When many hear “vanilla” they are picturing a dark liquid…..or a refreshing drink! In fact vanilla adds a classic “bass note” in brewers’ parlance to accentuate ales and liven up lagers. Extract is brewed by straight up aging ratios of spirits and bean matter, and infused rum or lightly spiced ciders abound in the markets of Europe Japan and America.

Vanilla is a core ingredient in many of the heavier brews such as stouts or porters, but over the years as brewers realize that these heavier beers can mask quality of triage, the best vanillas have stepped into the effervescent realm of wheat and white ales and fluffy IPAs, even to just plain vanilla flavored lagers and pilsens.

Vanilla used in alcohol, beer, or extracts has the added advantage of invisibility, meaning that brewers and distillers need not worry about a bean’s appearance, but only its taste and texturous nuances on your tastebuds. – Thus the rouge (red fox) triage, bits and splits, and cut or “grade B” or “extract” vanilla can be used here and occasionally save a bit of cost.

To meet this with typical marketing malice, middlemen had started thus selling garbage or young or terrible vanilla AS “extract vanilla” – manipulating their clients with misnomers. The true extract vanilla is simply drier but bursting with flavor on a higher denser surface matter to moisture ratio, meaning that wise brewers get WAY more bang for their buck.