Formerly known as Polano & Clarke CCCE, Sylvanilla® was born in February 2015, from few Vanilla vines growing wild in the family farm in the Nature Island of Dominica, and our meeting with other Caribbean Vanilla farmers, which quickly grew into a partnership with the most exceptional independent agroforestry vanilla farmers in the world to promote more species and origins of vanilla directly from agroforestry farms, regardless of the volume produced.
This impulse gave birth to Sylvanilla®, driven by the desire to fill the void on the market for the direct trade of agroforestry and terroir vanilla species which was lacking until then. Since we're continuously learning everything about vanilla, soaking in its different terroirs, nourishing the generosity of our own terroir, training new vanilla farmers, organising vanilla markets and workshops with chefs and professionals end-users as well as private customers, and cultivate the precious vines together with agroforestry vanilla farmers, cure and refine the exquisite fruits with the aim of serving professional chefs, as well as gourmets and vanilla lovers directly from agroforestry vanilla farms. Sylve is the dense tropical forest which is the natural habitat of Vanilla, hence our name Sylvanilla®
READ OUR STORY, WHERE AND HOW IT STARTED
Sylvanilla® 's aim is to offer the naturally existing quality and diversity directly from farmers to improve their incomes, while guaranteeing complete traceability and contributing to the preservation of forests. Our agroforestry vanilla pods are the purest expression of nature, biodiversity, and the know-how of the local communities who cultivate the lianas. Our exceptional quality is the result of a respectful relationship between cultivators. Our vanilla pods are carefully cultivated and harvested at full maturity, cured and refined for 6, 9, 12 to 24 months depending on the species and varieties, and rigorously selected for their powerful organoleptic profiles, and their complex combinations of unique flavours and aromas. With Sylvanilla® you choose a premium quality vanilla, respectful of the environment and local communities. Sylvanilla® goes beyond supplying vanilla and works alongside the most exceptional vanilla cultivators to offer you the rarest and most exquisite vanilla beans directly from agroforestry.
Vanilla farmers must have control of the sales price which must be aligned to the quality they provide and to their production cost. By working together as vanilla farmers we stand a better chance to set a worldwide benchmark price so that Vanilla market actually empower all vanilla farmers all over the world, and allow them to finally live on the vanilla they produce, and to cultivate different species of agroforestry vanilla if they wish, while contributing to the protection of the forests biodiversity and the promotion of vanilla terroirs.
The Terroir is the set of characteristics imbued in a crop based on the environment in which it is grown, and it affects cocoa, coffee, and vanilla in the same way it affects wine grapes. Each vanilla has a potential intrinsic quality which depends on the species planted, the terroir and the know-how of the cultivators. This potential is exploited during post-harvest operations, at harvest and during curing, maturation and fermentation, as well as during the drying and storage period, and each gesture of the cultivator has an impact on the precious pods which over days and months reveal the complex and unique character of their respective organoleptic profile, which is intrinsic to their respective terroir.
MORE ABOUT THE AGROFORESTRY VANILLA FARMS
Enjoy a selection of the vanilla pods we supply in Switzerland for the confections of Konfilili in Wädenswil, Choux etc, Briochou and La cuisine de Violaine in Zürich, the restaurants l'O and Lazzarone, May Chocolates, Delicious Bites by Enrica and Christy Crazy Cake in Horgen, at Super Premium Vanilla in Cham (Virgin Vanilla AG), by Fabio Ciotti in Ticino, in Noam Botanical Perfumes in Basel, Luzi AG in Dietlikon, La Route des Épices in Lutry, and Vibration Épices in Plan-les-Ouates; in France by Oranessence in Gaillefontaine, at the Touósto restaurant in Rodez; in Guadeloupe at the restaurants La Kaz du douanier, La Savanne, Le Poisson rouge and L'Amer in Deshaies, at the Restaurant Les Muriers in Terre-de-Bas; in Morocco in the culinary creations of Fatema Hal and Restaurant La Cour des Lions in Marrakech, and many other professional partners to discover throughout our publications.
Sylvie Polano
Founder of Sylvanilla®