Pop Caf e-liquid, my notes on a toasted Millésime gourmand

Some bottles get bought for their name and kept for their balance. Pop Caf by Millésime is one of those catchy dessert liquids that nobody seems able to describe properly before the cap comes off. Almost every page about it is a shop listing built on the same template. So I took this Pop Caf into my notebook, with what the label actually says, what the recipe promises and the nic shot sums I redo every time I open a new bottle.

Pop Caf in two sentences

Pop Caf is a dessert e-liquid from the Original range of Millésime, a French manufacturer, pairing toasted, caramelised popcorn with a coffee note. It mostly comes as a 50 ml nicotine-free shortfill on a 50/50 base, in a bottle designed to take one or two nic shots.

The manufacturer also lists it in 100 ml and in 10 ml, including a nicotine salt version. Everything else depends on your hardware and on the final nicotine strength, two points that product pages tend to dismiss in a single line.

What is in a bottle of Pop Caf

The label covers the essentials, hazard pictograms included, provided you read all of it. Here is what I picked out, format by format, followed by what the brand chooses to highlight.

The formats

The most common format is the 50 ml bottle at 0 mg/ml. Two retailers state that it comes in a 70 ml bottle, which leaves 20 ml of headspace, exactly enough for two 10 ml nic shots. The 100 ml version follows the same logic in a 120 ml bottle.

The manufacturer also lists ready-to-vape 10 ml bottles, including a nicotine salt version (nicotine lactate, according to the label) at 10 or 20 mg/ml. That is the simplest way to try the recipe before committing to a large bottle.

Ingredients and label warnings

The stated ingredients are vegetable glycerine, propylene glycol and flavourings, with each of the first two listed at under 50 per cent. Millésime claims French manufacture and describes the recipe as free of diacetyl, parabens and ambrox, wording I repeat exactly as the brand gives it.

Even at zero nicotine, the 50 ml bottle carries the GHS07 exclamation mark pictogram and two hazard statements, H317 for a possible allergic skin reaction and H319 for eye irritation. So I add shots over a paper towel, wipe the neck of the bottle and wash my hands once the mix is done.

On the palate, caramelised popcorn comes before coffee

Millésime describes hot, melting, toasted and caramelised popcorn served with a good coffee. That description sets a clear order, popcorn in front and coffee in support.

Toasted grain and caramel therefore make up the core of the recipe, with the coffee in support, more as a roasted note than as a short, punchy espresso.

That background coffee will not suit everyone. Anyone after a proper black coffee vape may be disappointed, while those who find coffee liquids too bitter will probably see this balance as a gentle way in.

The hardware that suits Pop Caf

A 50/50 base is a compromise, and that is exactly what makes Pop Caf easy to place. It stays thin enough for a small pod with a tight draw, without being too light for a slightly more open tank.

On a mouth to lung pod at moderate wattage, a dessert recipe like this one keeps its detail better, and that is the setup I would suggest for a first bottle. If you are still torn between the two styles, I explain the difference in my notes on the two ways to inhale a vape.

On a restricted direct lung draw, with more vapour and heat, the caramel is likely to take over a coffee note that is already discreet.

Whatever the setup, I stay at the bottom of the wattage range recommended for the fitted coil. A caramel note heated too hard soon turns acrid, which is the signal to come down a step.

Adding nic shots to Pop Caf, the sums I redo for each bottle

Large bottles reach the shelf without nicotine for a regulatory reason, and mixing is left to the vaper. The arithmetic is simple, but the second shot holds a small surprise.

Why the 50 ml bottle comes at 0 mg

Under the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016, nicotine-containing e-liquid in the UK is limited to 20 mg/ml and to refill bottles of 10 ml, and refillable tanks are capped at 2 ml. A 50 ml bottle can therefore only be sold as a nicotine-free shortfill, with nicotine added through 10 ml shots. I went through that logic in more detail in my label reading method for e-liquid.

One shot or two

A 10 ml nic shot at 20 mg/ml adds 200 mg of nicotine. Poured into the 50 ml bottle, it gives 60 ml of liquid at 3.3 mg/ml, which is 200 divided by 60. With an 18 mg/ml shot instead, the result is 180 mg in 60 ml, so exactly 3 mg/ml.

A second 20 mg/ml shot brings the total to 400 mg in 70 ml, or 5.7 mg/ml. This is where intuition misleads. Doubling the shots does not double the strength, because the volume grows at the same time, so you move from 3.3 to 5.7 mg/ml rather than the 6.7 you might expect. With two 18 mg/ml shots, the figure is 5.1 mg/ml.

The 100 ml bottle obeys the same rule with two shots, 400 mg in 120 ml, around 3.3 mg/ml. Millésime’s own shot is also a 50/50 blend, so it leaves the ratio of the mix unchanged.

What I liked less

My first complaint concerns the format. A 50 ml bottle commits you to a large volume of a flavour you do not know yet, and a caramel note can tire the palate faster than a fruit one. The 10 ml version thankfully lets you test first.

The coil is also likely to suffer more than with a fruit liquid. Sweet, caramelised recipes generally gum up the wick sooner, and the toasted taste can turn burnt before the coil would normally be finished.

One last reservation, two retailers were showing Pop Caf as out of stock when I checked, so finding the right format can take a little searching.

Pop Caf next to Cara’caf and Choco’Nuts

Within the same Original range, Millésime offers two other 50 ml dessert liquids that help place Pop Caf. Cara’caf is presented as a coffee dessert with caramel, hazelnut and pecan, lifted by a touch of Bourbon vanilla. Choco’Nuts goes for milk chocolate, hazelnut and caramel.

On paper, Cara’caf is the closest, since it shares both coffee and caramel. The nuts and vanilla push it towards patisserie, though, while Pop Caf stays on the toasted side. Choco’Nuts drops coffee altogether and plays the chocolate card instead.

I would choose according to the note you want in front. To place these profiles among the broader families, my notes on the best vape flavour set out the reference points I use.

FAQ

These questions come up often about this bottle and are not covered above. The answers assume the formats described in this article.

Can you vape Pop Caf without adding a nic shot?

Yes, the 50 ml and 100 ml bottles can be vaped as they are, at 0 mg/ml. The recipe simply tastes more concentrated than intended, since it is designed to take up to 20 ml of shots in the 50 ml bottle.

Should the mix rest after adding a shot?

A minute of shaking is enough to blend the bottle. Waiting a day or two before judging the taste is still sensible, while the mix settles.

How should an opened bottle of Pop Caf be stored?

At room temperature, away from light and with the cap firmly closed. A caramelised dessert liquid can darken over time, which is common, whereas a clearly different smell means the bottle should be replaced.

Can it be mixed with another e-liquid?

Technically yes, but the result is rarely coherent, because flavour concentrations do not add up cleanly. I prefer to keep each recipe as the manufacturer balanced it.

Where can you find Pop Caf?

Millésime sells it through its own online shop, and specialist vape retailers list it as well. Stock varies from one shop to another, so check the exact format, 50 ml, 100 ml or 10 ml, and make sure any nicotine version meets UK limits before ordering.

Pop Caf, what I take away from this Millésime gourmand

On paper, this bottle does what its name suggests, with toasted, caramelised popcorn up front and coffee in the background. It is not a liquid for black coffee lovers, more a balanced dessert profile that sits comfortably on small hardware thanks to its 50/50 base.

On the practical side, I keep two things in mind, the nic shot sums, which never double the strength, and the 10 ml version for tasting before the large format.

A bottle like Pop Caf is a reminder that a dessert liquid is judged as much on its balance as on the hardware it goes into, and that crossed reading is what I keep recording in this notebook.

Further reading

• My label reading method for e-liquid
• Flavour families sorted by profile
• How to inhale a vape, and what the draw changes

Editorial content for adult readers only. Nicotine is a highly addictive substance, and nicotine vaping products are not for sale to anyone under 18 in the UK. This site sells nothing and this article is not a buying recommendation.