Le Carnet ANTOKALY

Vanilla, from terroir to use

Origins, varieties, harvest, preparation, maturation and lot assessment: our field references for professionals of taste.

Featured article

Landrique in front of the vanilla drying tables.
The hand, the eye, the nose and infusion give a complete reading of the lot.
Quality · 7 min

Assessing a vanilla pod

A pod is assessed by hand, by eye, by nose and by infusion.

21 June 2026 Read article

Reading paths

Five families for reading vanilla

Complete library

Field references, methods and uses

Each article connects an image, a method and a professional use, with a precise reading of the material.

Green vanilla pod on the vine, from the planting material grown in the SAVA.
A plot in the SAVA, where the historic stock of the region and the vines from the station grow side by side.
History · 10 min

Hybrid vanillas of Madagascar

Half a century of crossing on the hills of Antalaha. 34 hybridisations come out of it, of which 23 still grow.

1 September 2026 Read article
Woodcut of the vanilla vine in the treatise of Francisco Hernández printed at Rome in 1651.
The north-eastern Malagasy valley, the land that took in the vine 3 centuries after these first names.
History · 13 min

Where the name vanilla comes from

A page painted in 1552 carries the oldest written name of vanilla. The century that follows makes that name change language 4 times.

26 August 2026 Read article
Madagascar vanilla pods drying in the sun on the ANTOKALY tables.
The reliefs of the SAVA, where vanilla found its ground long after the edict of 1692.
History · 12 min

Vanilla under Louis XIV

A January 1692 edict caps its price at the bundle of 50 stems. The druggist Pomet says where that bundle comes from.

25 August 2026 Read article
Green vanilla pod on the vine, the fruit of the pollination gesture.
The Antalaha collective, the last link in the chain of hands opened at Bourbon.
History · 11 min

Edmond Albius

The principle of hand fertilisation reaches Bourbon in 1839. A teenager turns it into a practice, estate after estate.

25 August 2026 Read article
A lot of vanilla pods drying in the sun on a mat, in the SAVA region of Madagascar.
The vine trained on its living support, a gesture handed down from Bourbon.
History · 10 min

How vanilla reached Madagascar

A Mesoamerican vine, a Paddington glasshouse, a cutting brought to Bourbon in 1822. The journey of cultivated vanilla to the SAVA.

23 August 2026 Read article
Mountains and forests of the SAVA region, where Vanilla madagascariensis grows.
The forests and rocks of the island, where the native vanillas grow.
Terroir · 9 min

The wild vanillas of Madagascar

Nine species born on the island, seven leafless, two leafy. The vanillas Madagascar carried before any cultivation.

13 August 2026 Read article
Vanilla flower open on the vine, ready for pollination.
The flower opens for a single morning, the gesture takes a few seconds.
Cultivation · 6 min

Pollinating vanilla by hand

The flower opens one morning and closes the same day. Between the two stands a gesture of a few seconds, repeated flower after flower.

21 July 2026 Read article
Planifolia vanilla pods from Madagascar with a dark and glossy robe.
Bourbon names a heritage and a provenance. The lot tells the material.
History · 10 min

Bourbon vanilla, the history of a name

The name circulates in the Le Havre sales from 1846 onwards. It comes from a dynasty, by way of an island christened by a captain.

12 July 2026 Read article
Bundle of Mille Tantely vanilla resting on jute cloth.
The ANTOKALY names link each terroir to the aromatic expression of its vanillas.
Names & profiles · 5 min

ANTOKALY names: recognising an aromatic expression

Each name connects a terroir to the aromatic expression of its vanillas, characterised with our partner pastry chefs.

12 July 2026 Read article
ANTOKALY workshop sorting and selecting vanilla pods.
The choice starts with the creation, then it is confirmed by reading the lot.
Professional uses · 7 min

Which vanilla to choose for pastry?

Ganache, cream, ice cream, fruit pairing: all our vanillas go there. The choice begins with the creation.

21 June 2026 Read article
Vanilla pods laid out on a drying table.
The dose is set by the base, the infusion time and the signature of the lot.
Dosage · 6 min

Dosing a vanilla pod

Dosage connects the lot intensity, the recipe base, the infusion time and the signature sought.

21 June 2026 Read article
Bundles of Mamoa vanilla arranged on jute cloth.
Infusion reveals the real diffusion of a pod in its base.
Infusion · 6 min

Infusing vanilla

Infusion reveals the diffusion, length and aromatic persistence of a pod in the actual base.

21 June 2026 Read article
Bundle of Pately vanilla with brown highlights on jute cloth.
Chocolate is a dense material where every vanilla leaves its mark.
Chocolate · 5 min

Which vanilla for chocolate?

All our vanillas go into chocolate. Each one leaves a mark of its own.

21 June 2026 Read article
Vanilla flower among its foliage.
Cold tightens the aromas, the dose is set to the serving temperature.
Ice cream · 5 min

Which vanilla for ice cream?

All our vanillas excel in ice cream. Cold tightens the aromas and calls for a more generous dosage.

21 June 2026 Read article
Landrique holding vanilla pods in his hands.
The hand, the eye, the nose and infusion give a complete reading of the lot.
Quality · 7 min

Assessing a vanilla pod

A pod is assessed by hand, by eye, by nose and by infusion.

21 June 2026 Read article
Naturally split vanilla pods mixed with green pods in a woven basket.
The natural split is read together with maturity, preparation and use.
Maturity · 6 min

Naturally split pods

A natural split signals a pod that has reached full maturity. The preparation then reveals a round, mellow expression.

21 June 2026 Read article
Bundle of frosted vanilla held in the hand.
Vanillin is read together with the material, the oils, the frost and infusion.
Vanillin · 6 min

Natural vanillin

Vanillin gives a reference for concentration, to be assessed alongside the pod, the oils and the infusion.

21 June 2026 Read article
Green vanilla in a plot in Madagascar.
The canopy and the living soils take part in the rhythm of the vine.
Agroforestry · 6 min

Agroforestry and Madagascar vanilla

Vanilla grows in a living environment: shade, humidity, soils, trees and human hands.

21 June 2026 Read article
Verdant landscape of the SAVA region in Madagascar.
The SAVA gives a frame for reading, the lot gives the signature.
Origin & terroirs · 7 min

Madagascar vanilla: what the SAVA changes

The SAVA sets the frame. Terroir, season, preparation and maturation give the lot its real signature.

21 June 2026 Read article
Lots of vanilla pods with distinct textures and colours.
Three varieties give three registers, always shaded by the lot.
Varieties · 7 min

Planifolia, Tahitensis, Pompona: three aromatic registers

Three varieties, three aromatic registers, several uses for culinary professionals.

21 June 2026 Read article
Bundle of frosted marokintana ANTOKALY vanilla pods on jute cloth.
Natural frost has a dry, crystalline look.
Quality · 6 min

Frosted vanilla: understanding the frost and its forms

Frost is the crystallisation of vanillin on contact with the air, on the most charged pods.

21 June 2026 Read article
Landrique arranging vanilla pods in wooden crates for storage.
Storage preserves suppleness, oils and the capacity to infuse.
Storage · 7 min

Storing vanilla

Vanilla is a living product. The right storage method preserves its suppleness and let its aromas continue to develop.

20 June 2026 Read article