Apart from flavouring sweets in countless food and drink products, vanilla is used in essential oils, cosmetics, toiletries, perfumes as well as in medicines.
Vanillin The price of different vanilla has in part been determinded by its vanillin percentage, the higher the vanillin percentage, the the higher the price, with the Thaitian variety having fetched record prices in recent years while the Mexican variately (Pompona) having had the lowest with the Magascan planifolia usually placed between the two.However, while a high vanillin percentage may look good on paper, flavour studies have indicated that high values of 2% or more does not necesssarily improve taste quality.Instead, beans with vanillin percentage of around 1.7% were those considered to have the most balanced flavour profile.
