Extraction : Vanilla Facts : Growing Regions : History : FAQs

Producing the highest-quality vanilla extract is a three-step process:
 
 
Step #1 Vanilla Bean Cultivation

Vanilla vines grow best 10 to 20 degrees north or south of the equator and about 2,000 feet above sea level. They require a moist, hot, tropical climate with year-round temperatures of 75 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.   
 
The vanilla vine flowers in its third year of growth.  The vanilla flower opens for approximately 24 hours. To produce just one vanilla bean, the flower needs to be pollinated within 8-12 hours.  The pollen is inaccessible to most pollinating insects, so it is necessary to hand pollinate each individual flower.  For each vine, flowering happens within two months.  
 
Once the flower is pollinated, a vanilla pod or bean will grow six to ten inches in about six weeks.  Six to nine months after pollination, the tips of the bean will turn yellow and the beans are ready for harvest.
 
 
  
Step #2 Vanilla Bean Curing (Bourbon Process)

After the vanilla beans are ripe and picked from the vine, the beans are cured.

Immersion: First, the vanilla beans are immersed in hot water (140 degrees Fahrenheit) for about three minutes. This destroys chlorophyll, terminates ripening, ruptures inner walls, and triggers enzymatic  reactions.  
 
Fermentation/Sweating: The beans are then packed into wool-lined crates and covered with blankets.  The crates are sealed for twenty-four hours, during which time the vanilla fruit loses moisture (sweats) and the beans develop their dark brown color.
 
Slow Drying:  The slow drying of the beans takes approximately eight days.  During this period, the beans are dried on blankets every day and stacked in storerooms every night to create a favorable temperature for enzyme action.  The beans not only take on a darker color, they also begin to release the vanilla fragrance that we all love.
 
Conditioning: During the final drying phase, the beans are kept on wooden racks in airy warehouses for two to three months. Only then are they finally ready for grading and packaging.  

Step #3 Vanilla Extraction

Vanilla beans are finely ground and placed in stainless steel baskets.  The baskets are dropped into large tanks containing a mixture of alcohol and water.  The alcohol-water mixture is heated to 130 degrees Fahrenheit and the mixture is continuously circulated through the ground vanilla beans, extracting the flavor.
 
The process is very similar to a coffee percolator but is much slower, taking roughly 48 hours to complete. The extract is then sent through a series of filters to the aging tanks.  Rodelle Vanilla extract is aged no less than 60 days.