Vanilla is arguably the world’s most popular and much sought-after flavor. The sweet, fruity, and floral characteristics coupled with the strong aroma, makes vanilla an outstanding flavor. Many may not be aware that vanilla is the seed of an orchid plant and although there are over 30 varieties of vanilla orchid, only three of them produce the fragrant seed pods for use as vanilla flavor.
Even to this day, vanilla orchids are only hand pollinated and a good pollinator can pollinate 1000-2000 flowers in a day. Despite the fact that the flowers on the vanilla orchid grow in bunches, they only bloom one per day during the blooming season. As each flower blooms it is hand pollinated and a seed pod takes around nine months to mature.
When the seed pods mature, they are harvested and immediately wrapped and exposed to high heat and humidity to arrest further growth. Then the curing process starts and for several days at a stretch, the vanilla pods are spread out in the hot tropical sun for a few hours to dry and then wrapped up to sweat by night. Thereafter, the beans are spread out in the shade and allowed to slowly dry completely.
Finally, the pods are sorted and stored in chests to further cure for a few months. Vanilla only improves with age as the flavors mellow and become even smoother and fruitier. In view of the manual labor involved in the growing cycle and the curing process, vanilla continues to be one of the costliest spices in the world.
As regards the taste of vanilla, it may be said that there are quite a few factors that affect the taste of vanilla. As a matter of fact, the green pods are bereft of any flavor when first picked. It is the heavy curing process that creates the variety of inimitable vanilla flavors. Where the vanilla plant is grown, the amount of sun and rain it receives and the daily temperatures affect the flavor. This is the reason why vanilla grown in different locations tastes different from one another.
Pure vanilla extract without sugar addition will last for a long time and the quality improves with aging. One should however be guarded while buying low-priced vanilla as the chances are it is an adulterated extract. As per FDA standards, pure vanilla extract should contain 13.35 ounces of vanilla beans per gallon during extraction and 35 percent alcohol.
There are Imitation vanilla, made from artificial flavorings, available in the market - most of which are prepared with wood byproducts and often contain chemicals. Professional tasters contend that the imitation vanilla products are crude with a bitter aftertaste. It is also reported that twice the quantity of imitation vanilla flavoring is required to match the strength of pure vanilla extract. The flavor of genuine vanilla has tremendous depth and complexity, compared to artificial or imitation vanilla. There are three main types of vanilla - Madagascar Bourbon (named after the Bourbon islands), Tahitian which is deemed fruity, and Mexican considered spicy. It is not possible to state with authority which vanilla taste is the best. In truth, each vanilla has its own unique characteristics, and the best one depends largely on one’s individual preference.
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samehta is a Copywriter of Gourmet flavored coffee, flavored tea, flavored water.She written many articles in various topics such as Vanilla flavor, Tea flavor, coffee flavors . For more information visit: http://capellaflavordrops.com .
