Following a recent meeting with the chaps at Red Espresso, I naturally wanted to know whether Rooibos can be vaped... as one does! I know Rooibos concentrate is available from one or two local vendors but suspect it is merely an artificial flavoring and contains no "real" Rooibos.
For my experiment, I used the Red Espresso ground Rooibos, commonly used at most restaurants and coffee shops. Note that this product is a premium Rooibos, ground to be able to be extracted using a traditional espresso machine. I doubt that regular FreshPak teabags will work, unless you grind it in a coffee grinder, etc.
I used the same method I use to make NEC (naturally extracted coffee) and it worked a treat. If you want to know the process, I am happy to share. I dubbed this NET as is Naturally Extracted Tea.
I managed to get about 7ml of Rooibos extract and made a couple of 10ml tasters.
The distinctive, strong and sometimes overpowering, Rooibos smell was not evident which surprised me - in a good way! I have vivid memories/nightmares of boarding school (and hospitals) where the lingering smell of over-extracted Rooibos lingered in the passages on a permanent basis.
The taste was subtle and undeniably Rooibos but by no means "in your face" or off-putting. The concentrate is a dark red/brownish colour and the resulting juice had a similar colour.
For the base flavour, I played with various %'s as I had no reference. I started at 2% and bumped it up 5%, which is for me, the perfect starting point.
Red Cappuccino
5% Rooibos NET
3% Cap Bavarian Cream
0.1% FA Honey
0.1% FLV Rich Cinnamon
This is the the signature Red Espresso recipe and been around for 14 years. I attempted to recreate the taste profiles and kept it as simple as possible as I didn't want to compromise the delicate Rooibos flavour. This is a fantastic vape and I was well impressed!!
A note on the honey and cinnamon. FLV Rich Cinnamon is POTENT, VERY POTENT. I used half a drop in the test and recommend 1 drop per 30ml. Same with honey, 2 drops max...
For my experiment, I used the Red Espresso ground Rooibos, commonly used at most restaurants and coffee shops. Note that this product is a premium Rooibos, ground to be able to be extracted using a traditional espresso machine. I doubt that regular FreshPak teabags will work, unless you grind it in a coffee grinder, etc.
I used the same method I use to make NEC (naturally extracted coffee) and it worked a treat. If you want to know the process, I am happy to share. I dubbed this NET as is Naturally Extracted Tea.
I managed to get about 7ml of Rooibos extract and made a couple of 10ml tasters.
The distinctive, strong and sometimes overpowering, Rooibos smell was not evident which surprised me - in a good way! I have vivid memories/nightmares of boarding school (and hospitals) where the lingering smell of over-extracted Rooibos lingered in the passages on a permanent basis.
The taste was subtle and undeniably Rooibos but by no means "in your face" or off-putting. The concentrate is a dark red/brownish colour and the resulting juice had a similar colour.
For the base flavour, I played with various %'s as I had no reference. I started at 2% and bumped it up 5%, which is for me, the perfect starting point.
Red Cappuccino
5% Rooibos NET
3% Cap Bavarian Cream
0.1% FA Honey
0.1% FLV Rich Cinnamon
This is the the signature Red Espresso recipe and been around for 14 years. I attempted to recreate the taste profiles and kept it as simple as possible as I didn't want to compromise the delicate Rooibos flavour. This is a fantastic vape and I was well impressed!!
A note on the honey and cinnamon. FLV Rich Cinnamon is POTENT, VERY POTENT. I used half a drop in the test and recommend 1 drop per 30ml. Same with honey, 2 drops max...
