An introduction to Black Note
Black Note are well known for their naturally extracted tobacco (NET) e-liquids. Rather than artificial tobacco flavorings, Black Note extract the flavor directly from real tobacco leaves. This is one of the oldest styles of e-liquid, but few makers of NET e-liquids have been as popular as Black Note.
Natural tobacco extracts are often described as tasting like tobacco smoke, but what they really taste like is tobacco without combustion. Think of the smell of a tin of fresh pipe tobacco, then translate that into a flavor. That’s what NETs are like!
Black Note e-liquids are now available in a variety of options. Their standard line consists of eight 50VG/50PG freebase nicotine juices, available in 0, 3, 6, 12, and 18 mg. The juices are now also offered in 70VG at the same nic strengths, as well as nicotine salt in 30 and 50 mg (soon in 20 mg as well). Finally, they recently released the Special Blend, a distillate that introduces the Coil Friendly line and comes in 50/50 and 70VG.
Price: $33 per 60 mL (50VG/50PG and High VG lines) $24.99 per 30 mL (Salt Nicotine line) $39 per 60 mL (Coil Friendly line). Free expedited shipping on US orders. (At Black Note)
Black Note e-liquid
American blend
Flavor Description:
The natural sweetness of the Virginia tobaccos, combined with Burley and Oriental tobaccos, offers an authentic American blend with the taste of the well-known classic cigarette, excluding the smoke, tar, carbon monoxide, and burnable material.
Thoughts:
Part of the "classic cigarette taste" line, American Blend is rugged. The eliquid is water-clear with a deep caramel hue. The aroma is sweet and tea-like. The taste is reminiscent of a "red" tobacco cigarette, which is more intense than Special Blend (the other new cigarette blend from Black Note).
Special blend (Coil Friendly)
Flavor Description: The Special Blend is extracted from Virginia, Burley, and Oriental tobacco. The tobacco flavor taste is exquisitely balanced, and the tobaccos are flue, air, & sun-cured, leading to a flavor profile reminiscent of a classic cigarette.
Thoughts: Special blend is currently the only juice of the Coil Friendly line. According to Black Note, it is a distillate, and it is "15% water, thanks to the newest technology from Black Note Labs, making Water-Based Tobacco Vaping flavor Possible." As far as flavor goes, it is mild tobacco liquid that has an earthy quality to it. It tastes less like a cigarette than the American blend but with a more distinguished tobacco flavor. The bright notes of Virginia and sweetness from Oriental tobaccos are prominent.
Cavendish tobacco
Flavor Description: Dark ripe Virginia tobacco is treated to a centuries-old curing process, producing a robustly rich and intense blend. Virginia tobacco leaves are precisely primed, oak barrel-cured, and steamed to brilliant intensity.
Thoughts: Cavendish tobacco has a subtly sweet touch to it — but it's a Cavendish type of sweetness from the curing process, not anything like fruit sweetness. It's a mild tobacco flavor, suitable for those that want the taste without the hard edge of tobacco. If you're looking for a complex and mild tobacco juice, this is for you. If you want something unrelenting, go for any Black Note juices with a fire-cured tobacco (like Latakia!).
Kentucky tobacco
Flavor Description: Enjoy the earthy and nutty flavor of Italian Kentucky tobacco, fire-cured to release the plant’s natural resins. This American tobacco cultivar is grown in Tuscany and features an undeniably earthy flair.
Thoughts: Kentucky really stands out in terms of flavor complexity. It has a woody flavor on the inhale with a legit smokiness on the exhale. Consistent throughout the vape is a nutty taste which reminds me of State Express cigarettes (or 555-style ejuice—like Halo Prime 15). This is probably best suited for those that want more than a straight tobacco taste because of the multi-layered flavor profile.
Virginia tobacco
Flavor description: Virginia tobacco sets the stage for the light, bright and naturally sweet taste of Prelude. Grown in the sandy plains surrounding the Italian Alps, Virginia tobacco leaves are flue-cured to perfection.
Thoughts: Virginia has a lovely sweet buttery tobacco flavor, which was absolutely to die for. Despite me not normally liking tobacco flavors that much, I would vape this e-liquid as my all day vape for sure! This for those that want a tobacco juice with a smooth and mellow profile.
Menthol tobacco blend
Flavor description: Turkish small leaf tobacco is sun-cured then overlaid with a menthol extract derived from genuine peppermint leaves. The result is a fresh, crisp, mellow and ultra-smooth experience.
Thoughts: This is perhaps the nicest most refreshing mint/menthol flavor that I've tried (and I've tested many). The natural mint extract is really flavorful and pronounced, but I find you can’t really taste the tobacco flavor underneath, as the mint flavor is quite overpowering. If you like menthol vapes then this is definitely a must try e-juice for you!
Burley tobacco
Flavor Description: Burley tobacco provides a rich, smooth experience in this crowd favorite. Cultivated on the foothills of Italian volcano Vesuvius, the tobacco is sun-ripened, shade-cooled and bursting with full-bodied flavor.
Our Thoughts: The tobacco flavor and overall taste is very clean and smooth. There's not much complexity to it, or any other frills and extras. This is more of a pure tobacco leaf taste. Of all the flavors from Black Note's regular line, this one is easily the most straightforward.
Latakia tobacco
Flavor description: Latakia incorporates the four elements of sun, fire, earth, and air to produce a rich, intense smoky-peppery tobacco. The blend embraces the Syrian Latakia process of sun-curing the tobacco, then smoke-curing over controlled fires of Valonia oak, Aleppo pine, Lebanon cedar, Greek juniper and indigenous aromatic herbs. The result is a powerfully distinct symphonic delight for the senses.
Thoughts: The most complex and and true tobacco taste from Black Note. This is for the hardcore among us! For anyone familiar with Latakia, this is an uncompromising smokey flavor from a fire-cured tobacco. It's an intense flavor for those not accustomed to tobacco, but it should impress smokers or ex-smokers. Out of all Black Note liquids, this one tastes the closest to smoking... but much better.
The Black Note e-liquids are completely free of chemical additives and synthetic flavors. Even their mint flavor is naturally extracted using the same cold maceration process as their tobacco.
Their e-liquid does not contain any diacetyl, acetyl propionyl, acrolein or acetoin.
Black Note e-liquids are available in 50/50 and 70VG freebase nicotine, and 50/50 nicotine salt.
The Black Note packaging and branding was one of the best branding we have come across on any e-liquid. Everything was stunning down to the finest details.
Black Note have nine flavors currently available. While their flavors are now named after the tobacco varieties they consist of, they used to be all based on musical terms—they compared their e-liquids to the sounds produced by a saxophone, which cannot be replicated by electric instruments. The same can be said for the majority of tobacco e-liquids which fail to mimic the true tobacco flavor. See what they did there?
Black Note e-liquids are not cheap at all, though. One of their standard 60 mL e-liquid bottles costs $33, but this does include free expedited shipping for US domestic orders.
Verdict
Black Note e-liquids really surprised us with their quality and flavor. None of the flavors were really harsh, sour, or bitter like you can get from a traditional tobacco juice. We really loved that if there was a sweetness to the e-liquid, it was a very subtle, smooth, and very natural tasting. They're easily some of the best-tasting natural tobacco e-juices we've ever tried. Even those who aren’t the biggest fans of tobacco flavors may love these—particularly those currently trying to make the switch.
We can't say that you will love them all, but if you are looking for authentic tobacco flavor, it's almost impossible not to find one that will satisfy you. The fact that they are transparent in their manufacturing and don’t add any synthetic flavors, dyes, or chemical additives to their e-juices makes them a bonafide natural tobacco vendor with no funny business. We highly recommend Black Note to anyone searching for true tobacco flavor in ejuice.
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