Hey all,
I thought it might be interesting to have a thread talking about how you develop unique flavors. I'm sure that, like with all art, everyone has their own way of doing it. I recently started thinking about recipes differently and thought I'd share for some fellow newcomers.
When creating recipes, now that I finally have a good stable of flavors, I want to start thinking about making flavors like mixing cocktails:
You start with a base-
- A base is something that forms a large percentage of what you want the flavor to rest on. Much like gin or vodka in cocktails, things like custards, creams, vanillas, etc. are all popular base flavors in vapes. You can even use one particular fruit flavor as a base (a lot of recipes seem to do this).
Then you add modifiers-
- Modifiers are the flavor or flavors that you want to be one of the main notes in your creation. Common modifiers in cocktails are things like fortified wines, rums, flavored colas, etc. This is a large category, so a lot of flavors we see in vaping can be modifiers, including most fruit flavors, caramels, nuts, etc. These are often what end up being supported by the accents.
As referenced above, the last part is the accents-
- Accents are flavors/accords that support the rest of the mix and/or heighten their interest. In cocktails, these are things like flavored liqueurs, citrus juice, and bitters. For e-liquids, they are often notes that highlight others, like how dragon fruit heightens strawberry and pear flavors, or how citrus notes to add a tangy punch to more savory/jammy fruits.
I admit that it's hard to fit every flavor I own into one of these categories, but it's something to start with. What I want to do is start myself off with a base I like (and test that), then add a modifier or two (followed by a test), and then finally add a few accents to complete the flavor chord.
What do you all do? Something similar? Different? Let me know!
This is almost spot on how I work through the research and development of flavor profiles.
Now, my background is that I have been working in high end cocktail bars as a "mixologist" (I hate that term, but it gets accross the point) for over 10 years working through classic cocktails, custom creations, and all fresh ingredients and off the wall weird booze. I also cook as a hobby, all scratch, so I understand when to zest, when to juice, and how to develop flavors.
There are a lot of parallels, yes, but there are also a lot of differences, as there is a lot more chemistry involved here, as well as deep research into specific flavor concentrates and what they taste like, how they develop over time, and strength relative to volume.
So while similar, there's a different base to get started to a point where you can just say I want Clove studded Orange with a pekoe tea finish and mix together a few flavors and call it a day.
I highly suggest for anyone that really gets into DIY, pick up a copy of The Flavor Bible as it gives you an essential resources for flavors that work well together, flavors that enhance each other, and flavors that simply are not pleasing to the pallet. I've had a copy for years and it's been dusted off since I got into juicemaking.
The Flavor Bible courtesy of /u/returnity
Any advice on on how to open that? I got Dropbox, downloaded the file and it says I need to get a program to open the file with.
The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on...
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Yeah, I think this kind of approach must appeal to those that cook/bartend. I went to school for culinary arts initially so as soon as I found out about DIY, I was totally into it.
I'll have to look more into the deeper aspects of flavorings as they relate to vaping, but for now things seem to be on the uptick in quality thanks to my new approach (well, new to me).
I like to start off with an idea of a flavor.
Like I start with a few flavors I think will work together, then get that dialed down.
After that, I'll look at my notes about it then start adding a flavor or two at a time and keep doing this until Im happy with how it turned out.
I mix like I cook. I test individual flavors, and then figure out which flavors would go well together based on how the individual flavors will blend and what I'm trying to accomplish, usually using flavor combinations based on actual food based recipes as a guide.
I also use concepts like Foreground, or main flavor(s), Midground (blenders), and Background notes. (I like to draw, and this terminology works well for me.)
my midground flavors are usually combinations of similar flavors used to bring the main flavors together in a cohesive way, while background notes are usually very subtle and are meant to enhance the midground or foreground flavors and further unify them all.
It helps that I can recreate flavors in my head and figure out how they will taste when they combine.
I have different subsets of notes in my juices. I want my main flavor that I make first; this is usually a fruit or a spice. I then figure out what would be the best base for this flavor to sit on; usually a cream or just how much PG I add instead of max VG for just fruits. I then work on accents; coconut for creams, and dragonfruit or other emulsifiers for fruits. Then the modifiers like EM or TFA Smooth.