Discover my different vanilla beans “off the beaten path”

At David Vanille, each bean is a celebration of love for authentic flavors and constitutes a direct link between you and the most dedicated vanilla producers across the globe. Our vanilla beans, true masterpieces offered by nature, are chosen for their exceptional aromatic intensity, the result of rigorous selection conducted by a passionate artisan, fully committed to seeking the spiced treasures of our planet. Choosing our vanillas means contributing to a shared vision where product excellence, passion for spices, and the well-being of vanilla-growing communities come together to create a more harmonious future. With each purchase, you actively participate in this magnificent adventure, promoting ethical exchange that goes far beyond a simple transaction.

Starred chefs never compromise on quality, and their trust honors me and motivates me to go even further to find exceptional spices to share with you. When a great chef chooses my vanilla, I am certain that its quality is exemplary.

My passion for vanilla drives me to choose different vanillas. This product is extraordinary. Depending on the country it comes from, it offers a new experience each time. Fruity, musky, woody, cocoa notes—each vanilla bean offers a unique taste journey. Through my travels to vanilla and spice producing countries, I have established partnerships with producer-collectors. You will discover that each vanilla bean has a distinctive nose and aromatic amplitude depending on its production region, curing, or variety. Respect for long traditional curing is also one of my signatures. The result: a black Bourbon Gold vanilla with bold cocoa notes, a drier Uganda vanilla with wild notes, or a very floral Papua vanilla. Each year, I do my utmost to help you discover new vanilla aromatic palettes. My ambition: to make my customers understand that the fragrance of true vanilla can be quite different from what one imagines. It’s often a discovery when receiving my selections for the first time. I seek aromatic intensity, power, feminine or wild notes that will make me “vibrate” and delight my customers. My objective: to discover year after year new harvests, superb vanillas with exotic notes that transport you just by smelling them. And when you taste them, you can appreciate an explosion of flavors. Here are the vanillas I offer on my site. The one from Guadeloupe being endangered, you will no longer find it here (for now), but I still wanted to pay tribute to it.

Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans – Bourbon Gold ® : An exceptional Bourbon vanilla that “goes off the beaten path.” Very Oily and Fleshy Beans. Long curing in trunks with vanilla, floral, and slightly acidic notes. Buttery heart notes, figs, and prunes.

Madagascar Split Red Bourbon Vanilla Beans M “Sambava”: More cured beans, intense notes of red fruits (Raspberries, Currants) and berries (Blackberries, Raspberries). Cocoa atmosphere with an intensely caramelized finish. The vanilla I started with on the beaches of Guadeloupe.

Brown Vanilla Beans M “Lake Victoria” – Uganda: Semi-dry vanilla beans with a highly vanilla, cocoa nose and a finish of mirabelle plum and caramel. Excellent value for money.

Gourmet Vanilla Beans “Ébène Black” M – Uganda : Thick beans wider than Bourbon Planifolia vanilla. Beans very rich in essential oils. A nose of dried fruits, buttery with a bold finish.

Downgraded Vanilla Beans XS – Papua, Uganda, Madagascar: Incredible price with beautiful aromatic profile, mixed batch of vanilla often over-mature, split, or broken. Ideal for your arranged rums and planters. Woody and vanilla notes.

Downgraded Uganda Vanilla Beans “Cuts” : The best price, only a few weeks per year. Musky, caramelized, woody, and vanilla notes. Main uses: homemade vanilla extract, arranged rums, homemade vanilla powder.

Red Uganda Vanilla Beans M “Mount Elgon” : Drier beans than other qualities but highly loaded with vanillin (vanilla notes). Simply rehydrate the beans in a base of alcohol to make them triple in volume. Many beans are harvested in over-maturity and some may be split like a late harvest.

Tahitian Vanilla Beans M – Grand Cru Black Pearl : Intensely biscuity notes (speculoos and gingerbread). A sensual and languid ensemble with a floral finish, slightly aniseed and very gourmet.

Vanuatu Vanilla Beans XL – Cream of Plantations : A very long curing that offers notes of tropical flowers, vanilla powder. The finish (heart notes) is warmer with notes of Ceylon cinnamon, Sandalwood, Yellow fruits (mango, carambola).

Vanilla Beans “Kilimanjaro” M – Tanzania : Complete harvest less than 2 tons per year! A vanilla with notes of peaches and nectarines cocooned in a dried fruit ensemble (Sultana raisins, figs). The finish goes to superb notes of raw cocoa and honey. The beans are very rich in essential oils, very oily on the surface.

Ecuador Tahitensis Vanilla Beans S – Amazonia : Very long curing in trunks. Rebellious vanilla beans with lively and “Off the beaten path” notes. The amplitude is exceptionally floral and singular, incomparable to other batches. The finish is vegetal with a touch of Heliotropin reminiscent of Tahitian vanilla.

Indian Vanilla Beans S to M – Gourmet Quality: Very wide and fleshy beans. They will delight lovers of very oily and oily beans. The nose is ultra-gourmet, buttery, cocoa, toasted hazelnuts. The finish is round driven by cocoa and vanilla notes.

Zanzibar Vanilla Beans L – Gourmet Quality : Candied notes reminiscent of the sweetness of fruits bursting with sugar in the middle of summer. Mango notes for a remarkable finish.

New Caledonia Vanilla Beans L – TK Quality: A unique batch that offers intensely floral and fruity notes. High vanillin content for lovers of high-end vanilla.

São Tomé and Príncipe Vanilla Beans M – Gourmet Quality : A superb vanilla with caramelized notes, a chocolate depth approaching 100% dark chocolate. An elegant finish, slightly floral, almond with a hint of Iris flower. It’s intended for culinary adventurers.

Tahitensis Vanilla Beans from Niue Island M: A huge crush. I love everything about it. A vanilla that makes us dizzy like first love. Indescribable notes of heliotropin, tiare flowers, hint of Ceylon cinnamon, honey. A finish that leaves me speechless with gingerbread, ultra-gourmet and sweet. The vanilla beans from the forgotten Paradise of the South Pacific.

XXL Congo Vanilla Beans – Mountain of Gorillas: My most sentimental batch. Harvested on a plantation now under rebel control, my collector fled the country. The beans are of extremely rare quality. Like those from Niue, they are very hard to describe, the quality is so sublime. Visually oily, very round and oily, they give off biscuity, vanilla notes for a powdery finish on Tonka Bean.

Wild Vanilla Bean from Peru – Pompona Grandiflora XXXL: Very beautiful discovery. A micro-harvest that impressed me at first glance by the size of the beans, especially the width. It’s aimed at lovers of rare and “off the beaten path” vanilla beans. The aromatic profile reminds us of candy apple, musk, and sandalwood. The finish is deep, mysterious, powerful.

Vanilla Beans “Bougainville Island” – 3 years of sourcing: After many months of sourcing and a very, very long curing process, I’m delighted to present this magnificent harvest. The beans offer intensely biscuity, caramelized, and candied notes. It evokes the magic of sailing voyages, its corsair spirit takes us “Off the Beaten Path.”

XXL Papua vanilla beans – Cream of the Tribes: Only the best of our Papua New Guinea producers’ harvest. Beans of extravagant width and length that offer a “fireworks” aromatic profile. A curing process that reveals our unique expertise and superb spicy notes (cinnamon, tonka beans). Subsequently, we discover a hint of speculoos in a buttery ensemble that lands us in a gourmet world, a blend of pralines (hazelnuts, almonds).

Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans XXXL “Maroantsetra” : The most intense of my Bourbon vanilla beans. The best of the harvest. Very long beans that offer the most accomplished, most delicate, most gourmet aromatic profile that Madagascar offers. You will be amazed by this quality and these results in the kitchen.

Guadeloupe Vanilla Beans – Pompona Schiede “Banana” : The rarest, the one that evokes my meeting with one of my mentor vanilla producers. A vanilla at the antipodes of what you know. A journey, a one-way ticket to the vanilla of the Amerindians.

Mexican Vanilla

Mexico is the original land of vanilla. Not everyone knows this since Madagascar now produces the largest part of the world’s vanilla. For a bit of history, the Totonacs cultivated vanilla long before being colonized by the Spanish. The latter discovered Mexican vanilla in the 16th century and decided to produce it. But what they didn’t know was that in Mexico, an endemic bee naturally pollinated vanilla flowers. It wasn’t until the 19th century and the intervention of Edmond Albius, a Réunion slave, to understand the principle of pollination and succeed in producing vanilla for the first time in the Indian Ocean. It’s from this era that Bourbon vanilla has been cultivated. Mexican vanilla is therefore a rarer product. It doesn’t lack subtlety with its cocoa, spicy, and sweet notes that are reminiscent of red fruit. You’ll appreciate its powerful flavors in the mouth to enhance all your recipes.

Madagascar Bourbon Gold Vanilla

Madagascar now produces 80% of the world’s vanilla. There you’ll discover fleshy beans with magnificent black grains. Bourbon vanilla takes its name from a family of French kings. It is only produced in 5 countries: Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion, Seychelles, and Comoros. No other vanilla can obtain this designation. Thus, like fine wines, Bourbon vanilla is a geographical designation. I wanted to offer you a Bourbon vanilla that could surprise you with its intensity. Each year, it’s important that my Madagascar Bourbon vanilla maintains beautiful warm and cocoa notes. Upon receiving my first batch in 2019, I was surprised to discover base notes that lean noticeably toward caramel. In the Sava region, there are many producers, each highlighting their expertise. Mastering vanilla cultivation requires perfect knowledge of all production stages, from cultivation to shipping. Planting, climate hazards, harvesting at full maturity or not, curing in wooden trunks—everything must be mastered to perfection. Of course, this affects the price, but just taste a low-grade vanilla to understand that vanilla, like wine, is a noble product that takes time to reach maturity to satisfy your taste buds. What I offer and strive to find is a Bourbon vanilla that reflects my signature with Bourbon vanilla curing that goes off the beaten path. I want my customers, when they smell my vanilla, to understand all my work just by breathing it in. Do you really want to discover a Bourbon vanilla with a different nose and intensity? Trust David Vanille. My favorite: Bourbon Gold vanilla, a vanilla with cocoa, buttery, and caramelized notes. Long curing in trunks for singular aromatic precision. Moisture content 28-35%.

Papua New Guinea Vanilla

When you start discovering vanilla beyond Madagascar’s Bourbon Vanilla, you quickly become interested in Papua New Guinea vanilla. Papua offers two varieties: Planifolia vanilla (the most common) and Tahitensis vanilla, which is the same variety found in Tahiti. While the curing of Tahitensis in Papua is identical to that of Planifolia, the difference lies in the fact that the former is not scalded. You’ll find smooth and highly exotic notes in this origin. The intensity of its aromatic palette offers characteristic notes of flowers, leather, sometimes lightly roasted. This vanilla particularly touches me. The work of Papua communities over the past twenty years has been remarkable in promoting this uniqueness. A major challenge remains in training producers and collectors to offer properly cured vanilla without developing germs. Too often, samples don’t meet my requirements: the moisture content is too high and the vanilla poorly cured, lacking power. My goal is to offer you a significantly superior quality with long curing and notes true to the typicity of a Wild Papua New Guinea vanilla. If you want to discover vanilla from distant lands with “fireworks” notes, discover the Wild Gourmet Cured Vanilla from Papua New Guinea from David Vanille.

Tahitian Vanilla – Black Pearl

A fleshy bean, floral notes, a unique caramel-speculoos aroma—that’s what Tahitian vanilla offers you. Once again, I took the time to search for the best vanilla from French Polynesia to offer you a small taste jewel. This flavorful vanilla has nothing to envy the Bourbon vanilla that’s mostly found. Vanilla tahitensis, vanilla planifolia—these two vanillas are produced in Tahiti to vary the pleasures. Much rarer than Madagascar vanilla, this product is a must-try. Great chefs such as Guy Savoy have adopted this vanilla. And you, are you ready to taste it?

Uganda Vanilla – Grand Cru

Are you looking for rarer origins? Uganda is a country that, for several years, has been struggling to make a name for itself in the vanilla industry. It’s very difficult for me to find high-quality black vanilla currently in this area. The last batch I received was re-cured and sorted by me, as the moisture content and quality received did not meet my specifications. The result is a cured vanilla with wild notes that will find its recognition in macerations. I have a particular requirement regarding the quality of my vanilla. An exceptional product must be treated in the best way, and my customers also have high expectations that I must meet. Want to go off the beaten path and treat yourself to a cured vanilla that stands out? The Uganda vanilla will enhance your arranged rums and homemade vanilla extracts.

Pompona Vanilla “GRANDIOSE” Black Gold Tsy Taitry from Madagascar

Another vanilla to discover: Pompona “GRANDIOSE” Black Gold vanilla. This one is produced in Madagascar around Andapa, Sambava, and Antalaha. This vanilla benefits from long curing and offers long, plump beans. The quality of this lesser-known vanilla is exceptional. It presents fruity and caramelized notes that are simply captivating. If you’re looking for a very rare product, this vanilla is for you.

Guadeloupe Pompona Vanilla: an endangered vanilla

Guadeloupe was once a vanilla-producing region, but the industry has almost disappeared. There are of course many vanilla plants in Guadeloupe, remnants of an era when the island’s vanilla had a reputation in Europe. Some enthusiasts and passionate individuals continue to develop agroforestry projects, vanilla under shade structures, or in undergrowth. The majority of harvested planifolia vanilla undergoes transformation using the Bourbon technique (scalding, sweating, curing), while a minority scarifies or “combs” the vanilla, like the kind I particularly favor and exclusively select. Vanilla producers in Guadeloupe who perpetuate curing by “scarifying” the vanilla preserve a unique know-how in the French West Indies. I can only encourage this approach, which allows the vanilla to develop exceptional and singular notes. Scarified planifolia vanilla from Guadeloupe will develop musky, woody, and deep notes. Scarified Pompona vanilla from Guadeloupe, on the other hand, will offer balsamic, floral notes, expansive notes that no other vanilla can match. The latter is a variety that has almost disappeared from the globe. It is rarer than a diamond.

    Buy your vanilla by the kilo

While some order two or ten beans, others buy vanilla by the kilo. Gastronomy professionals who work extensively with vanilla choose to place bulk orders to optimize their margins. Sold by the kilo, my vanilla is much less expensive. If you want to discover the world’s best vanilla at the best price, it’s only at David Vanille. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you’d like a quote on a specific annual volume.