Mixing Noob!

[TheAlcockOne]

Hello, Team POTV!

I'm about to start my mixology adventure. I'm ulooking to come up with a citrus ice flavour.

I'm loving "Lemon Lime Tangerine Ice" by Double Drip, but it's going to get expensive FAST to keep buying it at the rate I'm going through it Plus I would love to end up with a tad bit more tang, and a tad bit less ice.

How long would you leave this a flavour like this to steep?

Also, do BigJuice flavour concentrates tend to work out well?

I've got 3 flavours I want to add to my mix... they all want to be 15% of the final volume, so I guess I need to use 5% of each one? Or at least, the total vol of flavour conc used needs to = 15% of the final mix?

I'm hoping to end up with an 80:20 mix.

Are flavour concentrates in PG? It doesn't say on the site I'm shopping on!

So sorry, that's about a thousand questions all in one post!

Thanks for taking the time to read!

 

[oldhippydude]

I do not know the concentrates you use but unless stated otherwise they tend to have pg base.
My experience with citrus flavours is that they tend to be strong and easy to overdo.

I would experiment with single flavour mixes of the three you want to use and find the percentage you like of each individual flavour then once you have that start blending them in different proportions. take enough notes and measurements that you can recreate what you did.

A dripper (RDA) is a useful bit of kit for testing flavours.
If you have the three individual flavours as you like them then you can drip different numbers of drops of each flavour to get an idea of the right proportion to blend before trying for a proper mix.

You might find you require more or less than 15% totall flavour and it is unlikely that equal proportions are going to be the right amount of each flavour.

there are other methods, but that is mine.

 

[TheAlcockOne]

That's great advice, thank you!

Do you try out the proportions in just tiny bottles to start?

 

[scrumpox]

Firstly, it's a good decision to get into mixing your own, for the reasons you state. Good luck with the journey. Try to make it enjoyable rather than a chore and you'll be halfway there.

Fully agree with the dude on the approach. I don't know Bigjuice concentrates so can't give any advice on them. I tend to use Flavourart, Inawera, TPA, Capella etc.and get a guide to strength before I test each one to discover it. It's highly unlikely that you'll get a result by mixing multiple flavours in equal amounts ... if only it were so simple. By testing each one on its own you'll learn about it's properties and likely amount to use when mixing with other flavours. Citrus flavours tend to be quite overpowering and I use them sparingly.

I'm not sure how or why you have chosen a starting point of 15% total flavour ... I wouldn't know whether the total flavour is going to be 5% or 25% until I start testing and come up with a recipe.

You mention three flavours but a lemon lime tangerine ice is going to be four ... unless you buy a lemon and lime as a single concentrate. What will you be using for the ice ... Koolada or WS-23? If you want more tang without adding more flavour you might want to think about citric acid as an additive, but only add it when you've got the blend of lemon, lime and tangerine to your liking. Again, it's powerful so use it sparingly.

If not stated otherwise I would assume the concentrates will come in PG.

The good news is that this flavour profile will not require a lot of steeping time ... without creams in the mix you can probably test 48 hours after mixing but if there are cream notes in there you'll be looking at a more complex recipe and mix and longer steeping times.

Be patient, take notes and have fun with your testing.

 

[MrDJ]

good luck on your mixing journey.
post 6 on this thread might come in handy POTV Vendors & Recommended E Liquid Suppliers

i found the easiest way was by using scales and a mix calculator. ive done about 50-60 now in 10ml bottles and im glad i did as the majority are pants whith hardly any flavour.

 

[TheAlcockOne]

Thanks so much for all this info.

I just got the 15% from the product description, that was the recommended mix proportion. So if I am tinkering in a 10ml bottle to get the flavour balance right, I want to be using 1.5ml in total of flavours as a starting point and take it from there, I guess...

I have found "Koolada" at Chefs Vapours, so will give that a go as the "ice" component. Thinking about sticking it with the Mojito concentrate for the tang part of my mix... either that or I found a "solero" concentrate that also appeals.

Thanks again for taking the time to answer! Much appreciated!

 

[mattyk2010]

Thanks so much for all this info.

I just got the 15% from the product description, that was the recommended mix proportion. So if I am tinkering in a 10ml bottle to get the flavour balance right, I want to be using 1.5ml in total of flavours as a starting point and take it from there, I guess...

I have found "Koolada" at Chefs Vapours, so will give that a go as the "ice" component. Thinking about sticking it with the Mojito concentrate for the tang part of my mix... either that or I found a "solero" concentrate that also appeals.

Thanks again for taking the time to answer! Much appreciated!

Koolada can mute flavour if your ordering from chefs get the ws23 it's far better

 

[iqon]

Is it 15% as a stand alone, usually if mixing with other flavours it`s less of each. ( but usually stated on website )

 

[oldhippydude]

I would not mix anything more than 10ml till I am sure the result is going to be something I like.

Test a mix with zero flavour. It does not taste bad and while not exiting it is easy enough to vape. It also lets you learn what part of the flavour is coming from the base ingredients. Take this as a starting point to improve on by adding a bit of flavour then a bit more till you get what you want. With fruit in genaral and fruit in general I would not bother with steeping in the testing stage. I would also not bother about whether my PG/VG/Nic ratios were being thrown out by adding more flavour, you can sort that out when you start mixing properly. First you are just trying to find the right amount of flavour to use.

 

[MrDJ]

just for a quick example
1.5 (15%) concentrate with zero nicotine making 10ml at 80/20

steam calculator http://www.steam-engine.org/juice.html