Yeah, why the F not !!! I’m not sure what propelled me into picking up 17, but 17 I did. Mixing these now and will let them steep for at least a week, maybe a week and a half. ALL will be mixed at the percentages listed, and tested on none other than my beloved SteamCrave RDTA v.1, with dual vertical Kanthal 24 ga. single wrap coils, with dry burned coils and fresh KGD cotton before each test. Older flavors, so let’s see how they fare after all these years.
Banana (LB) 6% (3-13-21) – Let’s kick off this 17 flavor run, with, the Nana. Most bananas typically fall into two categories, natural or artificial (runts candy). This one presented as an almost 40/60 split, with that being 40% natural, 60% artificial. Heavier on the runts candy, BUT, with some nicer mid notes favoring natural. Depending on what you are trying to create, you may prefer a more natural or artificial to suit your needs, and this one has both. I didn’t get many high punchy notes from this one, and it was more centered around the mid, and low banana notes. At 6%, it didn’t feel pushed, and I didn’t get any off-putting notes. On the first vape, I thought “75% Banana”, but wanted to continue vaping to pick out any other positives or negatives. Because it lived mostly in the mid and low profile regions, it had an almost creamy aspect to it, but not any added creams. Although leaning artificial, it wasn’t off-putting or overwhelming, and could easily be used to build or accent a “runts” requirement. Sweetness was below mid-level, and this one would be a good baser/mixer to bolster any banana mix, wherein an all natural banana wasn’t required. Felt solid at 7/10.
Belgian Waffle (LB) 7% (3-13-21) – Light, airy, and belgian were my initial thoughts on this one. Surprisingly light, and very airy @ 7%. I’ve seen comments that stated a weaker version of TPA’s Belgian Waffle, and that’s pretty close. The longer this one slept, the fuller it seemed to get, but even then, it was not an “In Your Face” waffle. Molasses and some bakery were present throughout the vape, with maybe some buttery notes, and a slight hint of maple syrup. Also some slight cinnamon notes could be had, but very low in the mix. Unsure if mixing this any higher would increase it’s presence or not. Nothing off-putting, sweetness was lower than mid, but the lightness, and almost airy-ness of it, would make it harder to mix with, lest it get overpowered in the mix. It’s hard to rate something on it’s strength, as the profiles, nuances, and complexities are what really matter. For a fairly accurate BW, with some light butter, possible cinnamon (very light), and slight syrup, this one gets it done. Mixing with this will require special attention however, as it could easily be overcome. Another 7/10.
Coconut Milk (LB) 4% (3-13-21) – Let’s face it, some Coconut’s are terrible. Funky, oily, some are even greasy. The good news is here, no greasy’s, and no oily’s in this one. That’s NEVER a bad start. Now, as far as the natural vs. candied/artificial, this one presented as almost 50/50 of each, leaning slightly towards the artificial/candied. It was not a dry, flaky coconut, but more of a (duh), creamed, somewhat milky combination. Sweetness was a tick above mid level, and overall the flavor felt pretty solid @ 4% without feeling overbearing or heavy handed. Continued vaping never pushed it into suntan lotion territory, but it DID have sort of a “twang” on the exhale. Having not tested LB’s Lava Cake yet, I’m almost sure this one would pair nicely with it. As it stood, not a bad creamy coconut, that leaned artificial, with no overt greasy, or oily notes. No off-putting notes, except for a little twang on the tail end of the exhale, and that will be up to the individual whether or not thats a sparkle on the finish, or something else. Not sure if I’d call it a one-shotter, but surely it would excel in almost any need for a somewhat creamed coconut, that didn’t require a 100% natural profile. All in, felt pretty good @ 7.5/10.
Cola Freeze (LB) 7.5% (3-13-21) – Wow, this MIGHT just be one of the BEST Cola flavors I’ve ever tried. Very authentic, with all the right accents, and proved to be a very convincing Cola. Everyone’s tastes will vary, but to my tastes, it was more of an RC Cola, than a Coke or Pepsi, and that was fine, as I actually prefer RC Cola !!! About mid level sweet, with an almost fizzy end to it. No cooling that I could detect, and that was fine, as I’m not a big cooling fan. Felt nice at this testing weight, and was mid-level sweet, which was expected for a Cola. Emptied the tank on this one, and couldn’t find any take-offs, or off-putting notes. A nicely convincing Cola, that was almost a spot on RC Cola for my tastes. 9/10.
Cream (LB) 4.5% (3-14-21) – Creams and Milks are the bane of my testing experience. They can be hard to quantify, and fully root out in a SFT, as many times, their effect, can really be felt IN a mix, not solo’d, BUT, test we shall. This presented as a somewhat sweet-ish vape, and was fairly non-descript. It wasn’t loaded with creamery or milky notes, BUT, had a fairly creamy mouthfeel. Confused ?? Good. It had some similarities to a sweetened condensed milk, but without the overt milk notes. Nothing greasy or off-putting, and to fully realize it, it would have to be mixed in a recipe. As a solo, it was a surprisingly good vape. All in, as a mixer, with the mouthfeel provided, and some sweetened creamy aspects, this one should work well as a creamy baser/mixer. Nicely placed at a 6.8/10**.
Fresh Cream (LB) 6% (3-14-21) – Alright, FRESH on the heels of testing LB’s Cream, onto their Fresh Cream. This flavor is VERY similar to their Cream, but, with MO CREAM. Go figure, right ? This one presented almost identical to the aforementioned Cream, fairly non-descript, mid-level sweet flavor, with fairly good mouthfeel. This one differed from the Cream, with some more “creamery” elements thrown in. Not as in your face as some other MFG’s creams, but it did step up the creamy game a bit. Still good mouthfeel, and ultimately, this one will be fleshed out when mixing with it. Still no off-putting notes, and felt nice @ 6%, and to my palate, will have to rate it higher than the Cream, for the increased creaminess 7.8/10.
Green Apple (LB) 4% (3-14-21) – Whew, this one packed a punch at 4% right out of the gate. I’m not a huge green apple fan, but I have a friend/client who is, and I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to dial it in. This one did scream Granny Smith, and it did so with a nice dose of tart and sweet on the inhale, with a nice sweet green apple on the exhale. The interesting thing is, the sour/tart didn’t carry all the way to the finish. Interesting. At 4%, it appears to be one of the stronger flavors from LB, and despite not hitting the ceiling, could probably be dropped to 2.5-3.0 % depending on your needs. It did favor a more artificial but did have some natural notes. Nothing off-putting or chemical, which can be common in some GA’s from other MFG’s. Something’s telling me that this COULD pair nicely with LB’s own Sour Gummy. As a whole, it presented as a nice sweet, tour, hint of sour green apple. Nicely done, and felt good at 8.75/10.
Lava Cake (LB) 6% (3-14-21) – This one smelled really good in the bottle, and was waiting to get to it. Obvious similarities to another MFG’s Chocolate Cake not withstanding, this one actually tasted very convincing. What I didn’t get was a deep, dark chocolate, or any choco icing, but I did get a nice mid, and mid-dark chocolate cake. It did taste more like a boxed store bought cake, but a somewhat fluffy one at that. Although I didn’t get any BandAids (sometimes common in some chocolates), it felt like it was leaning towards that direction, but not actually landing there. Because of that, I had no issues with the chocolate, and the cake portion was convincingly real, and paired nicely with the choco. At 6% I didn’t get any strange notes, but I could see this one going sideways if pushed too high. This one almost screamed for some coconut, vanilla ice cream, or a touch of Medicine Flower Dark Chocolate to dress it up. Sure the cake could have been expanded on, and the richness, and fullness of the choco could be more fully flushed out, but on it’s own, not bad, not bad at all. 8.0/10.
Orange Banana (LB) 9% (3-18-21) – I vaped this one over a period of days, just to make sure I was getting it. My initial thoughts were, “Orange peel oil”. NOW, I don’t mean it has oil in it, just the overlying profile. I could get some banana in there, but I had to work to get it. The orange/citrus/peel notes were actually quite good, BUT, due to the very low banana in the mix, as a medley the nana would have to be boosted, or orange cut for a better melding. The banana that I could get tasted ripe, and good, just a little too low for any real impact. Didn’t feel heavy at this weight, and sweetness was below mid-level, and no off-putting notes. Be advised if you like orange, this one did almost have the peel/oil aspect(s) to it, which for me was great, but your palate will dictate that for you. All in, only real take offs would be for the low banana levels. Felt fair @ 6.5/10.
Peach (LB) 9% (3-20-21) – I love my peaches, and I always like to try new ones, just to see who’s got what out there. This one came across as a nice, almost canned, yellow peach. Somewhat sweet, and it had an almost funky kick on the back end. At first, I couldn’t tell if the funky kick was a plus or minus. Continued vaping leaned me towards it working. Possibly moving down to 7% might lessen this, but even at this testing weight, it almost added some authenticity to the peach. Somewhat candied, somewhat canned, but def. a yellow peach for sure. Felt pretty good at 7/10.
Pineapple (LB) 7.5% (3-21-21) – My current GO TO Pineapple is still VTA’s Sugarloaf. Does this one even come close ? Meh, not really. It presented as a fairly neutral Pineapple, and at this testing weight, felt middling. Increased usage rates might wake it up, but it lacked a lot of the high end sparkle and punch that pushes great Pineapples. For what it was, it had mostly mid-body notes, mid level sweet, and leaned artificial. Not terrible by any means, but more of a baser or mixer than a main noter. Nothing off putting about it, just missing some pizazz. Leaving this one at 6/10.
Rainbow Sherbet (LB) 7.5% (3-21-21) – Having not tried many Sherbets, it’s always a nice change to do so. This one although having some Sherbet characteristics, never really drove it all the way home. It presented as mainly an artificial-ish Raspberry, with some other non-descript fruits, with a fairly identifiable sherbet base. Sweetness was below mid-level which was interesting for a desert, and at this testing weight, nothing screamed out as off-putting. At times, the “fruit” notes almost reminded me of RFSC’s Yumberry which is delicious, yet unidentifiable. This one wasn’t as high on the delicious-ness scale, but shared the mostly unidentifiable quality. Would be fairly good as another baser/mixer, but that would be the limit. Not terrible, not great, just in the middle, and felt good at 5.5/10.
Sour Gummy (LB) 9% (3-21-21) – I’m always aprehensive about testing “additives” because you never know if you’re going to blow you face off on a tankful of sour hehe. Thankfully, no one died during THIS test of Liquid Barn’s Sour Gummy. When I saw that LB recommended 17%, I thought that seemed pretty damned high, and I backed it down to 9% which was fine. This one presented as a trivecta of Sour/Sweet/Gummy, with all three being equal, and without one stealing the show. I had expected it to be far more SOUR due to it’s billing, but again, felt like three notes all combined. The Gummy was actually fairly accurate and convincing, the sweetness was a little above mid level, and the sour felt almost below mid level. If you’re needing something REALLY sour, this may not cut it for you. Having never solo’d it until now, I mixed up a 70/30 mix of this and Liquid Barn’s Green Apple for a co-worker, and he loved it, so additives DO have their place in this world. As a solo vape, not the exciting-ist vape, BUT, does it do what it claims ?? Yes, BUT, with a somewhat reduced sour, which with no aftertaste, off-notes, would really be the only take-off here. Works pretty good, but keep in mind, it’s not going to top off your sour tank if it’s on empty. Nicely done as an additive, and felt great at 7.8/10.
Strawberry (LB) 7% (3-21-21) – I think it was @JoJo a long time ago tested this one, and said she got some plastic from it. Well, now I know, what she meant. I did too. Not overwhelming, and didn’t destroy the flavor, but there WAS an undertone in there that did present as almost plasticky. The Strawberry was somewhat relaxed at 7%, and def. not IN your face strong. It was almost entirely artificial with little to no real aspects, or at least not on top. There was a jammie quality about it, but I would not call it a Jammed Strawberry. Had plenty of bright notes that added to the sparkle on it, and mid body notes to round it out. I think with the crowded SB field out there, and your natural vs. artificial needs will dictate more than my description can. Sweetness was about mid level, and take offs for the almost plasticky note in this one, would be the big take off. After tasting the after note, I couldn’t shake it, so pushing this one down a little @ 6.5/10.
Strawberry Cheesecake (LB) 9% (3-21-21) – I’m about 101% sure, that the previous flavor (Liquid Barn Strawberry) is in this mix as well, and the good news is, the somewhat plasticky note that I was getting from it solo, has abated in this mix. Great news !!! Onto the Cheesecake. I think what you want from a cheesecake will dictate if you love or hate this one. Fairly artificial tasting overall, and the cheesecake, almost presented as more of a buttery, almost popcorn-y (at times) taste. At times I could pick up on some graham, but about every other vape, I kept thinking buttery, with slight popcorn ?? An interesting bakery/dairy combination to be sure. Def. no BA smell or taste, so no bitter, acidic cheese, which may appeal to some. The creamy element(s) here were fairly high, and effective, and the mouthfeel OF them, we evident. Just below mid level sweet, and again, the plastic from the LB SB was not present in this mix. This one may work out for quite a few people who want a less graham heavy, no cheese cheesecake, along with an artificial strawberry. Let YOUR tastes dictate if this is one for you or not, depending on your needs. The only real take-offs would have to be for the non-descript cheesecake, that wandered into buttery and slightly popcorny. Leaving this at 7.1/10.
Vanilla Ice Cream (LB) 4.5% (3-21-21) – The MOMENT is upon us. YES, I knew that 8% for Liquid Barn’s Vanilla Ice Cream might be too high, and I did it ANY WAY !!! That was the average Single Flavor usage rate if you can believe it or not. OK, at that heavy weight, I didn’t get any pepper, BUT, I’m not one who does get that from VIC’s. NOW, with that said, I could tell the flavor was folding over on itself (signs of over flavoring). It didn’t go sideways like I had thought, but I could TELL it was PAST it’s saturation point. SO, I dropped it back down to a more reasonable (for single flavor testing) 4.5%. I have CHANGED the percentage listed above to reflect THIS testing weight.
At the new lower, 4.5% testing weight, guess what, the flavor was STILL great, just a lot clearer, more focused, and cleaner. In hopes that someone, ANYONE reading this, doesn’t know about this flavor, or hasn’t tried it yet, it IS, in my opinion the holy grail of Vanilla Ice Cream flavors. Slamming Vanilla notes on the inhale, superb mouthfeel and creaminess, and an almost buttery rich exhale. Yes, there are DIK’s in this flavor. From Bull City Flavors page …
Contains 35000 PPM Acetyl Propionyl
With that said, we can continue. As stated above, I’ve never gotten the “Black Pepper” effect from any VIC’s before, nor this one, so YOU will have to try and then buy for yourselves. In a lot of ways, this reminded me of what Holy Vanilla did for Vanillas. At the NEW testing weight of 4.5%, I got no off-putting notes, no negatives at all, with about mid level sweetness. The richness of this flavor cannot be overstated. For a super rich and decadent Vanilla Ice Cream, that has an outstanding mouthfeel, and an almost buttery exhale, this one IS the one to get. If you are concerned about DIK’s (DAAP’s), then you would want to avoid this one. All in, hands down, the Vanilla Ice Cream Champion at an unquestionable 10/10.
Vienna Cream (LB) 5.5%
