For optimal freshness and flavor maintenance, store our vanilla products in a cool, dark place, away from direct heat sources such as stoves, ovens, and sunlight. Once opened, refrigeration is advised to preserve quality. Refrigeration helps prevent mold or bacterial growth and also slows the infusion process, resulting in even bolder flavors. Thank you for choosing our vanilla products!

The continued presence of actual vanilla bean cuttings in our extracts enhances their flavor profile by infusing them with additional depth and complexity. This unique feature allows for a more authentic and continual rich vanilla experience compared to filtered extracts.

Aging the extracts allows for the gradual melding and intensification of flavors over time, resulting in a more nuanced and robust vanilla profile. This process mimics the aging of fine wines or spirits, enhancing the overall complexity and depth of flavor in our extracts. Additionally, our vanillas are aged directly in the bottle, an inert environment which preserves and allows vanillas many flavors to portray. This controlled aging process ensures that each bottle of our extract reaches its full potential, delivering a truly exceptional vanilla experience.

At Aged Vanilla Company, we age our vanilla in glass bottles, specifically amber glass, for several reasons. Vanilla pods and their beans are delicate and prone to damage or contamination in wood barrels. Glass provides a controlled environment, preserving the purity and integrity of the vanilla extract without the risk of unwanted flavors or impurities from barrels.

Glass offers an inert and non-reactive environment, ensuring the vanilla retains its true flavor profile without any container interactions. Unlike barrels, which can alter the liquid, glass bottles maintain the purity and essence of the vanilla extract, allowing its natural flavors to shine through.

Additionally, amber glass shields against harmful UV light, preserving freshness and flavor by blocking out visible light. The glass is therefore impermeable to both light and air, protecting the vanilla from degradation over time.

In essence, aging vanilla in amber glass bottles ensures the preservation of its pure flavor and quality, making it our preferred choice for storing and aging our gourmet vanilla extracts.

At Aged Vanilla Company, we’re dedicated to unlocking the full potential of vanilla flavor. That’s why we meticulously split and chop our vanilla beans, revealing their aromatic essence within, known as vanilla cuttings (pod slices and spilled black bean specks). But why do we undertake this delightful dismantling, you may ask? It’s all about unleashing the essence! By exposing the beans, we set off a symphony of vanilla flavors, allowing them to dance and mingle freely within the alcohol. This process turbocharges infusion by maximizing surface area. So, give your bottle a shake and release its rich vanilla flavors into a world of taste!

We incorporate vanilla cuttings—sliced and chopped vanilla beans—because it unlocks the flavors of both the vanilla pod and beans. The pod typically contains a higher vanillin content than their vanilla beans (black specks) alone, enriching the depth and complexity of our vanilla extract. The pods contribute aromatic compounds and oils that enhance the overall flavor profile, resulting in a richer and more nuanced taste experience. Additionally, the vanilla pod acts as a natural thickener, adding substance and luxurious body to the extract. By incorporating all parts of the vanilla bean, we ensure that our vanilla extract captures the true essence of premium vanilla, delivering unparalleled quality and satisfaction to our customers.

While a metal lid may suggest high quality, our company prioritizes innovation and pioneering new concepts that resonate with consumer preferences. We recognize that our customers value functionality and practicality as much as luxury. Opting for a plastic lid with a snap-top feature, we provide a solution that not only ensures the convenience of a controlled pour for precise measurements but also reflects our dedication to meeting the changing needs of our customers. It’s not just about aesthetics—it’s about delivering an experience that surpasses expectations. Additionally, in our Aged & Unfiltered extracts with vanilla cuttings, the flip top cap and constricted orifice allow black bean specks to flow freely with the extract while largely retaining the bean pod cuttings inside the bottle.

We prioritize transparency in our product aging process. In an industry where aging times vary widely, we ensure our customers know exactly what they’re getting. While some rush, we embrace a meticulous approach to flavor development. By dating our bottles, we guarantee that each batch reflects the time and care invested in its creation. It’s not about speed; it’s about consistently delivering exceptional flavors that stand the test of time.

The duration of aging before shipping varies depending on the unique characteristics of each batch. At Aged Vanilla Company, we prioritize transparency, evident in the clear dating on the bottom of each bottle, indicating the precise aged since/crafted date.

This ensures you know exactly what you’re receiving. However, we reserve the right to oversee our processes in order to maintain our standards of exceptional quality. 

Regardless of timing, each batch undergoes our meticulously crafted process to ensure they not only rival but frequently exceed the vanilla content of major brands. Our proprietary formulas and extraction techniques deliver high levels of vanilla essence without compromising delicate flavors.

This meticulous attention to detail guarantees that the flavor in each bottle is well-developed before shipping. You can have complete confidence that every bottle delivers the rich, authentic flavor experience you’d expect from Aged Vanilla.

Our Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans are sourced from a region known for producing some of the finest vanilla in the world. Despite the name, the term ‘Bourbon’ does not refer to the whiskey but instead originates from the Bourbon Islands region, now known as Réunion, Comoros, Seychelles, and Mauritius, located in the Indian Ocean.

During the colonial era, these islands were under French rule, and the French Bourbon dynasty was prominent. Vanilla beans grown in these territories became known as Bourbon vanilla. The name Madagascar Bourbon has since become synonymous with the prized high-quality vanilla beans from this region characterized by their rich, creamy, and sweet flavor profile.

The term “Madagascar Bourbon” does not exclusively refer to vanilla beans grown on the island of Madagascar but also encompasses beans from these neighboring islands. These beans are often collectively categorized under the umbrella of “Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans” due to historical and cultural ties, as well as the similar growing conditions and flavor profiles of vanilla beans across the region.

Our bottled aged vanilla extracts are crafted using a proprietary formula, the specifics of which are not disclosed publicly. However, it’s essential to note that we meticulously adhere to the stringent standards set forth by the FDA for pure vanilla extracts. This commitment guarantees that our extracts maintain an exceptional level of quality and concentration, meeting or surpassing the minimum requirements outlined by regulatory authorities. Furthermore, it’s crucial to highlight that adherence to these standards ensures our extracts are considered pure vanilla extract, free from any additives or sweeteners, in accordance with FDA regulations.

The presence of black vanilla beans in our unfiltered extract is deliberate and underscores our commitment to quality and authenticity. By retaining the natural essence of vanilla through the inclusion of both beans and cuttings in the bottle, we ensure a rich and flavorful experience. The black bean specks serve as a signature of our pure vanilla extract, confirming its genuine origin and promising an indulgent taste in every drop.

At Aged Vanilla Company, we emphasize bold, aged vanilla flavor over the initial aroma that greets you when opening the bottle. While the FDA requires at least 35% alcohol in pure vanilla extract to act as a solvent for extracting and preserving the essential flavor compounds, extracts with up to 40% alcohol can further enhance this process, ensuring a more robust flavor and longer-lasting quality. The strong scent of alcohol vapors in pure vanilla extract is not a sign of inferior quality; rather, it is an integral part of the crafting process, designed to deliver a superior, more complex flavor experience.

To learn more about why pure vanilla extract may smell like alcohol and how this impacts its flavor, visit our Journey Insight post about this topic.