Though nutmeg is found on spice-rich tropical islands across the world, we much prefer the nutmeg from Grenada, where it’s so synonymous with their culture that it’s depicted on their national flag. This one is grown on a fourth-generation family farm from old-growth trees (a rarity after Grenada lost much of it’s nutmeg trees in 2004 after Hurricane Ivan) and it’s truly the gold standard. The spice is slightly citrusy and floral, with a woodsy tropical warmth and eucalyptus-like freshness. Each jar holds 6-8 whole nutmeg pods.

Made from an heirloom variety of hard-neck garlic, which produces a more intense flavor than the typical white soft-neck bulbs you’ll find in grocery stores, this garlic powder has a way of kicking savory flavors up a notch. It’s grown by a farming collective in the northern Vietnam mountains before being hot air dried and ground into a fine powder. The garlic powder is much fresher than most others we’ve tried and along with that earthy allium flavor garlic is known for, there’s also a subtle sweetness, nuttiness and brown butter-like richness that truly makes it special.

The cloud forests of Guatemala create the ideal environment for cardamom to thrive—with plenty of rainfall, high altitude and a temperate climate—and this varietal shows how much of a difference that environment makes. It’s grown on one of Guatemala’s only single-estate farms up in the country’s mountainous area. The relatively low temperatures in the mountains during the three-month harvest season yield cardamom with higher levels of fragrant essential oils and, since these pods are allowed to ripen further than others, they produce a softer, sweeter, more nuanced taste. Encased in greenish yellow pods, this cardamom is sweet and tart, with the spice of ginger and fresh fruitiness of apricot. A touch of grassiness, pine and citrus yields a welcome freshness, while the intoxicating aroma shows just how much more complex and quality this cardamom is compared to those in grocery stores.

Known also in West Africa as Melegueta pepper, grains of paradise is a complexly flavorful spice widely popular across West Africa and Ethiopia. Each seed is about half the size of a black peppercorn, but packs double the flavor and fragrance. It has a numbing quality vs. the heat of black pepper, though there’s also a wonderfully fresh herbal quality and ginger-like warmth that’s almost reminiscent of cinnamon, nutmeg or cardamom (a close relative of the spice). A citrusy brightness adds even more layers of flavor. These grains of paradise are sourced from a cooperative of farms in Bench, Maji, Ethiopia.

Also known as Saigon cinnamon, Royal Cinnamon is a hard-to-find heirloom variety that comes from the mountains of central Vietnam. Our recipe developers agreed it was the sweetest and brightest cinnamon we have ever tasted, with an aroma you can smell from across the room. It's clean-flavored and boldly spicy-sweet, yet with a delicate quality. To fully appreciate its flavor, we recommend trying Royal Cinnamon first in simple applications.

You'll never find thyme like this in stores: Grown only in the Middle East, hyssop thyme is brighter-tasting, less bitter and far more complex than regular thyme. It has subtle notes of bay and mint as well as a slightly piney aroma. This exceptional herb is in fact the secret to the floral, woody complexity of za'atar made in the Middle East.

Hand-harvested just before they flower, these delicate oregano buds have the robust flavor you'd expect from the spice: peppery and minty, but grounded by herbal notes. But where conventional oregano leaves can have a medicinal pungency, Burlap and Barrel's product is less bitter, with a pronounced zesty quality and slight heat that reminds us of mouth-tingling Sichuan peppercorns.

Most conventional brands of dried mint have a stale, papery taste. That's not the case with Burlap and Barrel's version, which is grown on the banks of the Euphrates River in southern Turkey and has a balanced flavor and intense aroma. The leaves are also noticeably more vibrant than most dried mint, an indicator of their freshness. These Euphrates Mint Leaves are so fresh that you can simply steep them to make a wonderfully flavorful mint tea.

These organic sun-dried cloves are grown by a cooperative of small artisan farms in the islands of Zanzibar and come from some of the oldest clove trees in the world. Burlap and Barrel is the only U.S. importer of cloves from Zanzibar, which was once the world's largest producer of the spice but has been overshadowed by industrial farms that utilize plantation-style cultivation. Hand-picked and hand-sorted for consistently high quality and peak freshness, Pemba cloves have a lighter, more floral aroma and uniquely fruity flavor compared to the woody, earthier notes of conventional cloves. And because Zanzibari cloves have a significantly higher percentage of essential oils than other varieties, these distinct characteristics are even more pronounced.

This single-origin Ground Cinnamon Verum from the Zanzibar islands is Ceylon cinnamon, also known as true cinnamon for its superior quality, delicate flavor and health benefits. We love how the aroma is noticeably sweeter and more floral than conventional cassia cinnamon—this product is also fresher than other brands we've tasted, so you can fully appreciate its unique characteristics.

The cloud forests of Guatemala create the ideal environment for cardamom to thrive—with plenty of rainfall, high altitude and a temperate climate—and this varietal shows how much of a difference that environment makes. Grown on one of Guatemala’s only single-estate farms, these seeds are sweet and tart, with the spice of ginger and fresh fruitiness of apricot. A touch of grassiness, pine and citrus yields a welcome freshness, while the intoxicating aroma reminds us why it’s worth buying spices outside of a grocery store. This cardamom comes “decorticated”—as in seeds that have been removed from the papery, flavorless husk of the pod—for more concentrated flavor. And we love that it comes packaged in a grinder, allowing for coarsely ground seeds that add crunchy pops of flavor.

Tomato paste is great for building deep flavor fast, but most don’t last long in the fridge once they’re opened. So we were thrilled to try Burlap & Barrel’s shelf stable Sun-Dried Tomato Powder, which when mixed with a bit of water, doubles as tomato paste. And not just any old tomato paste, a sun dried, umami bomb tomato paste. Made from tomatoes dried in the Aegean region in Turkey, this powder is rich and sweet without being cloying or overly acidic. We especially love the slow baked, tangy flavor this powder adds to any dish you use it in, without any risk of clumping. Try it in place of tomato paste (1 tsp of powder mixed with 2 tsp of of water= 1 tbsp of paste), stirred into soups or sauces, added to ground meat, pastas, veggies and meat rubs or sautéd with mirepoix. Or sprinkle it over sliced tomatoes, focaccia and pizza.