vanilla infusion part deux

[JMac]

Okay...I was reading a thread or two about infusing rum with different things to enhance the flavour.

I decided on using vanilla beans to add to white rum (Bacardi to be exact). I put 1 bean in (purchased from a ethnic food store) and left it in the rum 3 days.

The rum has a distinct vanilla taste but it has no middle ground. Its as if there is no transition between flavors. There is an initial taste of vanilla then...poof...a sharp taste of the alcohol.

Did I miss something? Is this is how the infusion is supposed to taste? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

PS the infusion is good with pineapple juice though...

[Tiare]

The first thing that comes to my mind is that you should maybe try another rum..
Bacardi has a very clinical,industrial taste.
Maybe Appleton or Cruzan?

[mammel]

more beans!

[RumBarPhilly]

Add some sugar to it. That helps to round it out a little. Aside from that, the only other advice is to try another rum. Besides Bacardi, I like to use Cruzan, its softer and a touch sweeter.

[Tiare]

So maybe Cruzan, 2 more beans and some sugar would do?

[JMac]

thanks for all the suggestions......I'll try Cruzan and have 2 beans next time. Mind you I'm not sure what beans I am using now other than they are vanilla beans.

During the 3 days I also shook up the bottle every now and then believing that it would cause the bean to release its vanilla flavor. Does it matter if one shakes the bottle?

[RumBarPhilly]

thanks for all the suggestions......I'll try Cruzan and have 2 beans next time. Mind you I'm not sure what beans I am using now other than they are vanilla beans.

During the 3 days I also shook up the bottle every now and then believing that it would cause the bean to release its vanilla flavor. Does it matter if one shakes the bottle?

Did you score the bean??

[JMac]

I didn't before putting it into the bottle.....I guess its possible that it became scored after my shaking the rum bottle. I didn't notice any particulate in the rum though....

Is this something I should do before putting the beans in the rum?

[RumBarPhilly]

I think weve got the answer. Score the bean from top to bottom and leave it in the bottle. Dont even bother shaking it, let the alcohols do its job.

[JMac]

copy that....score the bean.

[Dood]

Another rum to consider using is the Matusalem Platino.

[RumBarPhilly]

Dood, I finally got around to doing a little tasting of Matusalem Platino to Bacardi, and than Matusalem Clasico to Bacardi Gold. No comparison! I think id prefer to use the Matusalem for infusions if it was more readily available.

[Dood]

Dood, I finally got around to doing a little tasting of Matusalem Platino to Bacardi, and than Matusalem Clasico to Bacardi Gold. No comparison! I think id prefer to use the Matusalem for infusions if it was more readily available.

It's fantastic...it really is. I'm lucky, the local BevMo always has the MatPlat available, which means that I don't have to drive all the way to Hi Times to get it (30 minutes round trip vs. 60-90 depending on traffic).