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 have been quoted from my review of Jameson's Irish Vapor Juice's Melon Medley. http://vapour-taster.blogspot.com.au/2013/05/melon-medley-by-jamesons-irish-vapor.html Quoted passages are in italics.
Forbidden Fruit. It doesn't seem so long ago that I touched on the subject of the forbidden fruit of the Garden of Eden. I wrote the following: "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 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"." http://vapour-taster.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/midnight-apple-by-halo.html
Further to this, is the expansion of the notion of "forbidden fruit" to include anything "indulgent or pleasurable" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_fruit, usually of a sensual nature that is illicit in some way. Like rainbow coloured sex for example (in some regions), or e-liquids that contain nicotine. It may come as a surprise to you, though probably not, that e-liquids containing nicotine are illegal in some countries. Therefore, e-juice itself might be considered, in some regions, a "forbidden fruit".
Jameson's Irish Vapor Juice's Forbidden Fruit is a clear reference to the Judeo-Christian notion of the Apple as prohibited snack. Fortunately for us, Jameson's aren't content to serve us straight apples; Forbidden Fruit is the intriguing blend of apple and lime. That sounds rather inviting... and there's no sin involved either.
Jameson's Irish Vapor Juice is one of three e-liquid ranges owned and operated by Eric TheDad (Facebook alias), Executive Chef and all round nice guy. The other two ranges are the spectacularly popular The Standard and the new addition to the stable, The Blueprint Vapor.
Jameson's Irish Vapor Juice offer a range of five liquids: Forbidden Fruit (Sweet apple and tangy lime), Peaches 'n Cream, Tanjello, Amelia (strawberry) and Melon Medley http://vapour-taster.blogspot.com.au/2013/05/melon-medley-by-jamesons-irish-vapor.html, each of which is available in nicotine strengths of 0, 6, 12, 18 and 24mg, comes in a 30ml bottle and costs US$25.00. Google will point you to a number of vendors who sell Forbidden Fruit.
The bottle is a dark brown glass with a (non-childproof) black plastic, screw top cap. If like me, you receive a bottle without a dripper integrated into the cap, you'll need to use a syringe, eye dropper or pipette to fill your device, all of which are readily and cheaply available online or at your local pharmacy. The label is an elegant, faux "olde worlde" design. The printed weathered edges of the label, the choice of fonts, the crest, the decorative scrollwork and signatures of the creators all help to impart a sense of vintage and quality to the bottle and its contents. The label contains the following information: the name of the liquid, the brand name, the phrases, "established 2012" and "quality crafted", a number denoting nicotine strength, a warning that the product contains nicotine and is not to be sold to minors. The following information also appears on the label; "Made from the finest local ingredients. Crafted locally in Southern California."
The colour of the liquid observed in a filled eye dropper is a clear, pale Vanilla Yellow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanilla_(color) Vigorously shaking the bottle disperses tiny bubbles of air throughout the liquid which rise to the top at a snail's pace which suggests a high Vegetable Glycerin content. Lightly moving the liquid about in the bottle to observe it's level of viscosity suggests a density akin to a light cooking oil. Rubbing a drop of the liquid between the tips of my thumb and forefinger reveals a highly lubricious character, but within a minute and a half the slipperiness is replaced by a lightly tacky quality. It's completely absorbed into my skin within two and a half minutes. The aroma is interesting: at first the apple is most volatile (the top note) but sustained nasal inhalation reveals lime and what I imagine to be vanilla. It smells a bit like a Crème Caramel where the caramel is replaced by fruit.
I'm vaping Forbidden Fruit in an Igo-L on a Provari running on an 18650 battery. There's five wraps of 0.2 (32AWG) Kanthal wire around three strands of 2mm Silica wick and the atomiser is reading 2.2ohms. I've set the voltage output to 4.5.
It would be a mistake to assume that anything crafted by Eric TheDad is as straightforward as the label would have you believe. I fire the device and draw the warm vapour into and through my mouth where the taste buds are flooded with flavour. There's the fruity notes, broadly perceived as they always are on the inhalation, but there's also a strong, but very pleasant sensation of prickling acidity, which I'd associate with the Malic Acid which gives apples and many other fruits their sour character. Actually, it's probably a combination of Malic Acid and the Citrus acid of the lime and it should be noted that the sourness is relatively mild and tempered with a suitable degree of sweetness. Sustained inhalation, straight into the lungs intensifies the fine grained tang along the length of the tongue, but I notice it as most prominent on the tip and forward edge of the tongue and while the flavour is broad, it's unmistakably that of apple. Finishing inhalation of vapour and chasing the dense volume into my lungs with a short breath of fresh air enlivens the flavours and gives them definition. At this point the flavour of lime crystallises and dominates through to the aftertaste, where it softens and melds with the lingering flavour of apple. It's very refreshing and leaves the mouth feeling cleansed in the same way that eating Sashimi does.
Throat hit at 18mg nicotine content is suitably strong and unlike my experience of many other sweetened vapes, there's no sensation of "mounting of pressure at the back of the throat". My strong suspicion is that the Vegetable Glycerin content is high and this is evidenced in the profuse amounts of dense, white vapour produced as I exhale.
Apple and Lime! It's either a happy accident or the work of an experienced palate that these two flavours come together in a way that quite simply works. It doesn't just work though, it delights the mouth in a way that so infrequently occurs. Given that Jameson's Irish Vapor Juice is the stablemate of The Standard, whose juices are all delicious, I'd suggest that Forbidden Fruit is the work of a man, (Eric TheDad, Executive Chef) who knows flavour, how and when different flavours are compatible and how and when different flavours are apprehended in their journey through the gustatory system.
Forbidden Fruit is delicious, refreshing and a pleasant surprise within the domain of pure sensation. The levels of sourness, sweetness and flavour strength and ratio are, in my view, perfectly judged. The various flavours involved, also appear to conscious awareness at different stages in the cycle of inhalation/exhalation and aftertaste, which adds welcome dimension to the vape.
No sin either!
