Disclaimer: I didn't pay for this, shoutout to Vape Train for sending this to me.
Setup: Recoil w/ flavor barrel, Dual 12 wrap 24g 3.5mm SS316 @.32 ohms. 60w power, 450F temp limit. Full Cotton Wicks.
Testing: Vape Train Cognac, 1%, 4% and 8%, 60/40 VG/PG base, Steeped 26 days.
Flavor Description: Thin, mildly boozy cognac with a bitter finish.
Sort of resembles cognac. There is some brandy-ish booziness here, but I'm missing most of the caramel, barrel age, or vanilla you'd usually pick up there. Seems a bit dry overall actually, with a fairly heavy astringency. Booze doesn't punch as hard as some of the other vt alcohol flavors.
Nothing all that fruity here. Trying it next to the normal VT Brandy, the cognac is missing that fermented grape brandy base. Some relatively light, indistinct fruit but it isn't nearly as prominent as VT Brandy or FA Brandy. Seems closer to INW Brandy.
There's also something bitter here. Feels like it has just a hint of rubbing alcohol on top of that cognac booziness. Feels almost herbal. Sort of a light camphor warmth and almost a light pine taste. It could theoretically be a barrel char or something, but it isn't quite clicking for me. It'll kind of work as a smokiness for a couple drags and then go back to tasting just bitter and herbal.
Thinner flavor overall. Seems pretty top heavy with those boozy notes, but there isn't much of a thicker base for anything to grab onto. Fairly light on the sweetness overall, without some of the really heavy, sweet depth I'd expect from a cognac.
Off-Flavors: Bitter and astringent. Doesn't have much in the way of body.
Throat Hit: Moderate. Decent boozy bite, but there is a some harsher bitterness to it.
Percentage testing: At 1%, this is light. Kind of a light booze and slight bitterness. No real body.
At 4%, the booziness is coming through a bit more but so is that bitterness. Nothing really deep, sweet, or even fruity. Still, no real body to it.
At 8%, no more boozy but maybe more bitter. I can't tell if this is supposed to be smokey or whatever, but it doesn't really work. And again, fairly thin and a bit undersweet.
Vape Train suggests mixing with this at 3-5%, and standalone from 5-10%. Just based on these tests, I'd probably use this as a lighter accent around 3% primarily for a light booziness and realizing you'll have to work around the bitterness.
Uses & Pairings: I think this one might end up being fairly difficult to use. By itself, doesn't really do a convincing cognac flavor. It's kind of bitter and astringent to try to be using in a sweeter cognac type cocktail.
Because this doesn't really have a fruitiness or heavy sweetness to this, you may be able to bend this one around a little bit. I can see using a bit of this with the right mix of apples and getting close to something like a calvados or even a pear brandy. The booziness is fairly accurate to a brandy style liquor and should blend fairly well if you wanted to work in your own fruit base. I think dialing in the percentages to step back from the worst of that bitterness might be a chore though.
Doesn't seem like a good choice for creams, custards, or bakeries. Those bitter notes would probably fit in with a tobacco fairly well though.
Second Opinions: Here's the product page from Vape Train. No description on this one.
Hard to believe you don't have any affiliation with Vape Train.. these are some comprehensive reviews for products most people don't like XD
Brah, they sent him the flavors to be reviewed. And he always maintains his standards for reviews.
Besides, their booze flavors generally seem to be the most worthy choices. If I could easily (as in without costing way too much) get all their booze flavors, I probably would. Except for if they do Ouzo or something similar.
This one, for example, with some TFA Kentucky Bourbon and a Honey Flue Cured tobacco to contrast with it? Probably a worthy attempt.
I know.. It just makes me sad that these reviews might encourage people to purchase from VTA. Horrible, nasty fucking flavors. Literally the only vendor I've spent hundreds of dollars with on my first order to then literally throw everything away that same day.
Their flavors sound amazing in theory, but generally tasted like cats piss.
Meh. Every flavor house has flavors to avoid and others that are worth having. The trick is to not believe everything from anyone is good. From what I've been able to determine, there's maybe 2 non booze flavors VT do well, and the booze. And very few are standalone. But then flavors like FA Fuji are much rarer than flavors like TFA Champagne. Most flavors are only meant to serve a purpose in a mix.
No financial relationship with any flavoring houses with the exception of comped flavors. I do have some products (one shots & flavor packs) sold through separate distributors that may use flavors I review, but that hasn't really ended up being relevant. I feel pretty strongly about disclosing stuff like that when it crops up.
The comprehensive review thing is kind of my style in general. I try to provide a fairly full "buyers guide" type review on anything I'm covering and the relative length varies based on how interesting the flavor is. This one was weird. I'd also like to point out, this wasn't an especially glowing review and I listed numerous issues I ran into while testing.
Granted, I haven't burned through the entire stack of flavors I have here to test, but I'd be a measured positive on the stuff I've tried so far. I'd obviously like a step up in potency based on their price point right now.