Review: 8 eLiquids from ECBlend

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So as promised, I'm bringing you my review of 8 ECBlend's eLiquids...

First of all, I want to answer the question of "WHY?" did I even choose ECBlend.  I chose ECBlend for 2 reasons, the first, was the reviews.  I haven't found one other eJuice maker that has even close to the same number of reviews that ECBlend has.  Reviews are really important to me in purchasing from a smaller company.  The second reason I purchased from them, is because of their selection.  According to them, they have over 250+ flavors.

Ok, but WHY ECBlend?  Why not choose any of the other 300+ makers of eJuice?  Why not just use  the mass produced Chinese made stuff?  Well, first of all, most of the Chinese made eLiquid I've used is pretty good.  Heck, it's downright cheap too!  You can get a 100ml bottle of eLiquid direct from China for as little as $8.62!  Just as a comparison, the last 100ml bottle of Boba's Bounty I purchased (review here) cost me about $50.  But that's another conversation.  I guess the reason I purchased from ECBlend, is because their website made all the difference.

They have the only website that I'm aware of, that has so many CUSTOMIZATION options for purchasing your eLiquids.  You have total control of everything, from the % of PG to the % of VG.  You can add extra flavor, extra sweetener, extra menthol, extra, extra, extra!  You can really customize to your hearts content.  I had the idea that it could be a good idea to do some exploring, given so many options...

Ok, so enough about ECBlend, let's get down to business with the reviews.  What I'm going to do, is start off with my favorite and end with my least favorite.  The first 1-2 will be long, the last few will be very short.

For the sake of simplicity, ALL of the eJuices reviewed in this review are 18mg Nicotine, unless otherwise noted.

AN&O Strawberry Shortcake 100% VG - I always thought that "fruity" flavored eLiquid was for girls (if that comment is offensive to you, perhaps you need to be reminded that men and women aren't the same, no matter what pop-culture teaches you.  Remember, "equal" does not and should not be interpreted to mean "exactly the same in every way".  That's impossible, now isn't it?)  In any event, I actually received a free 5ml bottle of this with my first order.  At first I didn't want to use it (see previous comment) but I eventually gave in, as I thought to myself "why not?"...  Well I wound up liking this stuff so much, that I wrote a review for them and they actually put it up! (they don't just add reviews, they review their reviews for content and put up their best ones).  So instead of writing a new one, allow me to share what I wrote on their site:

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The best eJuice that I never ordered!  
Posted by Keith on 27th Mar 2013

I've been spending way too much money trying to find my perfect all-day vape. I've ordered about 8 different flavors from ECBlends so far, trying to find it.

As a bonus with my first order, they gifted me a 5ml bottle of this stuff (0mg) and originally I didn't want to try it (cmon man, everybody knows strawberry flavors are for girls, right?). After a few days, it started calling out to me (not literally), so I loaded it up in my AGA-T2 and let me tell you...

If I said it was "creamy", you'd think of cream. So I won't say creamy. If I said it was "buttery", you'd think of butter. So I won't say that either. But if I told you that it tasted Strawbutteremy, then MAYBE I'd be able to explain how RIDICULOUSLY GOOD this stuff tastes.

I've been told that if I order this stuff, that I'll have to turn in my "man card". But I may have to chance it! Don't pass this one up. For $2.50 you gotta try it!

IT DOES NOT TASTE LIKE CAKE!
Did not need to steep!
Couldn't put it down!
Licked the empty bottle! (ok, I'm just kidding about that)

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So if that glowing review doesn't convince you to try it, then nothing will.  If you like the taste of strawberries, you're gonna love this eJuice!

The one thing I should clarify here, is the "AN&O" in the name.  It stands for "All Natural & Organic".  I have not tried their "regular" version, so I can't comment on it.

The other thing I should clarify and something I learned later on, is the nicotine level you choose WILL effect both the flavor, the color & the amount of vapor this eJuice produces!  My initial sample had 0mg nicotine and it was what I wrote about in that review.  My first 50ml purchase of this eJuice was with 12mg nicotine though.  The first thing I noticed (before I even opened the bottle) was that it was golden colored (as opposed to the sample which was clear).  I actually contacted ECBlend about the color difference and they told me that once you add nicotine, it changes the color of every eLiquid, which is something I didn't know.  The next thing that I noticed, is that the flavor was a bit muted (in comparison to the 0mg version).  The other thing about the flavor, is that I believe the nicotine has made this batch taste more tart than sweet.  The last thing I noticed, is that it produces about 50% less Vapor than the 0mg version.  That last one was really disappointing.

My final comment on this eJuice, is I've been using it now for 2 weeks and I haven't noticed ANY change in the flavor (due to steeping).  The 12mg nicotine version is just not as SATISFYING as the 0mg one is.  I did however just order another bottle of this stuff, but without nicotine.  What I decided to do (at least for right now), is to use this as my primary Vape, but also use my 18mg Boba's Bounty throughout the day also, so that I don't go into nicotine withdrawal.  I'll let you know how that works out.

Update 6/5/2013 - Well, it did not work out at all actually.  The 0mg variant of this was a complete waste of money on my part as it tasted exactly the same as the 18mg bottle... BAD.  I can only conclude that they sent me "something else" the very first time and it had the wrong label on it.  I wish there was some way for me to figure out what it was, but according to their website (now), they are claiming more than 375+ flavors.  Only God knows what they sent me.  Whatever it was, it was delicious.  As for the AN&O Strawberry Shortcake, it doesn't taste like strawberries and it doesn't taste like shortcake.  It just tastes BAD.

RY4 Tobacco (Reduced PG) - RY4 is one of those "chronicled" eLiquids from back in the day.  Long story short, the company who created it (Ruyan), is no longer in business.  If your all day Vape was RY4, you were in trouble when your inventory ran out!  So a bunch of different people started trying to put together their own version of the original.  Since nobody has the actual recipe that Ruyan uses, it's been a "crap shoot" to try to mix something that tastes close to the original.  ECBlend has been reported to have the "best" of the RY4 copies so that's why I purchased this one.

Now in all fairness, the label on the bottle says that I should steep it.  I didn't.  As for the flavor, I'd say it tasted in the ballpark as to how an RY4 should taste, but the throat hit was much more harsh than I would have expected for an 18mg made with mostly VG.  Which reminds me.  I need to explain what "Reduced PG" means.  It basically means that they start off with the flavorings in a PG base and reduce that down until they reach their desired flavor base.  Once they have that, they use 100% VG to make up the remainder of the eLiquid.  So it IS a VG eLiquid, but it's not 20%, 30%, etc, it's a very small percent PG, so they've opted to call it "Reduced PG" instead of maybe "VG w/PG based flavorings"?  Either way, all of my "Reduced PG" eJuices I received from ECBlend have the same approximate viscosity, so I am rating it as a VG eJuice.

Result: I don't like it.  It kinda smells nice though.  It has notes of coffee, butterscotch, marshmallow, maybe some toffee, perhaps almond & of course tobacco (as RY4 is a tobacco based eJuice).  Honestly it REALLY smells good (just smelled it again).  But the over the top throat hit ruins it for me.  If you need this much throat hit, you should try it.  If you don't, perhaps get a 5ml bottle with 0mg of nicotine?  For $2.50, what have you got to lose?  I am steeping it though.  I'll revisit it in another couple of weeks and post a follow up.

Update 6/5/2013 - I'm late putting this update in, but sometime during the weekend of 5/25/2013 I went ahead and retested this one (RY4).  Throat hit issues were gone AND I can not tell a lie, it tasted somewhat better.  Which is a 100% improvement over my "out of the bottle experience".  However, I personally did not care for it as an "all day vape", so I'm going to pass on it.

DK 555 - I've never tried one (as they're not commonly sold in the U.S.), but 555 is an actual brand of cigarette.  DK 555, I can only imagine, is the ECBlend attempt at duplicating Dekang's version of this eLiquid.  I haven't tried the actual Dekang version of 555, but this one smells kind of like a Hazelnut / Tobacco smell.  The eLiquid has a nice aroma, but I didn't like this eLiquid either, as it also had an incredibly harsh throat hit. (It's also in my steep box, waiting for me to revisit it in a couple of weeks)

Dragon's Cafe (Reduced PG) - I've been looking for something else to Vape recently and I figured I'd try a couple of Coffee based eLiquids.  I like coffee...  ECBlend describes this eJuice as "Espresso with Cream & Vanillas".  I shall describe it as, "awful".  Have you ever had the very last cup of coffee from a coffee pot that's been baking and burning the coffee for 8 hours?  That's pretty gross.  This tasted worse.  However, it's in my steep box and I'm hoping it redeems itself.

Update 6/11/2013: So not having anything good to Vape right now, I've dug deep into my steeping box for something to Vape on.  I loaded up the Dragon's Cafe in my Kanger Protank and I still have nothing good to Vape on.  Almost 2 months in the steeping box and here's what we have...  AWFUL throat hit, hits like a fireball in the back of your throat.  It's easily 36+mg of nicotine.  Flavor is 100% vanilla extract flavor.  No hint of cream, no hint of espresso.  It's absolutely awful. 

Espresso Shot (Reduced PG) - In the same vein as Dragon's Cafe, I thought I'd get a couple of different coffee flavors.  Both the Dragon's Cafe and the Espresso Shot SMELL nice in their respective bottles, but the flavors don't match the smells.  This one did not taste good either and is sitting along with its brothers in the steeping box.

Tobacco Blend 100% VG - I'm always looking for the perfect "Tobacco" Vape, so I figured I'd try the ECBlend take on it.  I tried this particular one because of the description, "A tradional blend of tobacco with warm creamy sweet nutty after tones".  What I got, was almost a spot-on clone of a Marlboro (or USA Mix) flavor.  To be honest, the USA Mix flavor is not one of my favorites.  The throat hit on this eLiquid was ridiculously harsh.

Flavorless 100% VG w/added sweetener - This one might sound stupid to some, but after reading the reviews about it, I thought it would be a great idea.  Something with a somewhat sweet taste that I could Vape all I wanted, without smelling up a room.  I expected a sweet tasting Vape with no other discernible flavors.  What I got tasted SOUR and also has a ridiculously harsh throat hit.  And not just sour, but awful.  Everywhere I go, I read "VG has no throat hit", but somehow ECBlend has beaten the odds.  This eLiquid is clear, so I can't see that steeping will help, but it's sitting in the steeping box with its friends anyway.

Update 6/5/2013 - I also retested this one during the weekend of 5/25/2013 and don't ask me why, but this one still tastes SOUR!  Everybody and their grandma loves to talk about how SWEET VG is all by itself and how it adversely effects the overall flavor profile of eLiquid, so for me to have it taste sour, I can only conclude that whoever mixed it, put in their "anti-sweet" instead of the sweetener.

AN&O Orange Cream 100% VG - So hoping to build on the great flavor of the Strawberry Shortcake, I went ahead and purchased a 5ml bottle of this Orange Cream with 0mg nicotine.  If I'm gonna taste it, I want to taste IT and not the nicotine.  I can honestly say that this has been my most disappointing eJuice so far.  It does NOT taste like a "Creamsicle" in any way, shape or form.  It tastes (at best) like an orange Pixy Stix.  It's a fake orange flavor.  I can't see how anyone would enjoy this eLiquid.  I tried it in both my AGA-T2 and my RSST, just because their flavor reproduction is different.  MAYBE it tastes good in a Stardust, but I don't buy those any more and can't review it.  There are no instructions on the receipt for this eLiquid to be steeped, so I have to conclude that this one will not improve over time...

Update 6/5/2013 - I stand correct.   Sometime during the weekend of 5/25/2013 I went ahead and retested this one (Orange Cream).  The orange flavor they use for this eLiquid is quite awful.  As hard as it might be to understand this description, it actually has a "dry & powdery" taste to it.  Again, Pixy Stix are the closest thing I can think of to describe it.  Steeping has not helped.

So as you can see, I went on a real quest to try what I think is a LOT of flavors from ECBlend.  True, with 250+ flavors, 8 is only a drop in the bucket.  But I have given them a solid try.  I've spent probably around $60+ with ECBlend.  I will probably continue to purchase the Strawberry Shortcake flavor from them, at least until I can find a replacement that doesn't taste TART when you add nicotine.  Based on my update from 6/5/2013, I will not be purchasing this eLiquid any more.  Maybe that's not possible, but I'm only at the beginning of my quest for the perfect Vape.  Won't you join me?

NOTE: I will revise/update some of these reviews after they've had a good, long steeping...


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