Inawera Shisha Lemon

Setup: Recoil w/ flavor barrel, Dual 15 wrap 26g 3mm Nifethal 70 coils @.15 ohms. 60w power, 450F temp limit. Full Cotton Wicks.

Testing: INW Shisha Lemon @ .5% and 1.5%, 60/40 VG/PG, Steeped 11 days.

Flavor Description: Sweet, heavy lemon syrup with a bit of tartness and higher lime zest notes. Tastes a lot like a non-alcoholic limoncello. Some throat hit, but not too aggressive for a citrus. Subtle zest note at 1% and above. Another option for lemon bakeries and sweeter beverages. Recommend usage at .25%-.5% as an accent or 1%-1.5% as a primary lemon flavor.

Inhale has tarter lemon zest top notes, and a dense limoncello / syrupy lemon candy type of base. Exhale has higher fairly light lime zest top notes. Some tartness, and brightness but not quite acidic and bright enough to be realistic lemon. Thick, sweet base. Syrupy, but thick enough it comes across almost like a creamy lemon curd. Lingering bitter zest notes and sticky sweetness.

Off-flavors: I get some lime in here. Not a huge deal, but not as tart and bright as straight lemon.

Throat Hit: Light to moderate. First couple drags seem fairly harsh but it settles in pretty quickly.

Uses & Pairings: As a heavier, thicker lemon this is going to function a lot like a slightly more interesting version of FA Lemon Sicily.

I think this is another Lemon that is destined for heavy use in bakeries. Solo, tastes a good deal like Lemon Curd, so you're looking at the usual suspects like Lemon Meringue and Lemon fillings. Syrupy, but not really juicy, so you may be able to bring it into dryer bakeries to get lemon cakes and donuts.

I've never really had a desire for lemon notes in tobacco, but it's probably a good place to start.

Good for sweeter lemon beverages. Resembles lemonade concentrate or limoncello, so I'd mix accordingly.

Notes: Concentration testing, this is potent and linear. .25% is fairly strong. Kind of a flat lemon sweetness, without a lot of zest or tartness. .5% could pass a full lemon flavor, fairly similar to FA Lemon Sicily here, although maybe just a bit more tart. At 1%, I'm picking up a bit more tartness, and a bit lime on top of that sweet lemon. Still sweet overall, but pretty well balanced with just a hint of citrus zest bitterness. 1.5% has more zest, with a fairly pleasant bitterness setting off that syrupy sweet base. 2% is getting pledge-y and thick. I'd recommend starting with this at .25% as a lemon sweetener, and 1% maybe up to 1.5% as a main lemon note.

Putting this in context of some of the other Lemons I've tried... this is closer to JF Juicy Lemon, although denser and more syrupy compared to lighter and more effervescent JF Juicy Lemon. A little tarter and more complex than FA Lemon Sicily, but seems to be about comparable in sweetness. Not as bright or true to lemon as INW Lemon and not nearly as tart and sour as INW Lemon Mix.

Second Opinions:

Reaching for second opinions here a little bit...

Here's a post asking about Shisha Lemon vs. FA Lemon Sicily. Not much help in the comments, but OP says they "damn near smell identical."

Here's a recipe, from user "Uncaged" on ELR that uses Shisha Lemon with a quick note: "Very tasty. Shisha lemon is an authentic fresh lemon juice flavoring. Unlike Lemon Sicily, which is more like a lemon liqueur or dessert sauce." I don't really agree with that take. They both read as sweeter dessert lemons to me.

Quick take from user "amitron" on ukvapers forum: "Sweet almost like a sugared lemon, ever so slightly sour but not bitter. Never thought lemon would make a decent vape but this is excellent."

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