Bourbon Pepper

Voatsiperifery (also known as Madagascar pepper or Bourbon pepper Piper borbonese) is the fruit (in the Malagasy language "voa") of a special climbing plant ("tsiperifery") of the Piperaceae family. The wild vine grows only on the tall trees of Madagascar’s tropical forests.
The peppercorns are picked by hand. Because the berries, which are very delicate, are borne only on the young shoots of the vine at heights of between ten and twenty metres, Harvesting them is very difficult. The ripe berries are red, with a high water content. It takes ten kilos of fresh berries to produce a kilo of dried pepper. Drying turns the peppercorns dark brown or black. Because of the laborious processes involved in Harvesting the berries, the crop is extremely small, amounting to only about one and a half tonnes of pepper each year. This wild forest pepper is a real rarity!

The bourbon pepper berries in the FINEST FOOD AGE PEPPER COLLECTION are small stalked berries, dark brown or black in colour with a full, rounded flavour.

Small, but with a bite! The bourbon pepper in the FINEST FOOD AGE PEPPER COLLECTION has an interesting sharpness, but because it is rich in essential oils it is also delightfully aromatic. It has woody, earthy and floral taste notes, and despite its intensity it is a very fine, fresh pepper with a noticeable hint of citrus. An exciting mixture – a wild forest pepper that rouses the senses!

In Madagascar the fresh berries of the bourbon pepper are used in a variety of traditional dishes and added to the liquids in which vegetables are pickled. Dried bourbon pepper is ideal for cooking or for seasoning pickled vegetables and savoury pastries.

With its complex and versatile flavours, bourbon pepper has a wide range of uses in the kitchen. It goes well with fine fish and lamb or pork dishes but also suits the heartiness of steak and the robust taste of game. Freshly ground over salads, vegetables, unripened cheeses (especially goats cheese) and – perhaps best of all – potatoes, it will astound the taste buds.
But bourbon pepper is also a real hit when combined with sweet flavours: for a truly memorable treat, try it with fruits such as melons, strawberries, cherries, apples and pears and above all in chocolate desserts.

To ensure protection from harmful environmental influences, the bourbon pepper in the FINEST FOOD AGE PEPPER COLLECTION is supplied in high-quality violet glass jars. Keeping this special jar tightly closed will ensure that the bourbon pepper always has the dry and dark Storage conditions that it needs.