Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans

Choosing your Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans

All our beans are Vanilla planifolia, Madagascar Bourbon vanilla, harvested on the northeast coast, from Mananara Nord to Maroantsetra. What sets our beans apart is their grade: the bean’s appearance, suppleness and length, which determine how it is used in the kitchen. See also what “Bourbon vanilla” means.

Black Gourmet, Grade A: for baking and presentation

Whole, supple beans, 15 to 22 cm long, dark brown to black. They split and scrape easily and hold their shape nicely on the plate. This is the vanilla to choose when the bean will be seen or when its seeds are part of the recipe: custards, ice creams, layered desserts, plated desserts. See the Black Gourmet product page

Extraction grades: Red US, Red Souple EU, Red Split, Short & Cuts

Less attractive, sometimes split or cut, these beans are selected for their aroma rather than their looks. They are well suited to homemade extract and to recipes where the bean isn’t visible. They are gradually arriving in our European stock. Vanilla grades explained

From a 5-bean pouch to professional sizes

Black Gourmet comes in 11 sizes, from a 5-bean pouch for a single recipe to a 5 kg pouch for pastry chefs and restaurants. The larger the size, the lower the price per kilo: vanilla bean prices explained. Each pouch is vacuum-sealed to preserve aroma and suppleness, and linked to an identified harvest lot.

Frequently asked questions