Hello fellow DIYers.
I was pondering today over what I do to think up of new recipes. I love creating my own stuff and look at the time I spend on this hobby as a relaxing and challenging way to flex my mind out side of work.
I tend to start with a flavor that I think of, and then create a progress tree with possible branches before settling on a good idea of what I want to test, then do the water + 1 flavor drop test to gauge how much of each flavor is necessary, before I invest the supplies for the juice. That's if I just don't try out whatever is on this board first, of course.
If you got a better way I want to hear it, whether it's smell, taste, or test dummies!
I usually start by eating or drinking something, remembering something that I ate or drank in the past, reading a recipe for a dessert or cocktail, or even just seeing a picture of a dessert or other food or beverage, and thinking, "I want to vape that."
And then: https://www.reddit.com/r/DIY_eJuice/comments/2zh1a7/how_to_make_eliquid_out_of_anything/
I do this too. Also, there are some hand soaps from Bath & Body Works my wife buys that have inspired flavors.
Huh, I've done that after I've eaten something, but never actively sought out a desert or food with the intention of mimicking it, I'll have to try it.
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Acquire impractically large number of flavors
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Vape flavors by themselves, Use flavors in existing recipes, Acquire feel & memory for what each branded flavor tastes like.
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Come up with Good,Bad, or Wild Ass Idea
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First effort is usually 15ml with no Nicotine, Shake and vape, then wait 7 days before trying again
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If first effort is headed in the right direction, change no more than 2 flavors at the smallest percentage possible making 15-20ml new batches 2 or 3 bottles at a time with different changes in each bottle, if the flavor stays flat or doesn't pop- back to the drawing board. Very important to take good notes and label clearly
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Take each revised group of 2-3 bottles and sample, revise for changes no more than 2 flavors at a time, again with the smallest changes possible. I try to avoid adjusting one flavor down and one flavor up, and instead adjust one or two flavors up together or down together.
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After a number of revisions, I will make one 30ml bottle and add nicotine as a "proof copy" bottle for the recipe, if it tastes good after 4 or 5 weeks- Job done.
this! a hundred times this! [minus nic for me tho] and i personally thinking setting up/settling with only one specific flavor as your "unicorn" to chase is hogwash, i have a few crazy ideas id like to perfect..sure its nice to chase one flavor but you need multiples to prevent fatigue imo so 3 or 4 projects at once is how i work.. some of which i need test dummies to help me those with nothing better to do lol... others i need much time and research [example one guy wants me to work on a orange cream pie with crumbled grahmcracker on top. this one is taking some research to meet his grandmas perfection lol].. and probably 100ml of concentrates to perfect it lol
I just remembered a good point on that- If you don't have someone else to taste test with you, it really helps to find someone. Not just for a second flavor opinion, but to help deal with all the leftover juice.... because its really tedious trying to make 5ml test runs.
indeed. and sbecause everyone taste buds are a little different then the others,and you may get notes at different times during a vape, a slight input from one person can make a juice that much better. for instance one wanted a peachy mango with a slight sweetness to it.i find a percentage based of my notes and make it up.. they try it and the other guy asks me to replicate it and throw in a little pineapple. brought the whole thing together and we all really enjoy it as we tweak the percentages to reduce fatigue and overpowering [i myself get vapor fatigue quickly with some flavors and am new to diy]... if the one hadnt been the only guy i know who happily spends $1/ml on plain ol pineapple liquid.. this may have taken so much longer to find something pleasant to the pallet. it also helps because everyone has their preference, i love citrus, many fruits and some creams. one loves tropical fruit and alcohol tastes the other loves creams pineapple and tobaccos giving us a fairly rounded pool of taste buds XD.. if it was just me doing this idk what kinda nonsense id of made nor how much juice id of wasted lol
I just use the educated guess approach. Has worked extremely well so far.
Before you're familiar and the recipe process become second nature, you should be vaping to test flavors. The water test gives you a cloudy idea of the flavor, but vaping gives you a clear picture of the flavor and mouthfeel it may or may not have. You have to remember that the "flavor" from vaping comes almost entirely from your olfactory senses, and since drinking water doesn't really engage your sense of smell, you miss out on a lot of flavor profiles.
When you test flavors in water, though, aren't you also breathing out of your nose? Like, you're rolling the flavored water around your mouth and exhaling through your nose at the same time? That's how I do the test, personally... of course, yes, vaping the flavor is the best way to test.
I usually decide a recipe based off one or two flavors, then make a mental list of others that could go with it. Then I look up the average percentages of the flavors I decided online for a starting point. I make a 50ml, label with the percentages and date, then proceed to test it over the course of 2 weeks. This shows me all stages of the flavor steep process, if it benefits from a steep or is it best as a shake n vape. I adjust 2-3 times as needed, bam. Finished juice recipe.
I do the same, but 10ml bottles.
10ml isn't enough for me to get a good enough idea. I don't mind 'wasting' a few ml of ingredients in the name of research. I save them, give them away, toss them. Not a big deal for me.
I make 30mls and test this way. I then break any leftovers up into 10/15mls and give as free add ons to my friends who buy off me. I label it as beta juice and ask them for feedback too.
Found a great juice this way. Caramel and marshmallow based that i tested to about week 3 or 4 before thinking 'meh' and pulling plug on developing further. 2 months later my friend is vaping some heaven juice and i jealously ask him what it is. He replys its my 'carramallow' that he had found in back of his cupboard when moving house. I quickly whipped up a 200ml and renamed it 'carramallow reserve' its 1.5 months old now and starting to get there.
Dump shit into bottle hope tastes good. Think my worst idea was Rainbow drops, sweet & tart, small amount of bubblegum, blue raspberry and raspberry, typing that out again it looks like it could work, maybe I got some percentages wrong.
Honestly, I didn't even read your post and I know that you should do all of the above for testing flavors/juice. Just do it. Some will be shit, others will be shit, and there will be more shit. Sometimes there will be a tasty goodness. Then shit. Just do it.
Some will be the shit