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My argument wasn’t “vaping isn’t healthy” or “vaping is more harmful than cigarettes”. It was “more research is needed”, which each of those studies I linked support. Thank you, though, for proving my point in your attempt to build a lovely strawman to argue against.

The number of ingredients is irrelevant, especially since the idea that there are “at most” 6 ingredients is simply wrong: hub.jhu.edu/2021/10/07/vaping-unknown-chemicals/

A major area of concern for vaping is the fact that vaping generates much higher concentrations of nano-particles compared to regular cigarettes, and therefore may penetrate much further into the lung material (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6312322/ and journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/jour…). There are also concerns about contaminants, variations in delivery devices (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6312322/), and other confounding factors that require a lot more research to ascertain the long term impact.

As for whether I have a study or information contradicting the conclusion that vaping is safer than smoking, it depends on whether you selectively ignore the parts of the studies that say “more research is needed” (because apparently that’s an “ignorant take”), but searching for “peer reviewed articles electronic cigarettes safer than tobacco” returns these top results (I did not cherry pick in any way, and instead took the top results sequentially):

  • journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/…/2042098614524430: “In conclusion, toxicological studies have shown significantly lower adverse effects of EC vapor compared with cigarette smoke. Characteristically, the studies performed by using the liquids in their original liquid form have found less favorable results; however, no comparison with tobacco smoke was performed in any of these studies, and they cannot be considered relevant to EC use since the samples were not tested in the form consumed by vapers. More research is needed, including studies on different cell lines such as lung epithelial cells. In addition, it is probably necessary to evaluate a huge number of liquids with different flavors since a minority of them, in an unpredictable manner, appear to raise some concerns when tested in the aerosol form produced by using an EC device.” Granted, it does go on to say that existing evidence shows that vaping is safer than tobacco, but clarifies that there still needs to be more research on some of the unquantified risks of vaping.

  • www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5469426/ This is an older study using a very small sample size. It focuses on e-cigs as a tool for smoking cessation, but also concludes “Similar to cancer risk, there are no published data describing the long-term lung function or cardiovascular effects of e-cigarettes; ongoing surveillance, especially once e-cigarettes are regulated and standardized, will be necessary.”

  • journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/jour… This study was primarily measuring how likely e-cigs were to get people to stop using tobacco, rather than comparative safety (despite the title). The conclusion makes clear that it is not known (at the time; this was 9 years ago) if e-cigarettes could be considered “safe”: “Adding e-cigarettes to tobacco smoking did not facilitate smoking cessation or reduction. If e-cigarette safety will be confirmed, however, the use of e-cigarettes alone may facilitate quitters remaining so.”

I’m not sure what your Google search was, but its probably best not to cherry pick a single source to support your claim.

Johns Hopkins researchers find thousands of unknown chemicals in electronic cigarettes

Study identifies compounds undisclosed by popular brands including industrial chemicals, caffeine

The Hub
It is premature to declare vaping safer than smoking, as there is relatively little comprehensive research on the long term effect of vaping. The whole “vaping is safer” spiel is not that different than when doctors were paid to tout the health benefits of cigarettes: propaganda not based in conclusive science.

Advent Calendar Day 7: The Balvenie 14 Year Old - The Week of Peat

https://lemmy.world/post/9301777

Advent Calendar Day 7: The Balvenie 14 Year Old - The Week of Peat - Lemmy.World

Balvenie distillery is a Speyside single malt Scotch whisky distillery in Dufftown, Scotland, owned by William Grant & Sons. One week a year Balvenie turns their production to making a limited run peated whisky. According to Balvenie’s website, this practice started after distillery manager Ian Millar visited Islay. He ordered a batch of Speyside peat for the kiln and built a peat burner on the side ‘for, well, extra peatiness’ with the intent to experiment with their The Balvenie profile. Due to the strong influence of peat, they separate the remaining low wines and feints, basically low-alcohol spirit, and store them in a tank until the following year’s peat week, so there is a year-to-year link between one peat week and the next. It is bottled at 48.3% ABV. Other than that… I don’t seem able to find any details about the maturation, coloring, or possible chill filtration process. Balvenie dedicated a lot of time to crafting a web page to highlight the history behind the making of this bottle, but they offer very little details on the bottle itself beyond their tasting notes. Regardless, I was excited to try this. I’ve never had anything from Balvenie before, and I’ve recently become more interested in Speysides. I’ve only tried a handful of Speysides so far (the bulk of my whisky experience is focused on Islay so far), but my impressions so far have been very favorable. None of those have been peated, so this seemed like a win-win. Nose: Canadian bacon, lemon, brown sugar Palate: smoke, peat, vanilla, chili, apple juice Finish: lingering burn and sweetness. Notes: This was very disappointing. It lacks complexity, it’s a bit too sweet, and the peat and sweet that dominate aren’t even well integrated. It doesn’t taste actively bad, but I’m just not finding anything positive about this. Of all the whisky I’ve tried in the past couple of years, I can honestly say that I enjoyed this one least of all. Score: 3.5/10 Scoring guide 0 - Undrinkable 1 - Awful 2 - Bad 3 - Flawed 4 - Below Average 5 - Average / Mediocre 6 - Above Average / Decent 7 - Good; a solid choice 8 - Great; I’d happily drink this any day 9 - Excellent; for truly special occasions 10 - Mythical/perfect

Advent Calendar Day 6: Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire 10 Year Old

https://lemmy.world/post/9240748

Advent Calendar Day 6: Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire 10 Year Old - Lemmy.World

From Master of Malt: >“Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire 10 Year Old Whisky hails from an undisclosed Islay distillery, with a quarter of its content having been matured in first-fill oloroso sherry casks. This whisky is known for its succinct name which gives a clear indication of its profile: straightforward, smoky, intricate, subtly sherried, well-balanced, and imbued with coastal characteristics. It is an ideal choice for those who appreciate the unadulterated nature of Islay whisky and prefer minimalist design.” 40% ABV. Nose: Salty brine, bandaids, dark chocolate, seaweed baking in the sun. Palate: lemonade, wakame, oyster shells, brine, peat, earthy loam, coffee. Finish: Surprisingly thick with a strong chili and black pepper burn mixed with light caramel. The finish fades pretty quickly. Notes: I’ll admit I was skeptical, largely due to the name. It just seems a touch… gimmicky. But it’s surprisingly good. None of the notes seemed out of place, and it definitely fit some of the themes in the name: I got clear notes of seaweed on the nose, and I did detect something in the palate that reminded me of heavy, fertile soil. Oddly enough I didn’t really get much smoke (there was plenty of peat, but I find peat and smoke to be rather distinct from each other), although perhaps the “fire” refers to the spicy burn on the finish? I have no idea what “aeons” would taste like. I can’t say I’d seek out a bottle of this, but I would be perfectly content to order this at a bar or enjoy a dram if offered by someone who did buy a bottle. I think it is easily on par with other OB Islay 10 year old single malts. Score: 8.0/10 Scoring guide 0 - Undrinkable 1 - Awful 2 - Bad 3 - Flawed 4 - Below Average 5 - Average / Mediocre 6 - Above Average / Decent 7 - Good; a solid choice 8 - Great; I’d happily drink this any day 9 - Excellent; for truly special occasions 10 - Mythical/perfect

Yes, these are all part of an annual advent calendar released by Drinks by the Dram. They sell a variety of different calendars, including Scotch, World Whiskies, and Gin. Each day is a different 3cl sample.

Advent Calendar Day 5: Elements of Islay Cask Edit

https://lemmy.world/post/9197841

Advent Calendar Day 5: Elements of Islay Cask Edit - Lemmy.World

Elements of Islay was launched by Speciality Drinks Ltd, now Elixir Distillers. Their Cask Edit release is a blend of single malt from an unspecified south coast Islay distillery along with a fruitier style from an unspecified distillery on the north coast. It is a naturally colored non-age statement whisky that’s been aged in first fill and refill bourbon barrels and sherry casks and is non-chill filtered. It is bottled at an ABV of 46%. Nose: Smoke, vanilla, iodine, chocolate, brine. Palate: Very smokey, wood smoke and peat smoke. Caramel, brine, creme brulee. Finish: long, oily finish with salt and a maritime brine and a light caramel sweetness. Notes: Smells like Lagavulin. The taste reminds me a bit more of laphroaig, but there’s a slight taste of something that reminds me very strongly of an artificial sweetener. I’m not saying that there’s a sweetener in it, but there’s something in there that just triggers that association for me. It’s a bit between an artificial glycerine sweetener and that aftertaste I get from sucralose. If it wasn’t for that sweetness I’d enjoy it much more. I don’t know if this is just a tasting note that hits me wrong, or if something is throwing my palate off. I didn’t alter my usual timing and routine for my whisky reviewing, so I don’t think it’s my palate, but I do wish that I had more than just the 3cl sample so I could try this again another time and see if I still get that saccharine note. As it is, I have to drop its score a bit. Despite my dissatisfaction with the sweetness, it is a solid Islay whisky that highlights some of the best aspects (elements, if you will!) of Islay: peat, smoke, and strong maritime notes. Score: 7.7/10

Advent Calendar Day 4: Kyrö Wood Smoke Malt Rye Whisky

https://lemmy.world/post/9154813

Advent Calendar Day 4: Kyrö Wood Smoke Malt Rye Whisky - Lemmy.World

Kyrö Distillery is a Finnish distillery that makes rye whisky and gin. The company was started in 2012, allegedly during a discussion in a Sauna. The founders appear to have kept a sense of humor as core to their identity, and their site (which is somewhat NSFW) has some pretty fun accounts of the company history, including a rather oddball introductory video. They use Finland-grown rye for their distillation. >Kyrö wood smoke is made from 100% malted finnish whole-grain rye. Following an old northern tradition the malt is alder smoked in a 100-year-old barn. The whisky is double pot-distilled and matured in ex-bourbon, French oak and new American white oak barrels, resulting in intense pepperyness and sweet notes of caramel and vanilla lifted by crisp alder smoke. 47.2% ABV. NAS. I could not find anything on their website about chill filtration or color, but I did see some reviews saying that they use neither. I can’t validate those claims, so let’s take that with a grain of salt. Nose: oatcakes, grapefruit, red licorice Palate: Swedish fish (does Finland make their own version?!?), wax, almond, rye, pine, subtle campfire smoke. Finish: A thick, oily mouthfeel producing tobacco and juniper flavors gives way to candied fruit mixed with a lingering tannic bitter note that eventually fades to a mild pine. Notes: I am not sure what I expected from a “peated Finnish rye whisky”, but this… most definitely was not it. The nose also did not prepare me for the taste. I found the nose pretty inviting, if a little overly sweet (more licorice than oatcake by far). The taste, though, is very different. It was actually sweeter than the nose suggested, which is saying something, but there’s a lot of complexity on the palate. The finish was also surprising, changing the character from “eating booze-soaked candy in the forest” to “did I just drink whisky-flavored gin?”. Overall, I liked this, particularly for the complexity and because it’s very, very far from any other whisky I’ve ever had, but in general it was far too sweet for me. I haven’t had a lot of grain whisky, but what I have had I’ve found a bit too sweet for my liking, so this is probably more of a personal preference thing than a deficiency in the whisky itself. Score: 7.9/10 Scoring guide 0 - Undrinkable 1 - Awful 2 - Bad 3 - Flawed 4 - Below Average 5 - Average / Mediocre 6 - Above Average / Decent 7 - Good; a solid choice 8 - Great; I’d happily drink this any day 9 - Excellent; for truly special occasions 10 - Mythical/perfect

Advent Calendar Day 3: Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey

https://lemmy.world/post/9098846

Advent Calendar Day 3: Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey - Lemmy.World

Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt is an Irish whiskey from Teeling Whiskey. Triple distilled and then matured in a combination of ⅔ ex-bourbon and ⅓ ex-sauternes white wine casks. It is bottled at 46% ABV without chill filtration. There’s no mention of whether they use colors on Teeling’s site, but it is quite light colored and coupled with the lack of chill filtration I’m inclined to believe they don’t add color. Nose: peach, grape must, peat, black pepper, orange zest. Palate: Lemony, peppery, light peat, pineapple juice, light salt brine Finish: Lingering light notes of pepper, mild dish soap, grilled oranges. Notes: The nose is light and delicate. The flavor is also rather delicate. It’s a really nice mix of fruit and pepper in nearly equal balance. The peat is more of a backdrop. Part of Teeling’s marketing was that the triple distillation process removes some of the “medicinal” taste from the peat smoke; I initially dismissed this as marketing speak, but it really does seem to present the peat in a different light. I’m guessing that is why the peat falls into much more of a background note. I really like this. It is a nicely light and refreshing dram, and I enjoy the contrast in the flavors. I’d absolutely try this again. Score: 8.2/10

I think it depends. I’ve had a couple at 43% that didn’t seem too diluted, like Laphroaig 10 and Caol Ila 12. I probably would prefer them a bit stronger, but its not objectionable at that level. Macallen 12 year double cask felt a bit bland to me, and it may have been in part due to the 43% ABV.

I’ve only had a couple that were above 55%. Most of them I alternate between adding water and drinking neat, except for a MacDuff IB bottled at 64.5%(!) that’s just too raw at that ABV.