E Liquid Steeping Guide

Many of our customers have asked us about steeping and how it affect the quality of e-liquid. Below, we have put together a brief e liquid steeping guide, which should teach you more about how e-liquid is made and improve your vaping process, either if you are mixing your own e-liquid or buying e-liquid from a vape shop.

E Liquid Steeping Guide: What is Steeping and how does it affect E-Liquid?

You may have come across the term “steeping” in the vaping lexicon. Many manufacturers mention “steeping” but do not actually talk too much about it as it is considered to be a commercial secret that can give e-liquid a real edge over the competition. In order to understand steeping, it is best to compare it to food and drink. A good example is barbeque. Before we actually put our meat on the grill, we marinate it first using a range of herbs, vinegar, onions, sour cream and other ingredients. Steeping or marinating meat, helps to make it more succulent and delicious. Another example is whiskey. Whisky makers mature whiskey is barrels in order to bring out the flavours and give whiskey its multi-layered finish.  So, you may wonder, why do steep e-liquid?

​As far as we concerned, the moment an e-liquid blend is mixed together, the steeping process begins. When the e-liquid bottles sit on the shelves of vape shop, it is still steeping. Generally, flavour benefits from longer steeping times. Steeping allows for the PG and VG to properly soak up the flavourings, which significantly improves the flavour and its character. If you have mixed e-liquid yourself, you will have noticed that as soon as you mix the flavourings with your PG and VG and vape it right away, the flavour may be slightly subdued and cause you to think “I am not sure about this” or “I cannot feel the flavours coming through”. The same analogy can be applied to BBQ. If you buy a raw chunk of meat, add your herbs and ingredients and throw it on the grill, without allowing the meat to steep or marinate, you may get a bland flavour. If, on the contrary, you leave the meat to marinate overnight, you will notice that the meat will have absorbed the herbs and spices much better, which would in turn result in a greater tasting BBQ.

E Liquid Steeping Guide: E-Liquid Steeping Methods

It is great if your e-juice is steeped properly and you can enjoy it right away. However, if you have blended your own e-liquid, you will have to set it aside and let it steep. You can also employ other steeping methods. In reality, steeping requires a lot of patience, control and vision for a better tomorrow. Just like tea, we cannot simply throw all the ingredients together and enjoy e-liquid right away. ​

If we take a closer look at the steeping process, it boils down to steeping, breathing and streathing.

Steeping your E-Liquid in a Cupboard

This method requires you to mix up your e-liquid and place the bottle in a cool and dark place such as a cupboard, cigar box or anything else. It is recommended that you shake your bottle of e-liquid as often as possible to speed up the steeping process. You can also run your e-liquid bottle under warm tap water. The heat from the tap water will get the molecules in your e-liquid moving around faster, which will in turn expedite the steeping process.

​Breathing your E-Liquid

The process of breathing involves the process of opening your e-liquid bottle and letting it sit by a windowsill (be careful not to attract bees or insects!). You can swirl the e-liquid bottle gently to get the e-liquid flowing around and you can also use the dropper pipette to pump up the e-liquid and then squeeze it out. However, the caveat is that you should not let your e-juice to steep for too long as this can diminish your flavour and nicotine. As a rule of thumb, anywhere from a couple of hours will do the trick. It is advisable to leave your open e-liquid bottle in fresh air. ​

Streathing your E-Liquid in Warm Water

This is a more advanced steeping process. Streathing involves the process of shaking your e-liquid bottle and then putting it under warm tap water. Then take the cap off and place your e-liquid in a cool, dark place. After a few hours, put the cap back on and shake your e-liquid. Then squeeze out the excess air from the bottle as the e-liquid recycles oxygen. You will require a plastic bottle with a nipple to do this, it is a lot more difficult to do so with a dropper bottle. Although you can still use the dropper pipette to draw the liquid out and push it back in. If you do so in a fast motion, you will notice the air bubbles appearing inside your e-liquid.

​There is no hard and fast period for which you should steep your e-juice. Generally, fruit flavours take the least amount to steep whilst creamy and desert flavours take the longest, and can take up to several weeks. You can steep your e-liquid for as long as you want or have the patience, but in its essence, the longer you steep your e-liquid, the better the flavour. Once you allow your e-liquid flavour to reach its peak, you will have a more flavoursome and enjoyable e-liquid as opposed to e-liquid that has not been steeped. You may find that after some time, the e-liquid may change its flavour profile as the flavours combine to VG and PG molecules. Be careful not to go overboard and steep your e-liquid pat the expiration date- e-liquid is not whiskey, which you can steep for several years or even decades.

Conclusion

​We hope that you have found our e liquid steeping guide both useful and informative. At the heart of e-liquid steeping is a basic takeaway point – steeping improves and unlocks the flavours, which makes for a more enjoyable vaping experience. Different manufacturers employ different steeping methods. Generally, not many e-liquid manufacturers will disclose their steeping methods to you as it is one of the few factors that help to give e-liquid manufacturers an edge over the competition. When buying your e-liquid at an online vape shop or your local vape shop, you will find that some e-liquid brands may be steeped properly, whilst other may have been freshly prepared. At The Eliquid Boutique, we steep all of our e-liquids using basic steeping methods that are considered as safe and acceptable. There is no magic formula to steeping and there isn’t too much you can do about it. Some companies may steep it inside a barrel, which is bordering on the edge of danger since foreign substances from the barrel can permeate into the e-liquid (such as oils), which can in effect make your vape unsafe.