In early times, the Land of the Resplendent Moon, was the kingdom of Totonocopan, ruled by the Totonacas. The palm-studded sands, verdant valleys, and shimmering hills and sierra in what is now known as Vera Cruz, were overseen from several locations. One was Papantla, place of the papan birds. Another was El Tajin, the thunder bolt, an ancient Huaxtecan city built in honor of the deity, Hurakan, god of the storms. It was here in this dense, tropical rainforest that vanilla was first cultivated and cured. It was here that the fragrance from the vanilla was so exquisite, that Papantla later became known as, The City That Perfumed the World.
We know very little about the early days of vanilla. No one has found anything recorded about vanilla on the stone tablets (known as codices) that survived the Conquest. The first written documentation about vanilla came from Bernal Diaz -- Cortes' assistant -- and Bernadino de Sahagun, a priest who came to New Spain (now Mexico) in 1529.
The Totonaca people of the Gulf coast of Mexico were probably the first people to cultivate vanilla. They taught many other indigenous people how to grow vanilla during Mesoamerican times, and they continue to cultivate the fruit that they consider was given to them by the gods.
Vanilla first left Mexico in the early 1500s on ships bound for Spain. It was originally believed only to have value as a perfume. It wasn't until Cortes arrived in 1519 that the Spaniards learned it was also a flavor.

Until the late 19th century, Mexico had the monopoly on growing vanilla, but now Madagascar and Indonesia grow the majority of the world's crop. Additional countries that grow vanilla include Guatemala, Costa Rica, Uganda, China, India, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Fiji, Tahiti, and the Philippines.

Vanilla is the world's most labor-intensive agricultural crop, which is why it's so expensive. It will take up to three years after the vines are planted before the first flowers appear. The fruits, which resemble big green beans, must remain on the vine for nine months in order to completely develop their signature aroma. However, when the beans are harvested, they have neither flavor nor fragrance. They develop these distinctive properties during the curing process.
In every language there’s some version of "the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach." The first growers and users of chocolate and vanilla attest to this saying. The famous Azteca drink, Chocolatl, did not begin with the Azteca, but with the Maya. The Maya called the magic beans cacao from which we created the words "chocolate" and "cocoa." The generous Maya shared with other Mesoamericans their fabulous beverage which, in addition to chocolate, included vanilla, corn, allspice, chile, and other flavorings. We can assume the Mesoamericans knew of chocolate and vanilla’s alleged power since both cocoa beans and vanilla pods were valuable enough to be used as money. When money grows on trees and vines it’s bound to be a source of interest with the locals. The Azteca claimed the drink as their own after conquering the people of the lowland tropics. They then taxed the Maya, Totonaca, and others, and demanded payment in cacao and vanilla beans. This insured that the king always had a supply of sexy ingredients in the royal pantry.

As the Aztecas generally frowned on the use of alcoholic beverages, Chocolatl was their drug of choice and was enjoyed by royalty, nobility, and warriors. It was served after banquets along with smoking tubes of tobacco in the same way that brandy and cigars are now served after a celebratory meal. Bernal Diaz was Cortes’ right hand man at the time of the Conquest, and as an old man he wrote about their adventures. He said that the Azteca Emperor Moctezuma ate frugally at the great events, but drank as many as 50 cups of Chocolatl, which was said to be the reason for his success with women. Although we can’t ask Moctezuma his opinion of Chocolatl, he was known to maintain a large harem.

The Spaniards were sufficiently enough impressed that they returned to Spain with news that chocolate and vanilla were an erotic duo. Chocolate and vanilla were made into an all-purpose drink that quenched one’s thirst, warmed the body, served as a medicine, and acted as an aphrodisiac. In the curious medical beliefs of the time, chocolate was considered "cold." It therefore was good for the body. Vanilla, on the other hand, was considered "hot." Denis Diderot, a French intellectual in the 1700s, and a prolific writer on many topics, believed that while chocolate was good, many of the additional flavorings added to it were bad, unless you were in an amorous mood. Like many of his contemporaries, he warns: "The pleasant scent and heightened taste it (vanilla) gives to chocolate has made it very popular, but long experience having taught us that it is extremely heating, its use has become less frequent, and people who prefer to care for their health rather than please their senses abstain completely." It makes one wonder how many people then – and now – cared more for their health than their chocolate.

By the 1600s, vanilla was considered a flavor worthy of being served on its own merits. As vanilla was "hot," the doctors of the time believed that those who used it got "hot" as well. In the 1700s vanilla was recommended by physicians and alchemists to be drunk as a tincture or infusion in order to ensure male potency. Bezaar Zimmermann, a German physician, in his article, "On Experiences" (1762) claimed that, "No fewer than 342 impotent men, by drinking vanilla decoctions, had changed into astonishing lovers of at least as many woman."

Thomas Jefferson is credited with vanilla’s arrival in the United States. When he returned from his ambassadorship in France in 1789, he was dismayed to discover that no one in the States knew about vanilla, so he wrote his French attaché requesting that he send him 50 vanilla pods. Clearly Jefferson’s personal passion was well received since soon it was used as a flavoring and a medicine, and – you’re right – an aphrodisiac. In the 1800s Dr. John King, advised in the American Dispensatory, that one should use vanilla to, "stimulate the sexual propennsities." He went on to give a very carefully detailed recipe for a decoction promising amorous evenings. If the good doctor was right, a hefty swig of vanilla extract before bedtime could work like a charm.