Vanilla bean....

[Dendion]

I have a question about vanilla bean. I am in secondary Fermentation, and about to add vanilla bean. I thought there was a thread about Madagascar Vanilla bean, and not to use it? Anyone shed some light on this? Thanks!

 

[vNmd]

I have heard that Madagascar beans are the best. I bought some and added to a stout's secondary. I went way overboard (2 beans for a week and a half) so I am making my own extract in hopes of getting a more exact quantity. I haven't heard anything about using them in meads, so I subscribed to your thread.

 

[funnycreature]

Madagascar beans are some of the best. There are differences in quality which is I think largely dependent on residual moisture. I think one of Denny Conn's relatives has a vanilla shop in Hawai'i that apparently sells the best. beans. ever. Of course with a hefty Aloha price tag

 

[winterc]

I soaked 2 vanilla beans in vodka for about 2 months, then poured the vodka in after 2 weeks of fermenting a porter. It worked out perfectly.

 

[Magic8Ball]

I am just about to bottle a 5 gal batch of Kurts Apple Pie mead. It calls for two whole vanilla madagascar beans (+ cinnamon sticks) in secondary. I did not split them, I did soak in vodka overnight and added the whole thing into secondary. I used a hop bag with sanitized monofilament line (fishing line) to put them in. The idea was to make it easier to pull them when it tasted right. Life happens, I forgot about them and after 4 weeks the Cinnamon and Vanilla flavor was very intense, I pulled the beans and sticks. Now after 3 month of bulk aging the vanilla and cinnamon are just a background notes. Delicious. Side note: tie the bag at the top so that the end comes into the carboy neck, not the middle where it will get stuck. Dough!

 

[Matrix4b]

I soaked 2 vanilla beans in vodka for about 2 months, then poured the vodka in after 2 weeks of fermenting a porter. It worked out perfectly.

This is almost exactly how to make vanilla extract. Splitting and scraping the bean putting it all in the vodka or I use Rum, and shaking up a bit now and then.

I recomend you get beans in bulk online, Amazon has some not bad prices for grade b beans in bulk for 1/4 to 1/2 pounds. The only diffrence between grade b and grade a is how pretty the bean is. They make extract from grade b beans, commercially.

But your bean choice is fine. I recomend for a gallon that you use 2-3 beans and just let it sit in the secondary for a good couple of months. It takes 2 months for a true extract using 35% ABV alcohol, your secondary should be around 10% to 12% so 2 months would be good, just split and scrape into it. If the pod isn't at least split then the alcohol can't get to the good stuff as easily.

I make several cups of vanilla extract at a time. 6 beans to a cup of vodka or rum, and the best part is you can use the same beans for a second batch.

Matrix

 

[MarshmallowBlue]

You want Grade B anyways. Grade A is for show, grade B are "extract beans"

 

[vNmd]

This is almost exactly how to make vanilla extract. Splitting and scraping the bean putting it all in the vodka or I use Rum, and shaking up a bit now and then.

I researched making extracts after a bad experience putting beans in secondary. I hope making an extract will make the amounts added more reproducible to work with. I did 6 beans in 8oz vodka. It has only been a week, but the colour so far is pretty amazing. I can wait until fall to try it out.

 

[Beantown_Brewer]

This site has some of the most interesting varieties at decent prices, and the quality is outstanding. From the site comments, a lot of bakers seem to use them as a source for high quality beans.

http://www.beanilla.com/vanilla/vanilla-beans

For my imperial stout, I used their Tahitian beans. I split them, scraped them, then soaked them in Vodka for a week, adding them to the secondary. They were a wonderful addition.