The burlap and barrel online spices revolutionized my cooking. They’re much better than anything else I could buy. I have a bunch of their chilies and cumin since I’ll make a lot of southwest flavored foods. The spices are very strong so you need to go light on ingridients. It also lets me cook regular meat but have good results.
I used to get Penzy spices but these are much better.
I made my own vanilla a few years back and it’s been pretty fantastic and significantly cheaper than store-bought. It’s surprisingly easy, just buy fresh vanilla beans (I got mine from amazon) and appropriate bottles.
You want the bottles to be taller than the beans but not too wide unless you’re making a huge batch. You can just toss the beans whole into the bottle, or slice them open if you like seeing the seeds. Then fill the bottle with vodka or bourbon (I made a bottle of each). Shake them once in a while and after a couple of months they’re good to go. As the level drops below the beans, just add more alcohol.
I looked up various ratios online and made mine around 3-4x strength with Tahitian beans. Over time it ends up costing a fraction of buying from the store plus you know exactly what’s in it and control how strong you want it be.
Vanilla paste is a whole separate discussion. Paste is good for applications where you don’t want the thinning effect of the liquid, e.g. Chantilly (vanilla whipped cream) and maybe buttercreams and icing. Other than that, the flavor and intensity should theoretically be the same, but if you’re buying from a different manufacturer then that would account for flavor differences.
I found a photo - looks like this bottle was due to be topped up. From the date on the bottle you can tell it was a bit of a pandemic hobby to stave off going stir crazy from being indoors all the time.
I made some pandemic vanilla as well.
I date the spices as to when I acquire them. Until fairly recently I was using spices that were literally decades old. The new infusion of spices I got from Penzy’s was long overdue and caused me to toss the spices I had from the 1980s!
This holiday season, the kids both gave me some seasonings so I will try them but am not using them up very rapidly. D gave me a huge restaurant sized bottle of lemon herb seasoning from Whole Foods and I put done of it in different containers so she and S and my brother could all have some and reduce the amount in my bottle.
I use fresh garlic and fresh ginger the most but they are a bit of trouble to mince and/or press. They do work well for most asian dishes. We also love monterey steak seasoning, soy sauce and hawaiian salt (I chop coarsely to make kosher salt).
As you can tell, I rarely toss seasoning because it’s “old.” Only had one bottle of fairly new seasoning that I had to toss from Penzey’s because it had hatched something. ick! 
Salt and pepper (many types of both), TJs everyday seasoning and everything but the bagel, and an Italian blend are in high rotation here. As long as the spice smells like it should, I use it even if expired. I haven’t seen any living things in an old container yet, but will make sure I look before shaking going forward!
I don’t want to make this a point of discussion for many posts but what/HOW are there critters in spices?! We’re like lids not on tight??
Here is a thorough article on the bugs in paprika
Thank you - I think. 
Ok let’s move on!!!
TBH, I pay little to no attention to expiration dates on spices.
A couple of ideas:
In addition to the “WASP spice rack” (i.e., salt and pepper), I use a lot of dried basil, oregano, bay leaves, garlic powder, cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, and chili powder; as far as brands go, besides what I find on the shelf at Kroger, I use Tony Chachere’s spice mix (I lived in Louisiana for a while many years ago, and I have used it from that time). I grow rosemary and thyme in my small herb garden, so I typically use those fresh.
I use A LOT of spices/dried herbs:
Salt/pepper,
Garlic powder,
Onion powder,
Italian blend,
Red pepper flakes,
Cinnamon,
Nutmeg,
Allspice,
Cinnamon,
Ginger,
Cayenne pepper,
Chili pepper,
Cumin,
Dry Mustard,
Paprika,
Basil,
Thyme,
Herbs de Provence,
Beer Can Chicken blend,
Old Bay,
Tony’s Creole
and Slap Ya Mama all get used quickly 
I have a secondary shelf of things I don’t use regularly, but it’s mostly spice blends.
We most often use Tony Chachere’s, Montreal Steak Seasoning, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne, lemon pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, dill and chives. I didn’t use to pay attention to expiration dates, but when we moved I was shocked to find jars that were dated five to ten years before the move. I tossed them all and restocked after we were settled.
Sounds like I need to get Montreal Steak seasoning - how do you use it?
Besides steaks, we most often use it on chuck roasts and hamburger patties. It’s good in meatloaf, too.
My son in law is not political but his family is super conservative. When he got a lot of Penzys spices from a vendor for his family business his mom was excited til someone told them they were “ liberal spices” So they gave them all to me. I love the spices as they are very very high quality. This was the kit I got. Love People Gift Box Deluxe-Rainbow | Penzeys
Perhaps they misheard being told to use them liberally. 
No they read the “About Republicans” page on the Penzys website. Penzys isn’t hiding its political position. Works to my advantage. lol.
I use it instead of salt and pepper in many things!
I love Penzey’s spices - they have SO many choices! And you can buy a bag to refill a container. I go through garlic and Italian Herb, cumin, minced onion and minced shallot, Northwoods seasoning, plus all the baking spices.
(Put a sprinkle of pie spice in your coffee!)
If I don’t have fresh, I use the refrigerating minced garlic and I keep this in the freezer for ginger.
We are really lucky. I took a marketing class with a person who owns an herb and spice store very near me. Her products are fresh, and really not very expensive. And she almost always has what I want. She also has teas which are great too.
I just send her a text message and she meets me at the shop…I have glass containers for my herbs and spices…so just get them refilled.
I think hers are better than any I’ve ever gotten anywhere else!
Borsari original seasoning is my primary go to for meat, poultry and salmon.
I use thyme, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper in many dishes.
Ground fennel (don’t like the seeds) is a must for my kids favorite meatballs. I have to order it online since grocery stores don’t usually stock it.
