Monday Musing: Vanilla Extract

The trifle turned out lovely. The substitution of vanilla beans for vanilla extract didn't have a major effect. Everyone in the office enjoyed it and because it's so large there is some for tomorrow's mid afternoon sugar fix.

I confess, I don't use expensive vanilla extract. I have in the past but I can't justify it for baking as it usually only adds a small amount of flavor. However, I ran out of vanilla recently and am interested in making my own. It seems to be a very simple process along the lines of adding vanilla beans to clear liquor and wait. I bought vanilla beans on ebay a few years ago and while they're still good, I think I'm going to clear them out by making this extract. I'm going to purchase a cheap bottle of vodka and add a few extra vanilla beans to it. I think vodka will be the best choice because it won't impart any flavor of its own. But this got me thinking, adding vanilla beans to whiskey or bourbon may not be too bad, assuming you removed the beans before it turned into a smokey vanilla extract. What other liquors would make a good vanilla extract, your thoughts?

UPDATE: I purchased a small bottle of vodka and as of July 10 I added 4 vanilla beans to the 375ML of vodka, pictured below. As the vanilla permeates the booze, I hope to post pictures. As you can see it's clear now.