Reliable Sources for Vanilla Beans

[David Lebovitz]

I've dealt with them when I lived in SF and they were trustworthy. I get (real) Mexican vanilla from Patricia Rain at www.vanilla.com, which has a lovely aroma, like vanilla ice cream. Her site is really informative as well. I find Tahitian vanilla is a floral and a bit vague-tasting, whereas I much prefer to use Bourbon or Mexican. I find the Tahitian works well with tropical fruits, where you want the vanilla to be more subtle.

The price of vanilla, which went up something like 2000% last year, is dropping a lot this year, back to reasonable levels. So I suspect we'll see a revision of pricing.

[Anni]

I've always found the tahitians more appealing than bourbons (just MHO). But David makes an interesting point about the different aromas, uses, and flavor pairings for the beans. Now I'm really interested in trying out the true Mexican vanilla beans. Hmmm...

BTW, it's nice to know that the price of beans is dropping back! I was starting to wonder if that was ever going to happen. Although now I'm curious as to what effect the tsunamis in SE Asia have had/will have on vanilla production (and thus, pricing) for the coming couple of years. Anyone have info/thoughts?

[glossyp]

Thanks CaliPoutine, for this web site! I was gearing up to look for an affordable source for Tahitians, so excellent timing! I ordered a 1/4# to try them out. I'm in CA, so hoping for delivery by the end of the week.

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Ok, well now Id like to know what you all prefer? The tahitian or the Mexican? I read that the Mexican is more of a true vanilla, but Tahitian is what Im most familar with.

What do you all think?

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Has anyone tried the Hawaiian vanilla grown on the Big Island? Jim Reddekopp and his family are the only commercial growers of vanilla in the US and the product is exceptional - it's also pricey. I find it more like the Mexican than the Tahitian. This is the vanilla all the best caliber chefs (well known and otherwise) here in the islands use. Here is a link to their website <a href="http://www.hawaiianvanilla.com/">Hawaiian Vanilla</a>.

[hayasaka.k]

$12 S/H to Canada.

[andiesenji]

I make my own vanilla extract and use only the Bourbon for this purpose. The flavor is stronger and "cleaner" or rather has only the vanilla without the floral overtones fo the Tahitian, which I do not care for in the extract. It does have its place, particularly when the bean is infused in milk or cream.

I have tried the Hawaiian vanilla, a friend who lives there send me a couple of beans. It was quite good but in my estimation, did not warrant the increased price over the other types.

[Betts]

I've heard Gale Gand recommend mixing Tahitian. Madagascar and Mexican beans when making your own infusion.

[Chef Metcalf]

I paid 26$, shipping included.

CaliPoutine

How did you get the shipping included in the price...assuming you are getting it shipped to Canada.

Thanks

CM

[plunk]

Silly question here, what does "Planifolia" indicate?

Hayasaka, where do you live? If you're in greater Vancouver, you can ship to Point Roberts, drive over to pick it up and pay the duty/tax like you normally would. You would save on S/H and the customs brokerage fees that the shipping companies normally charge.

[Patrick S]

Silly question here, what does "Planifolia" indicate?

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Vanilla planifolia is a Linnean name for a species of vanilla plant. The term planifolia refers to the morphology of the plant leaves -- they are planar, hence planar foliage, hence planifolia. The two other species of Vanilla are V. pompona and V. tahitensis.

Edited January 28, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[Patrick S]

I found some other interesting information on the different composition of vanilla beans. Apparently Indonesia beans are the most 'potent' in terms of vanillan content, which is by far the major flavor component in vanilla beans, but beans also differ with respect to other flavor/aromatic compounds.

    The fermented fruit contains about 2% vanillin, depending on provenience (México 1.75%, Sri Lanka 1.5%, Indonesia 2.75%); in vanilla pods of exceptionally good quality, the crystallized vanillin may be visible on the surface in the form of tiny white needles (called givre, the French word for “frost”).

Besides vanillin (85% of total volatiles), other important aroma components are p-hydroxybenzaldehyd (up to 9%) and p-hydroxybenzyl methyl ether (1%). Even trace components do significantly improve the flavour; about 130 more compounds have been identified in vanilla extract (phenoles, phenol ether, alcohols, carbonyl compounds, acids, ester, lactones, aliphatic and aromatic carbon hydrates and heterocyclic compounds). Two stereoisomeric vitispiranes (2,10,10-trimethyl-1,6- and methylidene-1-oxaspiro(4,5)dec-7-ene), although only occurring in traces, also influence the aroma.

The quite different fragrance of Tahiti vanilla is due to its additional contents of piperonal (heliotropin, 3,4-dioxymethylenbenzaldehyd) and diacetyl (butandione). Vanillin content is about 1.7%.

Vanilla planifolia

[CaliPoutine]

"How did you get the shipping included in the price...assuming you are getting it shipped to Canada"

Hi,

I buck the system and have it shipped to my PO box in Port Huron, MI. I wont declare it when I cross back because its food. Food is tax and duty free.

I usually go to Port Huron once a week and I often do grocery shopping there. Since I'm American, I still have money in US funds. Chicken is so incredibly cheap in MI so I usually bring back a lot of that.

[Bond Girl]

I prefer different Vanilla for different purposes. For ice cream I prefer the subtle floral tone of the Tahitian vanilla, the same goes for cream infusions like panna cotta or a creme anglais sauce.

Bourbon Vanilla for pies, tarts and cakes that has a dark rich taste like a pecan pie or a flourless chocolate cake.

Last year when using vanilla in savory dishes such as shrimp or cod, I use Mexican vanilla, which stands up to the savory overtones.

[Chef Metcalf]

$12 S/H to Canada.

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But for a quarter lb (40 to 46 beans), including shipping, it still works out to only about a buck a bean Canadian.

I imagine duty etc will be more but I think it will still work out a lot cheaper than the $4-5.00 I'm paying now.

Well, I hope so anyway....I'll post the total cost when it arrives.

cm

[CaliPoutine]

Do you have to pay duty on food?

[plunk]

Vanilla planifolia is a Linnean name for a species of vanilla plant. The term planifolia refers to the morphology of the plant leaves -- they are planar, hence planar foliage, hence planifolia. The two other species of Vanilla are V. pompona and V. tahitensis.

Sorry, I should have been more clear with my question. The website has two kinds of vanilla beans that you can order. I'm familiar with vanilla bean type descriptions like Tahitian, Mexican, Bourbon. I've Never seen "Planiforia" used on an online store or on any vanilla products that I've bought so I was wondering what it was like compared to other vanillas that I know.

[CanadianBakin']

hayasaka.k - Mailboxes, Etc. is great with getting things from the US. They have a PO address at locations just across the border and will receive even very large items. Then you just have to cross the border, pick up your parcel and head back, of course declaring if needed. Can save a lot of money with shipping although it would probably cost you more than $12 in gas and time for the vanilla beans so it might be worth it just to pay.

[CaliPoutine]

I just ordered a 1/4lb of Tahitian vanilla beans from vanilla beans. I paid 26$, shipping included.

I was amazed at how cheap they are.  I did some seaching around and I found another site that sells the same amount for 75$

I'm hoping this wont be a case of caveat emptor.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

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Ok, I went back to this site and now the same amount of beans is 24.75. Whats up with that? Has anyone received their beans yet?

[Anni]

Ok, I went back to this site and now the same amount of beans is 24.75.  Whats up with that?  Has anyone received their beans yet?

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Huh, you're right. Dunno why they have a lower price...

On the plus side, I received my beans 24 hours after I ordered them (I live in the SF Bay Area). I ordered the 1/4# package, which contained exactly 40 beans. There was also a couple of bonuses in the box with the beans: vanilla soap and a small bottle of 1-fold vanilla extract.

The beans were a little dryer and less plump than I would expect for tahitians. I made a small "test batch" of vanilla pastry cream, and while the vanilla flavor/aroma was there, it was definitely mild. My next test is a vanilla ganache, so we'll see how that goes later today.

Anyone else?

Edited January 29, 2005 by Anni (log)

[nathanm]

I tried blind taste tests a few years ago, of creme anglais and vanilla ice cream using beans from Tahiti, Madagascar, Indonesia and Mexico. The test was designed both to see if people could tell the difference as well as what they prefer. Everything else was held constant.

Nobody did better than random guessing at telling the difference between Tahiti, Madagascar and Indonesia. Some people would label two samples as different even if they were identical, for example.

Mexican vanilla was definitely different. A few people preferred it, most did not prefer it although it was not bad.

My conclusion is that most of the talk about differences in vanilla bean origin is pretty suspect, at least between Tahiti, Madagascar and Indonesia. I think there is a lot more variation between fresh and old beans than there is between fresh beans from these different places.

Any such test depends on the samples of course. The differences from batch to batch can vary. I ordered fresh beans for the test, but still it could just have been the batches I had.

I'm curious to see what people think of the cheap beans from the site....

[fauxtarga]

This certainly is a good excuse to make Bill Yosses's warm vanilla cakes and the ice cream with the "12 bean" vanilla ice cream. Thanks!

[CaliPoutine]

This certainly is a good excuse to make Bill Yosses's warm vanilla cakes and the ice cream with the "12 bean" vanilla ice cream. Thanks!

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My beans arrived and Im itching to do something with them.

Where would I find the above recipe? 12 beans? wow, have you tried it yet?

[fauxtarga]

Discussion on the warm vanilla cakes:

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=36204

This is the most useful because it has Chef Yosses's own commentary on the recipe.

I have the recipe from the Hesser article but I'm not sure if we are allowed to repost them on EG because the Times now charges for it. If you have a service that allows you to dig through old articles like Factiva or Lexis Nexis you can get it under the title:

"An Exotic Import: Hardly Plain Vanilla" by Amanda Hesser

Which also seems relevant to this thread.

"The Best Meal in Town" by Jonathan Reynolds

Has his interpretation of the recipe.

I'll have to check if I have the Food Arts version.

I get the impression that the 12 bean ice cream involves taking your favorite vanilla ice cream and using 12 beans/quart, if I recall. But that sounds funny because my consumer machine makes the stuff in 1 qt batches, and it seems kind of unlikely that they would use a small batch size like that in a professional setting. Actually scratch that, 1 quart makes a lot of sense, for just one flavor. Pacojet = 1.2 qts.

[Bond Girl]

My beans arrived all 1/2 lbs of them. The package was surprisingly small, the beans were drier than the variety that I bought in Tahiti a few years ago, but better than what I would have gotten on the Island of Manhattan. Good for the price of $46 (shipping included) since I can revive them with some moist paper towels when I need to. Will make Vanilla ice cream.

[Pyewacket]

I've been ordering form these fellows for several years now and have always been very happy with the quality I recieve and the rapid delivery.

I want to grow some vanilla planifolia orchid plants and have the perfect place to do it. However, I'm having difficulty finding anyone who can sell and ship me a starter vine.

Anyone here have any idea where I might get one, or several?

Edited February 3, 2005 by Pyewacket (log)

[cricklewood]

Looks like a damn good deal to me. Let me know if you're happy with what you get.

Not to change the subject, but one thing I never understood is the price differences between vanilla beans and vanilla bean paste. A bottle of Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon bean paste is 4 fluid ozs for $17. Since 1Tb of paste is equal to 1 bean, the 4oz bottle is equivalent to 8 vanilla beans. Yet NM sells 2 beans for like $13, or about $52 for the equivalent of a 4oz bottle of paste.

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I think the reason the paste is so cheap it is because it is made from beans leftover from the making of vanilla extract a thickening agent is added, that is what I heard but would make sense since I find the aroma and lfavor is not quite like that of a mashed or chopped bean.