Four Waters

The Pantry

The two that take months. Vanilla with the beans left in, oregano steeped in olive oil. Michigan only.

Both of these are made by waiting. The vanilla sits for months with the beans in it. The oregano steeps in single-source olive oil until the infusion is finished, not to a schedule. Everything else we make is done in an afternoon. These two are measured in months, and both stay in Michigan.

Pure Vanilla Extract ships to Michigan addresses only. That is cottage food law rather than a shipping preference, and the cart will not take a non-Michigan address for it.

EmberLeaf Oregano Infused Olive Oil ships to Michigan addresses only as well, for now. That one is our own decision rather than a law: it is not a cottage food, and we sell it in Michigan at markets and by post within the state. The cart refuses a non-Michigan address either way.

EmberLeaf Oregano Infused Olive Oil

Dried oregano steeped in single-source olive oil until the infusion is finished. Michigan only.

Dried Mediterranean oregano, steeped in single-source, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil for about six months, then hand-pressed through the filter here in Michigan. Nothing added, nothing hurried. It is the infusion Mediterranean kitchens have made at home for centuries, and it is the slowest thing we make.

Sold in Michigan only for now, at markets and to Michigan addresses.

$12.00, 1 fl oz

Everything about EmberLeaf Oregano Infused Olive Oil

EmberLeaf Oregano Infused Olive Oil ingredient card: the oil, the herb and the steep

Pure Vanilla Extract

Madagascar beans, vodka, and months. The beans are still in the jar you get.

Three bottles of Four Waters Vanilla Extract on a board with a bundle of vanilla beans

Madagascar beans, split by hand, and premium vodka. That is the whole list. It sits in a dark cabinet for months, and we shake it when we walk past. We do not filter it, so the seed specks stay in, and we leave pieces of bean in the jar you get, where they keep working. Top it up with a little vodka as you use it and it keeps going for a long time.

Imitation vanilla is synthetic vanillin, usually made from wood pulp or petroleum, dissolved in water and colored brown. Real extract is beans, alcohol and patience, and there is no shortcut through the patience.

$12.00, 2 oz swing-top