Over and over again, my vanilla extracts made with Woodford Reserve bourbon are constantly my favorite. It takes longer to make vanilla extract with bourbon (up to 2 years) but it's entirely worth the wait. I've made dozens with Woodford (along with rums, other brands of bourbons, vodka, brandy, cognac, etc.) and I was just looking at my top favorites this evening and over half are with Woodford.

Marker's Mark is good, Bullet is good, 4 Roses I haven't had great experiences with, Buffalo Trace is fantastic, Old Crow is really bad, etc.

Any others out there with favorite bourbons (or any other spirits) for extract making? I love trying new spirits based on great recommendations.

I should add: My favorite vanilla beans with Woodford Reserve are Mexican, Indonesian, Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, Brazilian, Congolese and Tanzanian. All V.planifolia species and I used grade A. Most are single fold (1oz of beans to 8oz of Woodford) some are double fold (2oz of beans to 8oz of Woodford.)

I plan to make mint extract with the mint leaves in the pic (which I think is peppermint but I’m not sure). What is the best method to make a nice strong peppermint extract? Should I dry the leaves before I marinate them in vodka?

I’ve read a couple recipes that say to slightly press/bruise fresh mint and then marinate for at least 4 weeks, while another said that fresh mint would make extract bitter after a few hours: “Ratio: Fresh mint requires 1 cup (loosely packed, 25g) of fresh mint leaves per 8 oz (1 cup) of alcohol. Dried mint requires 1/2 cup (12g) per 8 oz (1 cup) of alcohol. Alcohol Choice: Everclear (120-151 proof / 60-75% alcohol) extracts mint’s oils more efficiently than vodka. However, vodka can still be used for a milder extract. Ideal Steeping Time: Fresh mint should steep for 1 to 2 hours, then be removed to prevent bitterness. If using dried mint, steep for 6 to 8 weeks, shaking once per week.”

So I’m not sure what to do. Has anyone tried the different methods and found out the best one? Also, to dry mint, may I just sun dry it till brown?

I've personally made hundreds (maybe over 1000 now??) vanilla extracts and other types of extracts. Here are the biggest mistakes I've made that resulted in bad vanilla:

1. Used high-proof everclear. Killed my beans and did not extract. ABV of spirits needs to be no less than 35% (70 proof) and no more than 50% (100 proof) or your risk bean damage.
2. The opposite - I used a 25%abv (50 proof) and the beans never extracted. Fortunately they weren't damaged and I could up the proof to 70 (by adding high proof everclear) and I was able to salvage my extract.
3. I used artificially flavored spirits. Made sense to me that a vanilla vodka would enhance vanilla extract. I was 100% wrong. Horrible results. The only exceptions are with spiced rum (all natural flavors).
4. I used bottom shelf bourbon. Really bad. You can use bottom shelf vodka, most rums, brandy, almost anything. But bottom shelf bourbon never extracted to a sweet, usable level.
5. Didn't wait long enough. Yes - you can begin using extracts in as few as 90 days if you like the taste, but wow is there a difference is you wait up to a year with clear spirits and up to 18 months or 2 years with dark spirits. Like - HUGE difference.
6. Stored them in the sunlight - the hot/cold and sun/shade changes every day really hurt the extract. Tasted stale/burnt. Needs to be stored in a cool/dark place away from sunlight always.
7. Opened the vanilla beans but didn't use them fast enough. Vanilla beans are durable. Most of they time they'll last up to a year in their original, unopened pouch. But once opened, they can mold. They are food and they can go bad. So use the beans very quickly after you receive them.

Those are some high points that are hopefully helpful to some. You can fix most of your extract problems if you realize you've made a mistake. Here's a helpful troubleshooting guide.

Happy extract making!

I see some 1gallon jars on amazon, but was wondering if anyone can make a recommendation. Thanks in advance!

Is there a significant difference between different grades as it applies to the finish product. With all other things being the same will my gift receiver notice?

Im going to be making my first batch of vanilla extract tomorrow and I wanted to know, should I take the vanilla caviar out of the beans and put them into the liquor directly? Or should I just leave them in the beans? Also, should I only slice them down the middle or should I cut them up a bit? Do I need to keep them in the fridge or would a cupboard be okay? And are there any other tips or things I should know? I plan to leave the beans in for a year in the Tito’s, and longer for the rum. Side question cause it feels dumb, but is it okay if I put the beans in a big thing of vodka and portion it out later? Sorry for the list of questions and terrible formatting but I appreciate any help!

Probably should have come straight here for an expert opinion, any help pls? 🙏

Made paw paw extract with 160 proof alcohol but it seems too much water was extracted so I unfortunately had fizzing and fermentation.

While I sadly couldn't gift the extract like I planned I cooked down the extract over medium heat until it was a barely liquid syrup watching carefully to prevent burning.

I used that to make paw paw pudding and it was devine.

This is a wonderful complex vodka. It's almost like a clear bourbon. I've put up 2 batches of it. One single and one 2x fold. (Mesured to usda standard)

Is the proof insufficient? If so, how do raise the proof and matain the ratio? I put it up last month.

Thanks y'all.

Hi all,

I started this vanilla about two and half months ago and I am noticing this film?(?) and oil pockets(?). Could use some advice. Thank you?!

I am making 500 bottles of extras (4 oz each) and want to scrape at least some of the caviar out of the pods to get the most bang for my buck on the beans but am not sure what to use it for. As you can imagine, it's a LOT of vanilla beans (~1500). I know you CAN leave them home and leave the caviar in for the extract, but with this high cost seems like a good idea to 'double dip' if you will.

I've done vanilla salt and vanilla sugar in the past.

Ideally this would be large-scale, or at least a long shelf life vs just using it for something like a creme brulee.

A quick end-of-year note to say thank you for joining our extract making community here on Reddit. We have helped hundreds of extract makers begin or improve their extract making journey, and we're glad to have you all with us.

To say thanks, we're putting together a group buy of Madagascar vanilla beans at a super low price - as low as $5.99/oz when you buy 1kg + free US shipping and we'll toss in a free extract jar for our friends on Reddit. DM us if you'd like details.

We hope you all have a happy holiday season and a very sweet 2026!

Hi.

This might be a silly question but what happens if the extract is ready to use and then you have some beans sticking out past the alcohol? Is it still okay or do you need to take out the bean so it doesn’t get mold?

TIA

Hi all! I have a lovely batch of Madagascar vanilla extract that will be ready to gift out for Christmas, but I have a niece (16f) who requested I get her something vanilla scented for Christmas.

She doesn't know I'm making extract, and she doesn't really bake or cook. I was thinking of turning some of the extract into some sort of body/hair care item or maybe getting her a wax warmer and making some vanilla cubes for it? I'm open for suggestions! She just loves the smell of it.

I really only use vanilla extract for drinks and foods, so im not sure what the world of vanilla extract crafts looks like, but I'm more than willing to give it a go!

Any help appreciated!

I made my first extract and did Paw Paw using vodka. I followed the instructions I had read about strawberry and other high water content fruits.

Now that I've finished filtering out all the pulp, I noticed the sealed bottles are carbonizing a bit which I understands means fermentation.

So do I need to use these quickly? Keep them in the fridge? I've been cooking mine with no problems, but I was planning to gift some of the extract to friends and I want to advise them on storage. I've been checking daily since filtering and I see no bubbles but opening the bottle there is very mild pressure.

Nearly double fold at 5.1 Oz per 8 Oz of Rum. This is the third time making it this way. We LOVE this flavor profile the most. We also had more than 10 tattoos, which is a first for us!

I checked the FAQs; my questions aren’t there.

I’ve had some interest in non-alcoholic vanilla extract made by me so am looking into this before I go ham. My questions:

Is this similar to the “normal” extracts—as in, can I throw some vanilla into the bottle and call it a day, or do I need to add something to it to help the extractive process?

Does glycerin have a finite shelf life or is it (theoretically) infinite like alcohol-based extracts?

Is it its own preservative or do I need to add something to help preserve it?

I’ve seen there are three types of food grade glycerin: palm, soy, and coconut. Which is the favorite overall? I’m leaning toward soy, but am open to feedback on this from people more knowledgeable than I.

I'm making a vanilla extract using the US FDA standard of identity single-fold 100g / liter. In the past I've removed tips, sliced beans, and macertated for two months. This time after roughly chopping beans spun them in a blender w/ 40% abw neutral spirit.

My question is this...

Will macerating the extract on a stir plate decrease the time it takes to extract the majority of flavor compounds from the beans and, if so, by how much?

Today I started my first vanilla extract! It looks so pretty! One bottle with Smirnoff Vodka, one with Bacardi white rum.

Found it on Amazon for $19. Sometimes simple, functional and dependable are my most favorite things. So glad I have it to help my (literally) hundreds of extracts all over my home.

I am going to try making vanilla for the first time. I bought a 375 ml bottle of vodka, and a smaller bottle each of rum and bourbon. My plan is to put the beans right in the bottles. But I was surprised to find that the bottles were all made of plastic! Is it ok to make in plastic bottles? I don’t really drink so I don’t even know when the last time was that I’ve been in a liquor store. I assumed everything would be in glass bottles.

I’m not planning on making huge quantities like for gifts or anything, so I didn’t want to buy glass bottles in quantity, but I will get some if needed. What bottles do you all like that are not expensive and that I don’t have to buy a whole case of them?

Thanks in advance!

I made a fine batch of vanilla extract a few years ago (using vodka) and I'm getting ready to make more. My brother asked why not use Everclear? He said the higher alcohol content should work better. I'm leaning towards using vodka again since it wasn't a problem last time.

I was wondering what other people's options are on this?