After reading an article (in Cooks Illustrated I think) about artificial vanilla I know use Bakers Imitation Vanilla when I need it as a background note (ex: in brownies). When I need a strong vanilla presence I use pure vanilla paste.I am about to order a tiny little oz. of Watkins from Amazon. I can remember sitting by my mom as she made cookies using Watkins products and was stunned to note that they still exist. Anyone know if they are any good?
Same here.After reading an article (in Cooks Illustrated I think) about artificial vanilla I know use Bakers Imitation Vanilla when I need it as a background note (ex: in brownies). When I need a strong vanilla presence I use pure vanilla paste.
Thank you for doing so. I think I may have just nabbed someone going to Costco in the US and am hoping for some help that way. It's crazy. Another product I buy from Costco, I can get only in the US, BUT....it's made in Canada. Such are the problems of my life now.Marg, I addressed your issue in barbara's post on Indri's vanilla beans FB.
Indri's Vanilla Bean Group
The other day I was standing in a long line in Penzys, it was their 50% off the entire store day and the computers could not keep up with the volume. I was chatting with the lady in front of me and she told me about this FB group to order vanilla beans and that the prices are amazing. (Vanilla...recipeswap.org
Marg, That is funny! The product surely has to be back in inventory by now so your situation has changed to a customer service issue. One thing I didn't think about when I purchased my recent bottle of Watkins vanilla is whether their switch to using plastic bottles (instead of the former glass ones) might have any effect on its long-term flavor. I realize this has undoubtedly been done as a cost saving strategy, but I truly do not want a compromised taste due to plastic. I'll let you know what I think once I begin using my Watkins product.I placed an order on Amazon, for Watkins, whenever this conversation started. Every month I get an email letting me know that it is still out of stock. I think that after the 2000th email I cancelled the order.
PS from Wigs: I think I've run across the comparison article barbara-in-va mentioned above. Watkins does NOT place well there. It ranked #12 out of the 15 different types of vanilla tested. Here is the web site if you'd care to review the various brands.Marg, That is funny! The product surely has to be back in inventory by now so your situation has changed to a customer service issue. One thing I didn't think about when I purchased my recent bottle of Watkins vanilla is whether their switch to using plastic bottles (instead of the former glass ones) might have any effect on its long-term flavor. I realize this has undoubtedly been done as a cost saving strategy, but I truly do not want a compromised taste due to plastic. I'll let you know what I think once I begin using my Watkins product.
That is a good possibiity as I could not imagine they would still be in business after 8 months claiming 'out of stock'. I just checked again, and still out of stock. I'm thinking about sitting by my mother when she was baking, sniffing the HUGE bottle of Watkins vanilla that was close to 1 foot tall. (maybe that's why there's a shortage now)Marg, That is funny! The product surely has to be back in inventory by now so your situation has changed to a customer service issue. One thing I didn't think about when I purchased my recent bottle of Watkins vanilla is whether their switch to using plastic bottles (instead of the former glass ones) might have any effect on its long-term flavor. I realize this has undoubtedly been done as a cost saving strategy, but I truly do not want a compromised taste due to plastic. I'll let you know what I think once I begin using my Watkins product.