Last Updated on February 11, 2016 by
Julia Interviews Ripe Vapes
Before you read this fascinating review I’d like to suggest you take a good look at the review our team published today for Ripe Vapes. This terrific company might only have four flavors, but they are incredible eLiquids, each and every one. Of course, taste being subjective and all, it’s important that you read each of the five team members impressions before deciding which ones you’d like to try first. So, go on, read the review, we’ll wait…. back so soon? Okay then, enjoy the interview – Julia
SPINFUEL: What advice do you have for people that are new to vaping? Should they start out with a mini-eCig and prefilled cartomizers or should they dive right in with eGo/Spinner type batteries and clearomizers, or even larger? What level of vaping gear would you suggest if someone wanted to switch to vaping?
Ripe Vapes: That’s a really good question. I think it all depends on what your motive for vaping is. If your vaping to quit smoking than I think its all about what gives you that similar feel that a cigarette was giving you, whatever helps you the most not smoke cigarettes is the key. So maybe in that case a mini e-cig would do the trick or something that has that cigarette feel. However, if you are in it because you love the flavors and the science and the culture of it than I think you go big and get a mod that will allow you to get the full flavor of the juice, and allow you to start to tinker around with all the different settings to find your specific preference.
SPINFUEL: When and why did your company decide to get into e-juice business?
Ripe Vapes: We felt that while there was an ever-growing selection of flavors and brands, there wasn’t a lot of attention being paid to detail. It sort of felt like people were rushing to sell a juice and make a quick buck and not giving the vaping community what they should be getting. Don’t get us wrong, there are some great juice companies out there, we just felt that we could take an approach that kept things simple and that by paying attention to detail and spending a little extra time and money we could make a line of juice that could satisfy the vaping community that hadn’t found what they were looking for in a juice brand.
SPINFUEL: How did you learn to make eLiquids? Did it take long to master the art of mixing? At what point did you decide to go “pro”?
Ripe Vapes: That question belongs solely to our “mad scientist” Mr. Drew Summey.
DREW “Hah! Well I have to say that’s an interesting question only because I never think you can master this process. It’s kind of like practicing spirituality in that you can always improve your understanding but you can never say you’ve fully completed learning. It took me month after month to develop one flavor. It’s why we only have four. Every batch you get closer and closer to what your looking for but it can always be better. And then when you finally nailed what you were looking for, you find you want something totally new and the process starts again on another flavor. So I’d say that it’s easy to pick up but something you can never truly master. As to your question about when to go pro, that’s a bit easier. When people started trying to buy samples that I had whipped up at my house (of course I never sold it to them, I gave it to them) and then begging me to make more and more I knew it was time. It was about as big of a sign to go pro I guess you could say.
SPINFUEL: What is your idea of a good ‘all-day’ vape?
Ripe Vapes: An all-day vape is something you never are truly tired of no matter how many times you vaped it our how much of it you’ve used. It’s that song that never gets old and always get you going when you hear it or that go to meal that never sounds bad. It doesn’t have to always blow your mind, nothing is going to blow your mind 24/7, but it does have to be the vape that did get your rocks off from the very first taste and that sticks with you like an old friend, always there, always the same, always adds to my experience of the day.
SPINFUEL: Is your eJuice ‘ready to vape’ or do you recommend ‘home steeping’ for a day or more?
Ripe Vapes: This is one of the things that we felt needed to be addressed. A lot of juices are mixed and bottled on the same day. We feel that is like eating fruit while its still green. Its part of the reason we named the company Ripe Vapes. The juice needs to steep. It needs time in a cool, dark space to blend together. It brings out the flavor of your ingredients and you get that nice thick viscosity that makes it rich and smooth when you vape it. Its amazing actually how much the juice changes. Its sort of like any fruit or vegetable. As they ripen they peak and become more flavorful. Same goes with the juice.
SPINFUEL: Why is American Made e-Juice so important to you? (If it is) Before you became an eJuice flavorist/creator, was “buying American” as it pertained to eLiquids important you personally?
Ripe Vapes: Personally, American Made is, was, and will be important. We don’t want to come off as those that are such nationalists that we feel superior or anything like that, its just that we are proud of who we are and we are lucky to live in a country that allows leisurely pleasures like vaping. So, in order to support what we love, we try and support the people and companies that make it possible. That is also why we support our military, local shops, and suppliers.
SPINFUEL: How would you describe your company’s flavors? (Subtle, obvious, strong, etc.)
Ripe Vapes: Sophisticated but approachable….Delicious
SPINFUEL: How far do you think the FDA should go when it comes to regulation?
Ripe Vapes: We believe there needs to be some quality assurance as to the manufacturing process and the ingredients, particularly ensuring that nicotine levels are consistent and correct and that certain chemicals are kept out of all juices. The FDA’s job is to make sure that we can trust the products that we buy. It’s important for the Vaping Community to ensure safe products so that we don’t give reasons for groups against vaping to further restrict it. Now, that being said, we don’t want to see them step in and make it impossible to make juice unless you have the resources of a company such as those in the “Big Tobacco” industry.
Not to sound like conspiracy theorists but our feeling is that the boys over at Big Tobacco are not happy that small companies are allowed to produce their owns brands of juice, and are going to do whatever they can possible do crush all the little juice companies out of the game. That is the worst and once again have full control over the nicotine game and offer only their line of eCigs and juices because the FDA set the bar so high that it has to be made in a multi million-dollar facility and require testing similar to new medication. That is our fear. I know that Big Tobacco is not a fun bunch to go up against so we will see how this pans out. The funny part of this whole thing is that cigarettes are FDA approved….We don’t understand that part. No matter where you make em, how clean the facility is or how nice and shiny the packaging is, those things kill more people than just about anything else so if those as long as cigarettes are approved for use vaping should be praised as a possible solution and not feared. Typical fear of the new but so far I think it’s headed down a decent path, better than we anticipated.
SPINFUEL: Safety is a huge factor today. What kind of measures you take to make sure that your e-juice is safe to consume? What methods do you use to prevent contamination or other factors that can harm your product?
Ripe Vapes: Safety and sanitation is our top priority. We research all of our ingredients (MSDS Sheets, Lab Reports, User Reviews, etc.) and buy only the highest quality ingredients. Our PGVG is 99.7% pure USP Kosher grade and our Nicotine is the highest quality VG based 100mg/ml available. We use no food coloring or additives of any kind.
For sanitation we have extremely strict policies. Our juices are made in a dedicated area that is kept meticulously clean. Everyone must wear all hairnets, gloves, masks, and tyvex full body suits during any part of the manufacturing process.
From labeling to steeping and bottling, we do everything possible to ensure a clean and safe product. We also do a Quality Control process where we randomly select bottles out of every batch to be examined and tested to ensure that it meets our standards. Lastly, we have different bottling machines for each flavor and completely separate tools/machines for the products without nicotine than the nicotine products ensuring no cross contamination.
SPINFUEL: Do you mix customer’s orders by the bottle or by the batch?
Ripe Vapes: By the batch for sure. That is how we keep everything consistent. We steep in large batches, precisely mixing the ingredients down to the mL even when the batches are 5-10 gallons or more per flavor strength. By doing that you ensure consistency. We make all of the different strengths in different steeping containers so for every flavor we will steep five separate batches, for a total of 20 different steeping containers. Then during bottling, we have very strict measures for how the steeped batch is handled. It has to be mixed using a specialized tool for a minimum of fifteen minutes to ensure that no separation exists and that everything is uniform. We also mix the batches several times throughout the steeping process to get consistent juice. The result is consistent, steeped, delicious juice that you can count on to be the same every time you by a bottle of our juice.
SPINFUEL: Why should our readers buy their e-Juice from you?
Ripe Vapes: First and foremost we have a quality product and during our first few months we have had received nothing but positive feedback. Also, we want people to think of Ripe Vapes as a company that truly looks out for its customers and goes the extra mile.
SPINFUEL: Do you have more than one person mixing eLiquids?
Ripe Vapes: Nope, just the one guy. He is the master brewer so to speak and only he mixes the batches. He has the mathematical formulas and makes his recipes based on batch. It keeps our juice consistent.
SPINFUEL: Is there anything else you’d like to say to our readers?
Ripe Vapes: For all you vapers out there, thanks so much for your support of our juice, we love the community that is vaping, we are all just a little different and that’s what its all about so thanks again and we will see you out in the real world…
In case you haven’t yet read the Spinfuel eLiquid Review Team’s review of the Ripe Vapes lineup, click this sentence to get there. – JHB
