Dimensions
144 x 224 x 29mm
Vanilla, the world's most versatile flavour, thrives in some of the world's intriguing places. Tim Ecott has spent years tracing its story from the Gulf Coast of Mexico to Madagascar, Tahiti, Reunion, Seychelles and around the botanical collections of Europe.
The vanilla vine was a botanical mystery - a uniquely sensual plant, treasured by the Aztecs, but whose secret was only unlocked by a twelve-year-old African slave in 1841. Apothecaries, aristocrats, gourmets and parfumiers have all chased the aroma of the 'Luscious Substance', and the wealth it brings.
Endangered in the wild, vanilla is now more valuable than at any time in history - a value that places it at the centre of a secretive multimillion dollar trade for which men are being murdered.
Tim Ecott has sought out vanilla's rich history and in doing so has brought to life these fascinating, faraway, and misunderstood places. Confirming the promise of the author's debut, Neutral Buoyancy, this is travel writing of the highest order.
