The biggest (and most expensive) question: Which grade of vanilla beans to use?
I started using Grade A beans for no real reason other than that’s what I chose to buy the first time around. But the cost difference between Grade A and Grade B kept drawing me back to looking for information. I eventually decided on using Grade B for two reasons:
1. They are specifically marked “for vanilla extract”.
2. They are lighter due to having less moisture content. Since we are choosing the amount of beans by weight, lighter beans means a higher number of pods for the same weight.
However, as there are probably more factors that go into choosing Grade A vs Grade B, we need to conduct an experiment to ensure this is the case.
Method
For this experiment, we will change only one variable. We will create two identical bottles of vanilla extract using the same type of bottle, the same alcohol, store them together through the aging process, shake them at the same time, and the only difference will be whether the beans included are Grade A or Grade B. At the end of three months (July 10, 2025), the two extracts will be compared with a method yet to be determined. These tests will continue for as long as possible. In hindsight, I believe I should have made a larger quantity so that the experiment could also test how long it takes to make “good” vanilla extract. Add that to the list.
Note: At the time I was creating these, I was using Titul Vodka. I’ve since been told it is probably not a good choice. The actual brand and quality experiment is coming up later, so let’s just leave it at that.
Execution
We procured two-ounce bottles from Amazon. Both the A and B bottles were made with Titul Vodka from the same big bottle. 0.25 ounces (approximately 7.5 grams) of Grade A vanilla bean pods were split open, cut into small enough pieces to lay flat across the bottom of the bottle, dropped into the “VA” bottle, and the bottle was topped off with Titul Vodka. The same quantity of Grade B vanilla bean pods were split, cut, placed into another two-ounce bottle, and the bottle was topped off from the same Titul Vodka bottle.
Results
At this point, we just have to wait for the extraction process to do its magic. These were bottled on 10 April. You can see that there are more (quantity) pods in the “VB” bottle, and the (I hesitate to use this word at this time) “extract” is considerably darker, supporting my hypothesis that the B beans will produce a better product.
Three weeks later on 24 April, the two bottles look like this. The extract in both bottles are getting darker. The “B” bottle is still somewhat darker.
On 24 May, the results are still the same. The content of the “B” bottle is somewhat darker than the content of the “A” bottle.
This is an ongoing experiment, so the results will continue to be updated.
