Hangsen (HS) Concentrate Reviews

[Rude Rudi]

Thread for Hangsen (HS) Concentrate Reviews.
Thanks to @Richio at Blck Vapour for supplying these flavours for the purpose of these reviews.

 

[Rude Rudi]

HS Italian Cream
Mixed at 2% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

Notes:
If you are looking for a rich, creamy, no-nonsense cream - look no further. There are so many descriptors for this creamy stunner that I will have to restrain myself. This tastes like like pure, thick, rich, smooth cream - almost like Mascarpone or traditional British clotted cream. This baby will set the stage for your recipe and add loads of body and mouth-feel. Be careful, she is strong, very strong. This will overpower most fruits and brighter flavors above 2% and mute them completely. Start low - most recipes suggest around 1%.

This has no synthetic or chemical taste - just pure butter-cream goodness. It mellows out nicely after about 3 days and I found no discernible change in the profile = it tasted similar after 3, 5, 7 and 10 days.

A fabulous base for a smoothie, topping/filling for a pastry, body to a custard or cream based vape.

Recommend to a friend: Yebo
Rating: 5/5

 

[Rude Rudi]

HS French Vanilla Ice Cream
Mixed at 4.5% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

A beautiful full and rich ice cream and an ideal replacement or those the TFA VBIC pepper folk… As a standalone, it is great but many mixers use it as a base to create something outstanding.

As per notcharlesmanson “It needs a little TFA Vanilla Swirl (2%) or HS Italian Cream (.5%) to help boost it into something amazing.”

This tastes like the melted ice-cream you like off your hand on a hot summers day. The sweetness here is perfectly balanced and allows the mixer the flexibility of increasing the sweetness (or creaminess) without it resulting in an over-sweetened mess.

This will be new go-to ice cream.

Recommend to a friend: Yebo
Rating: 5/5

 

[Rude Rudi]

HS Banana
Mixed at 0.8% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

Boy oh boy - you want banana? If you are looking for a genuine, authentic, fresh off the bunch banana then your prayers have been answered! No synthetic, yellow sweetie banana like taste - this is the real deal.

This is, by far, the most realistic banana flavor out there. The flavor is that of a fresh, not overly ripe, yellow banana, peel and all. Not the mushy, brown and over sweet type - the just ready kind…

Use this low though (look, it rhymes!) - anything over 2% will make this turn nasty. This is an accent flavor and not to be confused with the current crap available. Added to LA Banana Cream and it is a thing of beauty!

I’ve been making Banana Brûlée for a while - but always had to sub the banana… I remade a (substantial) batch of this using HS Banana and it is sublime! What’s more, its good to go after 3 days!!

Recommend to a friend: Yebo
Rating: 5/5

 

[Rude Rudi]

HS Apple Mix
Mixed at 3% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

Fizzmustard (the creator of Mustard Milk, perfectly sums this one up:
“Apple Mix is a very interesting – and in my opinion mis-named – flavor. It seems like it would just be a mixture of several varieties of apple. In reality it's a very clean and bright mix of tart apple, cranberry and a subtle bit of cinnamon spice.

With that said, all I can add is that this is very reminiscent of Apple Cider - not the cheap ass rubbish - more of a premium cider vibe. This will add tons of body and complexity to your apple based recipes but not a sweet, apple juice type recipe. This is more suited, paired with Liquid Amber, to a bakery type recipe as well as a full bodied, complex, cider.

Recommend to a friend: Yebo
Rating: 5/5

 

[Rude Rudi]

HS Hazelnut Coffee
Mixed at 4% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

So, the hunt for a vapable coffee juice continues… Have our prayers been answered… Have Hangsen been able to finally bring us something that actually tastes like coffee? Alas, the short answer (for me) is no…

This, compared to other Coffee Flavors, is not bad - it is just not great either. The familiar burnt, artificial coffee/rubber taste is all to familiar to set this apart form the rest. Most recipes use this as the base and add a touch of FA UP to provide a “fuller” coffee profile. I tired this trick and it unfortunately did not do the trick for me…

I get the flavor of roasted hazelnuts, but strangely only on the exhale. The smell is there but the taste is not - if that makes sense…?

Recommend to a friend: Haibo
Rating: 2/5

 

[Silver]

Great reviews @Rude Rudi
Thank you for the efforts
That banana and apple mix sound amazing
And informative on the coffee one

 

[incredible_hullk]

Wait u telling me blck has HS.... oooh Hs Ry4!!!!!

 

[Vino1718]

HS Hazelnut Coffee
Mixed at 4% in 70/30 VG/PG 0mg nic
Tested on a Goon RDA, 0.24 Ohms, 50W
Steep time: 10 days

So, the hunt for a vapable coffee juice continues… Have our prayers been answered… Have Hangsen been able to finally bring us something that actually tastes like coffee? Alas, the short answer (for me) is no…

This, compared to other Coffee Flavors, is not bad - it is just not great either. The familiar burnt, artificial coffee/rubber taste is all to familiar to set this apart form the rest. Most recipes use this as the base and add a touch of FA UP to provide a “fuller” coffee profile. I tired this trick and it unfortunately did not do the trick for me…

I get the flavor of roasted hazelnuts, but strangely only on the exhale. The smell is there but the taste is not - if that makes sense…?

Recommend to a friend: Haibo
Rating: 2/5

Friend (@DanielSLP ) rates this as SC and should be used between 0.5 - 1.5%. I've used it in a mix @2% but still get the burnt taste. Will see how my 2% mix steeps and report back.

 

[RichJB]

First up, many thanks as ever to @Richio from Blck Vapour for providing the flavours for review purposes. Your willingness to engage with the DIY community and generously provide products for independent review is always appreciated and admired.

HS Banana
Tested in the Hadaly, 0.6Ω Ni80 simple contact coil at 25W, Cotton Bacon v2 wick
Tested at 0.5, 0.8, 1.5 and 2.5%

Sniff test: convincing authentic banana, over-ripe, with an oily note

Flavour notes: candid disclosure up front - I did not have an easy time with HS Banana. Of all the flavours I've tested, this one is probably the most different from what I was expecting. The conventional wisdom is that if you use HS Banana low (1% or less) you will get a fresh banana that is as close to authentic as you will find, but that increasing it much beyond 1% will skew the flavour towards the artificial yellow foam candy banana note that plagues almost all banana flavours. Accordingly, I started my testing at 0.5% and then 0.8%, getting little beyond the taste of VG with a faint banana whiff. Bumping it up to 1.5% was a slight improvement but it was only when I lost patience and increased it to 2.5% that I got what I would call a full-bodied flavour from it. It straddles the line between authentic and runts. Happily, there is only a faint suggestion of runts but it is just enough to stop it short of being a legit fresh banana. It's a pleasing medium-bodied flavour with the right level of sweetness. If it was just that, it would be a winner. But it isnt...

Off-notes: this is the problem. I was hoping that my sniff test wouldn't apply to the vape but it did. There is a fermented note to the vape, overlaid with an oily note. It was rank freshly mixed and does diminish with a steep but, 18 days in, I'm still getting enough of that over-ripe oily vibe that I can't look past it. I'm also getting a slight headache from vaping it. That is usually a sign of over-flavouring. However, the off-notes were clear at lower percentages as well, it hasn't gone floral or perfumey at 2.5%, and I just cannot get full flavour from it at the low percentages recommended.

Uses: despite the off-notes, I will persevere with this. I think it could well be one of those flavours that mixes a lot better than it fares standalone. I mixed Krucial's C-GOAT which pairs HS Banana at 1% with TFA Banana Cream. It's only 12 days into the steep, not enough for a custard to mature, but is already a tasty vape with no off-notes. I would be inclined to follow Krucial's lead, use it low and pair it with other bananas. If those off-notes are masked by other flavours in the mix, it'll be a winner.

Recommend: as contradictory as it may sound after what I've written above, I would recommend this. CheebaSteeba and NotCharlesManson have far more acute palates than I do and they both rate HS as their favourite banana flavour of all. Taste is subjective and I figure that I am in a very small minority who have problems with this flavour. My suspicion, especially considering the headache I got from testing it, is that there is a chemical in this which doesn't agree with me but which probably wouldn't bother the majority of vapers. Especially if you have been after an authentic banana (and who hasn't?), do not let my notes deter you.

 

[RichJB]

HS Juicy Peach
Tested in the Hadaly, 0.6Ω Ni80 simple contact coil at 25W, Cotton Bacon v2 wick
Tested at 0.5, 1, 3 and 4%

Sniff test: authentic medium yellow peach

Flavour notes: as difficult a time as I had with HS Banana, my time with HS Juicy Peach was all reward. I tested at four different percentages and all of them delivered. At the lower end of the spectrum, the most prominent flavour I got was of the dark red ring of flesh right in the centre of the peach, the strands of flesh that connect to the pip. It has that exact dark, earthy quality. Up at 4%, I also got a burst of skin flavour, the dark red skin that still has fuzz on it. If you want candied peach rings or skinless tinned peach slices in syrup, this isn't the flavour. Instead, it's the whole fruit of the dark red variety, blemishes and all. It is the most authentic peach I've tried. It's not particularly juicy but isn't dry either, and feels like eating the sort of peach where you don't have to wash your hands afterwards - firm and juicy but not messy. Although the red notes are most prominent, there is also a yellow fleshy body underneath. The sweetness level is on point for that variety of peach, less than I would expect from a tinned peach. But that is fine, I can add sweetness but I can't take it out. It may not sound that appetising to have a peach flavour that reflects mostly the furry skin and the flesh attaching to the pip. But this is a deliciously authentic flavour that I enjoyed even standalone.


Off-notes: nothing. I wish I got throat hit so I could provide some feedback on whether this is a throat-ripper like many other peach flavours. But it caused me no discomfort.


Uses: anywhere you need authentic, full-fruit peach. I can imagine this pairing spectacularly with other fruits like mangoes and strawberries. There is no chance of the peach note getting bullied or vanishing so it will register even in a busy multi-fruit mix. It's probably not ideal for beverages or bakeries as peaches for those applications are usually skinned/peeled. But for chunks of fresh peach, it's spot on. I'd keep it at 0.5-1.5% for a peach accent, 2.5-3% for primary peach flavour. It cranks up just fine to 4% but it will probably bully more delicate fruit flavours that high. As a secondary peach in a combo, it will add that pip & skin red note, which comes through clear as a bell even as low as 0.5%.


Recommend: heck yeah. This rapidly became my favourite peach.

 

[Silver]

Informative on the peach, thanks @RichJB !

 

[RichJB]

HS Ice Cream
Tested in the Hadaly, 0.6Ω Ni80 simple contact coil at 25W, Cotton Bacon v2 wick
Tested at 0.5, 2, 3 and 4%

Sniff test: buttery note underneath a rich caramel that is more than just a soft crack or caramel topping, almost like a caramel mixed with an Oreo. Interesting and very different from the run of the mill Vanilla Bean Ice Creams.

Flavour notes: when I sniff-tested this, I thought I'd mistakenly opened the HS Caramel Toffee instead, as there is a pronounced caramel note to it. A quick check verified that I was indeed testing the Ice Cream, which is a couple of shades more amber than the Caramel Toffee and the darkest of the four HS flavours I received for testing. Although HS Ice Cream is usually used in the 0.5-2% range, it's almost always in combination with and to bolster other creams. At 0.5%, I got little more than base with some generic sweetness so I immediately bumped it up to 2%. A smooth, rich and dense caramel cream emerged, with not much egginess or vanilla, and a subtle butter note under the distinctive caramel. If I had to name this flavour, "Caramel Ripple" would be my choice as it's a good neutral ice cream base but with a definite beige swirl in it. It has really dense mouth feel and richness and is probably a touch too sweet for my tastes but that is appropriate for the profile. At 3%, everything dialed up a notch and at 4% an interesting change occurred. More on that in the Uses section. Overall it's a tasty vape, even standalone. I polished off my 10ml tester and suspect I may make another one. You know, for science...


Off-notes: nothing off-putting although I'm not sure I'll always want that caramel note. You can get around it by mixing low but north of 1.5%, it registers clearly for me.


Uses: the standard approach to this seems to be keeping it low and letting it thicken and enrich other creams and ice creams. At low percentages, it's not going to upset the balance of other creams as neither egg nor vanilla nor butter dominates. It's just an excellent supporting cream. However, at 4%, the caramel suddenly pushed over the top into a quite convincing honey note for me. I found it too rich to vape standalone for long but if you ever needed a really dense cream with honey, HS Ice Cream at 4% will get you most of the way there. If you wanted a caramel equivalent of Butterscotch Ripple, this could be the primary or solo cream at 2-2.5%. Otherwise just pick your favourite cream/ice cream, add 0.5-1.5% of HS Ice Cream and let it do its complementary thang.


Recommend: for sure. I'll be using this a ton. You can never have too many creams and this one is a keeper.

 

[Patrick]

HS Green Orange

Setup: Pulse 24, N80 Fused Claptons @ .24 ohms. 60w power. Full Cotton Wicks.

Testing: HS Green Orange @ 2%,,4%, 6%,. 70/30 VG/PG, Steeped 22 days.

Initial SNV thoughts: Nothing much at 2% SNV. A hint of orange, nice freshness, with a bit of clean orange rind. No bitter bergamot flavours going on here.

Flavour Description: Generic orangyness but I find it mild. Bumped up to 4 and then 6%. At 6, there is a bitterness of the rind coming through. ConcreteRiver picks up the bitter note at 2% which says something about one or both of us. It’s an interesting orange and I must confess that I’ve spent inordinate amounts of time trying to find the perfect orange. And no, Shisha Orange, is not the answer for me. I find it sledgehammer strong and linear in flavour. Green orange has a lot of good orange flesh in it, fresh, a little sweet and wet and then a pleasing rind. 2-4% to hold the orange as the focal point of a mix.

Throat Hit: 2/10.

Uses: This is a stylish, sophisticated flavour and my first sense would be in bakeries. I’m thinking orange blossom Madeleines and, yes, I checked, there is such a thing. Anywhere where you would need a suggestion of a complex orange, it would do a great job. Because of its profile, I would think that you could use a range of other oranges to bring out different elements. At 3% it would offer a solid backbone and one could shade in around that.

Overall: For the past two years I have circled around any number of oranges, like a dog returning to its vomit, and have always left disappointed. I don’t want Oros, or orange creamsicle. Green orange offers a different angle and an opening to a more classy rendition. Creme Brûlée, orange meringue etc. Worth another excursion for any fellow orange lovers.

 

[Patrick]

HS Italian Cream

Setup: Pulse 24, N80 Fused Claptons @ .24 ohms. 60w power. Full Cotton Wicks.

Testing: HS Italian Cream @ 2%, 3%. 70/30 VG/PG, Steeped 18 days.

Initial SNV thoughts: A magnificent cream straight away. Heavy mouthfeel carrying a rich butter underneath. This is not a whipping cream but a double thick treacle cream.

Flavor Description: Nearly 3 weeks later and all the same notes are here, but heavier than expected. There’s a little vanilla on the inhale and tonnes of butter and solid cream goodness on the exhale. More intense at 3% and I wouldn’t be inclined to push it too far beyond that. 1-4% is the kid’s happy play ground for this.

Throat Hit: 0/10.

Uses: This is the umami of creams. I really like this and will be using it where I’m looking for bass cream notes in a recipe, It would work with TFA Vanilla Bean Ice Cream to give it more cream. I think it could be hugely versatile. Any time you’re looking for a rich, decadent cream I would suggest this. It could easily be used in the same ways as marshmallow and meringue are added to shade a particular recipe.

Overall: Well worth having if you’re looking for a double cream, like those creams that don’t pour from the container but reluctantly slide out with a satisfying gloop.

 

[Patrick]

HS French Vanilla Ice Cream

Setup: Pulse 24, N80 Fused Claptons @ .24 ohms. 60w power. Full Cotton Wicks.

Testing: HS French Vanilla Ice Cream @ 2%, 3% 70/30 VG/PG, Steeped 18 days.

Initial SNV thoughts: Not getting much of an ice cream flavour initially. More of a heavy cream. Verve and Chrisdvr describe it as buttermilk and I wouldn’t go that far but I get what they’re saying.

Flavour Description: Massively heavy mouthfeel, still very creamy, a little sweet but still not what I would immediately identify as an ice cream. Oh, and there’s lots of a delicious vanilla in there as well. More umami to it which must be the flavour profile that HS is going for with their creams. And it works a treat. It’s a creamy sub-woofer.

Throat Hit: 2/10.

Uses: This is going to be hugely useful. I would reckon that used in combination with TPA Vanilla Bean Ice Cream (VBIC: FVIC 2:1) it will give your ice cream a fat bottom in the best sort of way. Pushing it up to 3% intensifies all of those features, so 2-4% will give you everything that you need. One can sub with lots of the generic vanilla/cream standards and because of its slight sweetness it would work well as a sub for the TPA/FW/CAP Sweet creams.

Overall: I think that HS has found a niche with its Italian Cream and this one. Both are very useful and early experimentation with existing recipes has shown that they are both able to add a decadent, but classy arse to the bottom notes.

 

[Patrick]

HS Blueberry

Setup: Pulse 24, N80 Fused Claptons @ .24 ohms. 60w power. Full Cotton Wicks.

Testing: HS Blueberry @ 2%, 4%. 70/30 VG/PG, Steeped 22 days.

Initial SNV thoughts: Unlike any blueberry I’ve ever had and I’m pretty sure I’ve tried most of them. There’s a really interesting tang to this, almost sour but makes the overall experience more real. That said it sits equipoised between a fresh version and a candy one and will be swayed either way depending what you put behind it.

Flavour Description: I rather liked OOO Blue Raspberry for its candy/authentic profile which makes it versatile in going candy like or real fruit. HS Blueberry is a bit like that as well but way, way better. Heavy on the tongue on the inhale and then a delightful, slightly candy flavour on the exhale. Unmistakably berry and still a bit of a tang. 2% is more than present and I’m sure it just intensifies at 4%. I wouldn’t push it much beyond that because it does more than enough at 4%.

Throat Hit: 0/10.

Uses: I’m sure that you can go either way with ease*. Take it into bakeries or take it into candies. The first thing that came to mind was a Blueberry Cheesecake. I’ve always worked blueberry recipes with FW forward and then supported by Wild and Extra (3:2:1). I’m going to try this as a single blueberry but I think it would play well (at low percentages) with the FW version.

Overall: Based on a single flavour test, I think I might have found a brand new friend in the orchard.

Edit/update: *While I still stand by my affection for this flavour, it does not play happily in bakeries and should be reserved for candies, lemonades and cocktails.

This simple berry cake did not like HS Blueberry:

1.50% Blueberry (Hangsen) Use FW Blueberry at same %
3.00% Blueberry Extra (TPA)
3.00% Cake (White) (FW)
1.00% Cream Cheese Icing (LA)
1.00% Strawberry (Ripe) (TPA)
5.00% Strawberry (VG) (Real Flavors)

Flavor total: 14.5%

 

[Silver]

Great notes @Patrick
Thanks for all the efforts!

 

[Rude Rudi]

@Patrick these are classic quotes my man - you'd better trademark them quick!!!

like a dog returning to its vomit, and have always left disappointed.

but reluctantly slide out with a satisfying gloop.

it will give your ice cream a fat bottom in the best sort of way.

but classy arse to the bottom notes.

I might have found a brand new friend in the orchard.

Fantastic notes - I'm definitely getting the Green Orange - it will work beautifully, based on your description, in one of my top 5 recipes of all time = Creme de Orange. The most delirious and simple 3 ingredient juice you will find - I make 100mls at a time...I sometimes add some to the bath water

 

[Patrick]

@Patrick these are classic quotes my man - you'd better trademark them quick!!!











Fantastic notes - I'm definitely getting the Green Orange - it will work beautifully, based on your description, in one of my top 5 recipes of all time = Creme de Orange. The most delirious and simple 3 ingredient juice you will find - I make 100mls at a time...I sometimes add some to the bath water

Thanks. The dog and the vomit is Sam Beckett's line though. And I'm joining you on the Creme de Orange. I purposefully avoided reading your reviews and @RichJB so that I could come at it cleanly, but I'm glad to see that we're all pretty much in the same HS sandpit. Thanks to both of you for your reviews.

 

[RichJB]

ConcreteRiver picks up the bitter note at 2% which says something about one or both of us.

He is a very annoying man, to be sure. He gives a long and detailed description of the various notes he's getting from a flavour at 0.25%. I try the same flavour at the same % and get VG. Curse these super-tasters, they make everyone else feel so inadequate. Although I maintain it's the Shasta Soda that he drinks in between puffs. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

 

[Andre]

Thank you for all the great notes @Patrick, @Rude Rudi and @RichJB. I need another concentrate cupboard!

 

[RichJB]

HS Caramel Toffee
Tested in the Hadaly, 0.6Ω Ni80 simple contact coil at 25W, Cotton Bacon v2 wick
Tested at 0.5, 1, 2, 3 and 4%

Sniff test: creamy medium-brown caramel

Flavour notes: caramel is an odd profile, I've never had one that was flat-out bad but also never had one that really nailed a thick but gooey soft-crack caramel topping. Despite its acknowledged shortcomings (thinness/lack of mouth feel, grittiness), FA Carmel has almost become a default, being used in five times as many ATF recipes as its closest competitors. Is HS Caramel Toffee set to redress the balance and challenge for the title? In a word - no. It's not that it's a bad flavour. Quite the contrary, it's very good. It's just that it doesn't offer anything wildly different or exciting. Used under 2%, it does what you'd expect from a caramel, adding generic sweetness and little else. Dial it up to 3% and a pleasingly authentic caramel toffee emerges. It is smooth, creamy, has decent body, and is immediately reminiscent of the Wilson's Cream Caramels that are sold in flat cardboard containers. It is a chewy medium-brown toffee, not a pale milky toffee nor a harder and darker 'snap' toffee. The sweetness level is realistic without being overbearing. It is quite tasty and true to the profile without inducing me to keep vaping it.


Off-notes: nothing, this is pleasingly free of the somewhat astringent chemical notes that affect some caramels.


Uses: caramel mostly sees use as an accent, bridge or sweetener at low levels of <1.5%. This will offer much the same as other caramels in that role. Its strong suit will be as an actual caramel candy with caramel/toffee as the top note. At 3%, it offers good body and creaminess in that role. Oddly, bumping it to 4% seemed to cause a bit of muting and a drop in sweetness level. But... do you want to vape caramel candy as is, rather than as an accent for a sweet bakery or dessert?


Recommend: if you are just starting out in DIY and don't have a caramel yet, this is a solid choice that will prove useful. If you already have a favourite caramel (probably FA), I don't think HS Caramel Toffee will add anything groundbreaking.

 

[Silver]

Very insightful @RichJB
Thanks

 

[Patrick]

@Patrick these are classic quotes my man - you'd better trademark them quick!!!











Fantastic notes - I'm definitely getting the Green Orange - it will work beautifully, based on your description, in one of my top 5 recipes of all time = Creme de Orange. The most delirious and simple 3 ingredient juice you will find - I make 100mls at a time...I sometimes add some to the bath water

@Rude Rudi I made that recipe with a couple of small changes. 0.3% Bergamot, 0.2% Super Sweet and the HS Green Orange at 4.5% as a sub for the Blood Orange. The bergamot is there because it accentuates the sophisticated notes of the green orange and the Super Sweet because it extracts the juice more. The resultant vape (after 3 weeks) oddly reminds me of Cohen's "Suzanne" -- "and she feeds you tea and oranges that come all the way from China". Finally, a grown up orange.