Comments on: Making Homemade Vanilla Extract (aka…Why Laura Bought a Gallon of Vodka)

By: Laura

Laura — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:01:43 +0000

We usually just buy the cheap vodka, the goodness comes from the great quality beans!

By: Laura

Laura — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:01:08 +0000

Normal, yes. Ours typically can look like this as well and we’ve never had trouble with it.

By: Andrea D.

Andrea D. — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:53:29 +0000

Thanks for your advice. I just ordered my beans and cannot wait until
they come. Thanks for your help.

By: Kayla

Kayla — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 20:00:05 +0000

Just wanted to say that when I was looking at prices, it cheaper to buy 2 half pounds equaling $54. Instead of one pound for $54.99. Every 99 cents counts, right?! Then add the discount and free shipping, gets better all the time.

By: Brittany Farabee

Brittany Farabee — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 11:02:48 +0000

Is it normal? I guess the beans do have a certain amount of oil to
them?

By: Laura

Laura — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 02:44:07 +0000

It should be fine. You can just leave it as is, giving it a nice shake every few weeks. :)

By: Brittany Farabee

Brittany Farabee — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 18:58:55 +0000

I am making some vanilla myself which I am so excited about! It has been sitting for about a month and i have noticed what looks like oil floating in it. Is that normal and should I strain it out with something or should I just leave it?
Thanks for any reply!

By: ann

ann — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 04:08:15 +0000

don’t dilute your vodka (or other alcohol) below 35%. you need that to do the extraction. i think you may have been reading about people using pure grain alcohol like everclear (up to 190 proof or 95%).

By: ann

ann — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 03:55:33 +0000

from the reading i’ve been doing (lots since i like getting things right the first time), fda standards are 13.35oz if vanilla bean to 1 gallon of 35% alcohol. that is for single strength vanilla. so, 80 beans would be just about right for that (maybe even a bit shy). the fda does not say anything about the quality of the beans being used (possibly explaining the vast difference in all single strength vanillas). i just ordered my beans today, so i am looking forward to a new experiment next week!!

By: Becky Webb

Becky Webb — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 22:33:53 +0000

Ok, so do you think it matters what kind of vodka you buy? Like does the cheap kind taste worse or do you think the cheap kind is ok because it extracts from vanilla beans?