Hecho A Mano - Cohiba Robusto by BlueprintDK

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.

Preamble

"Hecho A Mano" is Spanish and when translated to English renders as "handmade" or "hand crafted". The Cohiba Robusto is a highly desirable type of thick, Cuban cigar that delivers a rich complex of flavour. "Cohiba is the flagship brand of Habanos. It was created in 1966 for President Fidel Castro himself and was made at the then Top Secret but now world famous El Laguito factory. At first, it was only seen outside Cuba as gifts for Heads of State and visiting diplomats." http://www.jjfox.co.uk/b8/Cohiba-Cigars.php

The Cohiba Robusto cigar is "a perfect combination of strength and flavour, incredible construction and most importantly, consistency in quality (which) has made this the quintessential Robutos. Right from the start the strength and flavours of spice, wood and even wine perfectly mingle with the palate. There is even a hint of clove thrown in the mixer. This is a smooth and creamy cigar with great depth and variety... Cohiba Robusto - Delectable, medium to full, well balanced, outstanding Havana that is sweet, peppery and very easy to smoke." http://www.simplycigars.co.uk/cohiba-robusto-single-p-449.html

Cohiba Robusto cigars

At this point I want to touch on the notion of tobacco flavoured e-liquid. While it's not unheard of for a non-smoker to begin vaping, most of us are ex-smokers or at the very least dual users (vapers who continue to smoke because they're unable or are not ready to quit entirely, or they enjoy it too much to let it go). I would suggest that it's the nicotine for the most part that keeps smokers smoking, but there are a few, myself included, who enjoyed the simple ritual of opening a fresh packet of tobacco, smelling the slightly damp, earthy aroma and either rolling a handmade cigarette or tapping out a "tailor-made", striking a match and revelling in the flavour alongside the act of filling a room with lazy curlicues and veils of smoke. At some point, we all became aware of the deadly implications of this simple, pleasurable ritual. I for one, continued to cling to the bygone glamour associated with smoking, knowing all the time that it would most likely kill me if I didn't stop. Now that I'm a vaping purist, my all-day-vapes are still tobacco flavoured, and if the flavour is derived from tobacco leaves steeped in Propylene Glycol, then so much the better. My point is this: it's a minor species of hypocrisy to quit smoking and then vape and celebrate tobacco flavoured e-liquids. I'm the first to raise my hand and plead guilty; I love the taste of tobacco and I don't blame you at all if you do too. Shall we move along?

The e-liquid, Hecho A Mano - Cohiba Robusto (for the purpose of this review I'll refer to the juice, henceforth, as HAMCR) by BlueprintDK, Danish YouTube reviewer http://m.youtube.com/user/BlueprintDK, was originally made available to members of the VaporWall forum http://www.vaporwall.com and was designed to be vaped in genesis style atomisers with unoxidised, stainless steel wicks. Anything other than this would fail to deliver the flavour experience intended by BlueprintDK. When I first heard of Cohiba Robusto, I was still using a Vivi Nova and though I was keen to try the liquid, BlueprintDK suggested I would be wasting my money and fail to do the liquid justice in writing about it. My eagerness to try this liquid continued unabated and when Tek of VapingAce http://www.vapingace.com agreed to send me a bottle of the liquid I made the commitment to purchase a genesis style atomiser for the express purpose of tasting and writing about this seemingly demanding juice. I'm now the proud owner of a Vapinaze AC9.

HAMCR is extracted from naturally grown, pesticide free whole leaf tobacco which, when bought for non-industrial purposes is reputedly available in very limited quantities. I want to write that the leaves used for the production of this e-liquid are the same as those used in the production of the actual cigar, the Cohiba Robusto, but I can't find anywhere which states this explicitly. When tobacco leaves are steeped in Propylene Glycol, which I assume is the process used by BlueprintDK to produce his e-liquid, a certain amount of natural nicotine and Whole Tobacco Alkaloids are supposedly leached out of the leaves. (It should be noted that neither BlueprintDK nor Vaping Ace make any claims to this effect whatsoever.) As vapers we all know about the addictive quality of nicotine, but what is overlooked, for the most part as a result of ignorance, is that Whole Tobacco Alkaloids, commonly present in cigarettes is an integral component in the addictive quality of the inhaled smoke of combusted tobacco. Whole Tobacco Alkaloids are said to produce a mild state of relaxation, are reputed to assist in overcoming insomnia and satisfy the cravings that many vapers continue to endure when they stop smoking. For more information regarding Whole Tobacco Alkaloids see http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/aroma-ejuice/217205-whole-tobacco-alkaloid-wta-faq-info-aroma-ejuice.html

The Review

HAMCR is available from Vaping Ace as 10ml of flavour concentrate in a glass, 50ml bottle ($25.00). This affords the vaper the opportunity to fine tune the nicotine, Vodka, de-ionised water contents and PG/VG ratio to suit their personal preferences. Below is a table of the mixture I used for my bottle.

e-liquid-recipes.com

The bottle is brown glass which protects the liquid (nicotine content in particular) inside from the deleterious effects of UV light. The white, plastic screw top cap, though not childproof, arrives with a tamper evident seal around the neck of the bottle.  The label features the name of the liquid, a red triangle, which I assume is meant as some sort of warning motif, BlueprintDK's signature and an image of a self-assured man, cigar in hand, gazing into the camera's lens.

The diluted liquid is a very pale Straw Yellow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_(colour) Writing about viscosity and lubricity in this instance would be meaningless, because each owner of this liquid would be mixing the flavour concentrate with nicotine, PG/VG and other additives to suit their own preferences. The aroma rising from the opened bottle held below my nose has a sweet, earthy quality and while it's undoubtedly tobacco, is somewhat reminiscent of Demerara sugar with the addition of a certain fruitiness approaching apricot and a whisper of vanilla.

I'm vaping HAMCR in an AC9 (genesis style atomiser) on a Poldiac running on an 18650 battery. There are four wraps of 0.32mm (28AWG) Kanthal wire around the unoxidised end of the stainless steel, 325 mesh wick which came in the AC9 Kit, producing a reading of 0.9 ohms on the Provari.

I've seen enough genesis style atomiser reviews to know that I need to tip the device to ensure the wick is saturated with fluid, so this is what I do. I fire the Poldiac and I hear a satisfying sizzling and crackling as the liquid is vaporised. I draw the vapour into my mouth and I experience a mild sweetness along the forward edge of my tongue which is followed by a broadly sensed awareness of an umami flavour throughout my gustatory system. Taking a few primer puffs before inhaling intensifies these broad flavours. When I've taken my fill of vapour and chase it into my lungs with a short breath of fresh air I begin to taste the tobacco and I become cognizant of the complexity of flavour at play here. The tobacco is smooth and luxurious with a fruity quality which most closely approximates the flavour of apricot. As I hold my breath and then begin to exhale, I discern subtle and fleeting notes of a toasted nuttiness, black pepper, lemongrass and occasionally, what I imagine to be a fusion of cloves and cinnamon. There's a light woodiness at the bottom end that begins with the inhalation and follows through to the aftertaste. The tobacco predominates in the aftertaste alongside the very mild flavour of black pepper. Just a whisper. There's also a mild metallic tang around my forward teeth and gums. I've found, after some experimentation, that to coax the nuances of flavour out of this liquid, it needs to be vaped much like one would smoke a cigar: brief, shallow inhalations which allows for a constant stream of fresh vapour to wash across the taste buds. Unlike the smoking of a cigar, there's no ashiness in the flavour at all.

Again, to write about throat hit and vapour production is meaningless as each vaper's mixture of nicotine content, PG/VG and the addition of other substances will render these aspects of the vape differently.

Several high profile reviewers have likened Hecho A Mano - Cohiba Robusto to RY4 e-liquids. I'm afraid I'll have to beg to differ. I find this liquid to be unashamedly and resolutely tobacco flavoured, unafraid to stand on it's own two feet without the assistance of either vanilla or caramel. This is a hardcore, though entirely accessible tobacco vape that offers a complexity of flavour not often encountered in e-liquids and as such would appeal to anybody who favours a savoury flavour profile, tobacco connoisseurs, or those with an adventurous palate. The Cohiba Robusto is the King of Cigars and BlueprintDK's juice is a worthy homage.

Here again, is where to get it: http://www.vapingace.com