightful ways.
Chef's Vapour http://www.chefsvapour.co.uk/ based in Cardiff, Wales, appear to live up to this promise with offerings like Red Hot Pear ("poached pear with cinnamom syrup"), Lemon Coconut Cream Cake, Honey and Lemon Menthol and Cowboy Jack ("a blend of tobacco flavours with a hint of bourbon").
The chefs sent me two liquids for review. The first of these, and the subject of this review is Strawberry Vapetto, which is described on the Chef's Vapour website as "Sweet strawberry, creamy ice cream, all wrapped in crispy wafer". The entire Chef's Vapour range are available in 10ml (£4.25) and 30ml (£11.25) bottles at nicotine strengths of 0, 6, 12, 18 and 24mg and PG/VG ratios of 65/35, 35/65, and 50/50. They do state that they are looking at offering the customer the option of specifying their own PG/VG ratio in the near future. They also recommend that the customer steep their liquids for at least 7 days, with optimum flavour being achieved with at least 14 days steeping. (Steep with the lid off in a warm, dark place, squeezing the bottle gently each day to displace the air at the top of the bottle and drawing in fresh air. There are alternate methods for steeping or hastening the process, but I'll leave it to you to do the research. Google is your friend.)
The 10ml bottle is a fairly rigid, clear plastic with a black, childproof, screw top cap, underneath which, is a standard dropper. The label includes the following: the Chef's Vapour logo, the name of the e-liquid, liquid contents in ml, nicotine contents in mg, the "born on" date, the use by date, the skull and crossbones warning graphic, storage and first aid advice, toxicity warnings, a tactile warning triangle which complies with EU regulations regarding the storage of toxic substances, an ingredients list, the company's address and telephone number and the company's website address.
The liquid is a clear, Dark Orange https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shades_of_orange#Orange_.28web_color.29 which, when held up to the light changes to a Gold Yellow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shades_of_yellow#Gold_.28Golden.29. The aroma of the liquid is predominantly that of cooked waffle with slender notes of crushed peanut.
As per usual, I'm vaping Strawberry Vapetto in an Igo-L on a mechanical mod running on an 18650 battery. The juice was born on the 17th May and arrived at Vapour-Taster HQ on the 21st May and has been steeping since then. 12 days steeping, not including travel time. As I slowly and gently inhale, I taste a certain sweetness along the forward edge of my tongue, on the roof my mouth or on the insides of my cheeks, depending on where I direct the stream of vapour. As I've mentioned previously, inhaled flavour is primarily discerned on the exhalation, with broad notes being apprehended on the inhalation. As I finish inhaling, with the cycle of the breath at its midpoint, the flavour of toasted waffle cone emerges with slight nutty end notes. As I exhale these flavours are amplified and seem to reach their peak in the aftertaste where they're joined by a certain ice creaminess.
Throat hit is significant and vapour production is very good with great, opaque streams of vapour flowing into the room around me.
For an e-liquid named Strawberry Vapetto, I'd expect the Strawberry to be more prominent, if not the primary flavour, but in this instance the strawberry is submerged so low that it manifests as a secondary or tertiary whisper of flavour at the tail end of the exhalation and in the aftertaste. If I wasn't looking for it, I would probably miss it altogether. This is not to say that Strawberry Vapetto isn't a flavoursome vape. It certainly is! It's actually delicious with intensity of flavour being finely judged, and no hint of artificiality about it. This is an e-liquid that I'd happily pay money for the pleasure it provides.
I will of course return to Strawberry Vapetto in the weeks to come and if I discern any difference in the flavour, I'll provide an update.
Update: The PG/VG ratio was 65/35. It's not indicated on the bottle which is why I neglected to mention it. My apologies.
