Apple Donut (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-9-24) – FIRST ONE ON DECK !!! At 1.5% this one was damned full, and didn’t need to be increased, which was in line with my 1.5% on the previous SC’s. I always like to remind people there are (typically) TWO kinds of donuts, one a lighter, deep fried Krispy Kreme style, or a slightly darker, yellow cakey donut. This one favored the lighter, deep fried KK style. A fairly generous helping of “fried” and “dough” were in store for you with this one. I wouldn’t call it overly “greasy”, but def. a fried doughy donut. The apple was layered in nicely, and was at times either even, or just lighter than the donut, and it leaned towards an apple filling, BUT, not completely. Not so bright like a Fuji, but there were some brighter notes punching through the “apple filling” type notes. The two were actually paired very well without either running over the other. I didn’t get any darker notes, or crispy edges with this one, and/or any powdered sugar. Sweetness was just at about mid-level, and it worked well for this flavor. I think you’ll have to decide whether or not you’re in the lighter, deep fried camp, or the darker, yellow cake-y camp, and that will decide whether not not this one is in YOUR donut camp. Some light bakery notes, but no grainy-ness, which you would expect in the (other), yellow cake-y styled donut. No off-notes, at this percentage, but at times I almost wished for a slight dialing down on the deep fried, and a slight increase in the apple. Minor complaints, and take-offs only, and leaving it still at a high 8.95/10.
Apricot (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-10-24) – I love me some Apricots, but the good ones, are far and few between. This one did present as a fairly good one, but it was somewhat relaxed. I did try spiking it up a bit at the end of the test, with no real increase, so I’m not listing that as an official second testing percentage. It wasn’t weak per se, but I kind of just wanted a little more. Deep orange and yellow Apricot nuances were in there, and it tasted very natural. At times I kept tasting a very light almost citrus oil note in there, but it came and went. Overall it was a very “smooth” flavor as well, and I think it could have used just a bit tart or sourness to really help it pop. It was soo smooth to my tastes, I wanted to describe it as an “Apricot smoothed by Honey”. Not because it tasted overtly LIKE honey, but it had that type of smoothness to it. Sweetness was just below mid-level, and despite aforementioned honey and citrus oil notes, they worked, and I didn’t log as off-notes. Natural, very smooth, with very light citrus notes, and a honey like smoothness is what this one was. Def. an Apricot, but it didn’t SCREAM Apricot. Hard to fault as the natural Apricot I got was great, I just wanted more of it. I finally settled on a 8.7/10.
Asperule (Woodruff) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-28-24) – Wow, what the heck was THIS flavor ?? I’ve never heard of, tried, or ever eaten (or drank) Woodruff, so this review will reflect that, with utterly NO comparisons to give you guys. Now I can GUARANTEE that this one was NOT in my typical wheelhouse, BUT, that didn’t stop this test, or it proving to be a VERY interesting flavor. Wow, I don’t know where to begin. OK, there was a certain floral-ness to it, along with some almost earthy undertones, some sweetness, and an indescribable spicy note. Light “almost” cinnamon maybe ?? After researching this one a bit it seems like “teas” are one of the typical uses of this, and strangely enough, I could see that.
Further testing did reveal a persistant, but recessed vanilla note as well. This was like NO OTHER flavor on my racks, and I’m toying with possible uses for this one. It smelled a bit different in the tester, than when TESTING the tester, which added to the mystery. Maybe “chai” like would also be a somewhat accurate description. Vanilla chai with light florats, and a hint of spicy-ness is about as close as I can get. Very nice at 1.5%, and sweetness was just below mid-level, and off-notes, LOL, I have no clue. The floral-ness/ notes were light and actually non intrusive, as the spicy, light vanilla-ish came out as the predominant profile. It actually grew on me, which is quite interesting. Now, as stated above, Scoring this was going to be tough, as I can’t begin to tell how accurate it was, or not, but from what I could read up on the plant, it appears to be accurate, and I have to say, once it settled in, was very tasty. I’m going to go out on a limb, and leave this at a 8.75/10 folks.
Banana (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-16-24) – I have to admit when mixing this one up, I was anxious to try it out, as it smelled really good in the bottle. Testing it proved exactly the same !!! This one surprised me as it was actually fairly complex, with a lot of different nuances/notes to it. It had some green, and more yellow banana(s), but not browned, or overly ripe. I think the first TWO thoughts I had were, “Fresh”, and “Mashed”. Throughout the testers, I almost got hints of a light banana liquor mixed in. At 1.5% it was nicely full, and sweetness was just below mid-level. While def. not a banana cream, it had a creamy-ness to it that was hard to explain. Not sharp, but as creamy as you could get without being a banana cream. Tasty, fresh, and a def. mashup (LOL), of some green, more yellow fresh bananas, with a somewhat creamy texture, and hints of banana liquor. Overall it tasted very natural, with no runts, and only slightly artificial. This one will be VERY easy to use, and mix with. With no off-notes, complaints, or “wishes”, leaving this complexified banana at a high 9.8.10.
Banana (Candy) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-25-24) – I had ASSUMED this was just going to be a full on Banana Runtz candy before testing, BUT, that didn’t prove entirely accurate with this one. There was some LIGHT runtz notes in there, but overall it seemed more like a relaxed mashup of the OG Banana, and a bit of the Banana Flambe. It was somewhat sweet, but still below mid-level. At 1.5% it tasted a bit less present that both the previously tested nanas from Nomz, and did have a creamy undertone. No off-notes, but I can’t say that it completely took off as a banana candy. It was somewhat candied, but never took shape as a candy. Tasty, very different than expected for sure. You could use this IN a runtz / candy mix, but it wouldn’t be the driver in the mix. No off-notes, and again, a nice different approach, just not sure if it hit the mark. Probably about the best comparison I could make would be a somewhat smooth artificial/natural, lighter banana. Tasty, but can’t give it the high marks for a candy banana. It was good enough to still drop at a 6.9/10.
Banana Flambe (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-19-24) – I didn’t want to test this RIGHT after the Banana, so I could get a fresh take. I think it was @Mikser that asked if we needed this one as well as the Banana. It depends. This one was quite a bit different than the OG Banana, as it did not have the green, or mashed notes, but def. more of a somewhat “boozey”-ness to it. Every time I’ve ever eaten Banana Flambe it’s always been with Dark Rum, and this one DID have a nice booze overtone. The banana notes were cooked/fried, but without any greasy-ness or notes. I think there was some light brown sugar-ness, hiding below the booze, as it peeked out from time to time. It was far less creamy than the OG Banana, and somewhat more acidic, which made it more authentic. I didn’t pick up any overt butter or cinnamon, but it’s possible they were buried lower in the mix. All in, a pretty authentic, boozey, fried banana flambe, with light brown sugar notes. At 1.5% it was very full, and I couldn’t pick out any off-notes. I didn’t get any ice cream in this one, and that’s actually fine, add it if you want it. All in, a good showing, and hard to mark down, with my only “wants” being maybe a smidge more butter and brown sugar, but minor “wants” at that. Finishing up the 3rd tester while writing this, it felt good, very high, at a 9.5/10. If you have, want, or like the OG Banana, this one is plenty different to pick up as well.
Biscuit (Buttery) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-19-24) – This one was a strange one out of the gate, and at first I thought I had borked the mix up. Re-mixed it, and YUP, it is what it is. What it was, was a rather mish-moshy sweetened, bakery, with some biscuit, some cookie, maybe even a loose graham all mashed up. In comparison to the other biscuits I’ve tried from NomNomz (and Chefs), this one never really took shape, and/or took off. At 1.5% (and other percentages), it was full enough, and was just below mid-level sweet, and there were no offensive notes, just not a clearly defined “biscuit” or even “butter”. It probably had some butter in there, but most times something is billed as a “butter” it’s got THE BUTTER coming at you. Sadly I could not see this pulling the “biscuit” freight, and would be perfect as a mixer/baser in bakeries, etc., but not the main note. Not terrible, but it just never really came into focus, and it felt like a “fiver”. Leaving this one at a 5.0/10.
Biscuit (Graham Cracker) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-11-24) – Being a graham cracker enthusiast, I was looking forward to this one. Right out of the gate, it reminded me of FW’s, and FLV’s. They both have a somewhat not too subtle coconut undertone, and this one had it as well. YOUR tastes are going to matter here, whether you like that, or hate it. It did have some nice graham undertones, with some almost crispy-ness to it, and no cinnamon to speak of. It was very full at 1.5%, and sweetness was just below mid level. I might have compared it to more of a Honey Graham, if it weren’t for the persistent coconut undertone. As stated above, you’ll have to decide whether you do, or don’t want the coconut in your GC’s. I didn’t find it intrusive, but it was always present. For my not so much on the coconut graham tastes, I decided to kick it down a bit for that, and with no other off-notes to complain about, left it at a still very high 8.5/10.
Blackcurrant (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-25-24) – “Darker”, and “Complex-ified” were the two take-aways with this flavor. While this flavor might not have 100% of the tart kick that real BC’s have, it was def. in the ballpark. With just below mid-level sweetness, and just enough tart on the finish it was a tasty one. While hard to classify, it’s core revolved around a darker berry, with slight earthy tones, and just a hint of floral-ness. I know, I know, “But florals are bad” !!! In this case they were minimal, and added to the authenticity. Hints of dark(er) raspberries, blueberries, and light wine notes, kept this one mysterious, dark, and complex. At 1.5% it felt like 85% of the way there strength wise, so not overly strong or overpowering. If you like delving into the darker, more mysterious berry blends, this one will work for you. Having very few “eaten” BC’s to compare this to, it was fairly convincing, and authentic. I struggled with the final score, but with no off-notes, take-offs, or “wants” I decided to leave it fairly high at a 9.0/10. Dark and mysterious.
Blueberry (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-23-24) – I decided to spend some extra time on this one, as it was proving to be rather hard to completely nail down. This is because it WAS pretty complex, especially for a Blueberry. I got all KINDS of notes, and nuances from this one. For starters, it didn’t seem to delve as much into the darker notes of the BB, but more so the mid-dark, mid, and brighter notes. At times I felt it leaned more artificial than natural, and other times not. Some times I got more of a sweetened almost candy-like nuance from it, but not candied like you would think, but more of a blueberry rolled in sugar crystals. Some times I even picked up on a VERY natural tasting musky-ness, which often times is a BAD thing, but in this case (and some other BB’s), was a PLUS, and added to the natural-ness of it. Basically, this one was a very good BROAD spectrum BB, which covered all of the things mentioned above, and did it actually, quite well. Because of where it fell on my “BlueBerry Spectrum”, it seemed like it would be stellar in Milkshakes, Muffins/Bakeries, and def. in Cheesecakes, to name a few, with numerous other uses. Although it didn’t delve into the deeper, darker notes, it covered most of the “must haves”, and presented differently at times, which made it all the much better. This one really covered a LOT of bases. I finally had to place it, and doing so at a high(er) 9.6/10.
Brownie (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-29-24) – Alright, something was going on with this one, and it took me a bit to finally figure it out. I smelled chocolate in the bottle, but I wasn’t really tasting it in the tester. Maybe light, to VERY light, but hehe, I know what this is. It’s a BLONDIE, not a BROWNIE !!! Now I only know this because I’m not a real choco-head, and actually almost prefer Blondies. Very light cocoa/choco taste, which was almost completely overshadowed by a pretty decent bakery base, that did resemble a blonde brownie. At 1.5% it was a little underpowered, and felt llike maybe a bit higher for solo’ing would be better, and at about mid-level sweet. I didn’t get an overwhelming taste of brown sugar, which is very indicitive of a blondie, but some light buttery and caramel notes. Maybe the more accurate name would be a “Blank Slate Brownie”, because you could EASILY push/pull this one directly INTO a brownie, or better, over to a full on Blondie. I did get some very convincing baking powder from the bakery, and it just sold it perfectly. Very tasty, super easy to turn into whatever you wanted, but not really a brownie. Despite the “not brownie”-ness of it, the bakery elements were so good and accurate, I think I’m going to get a bigger bottle. Knocking this one down only for the lack of the needed cocoa/chocolate to push it into a true brownie, but that’s it. Leaving this one at a 6.0/10 only for that reason. Tasty.
Candy Floss (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-10-24) – This one smelled like a fresh spun cotton candy in the bottle, and the room note on it, was the same if not better. Literally, you start clouding a room up with it, and you’d think you were at a Carnival. Now, hehe, what was ODD with this one, was the taste, was EXTREMELY light. Wispy thin. There was an initial sweet on-rush, but after that, it just all but disappeared. Very light at 1.5%, and what little flavor I did get was almost like a very light vanilla, and hints of cotton candy, and not much else. Tasting it directly off the finger it had more ooomph, but testing it, it just evaporated. There was a very light scorched note, but it came and went. No off-notes, but sadly not a lot of ON-notes either. Maybe increasing it might help, but unknown. Great room note, and air freshener. 4.9/10.
Cherry (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-18-24) – To this day, I still get anxious when testing new cherries, as many offer up healthy doses of soaps, perfrumes, florals, even medicines. Guess what ?? Not THIS ONE !!! Nope, nadda, zip. I even torture tested this one for you guys (at the end of the review). OK, this one was a damned delicious RED Cherry, that was surprisingly below mid-level sweet, with NO off-notes. Very accurate, clean, and RED were the big three here. Trying to nail down exactly the cherry comparisons was tough, BUT, it tasted like 50% maraschino, 35% cherry juice, and 15% cherry Jello. Now that’s an over simplification but you get the idea. At 1.5% it was good enough to not want to increase it, and it was a natural/artificial split, and ball parking it at 50/50 felt good.
The lower than mid-level sweetness was a surprise, and I wondered if adding a few drops would help or hurt, but I didn’t. It was soo good and tasty, with no off-notes, I HAD TO crank it, because SURELY it would blow up, right ? NOPE. Doubled it to 3.0%, and still, it did NOT go sideways. Clearly that was PAST the ceiling, BUT, no florals, soaps, medicines, none. So, it is a very friendly Cherry to work with. 1.5% should really be the solo limit for your sanity. Now it was a complex cherry with the big 3 profiles I listed above, and at times I did get some Compote notes, but it was absent of any Black Cherry notes, leaving it squarely in the Red red camp. There was just a smidge of tartness on the finish to help round it out, but only a smidge. Color me impressed. If you want a red maraschino-ish medley-ed cherry, with cherry juice notes, and a hint-o-cherry jello, this one will work for you. I don’t think it was perfect, but it was getting REALLY close. Leaving it at a very cherry 9.75/10.
Chocolate (Dark) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-17-24) – Starting out the new Chocolates with this one. From the start this one was def. a Dark Chocolate, with no confusion. It was in the ballpark of TPA’s DCC, but a little bit darker, and better. At 1.5% it was perfectly full with no need to increase. No band aids, rubber bands or any overt off-notes, which is always a risk with chocos. There were some VERY slight bitter, and dry notes, but I am not taking off for them, as they added to the authenticity of an actual dark choco, and were not intrusive. It wasn’t quite as rich as say, MF’s DC, but it held it’s own pretty damned good. No mid, light, or milk chocolate notes in this one, just mid-dark, and dark notes. While not really creamy, and nowhere near a Milk Chocolate, there was a certain smooth-ness to this one, but just a bit, and it worked well here, and kept it interesting. Somewhat complex, and was good enough to run solo, but clearly you could temper this into a few different chocos if needed. All in, a very respectable Dark Chocolate that stayed true to it’s darkness, with slight bitter and dry notes that tasted like a mix of natural / artificial. With little to no take-offs, or complaints and true to it’s name, leaving this one high at a 9.1/10.
Chocolate Hazelnut (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-10-24) – Having recently tested NomNomz Roasted Hazelnut and loving it, wanted to see what was going on with this one. Now, I did get some of it in here, but not all of it, and probably because of the pairing with the Chocolate. It tasted like 50% Hazelnut, and 50% Nuts, so the tempering came at a cost. The chocolate tasted almost like a mashup of NomNomz Milk, and Dark Chocolates, which leaned towards the MC. At 1.5% it was nicely strong, and a few ticks below mid-level sweet. No off-notes, and/or out of place. I think my only “want” would have been, you guessed it, MO HazelnutZ. Now, this may not be everyone’s perception, but for my tastes, I would have liked the Hazel just a bit higher. As it stood however, no dryness, bitterness, and much of the earthy, darker tones from the Hazel managed to pull through, despite the choco pairing. All in, a good showing, but needed just a bit more Hazelnut. I struggled to score this one, marking down solely for the light(er) Hazelnut, but finally decided on an 8.95/10.
Chocolate (Milk) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-27-24) – Despite some confusion, this is not a Chocolate Milk, but a Milk Chocolate, … kinda. First the good, there were NONE of the somewhat typical rubber bands or band aids in this one, and that’s always a plus. It was very clear in the tester, and didn’t seem to gunk, so more plusses. BUT, it was only a “so-so” Chocolate, and not very “Milk” Chocolately to my tastes. It was more of a mid to almost dark chocolate with a FEW lighter choco notes, but missing was much of the creamy, dare I say “milky” tones that typically fatten, and smooth-en up MC’s. There was a very slight amount of creamy-ness, but only very slight. It literally teetered on JUST almost having some bitterness, but not quite, and there was a somewhat dry, almost astringent finish to it. It seemed to be a combo of a natural and artifical choco, and actually wasn’t bad as a chocolate, but I don’t think it sold the “Milk Chocolate” very well. I know I could EASILY fix it, with some cream, and bavarian cream. Sweetness was quite a bit lower than mid-level, and off-notes would be limited to the aforementioned somewhat dry, astringent finish. It actually wasn’t a terrible chocolate, and I’ve used far worse, but expecting to roll right out onto Milk Chocolate goodness with this one, would take a little help. I finalized this one at a 6.5/10.
Chocolate (White) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-13-24) – Took a little extra time with this smooth one, just to make sure. Just in case not everyone knows what White Chocolate really is, it’s not even really chocolate !!! I have had some very bad, chalky White Chocos before, and thankfully this one wasn’t one OF them. This is probably one of the BETTER ones I’ve tested. Even with that, it wasn’t a spot on replication, but it got further than most others. The cocoa butter was actually very accurate, creamy, smooth, and delicious. Now despite not having ever tasted explicit Milk Solids, suffice it to say, they were IN here. They clearly added to the creamy, smoothness of this flavor. Sweetness was surprisingly a few ticks below mid level, and I got NO off-notes.
Now, quite frankly, when dealing with White Choco’s whether or not they completely hit the mark or not IS important, but the OFF-NOTES are what kills most of them. 3 testers later, I couldn’t find any, and THAT, is a big damn deal, or at least in the world of WC’s it is. Not quite velvety smooth, but very close TO it, IMO. I could think of a plethora of uses for this one from Chocolates, Deserts, Milk Shakes, Dairys and much, much more. At 1.5% it was fully present, and didn’t feel, or taste lacking. I couldn’t hope to quantify exactly what was missing, but it was close to hitting the mark. Very close to nailing it, AND, with NO off-notes, dryness, bitterness, nothing. Going to mark this one up a bit, for the complete lack of offensive off-notes, and leave it at a 9.5/10.
Coffee (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% / 1.75% (2-11-24) – This one goes out to @Rocky02852. My first thoughts on this one were, “Yeah, I’d drink the HELL out of this one”. In coffee form that is. Yes, this one tasted VERY real, authentic, and tasty. It wasn’t a singular coffee, so nailing it down completely was fairly impossible, but a darker roasted coffee gets close. There were no light, or blonde coffee notes here, just mid-dark, and dark blended notes only. With that said, it was not bitter in any way, and stayed very authentic till the end. While dark, and rich, it was not an Espresso, but there were some light espresso-ish nuances in there too. Quite the complex coffee here folks. There were no overt dairy, milk, or cream elements that you could taste, but it tasted like it was tempered by some, but just a bit. Just enough to thicken it up a bit, and add just a touch of smoothness to it overall. Sweetness was well below mid-level, but there was a light bit of sweetness in there. It was SOO good at 1.5%, I decided to push it up, just a bit, and it DID get better, but it’s safe to say as a solo, 1.5-1.75% would be the top end. No off-notes, nothing out of place, and literally nothing I would change, and/or complain about in this one. A VERY good, dark, roasted coffee medley with very light creameries, and slightly sweet is what this one was. It was so close to perfect for my tastes, it was scary hehe. Going to leave this one, just barely off of perfect, at a screaming high of 9.9/10. Be warned the lingering aftertaste, will only make you crave MORE !!!
Coffee (Irish) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-3-24) – If you’ve never tried a “true” Irish Coffee, you should. It’s only got 4 ingredients, and one HAS to be Jameson’s. Well it doesn’t HAVE to be, but it SHOULD. All four ingredients were here, Dark Coffee, some Cream, Sugar, and Whiskey. The only thing I couldn’t tell was if the sugar was brown or not, but I think it was. The coffee was bold, and centered around mid-dark/dark, with just enough sweetness to carry it, but not overload it, just enough creamery to take the acidic edge off, and a splash of whiskey. This flavor captured everything it needed to, and it was perfectly balanced. At 1.5% it was very full, and sweetness were just below mid-level, and I had no complaints, off-notes, or “wishes”. Very tasty, simple yet complex, and very hard to let go of for the next flavor test. Struggling to find anything to nit-pick, I could only dredge for wishing for a HINT more of the Whiskey, but even that, was almost too minor to bring up. If you like Irish Coffee, this one’s for you. Another JUST almost perfect, and leaving it at a 9.9/10 as well.
Cranberry (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-10-24) – Two things jumped out immediately with this one, the first was, there was some Cranberry in there, and the second was a musky-ness. It was almost like the true muskiness you get from authentic blueberry flavors, and I’m not sure if it helps, or hurts here. Once I tasted it, I couldn’t stop tasting it. It wasn’t off-putting, and you could probably work with it in a mix, but solo’ing it, it did distract from the Cranberry notes somewhat. The cranberry felt like it was maybe 50-60% of the way there, and it tasted stewed, not freshly picked. There was some sizzling tart-ness on the finish, but only a bit, and it was overshadowed by the sweetness. I wouldn’t call it candied, but it was a tick above mid-level sweet, which helped keep it in the stewed camp. A bold flavor choice for sure, and I’m sure not easy to create. Overall, it could work in a mix, but it would need some help. The muskiness was present till the end, although somewhat recessed. This bold flavor felt good at a 6.5/10.
Cream (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-31-24) – Wow, how exciting IS testing Dairies and Creams ?? Kinda lol. The thing that makes them hard, is that solo it’s impossible to figure out exactly what they’ll do in mixes. Mouthfeel, mouthfeel, mouthfeel is the name of the game with this one. It was somewhat bland as a solo, but with some light whole milk, and actual dairy cream notes, but LIGHT was the operative phrase. The creamy, dense mouthfeel however, was a force to be reckoned with. It was quite thick, and coated the palate, and it did it in a GOOD way. Very creamy (duh). At times I got light notes similar to TPA’s DairyMilk but very light. Sweetness was there, but fairly low, and well below mid-level. I didn’t detect any off-notes, sourness, etc. While it was somewhat lighter on actual flavor, it was flush with a rich creamy mouthfeel that would almost surely cream up mixes, soften sharp edges, and add a smoothness. An impressive showing, and about the only take-off would be the somewhat light flavor aspect, nothing else to complain about. Creamy, mouthfeel, with light whole milk, and dairy creamery notes was what this one was. Too much mouthfeel to take this one down much, and leaving it high at 9.5/10. Creamy Keeper.
Creme Anglaise (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-28-24) – This one was quite the interesting one to test. Unlike much heavier, denser Custards, this one was actually very true to a pouring custard. YES, a pouring custard. Def. going to push this to the other end of the Custard scale, as it was much lighter, smoother, and more refined than the heavy custard pack. It was very similar to a thinner vanilla pudding with just a HINT of eggy custard. Somewhat creamy, smooth, and with some super clean vanilla accents. The vanilla wasn’t spicy or overpowering, but always there, and riding on the sweetened, creamy carrier. It was a somewhat (not entirely), lighter flavor, and I briefly considered up’ing it past the 1.5% weight, but enjoyed it so much, I didn’t bother. Sweetness was a few ticks below mid-level, and there were no off-notes, or even a single complaint that I could come up with. All in, it was a VERY accurate CA, with some very nice creamy-ness, and mouthfeel, pudding elements, a hint of eggy custard, and clean vanilla accents. I guess my only “coulda, shoulda, woulda” would have been just a pinch more, AND, that may have been resolvable by increasing it slightly. As it stood however, almost perfect. Easily a 9.5/10.
Cucumber (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (3-28-24) – After a slight break, BACK into these with the Cucumber. This smelled, and tasted very natural and accurate to a real cucumber. Mostly the body, with some hints of skin. On the finish, it rounded out with a slight honeydew, which was an interesting twist. Overall it was a fairly sweet flavor, and I’m not sure if that helped or hurt it overall. Not candied, but still fairly sweet, and at about mid-level sweet. No off-notes, with the exception of the aforementioned slight honeydew finish. At 1.5% it was very full, and might be able to be reduced 0.2% or so. Not oversaturated, but 1.1-1.3% might be the better solo weight. Fresh, juicy, natural, accurate, and tasty. Hard to nit-pick, BUT, I’ll throw in a minor take-off for the higher than expected sweetness, and the ever so slight green honeydew-ish finish. Leaving it still VERY high at a 9.0/10.
Custard Cake (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (2-17-24) – I knew I was going to cut this one in the line, and couldn’t wait any longer. In a nutshell this one was a BANGING flavor. Period, hands down, full stop. BUT, hehe, there was a but. The “buts” were that I only got some cake from it, and not a lot of custard from it. BUT, what I did get was a mashup of a light Yellow Cake, Biscuit, Graham Cracker, and either a Cream or possibly a light Vanilla Pudding. YEAH, that’s what I got. This one (like a previously tested flavor) was similar in style to Lucky Shot, in so much that it was a bakery mashup, with a TON of uses.
The yellow cake was lighter in the mix, but did have some baking soda notes (excellent), the biscuit favored JF’s Biscuit, with hints of INW Biscuit, the Graham Cracker was just an approximation with no direct comparison, and then the Custard (Cream ?). It was clearly in there, fattening up the mix and adding a creamy smoothness, but I never got an overt “Custard” from it. Maybe a cream, maybe a light vanilla pudding. Now maybe I am/was looking at this wrong as a cake smothered in Custard, as opposed to a yellow cake with custard baked in ?? Either way, I’ll knock it down a point, but ONLY a point just for the custard confusion, but it was too damned delicious to deduct any more. On flavor alone, I WOULD release the Kraken for a 10/10, BUT, with the slight “where’s da custard” I’ll reluctantly place this at 9.0/10. Almost a one-shot, big bottle approved, TONS of uses.
Dragonfruit (Pitaya) (SC) (Nomz) 1.5% (4-1-24) – Right away, I could tell this wasn’t JUST a Dragonfruit. I did get some DF in this flavor, but it was only a PART of the entire flavor. There was a fairly present note, that was fairly distracting, and NOT from the DF persuasion, and it almost resembled a cantaloupe melon. An odd profile to have in a DF, and it didn’t entirely mesh well WITH the DF. At times, I also got hints of Kiwi in there as well. This one, despite being very unique, seemed all over the place most of the time, and was fairly distracting, and wouldn’t work out well, as a solo, or main driver DF. Sweetness was just below mid-level, and the off-notes were more than present, and fairly distracting. All in, more of a mish-mosh of a DF with some other fruits, and somewhat of a cantaloupe. Marking down for the off (distracting) notes primarily, and leaving this one somewhat lower at a 4.3/10.
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