Strawberry and kiwi is one of my favorite fruit pairings, and To The Max is one of my favorite brands, so this review was an easy one to sign up for. To The Max made some of the first fruit e-liquids I ever vaped and I have stayed with the line since. It runs from single fruits such as Apple to menthol blends such as Mango Iced. Strawberry Kiwi is the one I am covering here.
Score
I give Strawberry Kiwi by To The Max a 9 out of 10. The single point comes off because the kiwi did not show up consistently. On flavor, the smell of the vapor, how well it holds up over repeated tanks and all-day use, I was very happy with it, as I usually am with this brand.
Taste
Every To The Max flavor is named for what it tastes like, which makes it easy to keep track of what is in your tank. The smell alone told me this one would be good, and the first puff confirmed it. What I got was a very sweet strawberry that reminded me of those hard strawberry candies with a chewy middle. Kiwi appears on the exhale as a tangy edge, but strawberry leads.
Now and then the kiwi came through more strongly than the strawberry. Most of the time, though, I would describe this as a strawberry e-liquid with kiwi behind it. The flavor stayed strong puff after puff and lingered pleasantly for a few seconds once I had exhaled. It tasted clean, with no odd aftertaste and no dry mouth.
Strawberry e-liquids are hit or miss for me. Some are thin and airy, others heavy and artificial. This one was smooth and a pleasure to vape, and I say that as someone who is not a big strawberry fan. I refilled my tank with it two more times, which is unusual because I get bored of flavors quickly.
The vapor smells good enough that several people asked what I was vaping. The nicotine never felt overpowering and did not leave my throat raw or sore, even though the liquid is a dark yellow.
What comes in the box
The product is sold as 120mL, but what you get is a box with two 60mL bottles. Both have childproof caps that only unscrew when you push down while turning.
The box is plain white. Green lettering names the flavor (on my box it referred to kiwi and apple), and a 3mg mark in the top right corner gives the nicotine strength. A large black panel with white text states that the product contains nicotine and that nicotine is an addictive chemical. The back repeats the front. The left side has a warning label and the ingredients.
The bottle label is almost the same as the box, with a couple of extras: where the liquid was made, and a note that it may only be sold within the U.S. I could not find an expiration date on either the box or the bottle. Most vapers finish a bottle quickly enough that this rarely matters.
Two details on the box interested me. The VG/PG ratio, 70/30, is printed right on it, and many brands leave you to look that up on their website. The ingredients also show that To The Max uses food flavorings. Strawberry and kiwi are both strong flavors, and I was curious how they would carry over into vapor.
About the plain packaging
To The Max has rebranded over the years. I loved the original artwork, which showed brightly colored fruit bursting with juice. A lot of companies changed their look to comply with federal regulations. Many had been copying candy brands such as Sour Patch Kids, Airheads and Skittles, and that packaging either infringed copyright outright or was judged too appealing to underage users. The bright colors and candy-style designs went, and plain boxes in muted colors replaced them.
The result here is not exciting. White and lime green made the juice look dull to me, and on appearance alone I would have passed it by. I chose it because of my history with the brand, not because of the logo or design. Packaging has no effect on quality or flavor, and tastes differ, but I like a product to look good before I get interested. This is a personal complaint about the design and nothing more.
Filling the tank
The bottle is clear, and the gap between the label edges is wide enough to show how much liquid remains. In the bottle the juice looks a lot like olive oil, in thickness as well as color. It moves a little slowly when you tilt it, and it is a bright yellow because of the nicotine. A 0mg or 6mg bottle would no doubt be lighter or darker.
The narrow dropper tip made filling quick. The smell was strong from the first squeeze, a clean, sweet apple and kiwi scent that made me impatient to try it.
One odd thing: the liquid looked darker in the bottle than in my tank, where it seemed a bit clearer. I am not sure why. It also seemed slightly thicker in the tank, possibly from the heat of the coil. As a light-colored fruit juice, it did not make me worry about burning coils.
Other notes
Flawless is the company behind To The Max, and it deserves credit for a juice that kept me happy on every puff. This flavor is no longer in our own catalog. We add and remove e-liquids regularly to keep the selection varied.
If you have vaped Strawberry Kiwi or other flavors from To The Max or Flawless, share your experience in the comments.