Yes — you can order vanilla bean samples from Bali Vanilla Export before committing to a full import contract, and your sample fee is credited against your first trial order. Every pack ships by air freight with a lab Certificate of Analysis (COA), lot photographs, and origin data, so your quality team evaluates the exact beans you would later import in volume.
This page is the official entry point for new buyers. It explains what arrives in the sample pack, how our 7-day evaluation protocol works, indicative sample pricing per grade, and how the sample-fee credit is applied when you convert to a trial order. If you already know what you need, message us on WhatsApp and we can dispatch a pack this week.
Why Serious Importers Sample Before They Import
Vanilla is a high-value, high-variance commodity. Two lots labelled with the same grade can differ meaningfully in moisture, pod length, aroma profile, and measured vanillin content — and those differences decide whether the beans perform in your extract line or on your retail shelf. Experienced buyers in the largest destination markets for Indonesian vanilla — the United States (US$8.25 million in 2025 trade data), followed by France, Germany, the Netherlands, and China — vet suppliers on traceability, grade consistency, lab results, and packaging integrity before signing volume contracts.
A sample order is the lowest-risk way to run that vetting process. In line with standard export practice, we use air freight for urgent samples and small premium lots, while sea freight is reserved for larger contracts where vacuum-sealed, food-grade packaging with oxygen absorbers protects the beans in transit. Sampling by air means your evaluation starts within days, not weeks, and the commercial shipment only follows once you have verified the quality with your own hands and, if you choose, your own laboratory.
What’s Inside Every Sample Pack
Each sample pack is assembled from a live, export-ready lot — not from a separate “showroom” stock. The pack contains three layers of documentation alongside the beans themselves:
- Lab Certificate of Analysis (COA). We publish a measured vanillin range and moisture reading for each lot rather than a generic claim, following the same format as the COA specifications we document for every lab-tested lot. Your sample carries the COA of the specific lot it was drawn from.
- Lot photographs. High-resolution images of the actual lot in storage — pod length, colour, oil sheen, and packing condition — so you can compare what arrives against what was photographed at origin.
- Origin data. Farm-of-origin region (Bali and partner-farm areas), harvest window, curing and conditioning notes, and the lot code that will follow the beans through to any commercial shipment.
Samples are packed the same way commercial cartons are packed: vacuum-sealed food-grade barrier bags with oxygen absorbers. This matters — you are not just evaluating the beans, you are evaluating how they arrive after real transit conditions, which is exactly what your full shipment will experience.
Indicative Sample Pricing by Grade
Sample fees are pro-rated from our indicative export rates — Grade A Planifolia typically trades in the US$30–80/kg range and Grade B extract-grade in the US$20–50/kg range, depending on vanillin content and pod quality — plus air courier and documentation. The figures below are indicative and are confirmed in writing when you request a formal quotation.
| Sample pack | Typical size | Indicative export rate | Sample fee (indicative) | Credited to trial order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade A Gourmet Planifolia | 250 g or 500 g | US$30–80/kg | From US$35 | Yes — 100% of bean value |
| Grade B Extract-Grade | 250 g or 500 g | US$20–50/kg | From US$25 | Yes — 100% of bean value |
| Tahitensis | 250 g | On request | On request | Yes — 100% of bean value |
| Mixed evaluation pack (A + B) | 2 × 250 g | Per component grade | From US$55 | Yes — 100% of bean value |
Air courier costs vary by destination country and are quoted separately. All sample fees, courier charges, and credit terms are itemised in your written quotation before anything is dispatched — there are no surprise charges after the fact.
The 7-Day Evaluation Protocol
We recommend a structured seven-day window from the day your pack arrives. It keeps the evaluation objective and gives both sides a clear decision date.
Days 1–2: Arrival and sensory check
Photograph the pack on arrival and compare against the lot photographs supplied. Check vacuum-seal integrity, then assess pod flexibility, oil sheen, aroma, and visible defect rate against the COA description.
Days 3–4: Lab verification
If you run in-house or third-party testing, verify moisture and vanillin against the COA figures. Because our COA states a measured range for the specific lot, your lab result should land inside it — that is the whole point of publishing lot-level numbers instead of marketing claims.
Days 5–6: Application testing
Extract producers run a small maceration or extraction trial; gourmet and retail buyers evaluate presentation, scent throw, and packaging fit. This is where the difference between grades becomes commercially concrete.
Day 7: Decision call
We schedule a short WhatsApp or email review on day seven. If the lot passes, we convert your evaluation directly into a trial-order quotation against the same lot code. Where stock allows, we hold the sampled lot during the evaluation window so the beans you tested are the beans you buy.
Sample Fees Are Credited to Your First Trial Order
The bean value of your sample fee is deducted in full from your first trial-order invoice — sampling is effectively free for buyers who proceed. The credit, its validity window, and any courier-cost treatment are stated explicitly in your quotation so your finance team has it in writing. Trial orders start at accessible volumes; see the current minimum order quantities for 2027 for exact thresholds per grade and packing format before you plan your first purchase order.
From Sample to Trial Order: How the Process Runs
The path from first message to first commercial shipment is deliberately short:
- Step 1 — Request. Message us on WhatsApp or email with your target grade, application (extract, gourmet retail, food service), and destination country.
- Step 2 — Written quote. We confirm sample fee, courier cost, credit terms, and available lot codes. You can also submit the quote form if you prefer a structured inquiry.
- Step 3 — Payment and dispatch. Pay via the secure payment options we support for export orders; the pack ships by air courier with COA, photos, and origin data enclosed.
- Step 4 — Evaluation and conversion. Run the 7-day protocol, then convert to a trial order with your sample credit applied. Commercial shipments move under HS code 0905 with phytosanitary documentation prepared for your destination market.
For trial orders, smaller premium lots can move by air carton; larger contracts ship by sea in vacuum-sealed, food-grade packing. Your quotation will state the recommended mode for your volume and destination.
Who Stands Behind the Sample Program
Bali Vanilla Export is the vanilla trade desk of Juara Holding Group, an Indonesian group whose founder was accepted into the Forbes Business Council. That matters for a first-time buyer for one practical reason: you are sampling from an established organisation with a public track record and a business-development desk that answers, not an anonymous trading account. Every sample inquiry is handled by the same team that manages full export contracts, so the specifications you evaluate are the specifications you will receive at volume.
Commercial information only. Pricing, tariff codes, phytosanitary rules and import requirements change between seasons and destination markets — confirm current figures and documentation with your customs broker, freight forwarder and the competent authority in your import country before contracting. This page is not legal, tax or trade advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does sample delivery take?
Sample packs ship by international air courier, so transit is typically a matter of days rather than the weeks a sea shipment requires. Exact door-to-door timing depends on your destination country and customs clearance; we confirm a realistic delivery window in your quotation before dispatch.
Is the sample fee refundable if I don’t order?
The sample fee is not refunded as cash, but the full bean value is credited against your first trial order. Buyers who proceed effectively sample at no cost; buyers who do not proceed have paid only for the beans and courier they received.
Do samples come from the actual lot I would import?
Yes. Each sample carries a lot code, and the COA, photographs, and origin data all reference that specific lot. Where stock allows, we hold the sampled lot through your evaluation window so your trial order draws from the same beans you tested.
Can I combine Grade A and Grade B in one sample pack?
Yes — the mixed evaluation pack (2 × 250 g) exists precisely for buyers comparing gourmet and extract-grade performance side by side. Tahitensis can be added on request, subject to current availability.
What documents arrive with the sample versus the commercial shipment?
Samples include the lot COA, lot photographs, and origin data. Commercial shipments add the full export document set — phytosanitary certificate, commercial invoice and packing list under HS code 0905, and any destination-specific paperwork your market requires, prepared per shipment.
Request Your Sample Pack This Week
Tell us your grade, application, and destination country, and we can quote a sample pack today and dispatch it by air courier this week. Message the business-development desk directly on WhatsApp at wa.me/6281139414563 — the fastest route to a same-day quotation — or email [email protected] with your requirements. Evaluate first, import with confidence, and let the beans make the case.