Every once in a rare while, a singular spice trickles into our world and threatens to spoil us forever. Parameswaran’s White Peppercorns are grown on a small organic family estate on the Wynad plateau in Kerala, a lush coastal region famous for producing India’s finest pepper. Fiercely hot with subtle, musky undertones, these unusually large, creamy white peppercorns have a fresh, sun-warmed flavor unlike any other we've tasted.
White peppercorns are the fruit of the piper nigrum, a tropical vine which flourishes in equatorial sun and rain. At Para’s farm, tucked away in a valley where elephants and tigers may roam, clusters of green pepper berries are left to ripen on the vine until they turn plump and reddish. Pickers may return to each vine a dozen times, scaling the trees on which they grow, using long bamboo poles to pluck only those berries that have reached the perfect stage of readiness. The berries are soaked in 20 changes of spring water for 20 days after which the aromatic outer hulls are removed, revealing a pale but pungent inner core. The white peppercorns are then dried in the sun and vacuum-sealed to preserve freshness before being placed in hand woven bags for shipping.
Gorgeous photos of peppercorns hanging like voluptuous clusters of grapes and colorfully garbed workers can be seen at www.paraspepper.com. Parameswaran’s Special Wynad White Peppercorns, sold in 200-gram bags for $16.95, are at Lobel’s of New York, 1096 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10028. Telephone: 877-783-4512. Web: www.lobels.com. (Lobel’s also sells Parameswaran’s equally extraordinary black peppercorns.)
To read more about peppercorns, see SpiceLines newsletter, “Black Pepper: King of Spice,” at www.globalprovince.com/spicelines/index9-05.htm.