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Notes, because those are the details that really matter.
We can all think about a recipe in general but we can't think of notes in general. Notes are specific.
But even still, notes are a reflection of what the mixer perceives. There are many times I've read notes on flavors used in a mix and the points written just don't jive with what I experience in said flavor.
A good recipe just tastes good. Seeing as we are diy'ers and we would add each ingredient of the recipe ourselves, it wouldn't be hard to break down what each one is doing in the mix.
I'd rather have good recipes. But to each their own!
Good notes are the most useful. My notes are terrible.
Yeah, my notes are shit. "This Spearmint tastes like Spearmint. 2%, 3% if more Spearmint taste wanted".
Is it okay to like both? The reality is that flavorings add up in price quickly and if you're not someone that is renowned on here and you submit something that doesn't have common flavorings it most likely won't be mixed up because people won't consider the risk worth the reward. I think that they thrive off of eachother and the more notes posted here means the more interesting and varied the recipes will become!
However I love reading threads where a bunch of people have mixed up a recipe and seeing all their personal changes that they've made.
I think great recipes are of more use to most of the users. The notes are interesting, and for the guys who are properly coming up with their own flavors, its very helpful, but in the world of DIY juice I am pretty sure the vast majority of people are just trying to stay ahead of the cost of buying premade. As such, most of them/us are not really all that interested in making 15 10ml variations of a recipe tweaking things to try to get it just right. We just want to cut to the chase and mix up stuff we can vape.
I do not mean for a second to downplay the people who are creating the recipes. You are all gods as far as the rest of us are concerned. But I would suspect most of the lurkers here are just looking for recipes to try, not so much to come up with them.
Also, its about time for a "best of 2016 recipe" thread isn't it? I only have one of the best of 2015 recipe's left to try......
To me, it doesn't matter what recipe someone posts. If the notes aren't there, or if they're half-assed I automatically assume the recipe is shit. I'm going to use /u/id10-t 's Home Alone II recipe as an example of having awesome tasting notes. I don't care if you don't like creamy crusty lime desserts, ^^^even ^^^though ^^^I ^^^do the notes make it sound freaking amazing.
In the beginning, I think good recipes are important because there's nothing more frustrating than just starting DIY and having everything you make taste like feet. Notes become valuable when you want to flex your own creativity and understand why that delicious recipe you made when you first started worked so well.
I know the fish/fishing analogy is a popular one so I look at it this way. If someone is hungry, give them a fish first, then teach them how to fish on their own. Fishing takes time and patience and it's hard to do when you're hungry.
Both are best though :)
I think good notes trump good recipes, but that's not to discredit good recipes.
Good notes give you an understanding of the flavorings and process the mixer used, which you can then take and use to your benefit when mixing for yourself.
Good recipes are a must though because a.) they're tasty b.) they're inspirational c.) they give you an understanding of how flavors can work to their maximum potential.
Notes>recipe. Mostly. The best recipe ever, without the accompanying notes only gives people great juice, but it doesn't serve the community very well, as newer mixers won't see the process behind what makes the juice great in the first place. The thoughts, considerations, experience, and process of the creator are what counts more, IMO.
Notes. I've tried maybe 25 of the clone recipes with probably 15 that have been sitting for months because I found all of them unvapable except for the Nana clone. It turned me off of DIY due to frustration but I'm getting back in the game. I learned to avoid any sweetener and to scale it back and start simple with low % because most tend to have way too high of %'s in general. E-L-R lets you see peoples public notes for flavorings which is the best database to get a good feel for what works especially for percentages by itself because I'd rather undershoot than overshoot it.
Personally, I prefer the notes.
I rarely actually make recipes from this subreddit. I've been disappointed too often much like you. However, I've found that a lot of people have useful notes about particular flavorings and you can get an idea of how much of what to use and when. I think reading comments and reviews has enabled me to create better recipes for myself.
I prefer good notes, because while a recipe might not be great the notes allow me to understand what the creator was going for, and with that info I can try and make the eliquid better for myself. i.e. I can't taste strawberry well and knowing if I can sub out one strawberry flavor for another while achieving a similar end result is very helpful.
I've been a big proponent for posting flavor notes rather than the recipe race the DIY community was in before what it is now. It allows mixers to understand WHY rather than WHAT, and ultimately it's the reason someone will mix your recipe. I think a recipe posted with great notes is the best way to learn about a flavoring. I'm probably sounding very obvious, but I think it's important to note.
PS: I'm completely aware that some people might sugar coat a review just because it's me. But I also (and more often) get it on the opposite end as well where someone will completely trash one of my recipes just because it's me. Getting unbiased opinions is sometimes difficult.
Notes are interesting to read I suppose, but tell nothing about whether or not you'll like a recipe. I've made other people's recipes with good notes, with bad notes and and without any notes and have found good and bad recipes in all three categories so notes mean very little to me.
Notes have nothing to do with whether or not I'll mix something. Just tell me what it tastes like to you and by looking at the ingredients and %'s used, if it looks good I'll try it. I could care less about someone's opinion about the science of how flavors work together and what they are supposed to be adding to a recipe. Peoples notes vary depending on what they taste in a flavor in the first place.