SessionDrummer
Postman
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2018
- Messages
- 157
Starting this NEW Capella Series out with a big shout out to Allan at Capella Flavors, who actually landed over 7 pounds of flavors before many resellers had received them. In some ways, this review is in large part due to his generosity, super fast shipping. These flavors were sent for the purposes of this review, but as is always the case, if I taste it, you’ll know it.
Having had great success with the last CAP release at a testing weight of 4%, I decided to continue that percentage here. All will be steeped at least 1.5 weeks, and were mixed in a 70v/30p/3mg NIC carrier. All tested in the SteamCrave RDTA v.1 running dual Kanthal 24 ga.vertical coils. All tested at 65 watts, using KGD cotton and fresh, or dry burned coils before every test.
**4U Blend (CAP) 4% / 6% (12-22-23)** -- Alright everyone, the wait is OVER, and let's get INTO THESE !!!!! FIRST new CAP flavor on deck was this, the 4U blend. Many people actually don't know the history of RY4, and YES, this IS a RY4-ish flavor. I started out at 4%, and it was good, but I HAD to have some more, and spiked it to 6%, and it was better. Thanks out to @lukeloop who tipped me off, that these were not as strong as some other recent releases, and up sampling would be required. While not being a "Bacco-Head" or an NET'er, I do like my RY4's. This one was an RY4 flavor, and a damned good one. Clean, clean, clean was the main take away with this one. It had what I expect out of RY4's a mid to light(er) earthy tobacco note, caramel notes, and hints of vanilla. The caramel was not overly buttery or rich, but VERY tasty. The tobacco, while lower in the mix (as with most RY4's) was very good, with a nice smoky/dirty/earthy undertone which helped to sell it. The vanilla was VERY hard to fully flesh out, but it did peak in and out throughout my tests, but the Caramel and Bacco were the main stars.
I called it "clean" and that stayed true till the last tester, with no burnt or scorched notes to be found. Sweetness was about mid level, and I tried (and failed) to find any off-notes or nit-picks. Your typical NET'er will scoff at the RY's citing "Candied" as a main complaint, but this one, for what it was, was very good. Throughout the tests I kept getting an almost Honey-like richness to it, but without a distinct honey note. It was fairly complex, hard to put down, and just damned tasty. I didn't get any real bakery out of it like a few other RY's, but, it was so good, I didn't miss it. If you like your RY4's, then I think you'll like this one. My only wish would have been to buttery up the caramel, JUST a pinch, BUT, that might have thrown off the delicate balance that Capella struck with this one. Too good to down rate much at all, and it was much more enjoyable at 6% as a solo. Easily a **9.9/10.**
**Berrylicious (CAP) 4% / 7% (12-23-23)** -- This one WAS delicious. Started out at 4%, and felt like more was better, and almost doubled it to 7%, and it got much better. Not linearly, so maybe 6% may have been the solo sweet spot. Not quite as dark (or strong) as Harvest Berry, and it seemed centered most around a red strawberry, and a raspberry, with maybe hint of blackberry. At times the RB tasted red, others purple, so it was hard to nail down. There was a very authentic ripe, almost pectin like "punch", along with some tartness that kept it fresh and tasty throughout my testers. Sweetness was a few tick below mid-level, and the way the berries were paired, it did wax and wane favoring one or another, which made it somewhat complex. Overall, I didn't really get much artificial-ness, as it leaned heavily towards a natural medley. Despite trying VERY hard to exactly nail down any/all fruits, I just kept going back to the Red Strawberry, Raspberry, and hint of Blackberry combo. All in, for a mid-dark berry medley, with some VERY authentic jammy/tart-ed-ness, this one sold it, and sold it well. Authentic, just sweet enough, natural, and with a tart finish. Not the strongest, but one of the better ones out there, and it felt good at a **9.3/10**.
**Custard Cream (CAP) 4% / 6% (12-24-23)** -- Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, EXCEPT for Capella's NEW Custard Cream that is !!! Merry Christmas Eve out to you guys. Alright, what in the hell, is this one ?? Damned GOOD, that's what. I literally spent quite a bit of time smell comparing this to CAP's VC, and they were similar, BUT, different. I think it was the pairing with the Cream that pulled the Custard into a different dimension. YES, I love the Custards, so read this review knowing that. There WAS a time, wherein I felt CAP's VC was a little TOO eggy for my tastes, hehe, but THAT time, has passed. This flavor seemed to be a pairing of the VC, but with a nice, blank slate, creamery cream. YES, you read that right. The net effect, was that I still got almost all of the rich Custard, but with some reduced heavy eggy-ness, and some of the buttery-ness, and got a VERY smooth creamy-ness in exchange. Duh, right "Custard Cream". Because Custard-Heads ARE a fickle bunch, AND often times, FEAR change, Capella had their work cut out to do it right, and I think they did.
Still plenty of the Custard notes, and an increased creamy mouthfeel. As stated, not as buttery rich, BUT, I have to say, I didn't miss it in this flavor. The pairing of the Cream and Custard was well done, and feels like they put some time into it. as opposed to a "mashup". I did start out at 4%, but I KNEW I wanted more, and bumped it to 6%, and it got much creamier, fuller, and just more present. Don't worry, there's still some eggy-ness in there, just reduced a little bit. I think this one's going to get a LOT of play as it's going to open up usage for many people who loved the VC but maybe felt it was egg/butter heavy. I am anxious to hear what @Ken_O_Where thnks, as I'm fairly sure he had an IV bottle with CAP VC1 hooked up at one point. NO off-notes, nothing out of place, just a perfect pairing of CAP's VC, and a creamery cream. You could solo this all day long at 6%. I know, because I am !!!!! You might even be able to go higher if needed. Sweetness was just at mid-level, and I was already toying with some Graham Cracker, and Cookie renditions already. Release the Kraken, because it's getting a **10/10** from me.
**Fresh Guava (CAP) 4% / 6% (12-25-23)** -- Decided to get into this one on Christmas Day. Fresh, seemed to be fairly accurate with this one. I think my FIRST two thoughts were "Fresh and Fizzy". Now it wasn't REALLY fizzy, but it had a nice almost tarty-ness to it, almost fermented, BUT, in a good way. I started out at 4%, and knew it needed a little more, and at 6% it was great for testing. You could really taste the juicy red-ish fleshy fruit, minus the seeds of course. Not candied by any means, and it tasted very natural. Sweetness was just about mid-level, and no florals, or off-notes could be found. About my only complaint would be wanting JUST a bit more out of it. It's possible it could be pushed higher for solo'ing, but I left it at 6%. Authentic, somewhat juicy, and with just enough "zing" to round it out. A very good fruit showing from Capella in this new series, and with the only complaint being just a smidge relaxed, it felt fresh and tasty @ a **9.5/10**.
**Green Strawberry (CAP) 4% / 6% (12-25-23)** -- This one was an interesting flavor, and hard to fully flush out. I had assumed it would have been closer to FLV's Alpine, but that was not the case. I did indeed, portray a nice, semi-juicy Strawberry, but with green, and white accents. It really did taste NOT red, if that is possible. There was a certain "smoothness" to it that I couldn't nail down, and although it was NOT "candied" it was almost like it had a hard candy shell, like a Skittles. Hard to explain, but NOT candied. At 4% it was good, but 6% did make it better. Not overpowering at the higher weight, but fully present. Overall, it tasted very natural, and despite the "smooth candy shell"-ed-ness to it, it was just below mid level sweet, and also had some pectin like sharp accents on the finish. Not the most powerful SB, but a fairly unique one. Trying to compel people to buy "another strawberry" is hard, but this one's unique-ness will help with that. Somewhat sweet, green, and white, with a candy coated shell smoothness is what this one was, WITH a little tart on the finish. No off-notes, florals or complaints. Not sure if it was strong enough to be the main SB or not, but a major player, yes. It felt good at **9.0/10**.
**Juicy Kiwi (CAP) 4% (12-26-23)** -- Alright, had my FIRST flavor in this new series where I STOPPED at 4%. Well started and THEN stopped LOL. OK, your personal preferences ARE going to come into play here. The elephant in the room for this flavor was COOLING. I can't swear it had a cooling agent in it, but there was a perceivable cooling effect with this flavor, AND (as previously, always, ...stated), I am NOT a fan of anything cooling. I could detect the cooling effect, and the somewhat chalky-ness that I always get with them, so for my tastes, it's IN there (or here). The flavor wasn't entirely juicy, and as far as a Kiwi, it didn't portray it very well. There WAS some Kiwi in there, but it was a lighter, almost candied version of it, and it missed the mark on a lot of the "pizzazz" and "sparkle" that a real Kiwi has. I got mostly mid-body notes with this one, and much of the high end sparkle was missing. No off-notes at 4%, save whatever the cooling-ish effect/agent(s) were. Sweetness was a few ticks below mid-level, and although it wasn't terrible, it just really never took off for my tastes. Leaving this one squarely at a **5.5/10.**
**Luscious Strawberry (CAP) 4% / 6% (12-27-23)** -- I think that Cambridge's definition of Luscious really worked in regards to this flavor. Granted, it IS getting harder to describe the "Next New Strawberry", especially in relation to the crowded field of SB's out there. This one presented as a fairly juicy red strawberry, that was nicely sweet. Sweetness was just about at mid-level, but it was in no way candied. It's good to see Capella offer up yet another SB that was fairly different than their Sweet Strawberry. This one was smoother, and less candied/artificial than the aforementioned SSB, and it worked well. Far more natural tasting as well. It had some ripedness, but I wouldn't classify it as a "ripe". Juicy, red, and natural tasting were the three big take-aways. As with most of the other in this series, I started at 4%, but quickly moved it up to 6% where it improved. Into the second and third testers, I DID start to pick up on a little bit of jammy-ness, which stayed lower in the mix, but consistent till the end. Slight tarty-ness on the finish, and no off-notes could be found at either testing weight. All in, a very natural tasting red strawberry, with some smoothness, jammy-ness, and a kiss of tart on the finish. Despite owning too many Strawberries, it was hard to find fault with this one, or apply any real take-offs. Leaving it fresh, and jammy at a higher **9.7/10**. Whether or not it was Luscious, will be up to you guys.
**Maqui Berry Wild Jam (CAP) 4% / 6% (1-2-24)** -- BACK in the saddle in 2024, AND, with this the MBWJ from Capella. Admittedly I am NOT a "fruit guy", just in full transparency, BUT, that is what makes flavors like this, all the more impressive. This flavor people, WAS a show stopper. Like many of the others, I started at 4%, loved it, and cranked it up to 6%, and it just got even better. This WAS a complex berry medley, and honestly, like no other on my racks, and I have a lot of bottles on my racks. To start out, it had hints of quite a few elements, and I can only offer a close comparison at best. I got hints of Blackberry, a light Cherry, some Wine elements, and a delicious Red Currant. YES, that's what I got. It presented overall as a mid to somewhat darker complex berry medley, and it did have some nice jammy-ness to it, mostly on the finish. Sweetness was surprisingly a few ticks below mid-level, and that really allowed all of the berries to stay a little darker, more mysterious, and quite frankly, tasty. Sure, sure, you could dose it up if you wanted to, but you might loose some of the darker berry goodness.