Well, has it arrived safely? I tried to package it well
Nope. Not here yet.
The Really Big RY4 Roundup (long)
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Nope. Not here yet.
Apparently Zeus Creamy RY4 is a chameleon-like, shape-shifting juice. Too bad it's not a chameleon that you like. I was a little surprised to read that you and Passer had ordered some, because I didn't feel that my review was all that enthusiastic. Personally, I would never vape any RY4 that I grade lower than A-, so the only time I'll ever vape Creamy RY4 again is to double-check after posts like this.
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I concur. For my part, I'm going to keep it and let it steep a bit longer, maybe the weeks of maturing will cool off the weirdness of the nut flavor.
I would never have heard of Zeus Ejuice were it not for your thread, and it's definitely proving interesting. Not at all sure that I'll order from them again (Their flavor profile is subtle and well-crafted, but maybe not entirely my own? I think I liked MEL's decisions a bit better on average).
At any rate- thank you again for all of the hard work you've put into this.
specs: The 5ml sample of Mister-E-Liquid MrE’s RY4 that was sent to me by ECF member Lbox88 (thanks!) is a pale-gold-colored liquid at 18mg nic strength in a 67/33 pg/vg blend. The juice has a pleasant aroma and smells sweet. Testing was done by dripping into a 1.7 ohm Joye LR306 atty powered by a wattage-regulated Kicked Bolt set to The Kick’s max output of 10 watts.
Mister-E-Liquid is a vendor that’s been around for quite awhile and has a solid following on ECF. Their extensive line of custom USA-made juices are handcrafted and made-to-order (I think) and include numerous distinctive flavors that lean away from standard, run-of-the-mill fare. The term “artisan juices” applies to MEL.
The MrE’s RY4 product page on the Mister-E-Liquid web site offers no vendor description, but it does have 18 customer reviews, 17 of which give the RY4 a top rating of five stars. (The other gives only three.) That’s a 94% highest approval rating. I’m never sure how much to trust customer reviews, but 94% five-star ratings is pretty good, eh? I think I know why.
As I vape MrE’s RY4 while writing this review, a single word comes to mind: nice. As we all know, nice is a word with multiple connotations. On the one hand, nice is sometimes used as a gentler and slightly less emphatic way of saying “good.” Other times, nice is offered as a diplomatic hedge when you don’t really have anything positive to say but don’t want to come right out and admit it, or if you hope to avoid the social awkwardness of possibly hurting someone’s feelings: “How was your blind date last night? Oh, he/she was nice.” Which is a kind way of saying that there won’t be a second date. In that context, nice is damning with faint praise.
When used with its positive meaning, nice is less passionate than “great” or “amazing”, and smoother than “good.” Nice is comfortable, like your favorite pair of jeans. It’s better than “OK” but short of “terrific.”
That’s how I feel about MrE’s RY4. It’s a nice, custom RY4 with a pleasing tobacco and fairly rich caramel, but with ample vanilla for balance. I might go so far as to say that it’s very nice. The tobacco has no off-flavors and great throat hit at 18mg, the candy flavors are spot on, and performance (which includes vapor production) is fine.
Have I vaped better RY4s? Yes. Have I vaped worse RY4s? Oh my, yes, lots of them. If RY4s ran a marathon, MrE’s RY4 wouldn’t be striding way out ahead of the pack, with its hair blowing in the wind, but it would be within striking distance of the pace-setters. And while it might not medal, it wouldn't fade halfway through the race, instead finishing strong, and giving a darn good account of itself. This RY4 has legs and can go the distance, because the individual flavors and overall mix are so pleasing. There’s no oddness or eccentricity here, nothing not to like. In short, it’s very nice.
Anyone who wants to make an RY4 that most people will enjoy could use MrE’s RY4 as a template. You do have to appreciate caramel, since this juice is caramel-rich, but the majority of RY4 lovers wouldn’t mind that at all. Same with the tobacco. While MrE’s RY4 doesn’t have the most potent or amazing tobacco flavor I’ve tried, people who love stronger tobacco wouldn’t kick this out of bed. Even the vanilla folks will approve of MrE’s RY4, since---unlike some RY4s---the vanilla here isn’t just a hint or vague afterthought, but shines through instead as a true flavor element. Nut lovers will have to look elsewhere, but that's OK, because they're a little odd, anyway.
See what I mean? MrE’s RY4 is a nice juice that should please most RY4 vapers, which obviously includes the 17 customers who gave it 5 stars on the MEL web site.
Mister-E-Liquid MrE’s RY4 grade: a nice, comfortable B+
link to purchase: Mister-E-Liquid MrE’s RY4
Mister-E-Liquid is a vendor that’s been around for quite awhile and has a solid following on ECF. Their extensive line of custom USA-made juices are handcrafted and made-to-order (I think) and include numerous distinctive flavors that lean away from standard, run-of-the-mill fare. The term “artisan juices” applies to MEL.
The MrE’s RY4 product page on the Mister-E-Liquid web site offers no vendor description, but it does have 18 customer reviews, 17 of which give the RY4 a top rating of five stars. (The other gives only three.) That’s a 94% highest approval rating. I’m never sure how much to trust customer reviews, but 94% five-star ratings is pretty good, eh? I think I know why.
As I vape MrE’s RY4 while writing this review, a single word comes to mind: nice. As we all know, nice is a word with multiple connotations. On the one hand, nice is sometimes used as a gentler and slightly less emphatic way of saying “good.” Other times, nice is offered as a diplomatic hedge when you don’t really have anything positive to say but don’t want to come right out and admit it, or if you hope to avoid the social awkwardness of possibly hurting someone’s feelings: “How was your blind date last night? Oh, he/she was nice.” Which is a kind way of saying that there won’t be a second date. In that context, nice is damning with faint praise.
When used with its positive meaning, nice is less passionate than “great” or “amazing”, and smoother than “good.” Nice is comfortable, like your favorite pair of jeans. It’s better than “OK” but short of “terrific.”
That’s how I feel about MrE’s RY4. It’s a nice, custom RY4 with a pleasing tobacco and fairly rich caramel, but with ample vanilla for balance. I might go so far as to say that it’s very nice. The tobacco has no off-flavors and great throat hit at 18mg, the candy flavors are spot on, and performance (which includes vapor production) is fine.
Have I vaped better RY4s? Yes. Have I vaped worse RY4s? Oh my, yes, lots of them. If RY4s ran a marathon, MrE’s RY4 wouldn’t be striding way out ahead of the pack, with its hair blowing in the wind, but it would be within striking distance of the pace-setters. And while it might not medal, it wouldn't fade halfway through the race, instead finishing strong, and giving a darn good account of itself. This RY4 has legs and can go the distance, because the individual flavors and overall mix are so pleasing. There’s no oddness or eccentricity here, nothing not to like. In short, it’s very nice.
Anyone who wants to make an RY4 that most people will enjoy could use MrE’s RY4 as a template. You do have to appreciate caramel, since this juice is caramel-rich, but the majority of RY4 lovers wouldn’t mind that at all. Same with the tobacco. While MrE’s RY4 doesn’t have the most potent or amazing tobacco flavor I’ve tried, people who love stronger tobacco wouldn’t kick this out of bed. Even the vanilla folks will approve of MrE’s RY4, since---unlike some RY4s---the vanilla here isn’t just a hint or vague afterthought, but shines through instead as a true flavor element. Nut lovers will have to look elsewhere, but that's OK, because they're a little odd, anyway.
See what I mean? MrE’s RY4 is a nice juice that should please most RY4 vapers, which obviously includes the 17 customers who gave it 5 stars on the MEL web site.
Mister-E-Liquid MrE’s RY4 grade: a nice, comfortable B+
link to purchase: Mister-E-Liquid MrE’s RY4
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I have a request if possible, could I get a revisit on VaporsBeast Holy Grail?
Yes, MEL does make their own juice. If I go into the store, I write my order of juice on an order sheet after looking at their menu and from there, they take it into the lab right behind the counter and start mixing. There is a large bay window overlooking the lab area (I call it that due to the pure white walls and cabinets, and stainless steel tables, tools, and other accessories and the fact that they glove up like a lab room) where you can watch the process as they mix your fluid. Rather than use a RY4 pre-made flavoring, they have their own recipe of caramel, vanilla, and tobacco to achieve the flavor. Every juice order is made on the spot per order, with the exception of taste trials. Every order from them comes with a 3mL trial bottle of a new flavor they are trying out, so they mix a batch of whatever that ends up being each day and separate it into smaller bottles.
Thank you for the review. One thing i can't figure out for the life of me is why they have the option to add menthol to this mix lol. I am so far not much of a menthol guy to begin with, but I couldn't imagine even trying to vape this with menthol in it. blech.
Thank you for the review. One thing i can't figure out for the life of me is why they have the option to add menthol to this mix lol. I am so far not much of a menthol guy to begin with, but I couldn't imagine even trying to vape this with menthol in it. blech.
I'm obviously not Bill (the world is thankful he IS who he is) but FWIW, I believe "steeping" is more complex than it may appear on the surface. Like a good chili or stew "matures" (is much better a couple of days compared to when first made) Jooses often are the same, flavors somehow meld that is to say combine into something they were not at first glance/taste.
I'm not sure if I'm making a complex theory any more clear or not and as always YMMV
I'm not sure if I'm making a complex theory any more clear or not and as always YMMV
Lbox,
Thank you for sending me the MrE's RY4! Not to beat to death the "nice" motif I used in the review, but it's a very nice RY4. LOL.
My assumption (perhaps unfounded) is that most vendors don't use pre-mix RY4 flavorings. They either sell an RY4 (finished juice) provided by a supplier or create their own in-house RY4 flavoring from scratch. Maybe some vendors are selling RY4s that they whip up using TFA RY4 Double or FA RY4 flavoring concentrates, but I doubt that very many vendors do that. I could be mistaken, however.
When the thread started in post #1, I reviewed GoodEJuice RY4, which I had bought as a pre-mixed flavoring from GEJ. I assumed it was the same as the flavoring used in the retail RY4 that GEJ was selling at the time. I didn't like it much and gave a less-than-sterling review. Afterwards, Nick from GoodEJuice contacted me via PM, and we had numerous friendly exchanges. He explained that the RY4 flavoring he sold was out-sourced and not the same as the made-from-scratch flavoring he used in his house-branded RY4, but I had no way of knowing that, since the web site didn't give any details.
A contrasting example is BlueMistVaping, which makes two separate in-house RY4 flavorings---the odd one I've reviewed and a new version I haven't bought yet named RY4.5 that's stated to be more traditional in flavor profile. BlueMist sells its two RY4s both ways, either as diy flavoring concentrates or as retail juices, but they're the same.
I'm not a menthol guy at all, so I'm with you on this. blech. On the other hand, at least a couple of the posters I most respect on ECF are committed menthol-lovers, so it just goes to demonstrate that taste is, indeed, subjective and can vary widely or even wildly from one person to another.
JB,
Your post seems perfectly coherent to me, but yes, the specifics of steeping and more generally the whole arena of flavor chemistry strike me as bewilderingly complex---the interaction of myriad invisible laws with infinite situational variables.
passer,
I'm not sure I understand what you want---your post has a lot of non-specific wiggle room for interpretation.
Are you asking me (as opposed to anyone in general) to go back and reconsider the opinions expressed in my original review of VaporBeast Holy Grail RY4? As I say, I'm not sure if that's what you're requesting, but I just did it. I grabbed my filled carto of VB HG RY4, topped it up, and vaped it for five minutes. As I was doing that, I pulled up my September 5th review and re-read it.
Perhaps you don't like Holy Grail RY4 all that much and wonder why I gave it such a high grade (A-). If so, I have to hold firm. I still think it's damn good stuff and deserves to be in the top echelon of RY4s.
On the other hand, if you adore Holy Grail RY4 and feel it's better than my review indicated, there's not much upward movement possible (only a half-step to a straight A from an A-).
But maybe none of that is what you're asking for. Perhaps you simply want to toss around on the thread more discussion of different people's thoughts and feelings about Holy Grail RY4.
I like my original review, because it contains both criticism and high praise. Here's a link to that review in case anyone is now curious: post #2537
Sorry gosh I leave to many words out at times, I was just looking for thoughts after a nice steeping...I have not tried it myself just looking at opions, kinda like you hear about the girl in the trailer park about how big of a .... she is, you tell everyone you would never do that but then sneak to her window anyways hahaha.....
That's cool. No problem at all.
I'm actually a little shocked at how much VaporBeast Holy Grail RY4 has grown on me. I mean, it was very good when I reviewed it, but today it was so great that I didn't want to stop vaping it. As you know, that's unusual for me. With some conspicuous exceptions (VapeKing VK4, RWVapors RY4, and an old fave---VapeRite VR4), I don't often vape RY4s for my own pleasure anymore. Now it's my job. Oh, I do a lot of comparison-vaping of RY4s these days, but I tend not to vape RY4 when I'm just sittin' around contemplating my navel. Well, I vaped Holy Grail RY4 today for more than an hour, so long that I had to top up the carto. The bottle that our esteemed colleague Jim Bob graciously sent me had only about 4mls to start with, and now it's almost gone.
My debit card was compromised last week. (Bear with me; this is relevant...) A cyber-crook hacked some vendor's web site and stole a bunch of card numbers, mine among them, which were then sold off on the black market, more than once, in fact. My bank called on Thursday to check out simultaneous hotel charges to my card in Kentucky and Montana, one of which was for an outrageous sum. Anyway, I authorized closing the account (I'll get reimbursed by VISA), and---since I got rid of my "real" credit cards long ago---I can't buy anything online until my new debit card gets here in about ten days.
When the new card comes, one of my first purchases is going to be a 30ml bottle of Holy Grail RY4. That's about as high an endorsement as I can give.
I just bumped up Holy Grail RY4's grade from A- to A, taking CrystalELiquid RY4's place (it went into the A- group).
Herein lies the problem with that. When you're dealing with a chili or stew, you're dealing with proteins, carbohydrates, fats, various textures, multiple different herbs that need to have the flavors extracted *from* them to go into the shilli (compound word) as a whole.
When you're dealing with e-liquid, for the most part, you're dealing with flavors that already have been extracted and are already in solution in the same stuff you're mixing them with (Obviously, a slab of beef is not already the same thing as the water it's being stewed in).
"Stewing" *IS* the extraction process.
In a way, e-liquids are far simpler (consider menthol crystals being put into PG solution for a very basic example) than mixing 15 different ingredients each made of thousands of different compounds in a dish you're cooking.
That pretty much agrees with my thoughts on the MEL RY4. It's a *very* good "RY4 template", and since it's the best one I've tried to date, I would probably set that to an A until I eventually get to something I like significantly better.
What would you suggest as an RY4 with a MEL type of balance, but with a more complex tobacco and/or a richer, darker caramel?
midfi,
What comes to mind is CrystalELiquid RY4 Double Tobacco. That might not be perfect, but---in all honesty---the RY4 database inside my head is much less organized than others might assume. I'm just an old fart who writes reviews. Today I went grocery shopping and left my wallet on my desk. So when you ask for information and I offer something, take it with a grain of salt.
Dang you Bill, you did it again. I just spent $15.99 over my juice budget for this month! Now I am going to have a beast in my RY4 inventory.
Sorry i can't agree with this; as many others have I've just seen too many jooses (including my own DIY) change considerably after steeping, while I won't "guess" the changes that happen or even why they happen I'm positive it's a real occurance YMMV
You have to consider our flavoring are developed flavor molecules. They are not extracted in any way and are made in a lab. Molecules sometimes need to bind and most of the time it needs a natural occurance to do so. I don't think hot water baths or nuking a bottle helps the steeping process any more than most people think. I think leaving it with cap on in a cool dark place is best. I have tried all sorts of quick steeping processes but other than natural I have not noticed a huge development in changes. This is why I mix ahead of time and vape my mixes in stages. So by the time I am ready for that flavor depending on what it is, it has sat naturally and steeped for many weeks. All my tobaccos are steeped minimum 3 weeks to a month. Its worth the wait when you vape your own juice and crack a nice smile.
However some flavor companies dont even need steeping. Tasty Puff is one of those flavors. You can vape them right after a mix and thats what your going to get.
However some flavor companies dont even need steeping. Tasty Puff is one of those flavors. You can vape them right after a mix and thats what your going to get.
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