A Riot of Flavours or Just a Demonstration of Good Marketing?

As the number of e-liquids on the market grows companies are looking for an edge and an angle to tempt us discerning vapers into buying their wares.

The Riot Squad range has ‘anarchy’ and ‘rap’ as its marketing message hoping to appeal I guess to the younger generation.

After seeing the Riot Squad ‘crew’ perform live at the recent Vaper Expo I have henceforth been known to my ‘homies’ as Gangsta Grandad.

So to receive a ‘swag-bag’ from the ‘guys’ filled with not only 8 mouth-watering sounding e-liquids – but also a couple of Riot Squad official t-shirts – beanies – badge – a sticker AND a bandana – this old wrapper [is that how you spell it?] was delighted.

Sadly I cannot carry off the beanie hat looking more like Benny from Crossroads [younger folk Google it] than a cool dude and the t-shirts came in small and large.

Given I’m 6ft1 and touching 18 stone [ok 19] – sadly they don’t fit.

However the bandana looks great on my best mate Ruby the black lab – and now no-one messes with this Gangsta Labrador on our regular walks ☺

Anyway enough of me getting down with kids and ruining what little [if any] street cred I have in my ‘hood and let’s get to the important bit.

Do I predict the Riot Squad e-liquid collective will be massive?

Let’s do the all-important taste test.

All e-liquids were 3mg 70/30 PG/VG. All e-liquids are UK made and Diacetyl free, so big thumbs up on that point.

Flavours were tested on fresh Aspire Cleito and Aspire Atlantis Evo coil heads. Both tanks of which are very familiar to me.

Grapple and Slapcurrant

They say:

Slamming flavours of pummelled apple and whacking blackcurrant. Expect a bash from this one!

I say:

The first Riot Squad juice and definitely the best of the bunch for me – a fruity e-liquid blend that was just sweet enough and a very nice all day vape.

If fruity flavours are your thing this is definitely one for the short list.

Strawberry Scream

They say:

A sweet outrage that will wreak havoc on your taste buds, like no other creamy strawberry candy has ever done…

I say:

Think summer fresh strawberries floating in a puddle of ice cold fresh cream and you’ll get an idea – however the only screaming I did was ‘where’s the strawberry’.

This particular juice was far too sweet for me and I was left wanting more of strawberry flavour to rear it’s head.

Pink Grenade

They say:

Powerful explosive flavours of lemon with a hint of luscious violent strawberry to shatter your senses…

I say:

I’m getting a kind of sweet lemon cordial flavour on the inhale for sure but the ‘violent’ strawberry is more ‘slightly annoyed strawberry’ in that I can just about taste it.

Although the hint was there as described I would have liked the strawberry to be a touch more robust.

Tropical Fury

They say:

The powerful flavours of the tropics unleashed on your taste buds.

A powerful mix of bashed tropical fruit combined to deliver a tangy, intense vape with sparkly, warm after taste, an exotic blast of flavours…

I say:

I adore fruit flavoured e-liquids, however, with Tropical Fury my taste buds tried hard to differentiate between the flavours becoming confused and a touch furious.

Grapefruit seemed to be the only flavour I was picking up.

If, however, you like tangy grapefruit this is one for you.

Cola Cooler

They say:

Let cola chaos reign. A virtuous cola gone mad, with a sweet underlying flavour and a pow of menthol…

I say:

It has to be said, I dislike menthol e-liquid. And since reading that colas can have an adverse effect on a man’s nether regions I’ve gone off cola too.

Sadly this e-liquid tasted too much like a sickly over sweet peppermint cordial to me.

Menthol Molotov

They say:

A tropical fruit menthol attack to sabotage your senses and vandalise your taste buds…Just light the rag!

I say:

Back to menthol and I have to say my taste buds certainly were vandalized to the extent I thought I was tasting far too sweet mouthwash.

Not for me. Again, I’m not a menthol fan so keep that in mind.

If you are a menthol e-liquid lover though you may will enjoy this one.

Smashed Apple Pie

They say:

An apple pie gone rogue. Deliciously delinquent flavours of busted butter crust, hot apple and a hint of wicked vanilla…

I say:

Not sure what a rogue apple pie should taste of but this is a very sweet dessert e-liquid.

I’m getting a smidgen of tangy apple and the merest hint of buttery pastry but the whole thing gets lost with a far too large dollop of vanilla.

Sub Lime

They say:

Subversive flavours of sweet acidic lime and lemon that will mess up your senses and leave you with a sour after taste…

I say:

This juice just didn’t do it for me at all. The flavour came across more like an undiluted lime cordial.

Final Verdict

I was looking forward to trying the Riot Squad juice line. Yeah… The Vape Expo showing was definitely over the top but was all a bit of fun.

I was hoping the juices would shine through all the hype though.

For me, it just seemed to be a case of ‘over branding’ an e-liquid and not getting the all-important taste spot on.

It’s as if the flavourings have decided to rebel and join together in a confused riot, which in turn does indeed cause a form of anarchy on your taste buds but not in a good way.

One redeeming feature is the vapor production which was exceptional.

Remember, e-liquid reviews are subjective so maybe the Riot Squad e-liquid collective might be exactly what you’re looking to vape whilst being ‘kettled’ on your next demo.

But sadly the only ‘kettling’ I partake in these days is when making a nice cup of tea.

I urge you to check out other Riot Squad e liquid reviews on Youtube and around the web to get other vapers views. This is just one mans personal experience.

If you have tried Riot Squad E Liquid we would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!