Setup: Recoil w/ flavor barrel, Dual 15 wrap 26g 3mm Nifethal 70 coils @.15 ohms. 60w power, 450F temp limit. Full Cotton Wicks.
Testing: RF SC Taffy Base @ 1% and 2.5%, 60/40 VG/PG, Steeped 6 days, others noted
Flavor Description: Solo, this doesn't have much in the way of the flavor but it has a really thick, and almost chewy mouthfeel to it, which is a pretty promising start to a taffy base. It has some pretty restrained vaguely fruit candy sweetness with a bit of tartness, almost like a light sweet tart but with no chalk or grittiness in there.
Mixed, this definitely carries that body but it doesn't seem to homogenize super well with the flavor it's being added to. You've got a big hit of lightly flavored thickness on the back end of the exhale. I'm also getting a metallic twinge when mixing this with other concentrates. I'd recommend using this at .5-1% for some taffy-like texture on really heavily flavored fruit mixes, and small percentages for smoothing out harsh or overbearing mixes.
Off-flavors: Solo, not at all. It's weird to have that thick of a vape without much flavor behind it, but nothing tastes odd. Mixed, this adds a bit of a weird, hot, metallic taste to whatever the other concentrates. It's not overwhelming at lower percentages, but at 2% and above it tastes like the air does when you've been welding. Like hot metal and maybe just a hint of like a flat sulphur-y or ozone note to it. It's a bizarre flavor to try to describe, but it's pretty distinctive. I could just be tasting my coils all of a sudden, but in that case, something in the concentrate is making me taste them.
Throat Hit: Nah, solo or mixed.
Uses & Pairings:
1% RF SC Taffy Base, 2% DIYFS Holy Vanilla: Definitely the winner out of the bunch. The thicker texture and light candy sweetness is doing a pretty good job of making this kind of taste like taffy. Top notes on the vanilla seem a bit sharper, and the flavor in the base seems to be a bit muted and less rich. Light hot metal taste to this, even at 1%. I'm also finding that the taffy base kind of takes over the back of the exhale, and the vanilla is a lot thinner after that initital hit. It could homogenize a bit on a steep, but in my experience flavors don't really shift around their position in a recipe just based on a steep.
2% RF SC Taffy Base, 3% FW Root Beer I don't really notice the hot metal here, but I'm definitely getting a clear separation between root beer, and then the taffy volume. Spice notes are pretty bright and sharp, but the middle feels a bit thin. This concentrate seems to push spices and florals up, and mute out the middle a bit. Not as pronounced as RF SC Candy Base, but similar.
3% RF SC Taffy Base, 4% OSDIY Blue Raspberry Slush Slush here is definitely a bit muted, and that hot metal taste is pretty prominent. Definitely thick, but the higher percentage of Taffy base has the back end of this tasting weird, with that density but without any of the Slush flavor actually making its way to end of the exhale. 3% is definitely too much of the taffy base.
So based on these tests, I'd recommend keeping this low, and coming into it with recipes that are almost deliberately a bit overflavored. Seems like heavy, bright, or syrupy fruits would be your best bet. Additionally, just for laughs I added some of this to FA Mandarin (which I get a good deal of harshness from) at .25% and this is doing a bang up job of thickening that citrus flavor a bit and calming down the sharp edges, so I'd also look for this to work as a citrus smoother at like 1 drop per 30ml.
Notes: I'm thinking this is another sub 1% additive. I still get plenty of texture out of it, but it does comparatively less damage to the underlying flavor. I'd start at .5% and work up.
Second Opinions:
Pretty sparse overall.
H/T to /u/ID10-T for the suggestion.
When you talk about a "chewy mouthfeel" with the vague fruit flavor, is it possible, in your opinion, to bend this to a chewy fruit candy base, maybe adding something like tfa - pear for a little waxy note, and pull it away from taffy? example I guess would be a starburst or something like that.
There really isn't enough flavor here solo to have to worry about the underlying flavor. I'm not sure if Taffy really has a distinctive flavor, so much as it's a style of flavor and a distinct mouthfeel. Like for a starburst flavor that needed some additional body, I'd really just throw a bunch of whatever your starburst flavor you wanted, and sure something a bit waxy and call it good.
Hot metal? Hmm. Doesn't sound too great.. Shame... It smells nice.
Have you tried it with anything aggressive, like INW Raspberry-Koncentrat? Sounds pretty good, can't wait for it to arrive.
Just tried it at 1% with .5% Taffy Base. I tested my theory on needing to throw a lot of flavor at this. I think it's still a bit floral, but it's definitely cutting the flavor back a bit and still has that textural boost to it. So yeah, throw some gnarly overflavored stuff at this, and I'll think you'll get the best results.
What do you think this would be like with their watermelon flavor?
This was actually my goal; By themselves without a dash of sweetener and sour, it can be underwhelming. Tinker with the proper amount of watermelon and then add about 1.5% of the taffy. Sweet/sour to taste.
I just threw together a mix. I did only the watermelon and taffy base. I did a 70VG mix with 0.5% Taffy and 1.25% Watermelon just to see. It's a good light flavor overall but it needs to be up'd some that's for sure. I think it would be better at up to 1% Taffy and 2.5% Watermelon.
I was also thinking maybe either sour or gummy would really make this great! I was thinking maybe 1 drop sour per 10ml for a sour blend or 0.5% Gummy Candy TPA to really make it more of a chewy watermelon taffy. I'm gonna just finish this 60ml I made over the next 2 weeks and see how it comes together in that time and make a final decision after that.
My thoughts on my 0.5% Taffy and 1.25% Watermelon:
It's a pleasant flavor. Nice light watermelon flavor with a sort of heavy/thick mouth feel. It's like a mix of candy and real watermelon with this mix. Hard to say if it's because of the taffy that I get a little bit of candy and real flavor. Smell is wonderful from the bottle and the vapor smell is even better!!! A little throat hit but nothing like say some citrus juices. 3 out of 10 on throat hit. Flavor intensity is 4 of 10. Pretty light for my liking. Overall it's a big hit for me and I'd definitely order both of these 2 flavors again!
As far as sweetener goes I think it tastes sweet without adding anything extra to it but I do think it could use something else as it seems kind of plain. Sour/Sweet would bring this to a WOW flavor.
I'll be making a few mixes in the next few days with this and I'll even do my first "Recipe Post" on here with what I come up with.
I just tried 1.2 taffy and 2.5 watermelon and it is good so far as a shake n vape. Little harsh but the flavor is there as a good watermelon taffy. We will see how it develops, how is your bottle with half that flavoring doing?
Edit: It's a good watermelon but does have kind of a rind taste to it.