Grape Illawara (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-6-23) – To be fair, I’d never heard of Illawara before, but proved to be a Coastal region of New South Wales. No description was provided on FLAVRZ’s product page, BUT, a possibly revealing image, did show a mix of green, and purple grapes, and guess what ?? Yeah, that’s what it tasted like. :). My main take away from this one, was how smooth it tasted, and I think the smartly paired green and purple grapes were to thank for that. Not too much of either, but just enough. Neither drove the mix, but but were present. It/they presented as actually fairly natural tasting with little to no artificial undertones. Sweetness was just at about mid-level, and at 8% it was plenty full, with no off-notes. Burning through the testers, I kept trying to decide if the green or purple was in the lead over the other, and I finally gave up, as they were just to evenly paired. there was SOME tartness, but only just some, as the smoothness seemed to really be part of the show here. Somewhat complex, and unmistakably grapey, this one really bridged the gap, convincingly between the green and purple. Fairly juicy, but never overbearing. It was a smooth grape experience to say the least. Finishing out this triplet of grapes from FLAVRZ, this one was smooth, and tasty with no real take-offs. If you’re in the mood for some grapes, but can’t decide on green or purple, sign yourself up for this one. Placing it higher, at a 9.3/10.
Lemon (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-6-23) – Out of the gate, I could tell this wasn’t really just a Lemon. At first I started to feel it was more of a Lemonade-ish flavor, then at times, almost a Lemon Candy. Not fully either, but it leaned both those directions. It also tasted far more artificial than natural, and sweetness was at about mid-level sweet. It was actually fairly complex, and tasty, BUT, despite having some Lemon-ness in it, I wouldn’t call it a full on Lemon. No off-notes, and it was very full at 8%. At times I thought I got hints of some nice zest, and possibly some citrus oil, but only hints. Very crisp, and refreshing, but again, I felt it’s artificial-ness, and sweetness helped it into heading towards a lemonade, or a lemon candy. Not bad at all, and after 2 tanks it was still crisp, and refreshing. It might not carry the main freight for a natural Lemon, but I could see many uses for it beyond that. For a “Lemon”, I’d have to rate it down a just a bit for the “ade” and “candy-ness”, and leave it at a 7.5/10.
Lemon Sicily (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-8-23) – Now we were getting into MO Lemonz. This one immediately reminded much more of a Limoncello. Not exactly, but heading that direction. A fair bit LESS sweet than the previously tested Lemon, and there were some very nice citrus oil notes, and almost some of the peel. NO bitterness, and to my tastes, was much more natural tasting than the Lemon. No off-notes, and this one was pretty full @ 8%. I think the main take aways from this one would be the citrus oil notes, and the bright, sparkly notes on the finish. Sweetness was still present, but at a much lower level than the Lemon, and that helped to lean it heavily towards the natural as opposed to artificial. No lemonade, or candy here, but much more of natural lemon. The flavor was just slightly relaxed at this testing weight, but I could find no off-notes to complain about. All in, rating this one a bit higher than the Lemon, and it was good enough to pull a 8.9/10.
Lemon Sponge (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-10-23) – Back into it, with this, the Lemon Sponge (cake). I did want to get into this one, as it smelled hella-licious in the bottle. Testing it, continued that trend, and I was greeted by a pretty accurate Lemon Cake. Now, missing was some or most of the almost baking powder-ish undertones that I often associate with a “sponge” cake. Needless to say, even devoid of those, the yellow-ish cake notes were spot on, and accurate. It was baked, but no brown, or burnt edge notes, and it didn’t feel lacking because of that. The lemon was still tarty and punched through the cake with no issues, which isn’t always easy to do, especially when pairing it with cakes/bakeries. It presented as a natual/artificlal mix, of maybe a 70% natural / 30% artificial ratio. Tarty, with some sweetness, and a touch of sour (tart). As a whole it worked really well as a lemon cake, but I wasn’t 100% sold on the “sponge”. Call it a nit-pick at best, as people’s definition of “sponge” will vary. It was very good at 8%, and overall sweetness was just below mid-level, and I will admit to getting lost in it, and nearing the finishing of the third tester, I had almost forgotten to get NOTES lol. For a “sponge” cake, it was just need a bit more, and only minor take-offs for that, and it felt super solid @ a 9.0/10, as it presented as much more of a lemon cake. Still QUITE good. Don’t let the lack-o-sponge stop ya.
Malaysian Mango (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-11-23) – Now I’m not sure exactly which Malaysian Mango this one was, BUT, it was good. It wasn’t as bright and sparkly as some Mangos I’ve had, but it did taste like more of a orange/yellow/green mango mashup. The majority of it centered around a yellow/orange tone, but I kept getting little hints of some fresh and green undertones. Sweetness was below mid-level, and strength/saturation levels felt like an 8/10 at 8%. Could stand to maybe be a bit stronger, but not much. It had an overall fresh, and natural taste and wasn’t sickly sweet and fatiguing, or boring. Somewhat complex, and it felt like it could just almost carry the full freight in a Mango mix, but it might need just a pinch of help. Very good, fresh, and tasty. The only take-off was a minor dryness from the middle to the end of the vape. Rating it higher due to the perceived orange/yellow/green-ness, with only the slight dryness as a markdown. It felt fairly placed at 8.5/10.
Maple Syrup (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-12-23) – Maple-y goodness WAS the word of the day with this one. In the bottle, in the tank, it was about identical. In the past I have tested some MS’s that were very heavy handed, and some, left a heavy aftertaste, but thankfully this one had neither of those issues. It tasted JUST maple-y enough, but without being overbearing, or saturated at 8%. Very realistic, tasty, and just sweet enough, without any cloying sweetness. It was surprisingly rich, and full, which were unexpected, AND, a huge plus. The maple center was actually somewhat complex, and at times, there were some light coffee and/or mocha undertones, which kept it very interesting. Because of those, I could actually see this working in some unexpectedly great ways IN some coffee mixes. Natural, full, and rich were the main take-aways on this one. It could easily work on pancakes/waffles just as well in coffee mixes. A very true to form Maple Syrup that tasted very rich, and with just enough sweetness. No butter notes, just the maple, and it was solidly in the “syrup” region, but (repeating), without the heavy, cloying sweetness. No off-notes, or take-offs that I could find, and leaving it high @ a 9.5/10.
Meringue (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-23-23) – Meringue is probably one of the more used flavors on my racks, so I know it well. Believe it or not, there are 3 main types of meringues. To my tastes, they are similar but with varying levels of sweetness. I prefer a less sweet meringue as it’s easier to work with and can be sweetened if needed. This Meringue from FLAVRZ fit right into my “sweet spot” (pun intended) for meringues. It tasted almost identical to FA’s Meringue, but with just a little more body. Very accurate meringue-ness, with a very controlled level of sweetness. Perfect for my style of mixing, as I could sweeten IF I wanted to. It was actually a little below mid level sweet, and it was very full at 8%. It also avoided one of the pitfalls of some meringues wherein vanilla is added, which actually pulls it OFF profile. I didn’t detect any here, and that really let the egg whites shine through. It had a generous amount of fluffy-ness, and mouthfeel, and 3 testers later I was still trying to find any take-offs, and I couldn’t. Fluffy, full, just sweet enough, and VERY accurate were the main take-aways on this one. All in, this one will work for all of your meringue needs, and rating it very high @ 9.9/10, for being just almost perfect.
Noosa Blue (Blue Raspberry 2) (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-14-23) – After having tested FLAVR’s Blue Raspberry previously, I was curious what the #2 would bring to the party. They were very similar, and I’d have to do a side by side to give you a true comparison. This one turned out to be much more than I thought, and YOU will have to decide if it/that works for you. For me, it DID work very nicely. It presented as fairly mainstream Blue Raspberry that was about mid-level sweet, and just a touch of tart. BUT, what it seemed to have in addition to that were some very nice red raspberry undertones, with an almost hint of a purple grape. Now these were UNDER-tones, and hints, so they were not main profile notes, but they seemed to really accent, and pull what would have been a typical Blue Raspberry. Tartness/sour levels were somewhat lower than expected, and the (what I’m calling) red raspberry, and grape notes helped to keep it more interesting. Fairly complex, and the nuances and notes kept jumping out at different times, which kept you guessing. Nothing off-putting, and at 8% it felt like as strong as you would want. Now while I didn’t know anything about Noosa before this review, nor if they grow Blue Raspberries there (LOL), this one did turn out to be much more than I had expected, and IMO, the dark/er RB/Grape notes just plain worked. They supported the existing Blue Raspberry main notes, and did not overshadow, so there was no de-railing going on. As always, YOU guys/gals have to decide what makes or breaks a Blue Raspberry for YOUR tastes. For mine, this was going to fill an empty spot on my racks, as it could almost be run solo, with MAYBE a pinch of sweetness, and sour, but maybe. All in, it tasted very good, and different than all other of my BRB’s. No real take-offs, except for minor nit picks, like possibly a little sweetener, and sour punch. I finally settled on a high scoring of 9.4/10 on this one.
Passionfruit (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-14-23) – Wow. I’m not even really a Passion Fruit kinda guy, and I was STILL wowed by this one. A very refreshingly tart Passion Fruit, that had some very nice undertones that were best described as grapefruit, melon, and kiwi. Sweet, tart, and complex were the main take-aways here. It did have a fairly honest, and persistent citrus undertone that stayed present throughout. I’ve not eaten PF very often, and probably used it in mixes even less, so I cannot directly compare/contrast for you guys, but at 8%, I could see this standing ALL on it’s own, as it was that good. Very fresh, somewhat juicy, and this was one of the hardest flavors in these 3 series, to try and nit-pick. No off-notes, and nothing to even remotely complain about. While somewhat sweet, it was just below mid-level, and the almost smooth tart-ed-ness really helped seal the deal on the finish. Sweet, tart, citrus, and complexity is what this one brought to the party. Too hard to down rate a flavor that just seems to do it soo right. Leaving this one very high @ 9.7/10.
Pineapple (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-15-23) – As soon as I tasted this one, I KNEW something was different about it. Good or Bad ?? You’ll have to decide. Out of the gate, it did not present like a “fresh” pineapple, but more of a “cooked” one. Not baked, not canned, not candied, but almost like a baked. It had an interesting undertone throughout, that I was really struggling trying to decide what it was. It kind of reminded me of Real Flavor’s Yumberry, but I finally settled on an almost Red Currant. It did not overshadow the Pineapple, BUT, it stayed present the entire time. Sweetness was a few ticks above mid-level, and it did have a somewhat juicy quality about it. There was a smidge of tartness, but overall it was sweet. Very yellow to be sure, and actually very good tasting, and it felt pretty good at 8%. No off-notes, BUT, keep in mind, I was NOT tallying up the Red Currant undertone as an off-note. Even though it was quite a bit different, I did keep thinking of RFSC’s Yumberry for some reason. A very good Pineapple, BUT, not a pure one, and not authentically natural. To my tastes the “medley” worked, and it helped to create a VERY unique flavor. NOW, with that said, would that appeal to you or not ?? You’ll have to decide. I will have to rate it as a “pure” pineapple, and because of that I’ll have to kick it down a bit, for the underlying undertones, that WERE damned delicious. Purely as a Pineapple, I’ll leave it at 7.0/10. NOW, I cannot stress enough, how GOOD this flavor was, just NOT a pure Pineapple.
Pomegranate (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-16-23 ) – Believe it or not, this one turned out a LOT like the previously tested FLAVRZ Pineapple. Please note, this was a DAMNED good flavor, and I think I need a bigger bottle of it, BUT, (ain’t there always a but ?), it was really MUCH more of a red fruit medley, than a Pom. Yes, there WAS some Pom in there, and it was fresh, and natural, BUT, it was literally fighting to take the lead with a DAMNED good red berry pairing. As close as I could come, would be almost a pairing of a cherry, and a red currant. Now THAT, is EXACTLY in my profile, BUT, it was fighting for the lead here with the Pom. At 8% it was damned good, and dare I say, almost One-Shot-ish, meaning, bottle it up, maybe a spritz of sweetener, and call it a day.
Literally I KNOW I’m going to have to down-rate this one, but I’m torn, as it was good enough for me to almost load up a cart at FLAVRZ specifically FOR this flavor, as I could see a LOT of uses for it, AND, it was damned good. The Pom portion was very accurate, and tasted natural as opposed to artificial, and the main carrier, and finish were indeed (as close as I could describe), a mashup of a non-tart, red cherry and red currant, nicely sweetened. Sweetness was at about mid-level, and it suited this flavor, and I had NO off notes (discounting the cherry and red currant notes, as off-notes). No florals, nothing out of place, BUT, it WAS a Pom/Cherry/Red Currant mashup, to my tastes. It could have maybe used a bit of sour/tart to kick it up a nothc, but even that would be a matter of preference. All in, not a great solo Pom, BUT, a “How much is a bigger bottle ?” flavor none the less. As a Pom I will have to down-rate this down to a 5.5/10, but soley because of the other notes which were actually fighting for the lead. As a Pom, don’t get it. As a REALLY good Pom/Cherry/Red Currant DO pick this one up. In closing, leaving this one at about a 6.0/10…
Snickerdoodle (FLAVRZ) 8% (BONUS FLAVOR !!!) (7-16-23) – Now maybe @Jetz can chime in on this little “bonus” flavor a little. He did tell me it was rather a “One Off”, and I asked if I could publicly review it, and he agreed. Now, whenever I’ve tried, or eaten a Snickerdoodle, they’ve always been more of a simple sugar cookie, rolled in cinnamon sugar. This flavor however, had no cinnamon, and had a very present coconut. Much lower in the mix, there MAY have been some milk chocolate, and possibly caramel, but it was hard to exactly decipher as the coconut stole the show. The coconut did have a very “Mounds” bar direction, with some sweetness, some creamy-ness, and was slightly astringent. At times, I almost got a graham cracker note, but it waxed and waned, and most times was below the main note(s). If the chocolate was higher in the mix, it would def. have leaned more heavily towards a Mounds Bar. Nothing off-putting except for the somewhat astringency from the coconut, and it was pretty full at 8%. All in, not a Snickerdoodle, or at least not one from the US, and more of a Mounds Bar, with a fairly relaxed chocolate. For an American Snickerdoodle, I’d have to rate it very low at a 2/10, but as a Mounds Bar, I would rate it much higher, at an 8.5/10.
Strawberry Kiwi (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-18-23) – This one took a little to settle in, in the tank for a better look at it. The SB and Kiwi were both present, and seemed to center more on the mid notes, and was missing a lot of the higher end, bright notes. There was a somewhat smoothness to it, and it didn’t present as creamy, but it was def. there. The SB And Kiwi tasted 50% natural and 50% artificial, and were fairly evenly blended. At 8% it was full but still somewhat of a lighter flavor. Sweetness was below mid-level, and except for the unexpected smoothness, there were no off-notes. I would have preferred more of the brighter notes that would have helped it punch through more. It was a surprisingly smooth mid-bodied SB and Kiwi. After 3 tanks, I still couldn’t fully identify the “smooth” underlying tones, and I’m not 100% sure that it helped the overall profile. Some take-offs for it, and the lacking bright, high-end punchy notes, and leaving it at a 6.5/10.
Sweet Strawberry (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-19-23) – It seems like every flavor house (and then some) has their own take on Strawberries, this one included. Some people are SB mute, and can’t even taste it, and about everyone has their OWN type they like or want, so trying to make one for the “masses” is complicated. This one was very unique as I’ve never tasted one like it, BUT, hehe, there were some “buts”. First thing was, it felt a little distracted, and the “red currant” flavor I had gotten previously has returned TO the party, and this one tasted more like a somewhat sweet strawberry mashed up with a red currant. Def. not a pure strawberry. At times, I even got a rather nice almost “bubble gum” undertone from it. The SB tasted about 50/50 natural/artificial, and it was somewhat sweet, but perhaps not quite enough to be a “sweet” strawberry. It tasted a few ticks below mid level sweet. NOW, just like in a previous fruit review, the red currant-ish notes DID really work here, and the bubble gum undertones did as well, and it actually tasted very good, BUT, it was billed as a Sweet SB. I am again, torn between fighting the urge to rank it up, because it tasted great, AND the realization, that it needed to be ranked/rated AS a Sweet SB. At 8% it was fairly full but felt it could use a little more. There were no off-notes, but for the aforementioned notes. Because it was a 50/50 natural/artificial mix, and it wasn’t overly bright, or sharp, and didn’t have much tart to speak of, it was smoother than expected. All in, a damned tasty flavor, BUT, really more of a Strawberry, Red Currant mashup, with Bubblegum undertones. Would work very well as a mixer, but not enough to pound home the Sweet Strawberry by itself. Because of that, marking it down a bit, and it felt fairly placed at 6.0/10, about even with the previously tested Pom.
Strawberry Ripe (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-20-23) – Trying to get the average user to define what “type” of Strawberry one is, can be hard, and often times it’s just as hard for reviewers. Having just tested FLAVRZ’s Sweet SB, I was able to directly compare this one to it. This one tasted much less like a “Ripe” Strawberry, and much MORE like a Red, Juicy SB. Now are hairs being split here ?? Perhaps. In comparison, this one tasted FAR more juicy, red, and sweet than the aforementioned. It tasted like a 75% natural / 25% artificial split. I don’t know how to exactly explain “ripe-ness” but I didn’t get a lot of it here. BUT, the juicy red-ness was there in great quantity. Although it was sweet, it wasn’t candied, or jammed. Fairly fresh, and was very tasty. Not much tart in this one, which MAY be why it didn’t lean towards the ripe, but that’s a matter of tastes. Fresh, juicy, and red were the take-aways with this one. It was good at 8%, but felt like it could use a little more. No off-notes, no soaps, no florals, and no real take-offs BUT for the lacking “ripe”. At times I almost thought it was a pairing of sliced strawberries, and strawberries in a light syrup. Very tasty, just not a lot of tarty punch. Clean and accurate, and I’ll rate it up a bit, with only the lacking ripe notes as take-offs. It felt great at a 8.75/10.
Thai Apple (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-21-23) – Having never eaten a Thai Apple solo, but have had it in a spicy salad, I did want to see what FLAVRZ did with it. Crisp, and Juicy were the two big take-aways with this one. Very crisp tasting, with some tartness, and a very unique finish. It didn’t really taste like any other apple flavor I have, with only some similarities to a Fuji, BUT, it wasn’t a Fuji. No Red Delicious here folks. At 8% it was plenty full, and sweetness was just at, or just below mid-level sweet. Because the main apple notes were kind of a mystery, it kept things interested, and before I knew it, the tank needed to be refilled. It remained very natural tasting throughout the 3 testers, and was just as sparkly till the end. For a truly interesting apple flavor, that defied being fully categorized, with some similarities to a Fuji, that one got it done. The actual crisp-ness, couldn’t be overstated. Crisp, fresh, and juicy till the end. No off-notes or nit-picks, and leaving this one fairly high @ a 9.8/10.
Vanilla Ice Cream 2 (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-21-23) – After having tested FLAVRZ’s Vanilla Ice Cream I was interested to see what they came up with for the “2” and “3”. This one, the “2”, I think was billed as a CAP replacement, and while similar, it was still quite different. Somewhat creamy, with a modest mouthfeel, and a good creamery overtone. It was very clean, maybe even cleaner than the v.1, and if there was a vanilla, it was far more recessed, and lower in the mix. On the finish, at times, I almost got a slight wintergreen push. Just sometimes, and only RIGHT on the finish. Clean, and crisp just like the v.1, but with a recessed vanilla. It was somewhat light at 8%, and possibly could be pushed further. Sweetness was just below mid level, and no off-notes except for the slight wintergreen on the finish at times. Thus far, I prefer v.1 over this one, the v.2, and we’ll see what v.3 has in store for us. As it stood, this one felt good in the 7.75/10 range.
Vanilla Ice Cream 3 (FLAVRZ) 8% (7-22-23) – Finishing up this 111 massive flavor series with this, the VIC v.3 from FLAVRZ. Having liked both the v.1, and v.2, and noting the slight differences between the two, I can safely say the v.3 would be my favorite out of the three. This one continued on with the clean and crisp (yes, crisp) profile, and with some increased vanilla (might have been a French Vanilla, not sure), increased mouthfeel, and creamy-ness. Out of the 3, this one was the most dense, and creamy-est, and it almost tasted like it included some egg in the ice cream. Now I don’t mean “eggy”, but because of the increased richness, and thickness, it was a natural assumption. The vanilla while still somewhat recessed, was more present, and at 8%, this one was quite full. It is still a surprise that flavors like this can be made DAAP free (and other not safe for vaping). Not as buttery rich as LB’s VIC, but still it held it’s own in the creamery department. Sweetness was just below mid level, and I couldn’t detect anything out of place. Still a very clean VIC, and it was a great natural tasting flavor. All in, the v.3 was my favorite of the 3, and mostly due to it’s increased mouthfeel, creamy-ness, and richness. Rating this one higher @ 9.65/10.
Wow, now THAT, was a LONG ass flavor testing run. Testing JUST the 111 flavors took me JUST under 3 months. Mixing up the Flavor Shots, and One Shots now, and I’ll get into those shortly. As always, very appreciative of @Jetz (Darren) shipping ALL of these out, specifically for the purposes of this/these reviews. All in, an impressive showing from FLAVRZ, and there were quite a few standouts. While not the strongest flavors out there, they were very workable, and usable. Stay tuned for the Shots …