Flavorah Strawberry

Setup: Goon LP, 25g dual parallel SS316L @ 0.1 ohms, 99w power, full cotton wicks.

Testing: Flavorah Strawberry @1% and 3%, steeped for 5 days and shake and vape respectively.

Flavor Description: This tastes like a shitty version of CAP Sweet Strawberry. It has a strawberryish sweetness that was almost imperceptible at 1%. 3% gave me the strawberry taste but also started to taste a little bit like strawberry shoes (as my GF put it). I do not have trouble tasting strawberry, but this one had me scratching my head for the first few puffs. 3% definitely tastes like strawberry but is still much weaker than other strawberry concentrates that I have tried. It basically tastes like what I imagine eating a dry sugar covered strawberry that has been stored in a bag with some dryer sheets would taste like. It is worth noting that by the time I got to the middle of my tester the chemical taste had gone away and it was beginning to taste more like a ripe strawberry, but then it kinda kept coming back. the second opinions are all over the place on this concentrate, so buyer beware!

Off-flavors: Plastic, or fabric softener, or shoe leather. The dryness is also not very evocative of fresh strawberry. this off-flavor was somewhat fleeting (it kinda comes and goes)

Throat Hit: A bit dry, but otherwise smooth.

Uses & Pairings: There is probably a pairing that would counter the off-flavors, but I don't think I will be trying too hard to find it. The only use for a dryish strawberry I can think of would be cereal profiles if you are bold enough to try and balance this into a recipe. if you are one of the lucky people who enjoy this flavor then the sky is the limit! I don't think I need to tell you where you can stick your strawberries!

Notes: 1% seems too weak and 3% is getting a bit chemically, so maybe start at 1.5% and work up. I would like to thank /u/ConcreteRiver for sending me the FLV Strawberries to taste. I hope that the other ones are better!

Second Opinions: From the FLV page:

One of the best natural tasting strawberry concentrates I've tried. -Reviewed by: David Tedder

This flavor has been the only Flavorah flavor that I have not enjoyed so far. There is something about it that tastes like medicine. I made a few tester bottles with varying percentages from 2% to 5% and I get that medicine taste at all of those percentages. This flavor was recommended to me by a strawberry lover and I have to say that I prefer other strawberry flavors. I will continue to try to work with this flavor despite not liking it so far. -Reviewed by: Jonathan Goldsboro

Tried it in different variations - alone and mixed with other strawberries. Din't like this one. -Reviewed by: Evgeni Shmukler

From /u/botboy141: Strawberry - 9/10 - Once again, this flavor really really works for me. Not great standalone but this will be replacing TFA Strawberry Ripe for me in most creamy mixes. This stuff is just dead on perfect, not candy like sweet, but just a perfect ripe strawberry. Once whiff of it and you'll understand. Don't recommend for standalone use however, could probably use 1/3rd or so of what you'd use of TFA Strawberry Ripe. A bit more jammy/jelly than other Strawberries I've tried.

From MonicaRae on ECF: IMO YUCK. everyone else I've talked to has had no problems with it but to me at any % it tastes like either a rotten or dirty strawberry. Maybe I got a bad bottle? Idk but I will not be using the rest.

From ECX: John says: "A OK candy strawberry."

Matt says: "Strong flavor like other Flavorah flavors. Very good. I like this one. This is in between a ripe strawberry and a candy strawberry flavor. Careful with this one its a lot stronger than other strawberry flavorings."

On ELR redruffensore says: "Note: Tasted at 1% - 3% Flavor: Simple, jammy, juicy, macerated red berry with strawberry perfume. Relentlessly jammy. Powerful but not bright (few top notes). No off flavors or chemically notes but not quite strawberry fruit. Try with: Puzzle. Use to add depth and fat, jammy quality to berry mixes. PB&J!? Try against astringent/bitter flavors (tea? licorice?). Start at low %’s. Blurb: Strawberry bonbon fruit centers"

From VapingUnderground: hazozita says: "very nice, fresh strawberry taste. Sweet, but not candy-like. It’s not quite as good as TFA Ripe Strawberry, but a very close second."

More from ELR: Laura5 says: "bland, no artifical taste, good for undertones with other fruits"

Amy2 says: "I find both SB and SB filling from FLV to be very artificial and extremely candish it works for me to only use them as mixers otherwise I get too much of whatever that note is that's in both of them."

ENOUGH!!!: There were so many blurbs and snippets out there, but i thought that i would gather them all here since this flavor has thouroughly perplexed me. Ultimately, i think there are better strawberries out there than this, or at least less controversial ones. Please ask me questions for clarification and/or to make sure I'm still sane after writing this review.