We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.

Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.



Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

zxcvbob wrote:
Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.



Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

Most vanilla extract on the market is done in ethanol, ie 200 proof
alcohol IIRC. I guess you could do in the liquors you mentioned but
seems a waste of sipping booze.

On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.



Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

"George Shirley" wrote in message
. ..
zxcvbob wrote:
Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.



Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

Most vanilla extract on the market is done in ethanol, ie 200 proof
alcohol IIRC. I guess you could do in the liquors you mentioned but seems
a waste of sipping booze.

Actually, it's not, esp. as it's for a gift. I made a quart bottle of
coffee/vanilla liquor with about 6 vanilla beans and extrastrong espresso. I
used Everclear (the highest proof food-type alcohol I could buy). It was
tasty but would have been better with brandy or 151 rum. Smoother, nicer,
you know? BTW, the vanilla beans eventually dissolved altogether. One can
buy cutsy (pint?) bottles with a vanilla bean or two in thar and one pours
over one's likker of choice. Might be an idea here, and not have to worry
about preservation. I kept my concoction in the cupboard till I drank it all
up, and I didn't get blinded or nothin'. I believe the alcohol successfully
kills most germs and renders the stuff unlikely to grow any more.
If you know your friend's drink of choice, maybe two-gifts-in-one? Bottle
of likker, pretty little bottle with fancy vanilla bean? Cork. There you go.
Edrena

The Joneses wrote:
"George Shirley" wrote in message
. ..
zxcvbob wrote:
Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.


Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

Most vanilla extract on the market is done in ethanol, ie 200 proof
alcohol IIRC. I guess you could do in the liquors you mentioned but seems
a waste of sipping booze.

Actually, it's not, esp. as it's for a gift. I made a quart bottle of
coffee/vanilla liquor with about 6 vanilla beans and extrastrong espresso. I
used Everclear (the highest proof food-type alcohol I could buy). It was
tasty but would have been better with brandy or 151 rum. Smoother, nicer,
you know? BTW, the vanilla beans eventually dissolved altogether. One can
buy cutsy (pint?) bottles with a vanilla bean or two in thar and one pours
over one's likker of choice. Might be an idea here, and not have to worry
about preservation. I kept my concoction in the cupboard till I drank it all
up, and I didn't get blinded or nothin'. I believe the alcohol successfully
kills most germs and renders the stuff unlikely to grow any more.
If you know your friend's drink of choice, maybe two-gifts-in-one? Bottle
of likker, pretty little bottle with fancy vanilla bean? Cork. There you go.
Edrena


Yahbut! That's a liqueur, not vanilla extract, which is what you asked
about.

On Sep 20, 6:15*pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.

Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? *(I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) *I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.

Bob

Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html

cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html

Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from them.
I use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some eye-dropper
bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very competitive
pricing too (always a bonus).

zipporah wrote:
cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen
little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll
assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html

Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from them. I
use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some eye-dropper
bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very competitive
pricing too (always a bonus).


I think I would use these: (either the 2 oz or 4 oz with plain lids)
http://www.specialtybottle.com/index...on=Custom&ID=2

Bob

On Sun, 21 Sep 2008 16:06:28 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

zipporah wrote:
cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen
little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll
assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html

Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from them. I
use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some eye-dropper
bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very competitive
pricing too (always a bonus).


I think I would use these: (either the 2 oz or 4 oz with plain lids)
http://www.specialtybottle.com/index...on=Custom&ID=2

Bob

I am wondering if plastic can be used? What are your thoughts?

Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sun, 21 Sep 2008 16:06:28 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

zipporah wrote:
cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle would
anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would need to
seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is made, after 6
months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok just sitting on
shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be
appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen
little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can find
them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll
assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i think
you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.
Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html
Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from them. I
use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some eye-dropper
bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very competitive
pricing too (always a bonus).

I think I would use these: (either the 2 oz or 4 oz with plain lids)
http://www.specialtybottle.com/index...on=Custom&ID=2

Bob

I am wondering if plastic can be used? What are your thoughts?


The extract will last a lot longer in glass (especially brown glass) and
you don't have to worry about the alcohol slowly leaching chemicals from
the plastic.

BTW, I read an article in Cooks magazine a few years ago, and their
homemade vanilla was more expensive than commercial vanilla and not as
good -- even though they used good beans. Of course yours will be
different ;-)

What spirits are you planning to use? (I would use bourbon or rye
whiskey because they have a spicy aroma already.)

Bob

On Sun 21 Sep 2008 03:08:15p, Ozark Baby told us...

On Sun, 21 Sep 2008 16:06:28 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

zipporah wrote:
cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What I
want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size bottle
would anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if I would
need to seal, like with canning, such jars of extract once it is
made, after 6 months, or what? Would this homemade extract be ok
just sitting on shelves or should it be refrigerated or what? Any
suggestions would be appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen
little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can
find them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract, I'll
assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i
think you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes, as
these will be presents for Christmas.

Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My bottle
source is Mountain Rose Herbs
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html

Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from them.
I use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some eye-dropper
bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very competitive
pricing too (always a bonus).


I think I would use these: (either the 2 oz or 4 oz with plain lids)
http://www.specialtybottle.com/index...on=Custom&ID=2

Bob

I am wondering if plastic can be used? What are your thoughts?


Food or medical grade plasic can be used. I have bought pure vanilla
extract at Costco in one pint plastic bottles.

--
Wayne Boatwright

*******************************************
Date: Sunday, 09(IX)/21(XXI)/08(MMVIII)
*******************************************
Countdown till Veteran's Day
7wks 1dys 6hrs 45mins
*******************************************
An evil mind is a constant solace.
*******************************************

On Sun 21 Sep 2008 03:25:04p, zxcvbob told us...

Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sun, 21 Sep 2008 16:06:28 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

zipporah wrote:
cooksalot wrote:
On Sep 20, 6:15 pm, Ozark Baby wrote:
On Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:26:57 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:



Ozark Baby wrote:
We are planning on making our own homemade vanilla extract. What
I want to do is to be able to give some as gifts. What size
bottle would anyone recommend for gifts? The other question is if
I would need to seal, like with canning, such jars of extract
once it is made, after 6 months, or what? Would this homemade
extract be ok just sitting on shelves or should it be
refrigerated or what? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Are you gonna get 5 ounce glass bottles for it? (I've never seen
little
brown bottles for sale, but that would be the way to go if you can
find them.) I don't know how you intend to make your extract,
I'll assume by
steeping chopped vanilla beans in bourbon or rye or vodka, but i
think you just need to screw the lids down tight.
Bob
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I was thinking about 5-8 oz sizes,
as these will be presents for Christmas.
Well you do realize that once we open those bottles of vanilla they
sit in the cupboard sometimes for years and are just fine. My
bottle source is Mountain Rose Herbs
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/sup...s_bottles.html
Specialty Bottle (http://www.specialtybottle.com/) is another fine
source for containers. I've been very happy with my orders from
them. I use their tins for dry herbs and spices and have some
eye-dropper bottles for citrus oils and the like. They have very
competitive pricing too (always a bonus).

I think I would use these: (either the 2 oz or 4 oz with plain lids)
http://www.specialtybottle.com/index...on=Custom&ID=2

Bob

I am wondering if plastic can be used? What are your thoughts?


The extract will last a lot longer in glass (especially brown glass) and
you don't have to worry about the alcohol slowly leaching chemicals from
the plastic.

BTW, I read an article in Cooks magazine a few years ago, and their
homemade vanilla was more expensive than commercial vanilla and not as
good -- even though they used good beans. Of course yours will be
different ;-)

What spirits are you planning to use? (I would use bourbon or rye
whiskey because they have a spicy aroma already.)

Bob


I always use bourbon when I make my own.

--
Wayne Boatwright

*******************************************
Date: Sunday, 09(IX)/21(XXI)/08(MMVIII)
*******************************************
Countdown till Veteran's Day
7wks 1dys 6hrs 44mins
*******************************************
My cat walks all over me! :* :* :* :*
*******************************************

In article ,
Ozark Baby wrote:

I am wondering if plastic can be used? What are your thoughts?

I don't like stuff like that in plastic bottles.
Why do you want to consider plastic?
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller,

Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Sun 21 Sep 2008 03:25:04p, zxcvbob told us...

What spirits are you planning to use? (I would use bourbon or rye
whiskey because they have a spicy aroma already.)

Bob


I always use bourbon when I make my own.



That's what I always thought would be best, but I've acquired a taste
for J.B. rye whiskey. I think it would make a really nice vanilla
extract. (OTOH, George might be right and it would be a waste of good
whiskey.)