Wednesday 14 August 2013

Midnight Apple by Halo

Disclaimer: This E-liquid was provided to me free of charge for the purpose of conducting a review. This fact notwithstanding, I will, as best I'm able, provide an honest, accurate and unbiased assessment of this product. Pertinent portions of this review are quoted from my review of Halo's Belgian Cocolate.  http://vapour-taster.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/belgian-cocoa-by-halo.html Quoted passages are in italics.

Preamble

When you and I bite into the humble apple, we don't often, if ever think upon the Judeo-Christian notion of its role in Adam and Eve's fall from grace. My personal belief is that we don't know for certain that a first man and woman, going by the names Adam and Eve ever actually existed. Even if they did exist and they ate some form of forbidden foodstuff, we can't be certain that it was an apple. There are traditions that suggest the forbidden fruit may have been anything from a pomegranate to some sort of entheogen (a psychotropic plant). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_fruit While there's no evidence one way or another, it illustrates the fact that belief is mutable and subject to the winds of change like every other element or field of human being and endeavour.

At any rate, the apple has become a theological signifier of "temptation" which has accrued a formal stigma or an association with all that is "evil". To marry the notion of "the apple" with the idea of "midnight" which in itself, is heavily laden with associations of "the unknown" and therefore evil and fear, results in a phrase or in this case, a name (Midnight Apple) which carries an intensified payload of dark associations.

Too heavy? You just want to read a review, right? OK, here it is:

The Review

Midnight apple from Halo http://www.halocigs.com/ is a tobacco flavoured e-liquid with apple to lend a sweet, bright top note to the flavour.

Halo are based in the United States and use all American ingredients in their e-liquids. They maintain rigorous standards in quality control and ensure consistency of flavour and nicotine content from bottle to bottle. "Attention to detail in taste and “throat hit” are the top factors which drive Halo smoke juice." (e-liquid) http://www.halocigs.com/why-halo/american-made-smoke-juice.html

Halo offer a range of twenty two juices, divided into the following categories: premium, tobacco, menthol and gourmet. Each juice is available in bottle sizes of 7 ($5.99) and 30ml ($19.99) with nicotine strengths of 0 ("No Nicotine"), 6 ("Low Nicotine"), 12 ("Medium Nicotine"), 18 ("High Nicotine") and 24mg ("XHigh Nicotine").

The 7ml bottle I have in front of me is a clear, easily squeezed plastic with a dropper insert attached. The white plastic, screw-top cap is childproof. The label includes the following information: the company name, the name of the liquid, liquid contents in ml, nicotine strength in mg, a batch number, a best used by date, an ingredients list, and cautionary notes that the liquid contains nicotine, should be kept out of the reach of children and pets and that it should not be drunk.

The colour of the liquid is a limpid Harvest Gold http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_(color)#Harvest_gold and appears quite aqueous. It's only mildly lubricious; when rubbed between my thumb and forefinger, a drop of the liquid is absorbed into my skin within a minute to a minute and a half, leaving the skin of the tips of my fingers feeling smooth. (Did you know Propylene Glycol is used in cosmetic products?) The aroma of the bottled liquid is distinctly tobacco with a whisper of apple and what I think might be Koolada. There's also a fleeting suggestion of liquorice about the aroma, which doesn't manifest at all in the tasting of the vapour.

This is the blurb on the Midnight Apple page of Halo's website: "Midnight Apple E-liquid offers a unique blend of rich tobacco layered with spiced 'Granny Smith' apple top notes. The subtle apple flavor complements the underlying tobacco e-liquid base for the perfect combination of dry sweetness." http://www.halocigs.com/midnight-apple-eliquid.html There are 71 customer reviews (as of the date of writing this review) with an average rating of 5/5 stars.

I'm vaping Midnight Apple using the Igo-L on a mechanical mod running on a freshly charged 18650 battery. I don't have the means to check the ohms of the coil, but I can tell you that there's five wraps of 0.2 Kanthal wire (32 AWG) around three strands of 2mm Silica wick.

As I first draw the vapour into my mouth, I sense the general sweetness and mild sourness of the apple along the forward edge of my tongue, followed closely by the recognition of the savoury flavour of the tobacco. At this stage the recognition of flavour is non-specific. I'm also aware of the presence of a cooling agent mixed at a a very low ratio which serves to "brighten" the fruit flavour. It's not until I finish inhaling, take a short, shallow breath of air and hold for a moment, does the sharp, bright flavour of Granny Smith Apple reveal itself. As I begin to exhale the flavour of apple and the chemesthetic sensation of a cooling agent (which I assume to be Koolada) in my mouth amplifies. The tobacco flavour is a constant presence throughout the inhalation, hold, exhalation and aftertaste cycle. It's a mild, slightly sweet tobacco that complements and serves perfectly as a foundation for the top note of the brighter Granny Smith apple. Successive short, shallow inhalations favour the tobacco flavour over the apple, with the latter adding a mild Malic-like tang to the overall taste sensation.  The cooling agent is only noticeable to me during sustained inhalations/exhalations. The aftertaste is dominated by the apple with the cooling agent lingering slightly at the back of the throat and in a more pronounced fashion along the length of my tongue.

There's a combination of throat hit and the "mounting of pressure at the back of the throat" which I so often mention when writing about e-liquids with a sweet bias. Vapour production is reasonably substantial, for what I strongly suspect is a primarily PG liquid, but nothing like the type of vapour you would see with a more VG heavy liquid. This is a small price to pay for a vape which seems to me, to be all about the flavour.

I'm sitting outdoors as midnight approaches. It's balmy and there's a slight breeze. It's quiet apart from the occasional, distant car and the rustle of the wind through the trees around me. I couldn't think of a more appropriate liquid to be vaping at this moment in time and in this particular location. The darkness which cloaks me, combined with the slight light-blindness induced by the glow of the screen in front of me, stirs in me a vague sense of unease. Perfect Midnight Apple conditions.

Try it; you'll like it.

I promise.