Authentic Saffron: How to Identify Real Saffron Threads

Table of Contents

The Lure of Saffron: Why All the Fuss?
Understanding Saffron: The Botanical Basics
Visual Clues: What Genuine Saffron Threads Should Look Like
- Shape and Structure
- The Color Conundrum
- Looking Under a Lens: What Microscopes Reveals
Scent is King (Or Queen?): The Aromatic Tale of Real Saffron
The Taste Test: A Delicate Dance on Your Tongue
The infamous Water Test: Separating Truth From Fake
The Paper Towel Test : Another useful test
Saffron Grade & Categories Explained: Beyond Simply Real or Fake
- Sargol: The Red Elite
- Pushal: The Style in Still In!
- Bunch/Dasteh: The whole package.
Geographical Gems: Saffron Varieties From Across the Globe
A Global Game: Where Counterfeit Saffron Plays
How to buy saffron: Navigate Through the Confusions
Beyond Authenticity: Proper Saffron Storage & Preservation Tips
My Personal Saffron Story : Mishaps, discoveries and a little confusion
Frequently Asked Questions about Saffron Authenticity
Closing thoughts: A Final Grain of wisdom.

The Lure of Saffron: Why All the Fuss?

Honestly, I first heard about it in a fairytale: Something about golden gowns or perhaps some treasure with rubies and saffron – or was that the queen’s dress made from gold? Point being, the mental image it conjures is that of opulence. And honestly? It’s deserved. We’re talking about the world’s most expensive spice, something coveted throughout time for both cooking and medicine. A tiny whisper of a strand is often the culprit in transforming an ordinary dish into something magical. Imagine – threads, literally tiny things plucked out by human hands and, you might not know that each crocus sativus flower only produces a paltry few strands. When you really think about it this way, is it truly a shocker? Is the hype excessive or a sign of true scarcity, is not the correct term. Saffron has always carried an aura of mysticism; part myth, part very real, and high price-tag! That kind of history is always enough to stir the heart and, frankly, my need to get it into my own kitchen. And if we go beyond its rich culinary appeal; we’re still not close to being able to describe the depths of saffron’s history, we’re not kidding; This isn’t only a simple ingredient we’re talking about but the blood red spice. From its presence in ancient civilizations (as we will later investigate), in many religious practices and its historical uses in dying cloth and even creating royal portraits, saffron goes beyond being just a humble culinary item to something bigger. It makes one truly want to find out why and try their best not to fall for impostors; that might bring bad omens upon their lives.

Understanding Saffron: The Botanical Basics

So let’s start from square one – no magic, not really, just science. Saffron is born from the Crocus sativus flower, a modest, purple, crocus – almost boring, isn’t it?. Each little bloom sports three vivid red stigmas and those red filaments that we lovingly know as saffron are exactly that. But – and it’s a big ‘but’– you don’t just waltz into the flower patch to scoop your saffron and waltz away home, like we do berries from time to time, unfortunately. We mentioned the scarcity previously? This here is one of the reasons. Imagine the backbreaking labour; everything is hand-picked. These threads are the plant’s female reproductive parts, carefully, mind you, pulled from the flower and dried. There’s a kind of ritual in its creation that really translates to how the finished spice makes you feel as soon as you sprinkle some in a dish.

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The short answer, or maybe this needs more than one short response, to ‘why is it so pricey?’; is the incredible work to make that spice we all desire so much . This spice is not grown like wheat, a machine isn’t going to pluck and clean everything within one quick afternoon of labour and then ship it right off. It’s extremely labor-intensive, it needs that perfect weather, very specific temperature to flourish correctly. Not everything in life, thankfully, can be turned into large production or we’ll loose this rare beauty. When you buy saffron, your paying a price not just for the actual spice but the hard, dedicated hours spent producing that beauty, the skill and love passed down for many, many centuries. It’s like buying the Mona Lisa…okay, maybe not as profound but hopefully, you get the idea; It’s very expensive for a damn good reason! This should add to the excitement when finding authentic stuff rather than cheap counterfeits.

Visual Clues: What Genuine Saffron Threads Should Look Like

Right, let’s put on our detective hats, and pull our little magnifying glass or phone, as the time might be, we must examine and discover! This part was the toughest for me; the moment when my brain truly felt, lost! If anything was confusing and baffling, it was distinguishing these filaments between good, and evil; fake! The most obvious factor, or at least it should, is the appearance; the thread itself can teach much, it carries all answers.

Shape and Structure
Real Saffron doesn’t crumble at touch like cheap, imitations of paper or cheap dust; instead, It takes the form of a beautiful longish (sometimes short) slender and delicate thread, often being quite thin on the sides but has the wider appearance when we observe the ‘head’ or tips. These aren’t exactly uniformly symmetrical things we got there, you’ll notice this slight and expected variations in widths and in overall forms – a hallmark of the genuine stuff . If all your threads looks like perfect straight, rigid little sticks all looking completely alike; then you’ve probably encountered the very opposite of authentic, unfortunately, I had the most terrible shock discovering this and the seller gave me an explanation as “these all are perfectly selected by skilled people!” Yeah, that’s total BS, I realised immediately…
The Color Conundrum
Ah yes; that rich color; the signature crimson! The hue we tend to think off; ‘pure red’, isn’t quite accurate but often the ideal in our minds, its much much richer and very deep; its never going to be a bright or light kind of shade; a dull deep colour is what’s expected . Now this doesn’t need much thinking through; pure saffron never possess other tones, such as whites, yellows or browns, this all hints at parts of the plant other than stigmas being included in the product. Saffron should possess no other colors unless being blended in powder form with other spices which obviously is done after it’s already real and pure and done to make particular combinations. Some of us confuse red paprika with saffron for color alone! which are utterly completely and vastly different items . It can be truly overwhelming to grasp this concept.Another small fact or tip: the coloring should always be deeper at the top section and slightly lighter moving to its base. But keep your magnifying glass ready or even just your phone zoom function! A clear visual, you don’t even need much effort as even to the unaided eye there should be this noticeable variation in color tone from the upper section toward it’s bottom. And it’s expected that each strand would not be entirely uniformly in colour; since, as we explained before they’re the female stigma not all the same parts would obtain identical tonality, which proves that no bleaching, and the absence of dyes are not part of the composition. If your spice look, same-all color; there’s high probability you’ve been conned unfortunately…
Looking Under a Lens: What Microscopes Reveals
Okay, not all of us can just walk into a laboratory for our afternoon of saffron tasting but some may actually posses mini microscopes; they exist today you know! If so; lucky you! Because if it passes the visible visual analysis; the microscopic one is very important because it would offer the closest possible observation, giving some solid irrefutable scientific findings. Saffron’s cross section looks different than similar species (such as saffron crocus or colchicum flower); authentic Saffron possesses no “veins” and look as circular as if your looking down a pipe tube from the sky, however in that round structure we can view “tooth edges or rims”. So its a circle with tooth like rims… this might not tell anyone with untrained eyes a huge difference but an expert with an expensive microscope would notice quickly! Any veins or sharp “flat edge shapes” are just signs that there are contaminants (mostly plant matter) found and these would all point towards it not being authentic. Now; many of us don’t really possess professional microscopes lying around so dont worry! The main take away is: no veins, has tooth rim circular structure and if its fake then sharp lines and weird forms appear .

Scent is King (Or Queen?): The Aromatic Tale of Real Saffron

I can probably get lost here all day so here we go : The nose knows… they do! Oh yes! Smell, for many including yours truly, remains our absolute first choice when determining our little batch of strands. How did it felt that day at Marrakech’s busy bazaar when we spoke earlier? Yes, we did mentioned the “earthy and warm hay-like” odour . What we should aim for is something pleasant, slightly sweet, musky and just enough aromatic for it not to be overwhelmingly chemical. Saffron’s aromatic fingerprint is one-of-a kind; complex in depth but its all very delicate. If the saffron that you have at hand emits an unpleasing or intensely strong smell then there’s more likely than not that its not of high-grade, and could very likely be artificially perfumed or treated. Pure Saffron does have an overall delicate fragrance which sometimes people describe with nuances of honey. However we will mention below in later segments that there can be huge variating degree’s and subtleties with many different sorts.

Remember these: Never is strong chemical fragrance ever a sign of proper spice and no real spices have an unpleasant odor; when it comes to saffron what smells like metal is bad omen. A foul, heavy fragrance indicates other impurities or treatments done in production (like colourings) therefore, you’d most likely come across “cheap fakes”. Smell isn’t a simple process or simple element we are dealing here; it could potentially carry within a great complex narrative if taken as a serious factor when analyzing our strands.

The Taste Test: A Delicate Dance on Your Tongue

Now, here’s where the true, deep engagement occurs – time to truly savor a proper flavor. So lets take a tiny, tiny, strand – and not the whole jar ok! No, really don’t just gobble it all in! – place it at the back of your tongue to properly sense its deep flavor, slowly, softly so the nuances come at you like little gentle waves on your palate. What do you experience? Do you detect an earthly, subtle note which might leave hints of mild bitter/honey flavors, which eventually and slowly turn to sweet and pleasant?. This should be it. A pleasant yet not overtly potent after taste, a unique mild-bitterish taste which morphs gently. Saffron’s overall flavors shouldn’t make you gag like lemon or chilli. There’s subtlety to saffron unlike your more traditional spices which pack heavy heat and big flavor at once. Its a slow, gentle almost caressing feel and this would always tell its authentic from not authentic imitations that often taste nothing like it but leave that strong artificial after taste as if your eating perfumed metal. Never does saffron feel like heavy flavours instead, think gentle aromatic bliss!.

The infamous Water Test: Separating Truth From Fake

Water and Saffron? That combination seems to scream: tests ahead! Another fairly common practical test often done by regular people in search for good stuff. Get a glass of transparent glass filled with room temperature (never boiling hot water!). Throw few strands into it and see what it’ll do. How your strand acts after being soaked in water can provide interesting valuable insights; A true good saffron (or any well produced quality batch) it wont colour the water at once. It will take several minutes, between 10 or 15 before the liquid shows a lovely warm shade, as time passes this warm red / gold or saffron tones begin to dance in that cup as your strand keeps releasing pigments! When fake imitations get tested in same water bath; instantly the liquid will take some other colour – or simply turns dark/weird colours – almost like tea-bag but in some completely off hue! Fake saffron releases artificial coloring instantaneously as it only has surface coat colors – which are synthetic therefore will not have that delay-release as pure quality. Also in these kind of tests many dyes start making trails, almost oil looking spots on surface (a good indication your looking at dyes released into water from imitation spice. Remember authentic quality? the color wont have strange streaks of colours just the deep hue mentioned; its uniform, clean and has beautiful slow spread through that cup.. another vital part is that original strand stays red with just small hint of slight color being shed or being washed off with time – again if it dissolves, if it gets rid off the total red colors within few mins; chances are high its a counterfeit and just an imitation sadly! Another important observation is that strands usually don’t swell excessively as if growing within a matter of seconds – fakes swell as its another fake trick or they’ll literally vanish as that paper coloring material just breaks within few moments! Good strands stay and act like authentic spice .

The Paper Towel Test: Another Useful test

This test requires you not more than few things which you probably have already! First; your precious (if its real!) Saffron strands, water, piece of tissue (or plain white paper towel) and you might also require to get your trusty magnifying glass ready or zoom mode for our mobile if available. To start gently wet the tissue/paper and then put few strands on that surface of moist sheet and start watching them close and gently using magnification; after a period of about 20 mins; you’ll start seeing some signs appearing and by gently scraping some parts (as shown online video tutorials you can easily search), we start noticing that fake imitations leave bright distinct traces with their particular dyes! Real stuff wont have such stains on that tissue and with very gentle rubbing the authentic strands leave very little residue since its a more complex and strong component made within a specific form whereas fake imitations are just layers of dying put into shape with other cheap paper material for most . This will also enable you to watch more in detail how these paper-looking threads slowly breaks apart compared to what should not have a tendency to just crumble into powder after few rubbing/strokes; all important when searching the best stuff .

Saffron Grade & Categories Explained: Beyond Simply Real or Fake

We did say earlier that there are many subtle complexities even in the quality real saffron spice right? Once we have crossed that very complicated road where our products are not counterfeit the following question arises; ‘where do we place that jar we holding right now?’ – this step can cause just much mental agony because even good stuffs can have subtle varieties based upon methods and many processes. Once your not chasing fakes anymore your now going deeper, welcome!. All these distinctions relate mostly to different degrees of ‘quality’, they’re like sub-categories within that single, massive kingdom, in a way these methods sort of define the various approaches in how these products reach the customers; this determines taste, quality of colour, texture but also aromatic complexities.

Sargol: The Red Elite
Often seen, in various packaging types and with higher asking prices, Sargol saffron comes from very finest quality; is a persian term (which means “the head of the flower”). What gives the particular label that level up you might be wondering?. Simple; these selected items contain exclusively, entirely those deep vivid crimson-red tips and highest color contents as they’re mostly (and entirely depending on various selection criteria for a production) only those sections – meaning its without those pale yellowish/orange tones from base strands we often tend to see. Sargol presents the strongest color profile , is packed with great aromatic nuances, that particular fragrance is strong; even when cooking – and possess strong bitter notes (the “bitter notes we described earlier) as these top part stigmas are richest and offer this bitter-sweet taste unlike those lower parts from where they’ve been obtained . Some countries possess an equivalent terms (mostly Iran) and the differences is very difficult for not trained buyers to distinguish at the first glance so be weary of people selling as elite quality when that may just not be the case…
Pushal: The Style is Still In!
Another sort we may notice around is Pushal style saffron, and despite being graded differently its a top grade selection as it retains those red styles and some portion of lower parts also included! . There can exist minor variety here as some brands sell the pushal saffron using only small yellowish sections or also include much higher volume of such parts; therefore when considering a pushal purchase you’ll want to double-check to notice for the proportions carefully and maybe request more informations. In overall terms we expect red color mixed with varying yellow base as standards in that particular product type. When it comes to flavor nuances its always considered to be less intense aromatic-flavour experience then with those “elites” (meaning Sargol), that overall taste feels mild and its quite gentler all around, especially if using lots of yellow parts rather then with tiny lower segments that hold very intense colors and therefore stronger flavour elements . For certain dishes one could possibly favour this style then going to full power; depending also what you look for.
Bunch/Dasteh: The whole package
Sometimes if your quite lucky to obtain and see; this may still look similar as Pushal with its blend of reds and yellows but here instead we’re facing a kind of more crude selection; where one might witness, complete bunch where no separation occurred; all stigmas (all lengths/all colors ) mixed up; we can view parts red, yellow, with tiny whites sections here too as part of lower ends etc . Depending on quality one can also spot more foreign bits which needs to be cleaned up before putting in the glass-jars that later reaches final consumer… We know its the very base for where other strands are graded out of so this particular version usually presents less potent aromatic experience, therefore mild and not quite deep with less bitter undertones as result; they’re generally considered in lesser price ranges since less work is applied during harvesting. However for certain culinary needs these might perfectly work depending what one is aiming to obtain . We may often observe that this may have much high chance of carrying impurities since not every thing is checked separately so best avoid if possible..

Geographical Gems: Saffron Varieties From Across the Globe

Its surprising for some but many countries cultivate, not all as well as the persian cultures for a long history; saffron. Each has their very subtle quirks and each region gives us a bit of that local charm and flavor which we’ll dive into this short part so get your traveling hats! Iran (also formerly called Persia) has some solid historical records in saffron production and history shows for many many years now! their geographical attributes along with farming skills offer incredible flavour; often called ‘the best’ its most famous worldwide! In the Iberian regions (spain mostly) Saffron production also has deep and important ties; for example “La Mancha Saffron” possesses deep colors; its delicate and well balanced flavour. Kashmiri Saffron; it’s very particular and its another beautiful region located close to Himalayas, that region offers more potent (earthy/musky) notes compared to its other neighbours, thanks also in good part for local cultivation techniques and high climate elevations.. Saffron varieties that can be harvested outside of all these places usually carry a much mild characteristics; less potent but can sometimes possess slight hints that will carry little local unique fingerprint. It’s fun and also amazing; to grasp these slight regional variations because once your in a deep dive in the spice you can easily distinguish, notice with just smelling! but thats of course, if your lucky! Many also will only stick with top trusted known local producers, in hopes, that you’re dealing with high standards all the time (that’s fair! ). However do keep this in mind when wondering from why those prices differ as the areas where its made has a deep impact overall on costs and also in quality results!

A Global Game: Where Counterfeit Saffron Plays

Ah, the villains of our story; Saffron’s biggest struggle that makes our quest harder . Unethical merchants see the lure; how could anyone pass out that golden goose with big profit for minimum (usually immoral means) efforts? A common scam tactic uses dyes such as (Tumeric, saffron crocus – from the same plant, often they’re from lesser stigmas), and even some vegetable oil stains used just for looks!, they’ll also sneak plant remains (for lower overall cost!) along with non-edible fillers to add more mass for higher weights, and bigger payouts which is never okay to do so . We need to be conscious buyers! Often some areas and countries present higher records for unethical behaviours, for example many sellers coming from North African/ or Asian markets may also have other (mostly unethical) behaviours by using corn silks or dyed coconut fibres (in a specific method to resemble) saffron strands and then pass off as legit spices which, honestly if not being aware can easily dupe even smart-shoppers!. The key here, is to get yourself prepared and gain the much needed tools of “sight/smell/taste” which would help when shopping! Another great approach to not being scammed; it’s simple common-sense really – stay way far from suspiciously low offers – anything way lower prices from market averages is always screaming potential issue or is clearly fraud .

How to Buy Saffron: Navigating Through the Confusions

Ok so let’s get into buying our own Saffron properly shall we?! How, and where could we shop safely?. Here’s a great point you wanna have some awareness of before starting out your journey, start looking where to purchase first instead of buying without knowing the brand’s history! First always do your research: aim and seek reliable well trusted places such as (if buying physically) specialised shops known to be responsible. Always prioritize companies with excellent online records or good client reviews online/ or from people you may personally know who buy those brands often!. The very next crucial point is in looking for well secured sealed packs so its not tampered with or contaminated on its travel routes; always consider that packaging must contain a proper label where batch dates, production site with its geographical references must be properly stated on those tiny jars of yours and these facts do tend to change or be updated periodically therefore old batches might also reveal sellers whom often don’t refresh its product ranges; if not then is good to question further about production details (date mostly). Always opt for products where origin, producer name (even some personal emails and information!) its disclosed if you may want. Another aspect – I tend to recommend – seek for small artisan production sites, even try to get local-community driven projects or production from regions that also have excellent reputations in saffron output quality; the most critical step here would be – when possible – is to ask more specific detail about their local product details so its clear that transparency plays huge important roles to the whole experience from producer and customer viewpoint!. Remember: a good label with detailed background history makes a significant difference and reveals that care was truly taken with love which also reflects better products, generally speaking!.

Beyond Authenticity: Proper Saffron Storage & Preservation Tips

Finally! Once that big process from researching to safely obtaining has finally succeeded; then next hurdle is “how do we conserve this properly, safely” so our new purchase keeps it’s all amazing glory and flavors as time passes. To ensure saffron doesn’t turn completely useless; consider to keep it tightly locked-up always after every single use. Always avoid to put these spice close to damp places as moisture (as much as direct sunlight ) has tendency to lower down saffron flavour levels but mainly the colors, as that can ruin pigments. Try to store this in airtight containers usually dark-colored as these also ensure keeping it safe from exposure and heat is no friend to most spices; even less to saffron . It’s not much effort honestly but small changes can save lot of disappointments . Stored safely you’ll keep enjoying its quality for long. The idea is just the keep the threads always under the best conditions in order for best outcome which ensures you taste same potent flavor whenever your cooking!

My Personal Saffron Story: Mishaps, discoveries, and a little confusion

Ok now that’s the big technicalities behind us we might take some moment to breath out and to say, well you can find out as well; I certainly wasn’t born being an absolute expert in identifying real from fake – I did some silly things, and I’m sure most people make those kind of mistakes so please be gentle to me… My first encounter? (and the one which sparked this long essay for you!). It was on those hectic markets of Marrakesh I did obtained a small jar. Being completely new in buying that red spices; my senses was completely fooled (a great performance I might say – of trickery) but as most novice beginners, I felt “satisfied!” for having bought ‘a very expensive, legit spice!’.. Until later on that night I had completely different cooking experiment; my entire plan turned out messy and with flavors I have never associated with saffron; the texture also completely fell off into dusts – something I never realised; because what i had simply wasnt pure quality so later in research that revealed many secrets I should had paid attention since. Many months went by, and I did ended-up losing entire stock thinking that its not my area! And so another batch – second (more thoughtful time; i hope so!), later down at some food shop, all nice clean shelves! This was very legit I assumed… yet when I had to retest that ‘new item’; those weird smells and the way those strange, long-coloured threads turned up; something seemed just completely wrong . Only once when I got better and also a little experienced with this spice and learnt how a genuine strands looks did I realised my other purchases was truly complete and totally fake… Many mistakes, wrong judgements did finally lead me here and after a proper journey (also having spend lots and lots of times on various sources to gain solid information). My experience is shared just for anyone whom might just starting and wish they already had more insider tips; there’s really more that goes into these tiny little scarlet pieces then it may seem . Its easy for those trying to fool those less aware… this process can make the customer feel completely lost or as a target- practice for a total rip-off (been there twice already!).

Frequently Asked Questions About Saffron Authenticity

Alright, lets clear some potential mists as it does seems that we have thrown you (and myself honestly!) on quite deep sea of saffron information ! So here is a brief list of answers for potential doubts as a little guide for practical insights and how we could clarify better the entire thing.

Can Saffron Smell Too Strong?
Absolutely!. Pure Saffron smell has that specific delicate flavour we’ve just described: (not overpowering, no artificial flavours nor too musky); the good thing when smelling this spices there’s no unpleasant heavy chemical smells associated to a quality saffron; as we also discussed those fakes that add perfuming does add some strange smells such as a soapy or “metallic” undertones which in these cases does make us doubt everything we see!. Good pure Saffron never has very potent or very “aggressive ” odors. Remember these: its rather light/ mild aromatic that gives hints that ranges from subtle earth notes up to a pleasant warm kind-a-feeling, when pure.
Does All Real Saffron look Identical?
Definite no!, they have small irregularities so don’t be caught in thinking everything is supposed to be perfect; when strands are entirely exactly same (with precise colors / dimensions); this is when alarm must raise as often fakes make these mistakes to create easy fake. Expect mild tiny imperfections to its look. As we learned above also the geographical attributes also have an impact making it vary between specific regions. The other very clear answer we also must consider here; is the sorting processes – those various grading we went over; making real saffron come in several different subgrades..
Does Cheaper Saffron Means “Fake”?
It doesn’t instantly mean “fake” – not entirely!, though you always want to have your suspicious hat handy – because price isn’t the ultimate truth to it all because cheap might imply a lower quality of the spice with, potentially with small impurities, as also more lower part added to that strands!. Another detail many overlook and that does impact cost: is that the quality production standards and overall approach (labor, resources) all contribute and the different degrees in production methods, therefore those that invests time, people also do expect better profits for that. When too cheap is just alarm bell of big fraud on most accounts .
Can I Buy “Best” Saffron Online Safely?
Online shopping? yes!, sure is! It opens huge world possibilities; however your “detection” mode need to get higher – do due-diligence more, even ask questions via mails if that might aid your journey or remove some possible clouds or suspicions and follow previous safety measures for best outcomes.
How can we be sure that laboratory tests also is fool proof?
Yes, even when having labs confirming that these things are the real deal (certified with specific labs with various test analysis) – not all labs are doing a thorough accurate results since even such organisations can simply buy fake credentials! Or some will do fast and poor- quality test result – always double-check lab certifications to the utmost limit when possible. Best labs all come accredited through several external quality and standards agencies; if those data is absent or too simplified and or generic or if names seem quite “common and random’s”; I advise you strongly that’s is indeed time to simply raise another potential flags. Do due diligence! It does saves you in many respects!
Is Paper test very Reliable?
Well… we could consider this one to be quite accurate since in general paper method tends to offer pretty accurate clues if that’s really what’s real since paper tends to not do much well to good saffron!
My Water Test Did Color water Very Fast What’s happening?
You probably ended-up dealing with an inferior and or a complete fake, it just happens as all those dye compounds tend to dissolve on a flash. A high quality version should not color quickly in any kind of tests; usually around few mins as a starting sign and this may even take few hours on occasion when the process continues so in water method – instant coloring shows clear issue of being fake in this process.

Closing Thoughts: A Final Grain of Wisdom

This all has been quite an intense quest, hasn’t it?. What started with a bunch of confused and frankly silly-questions, developed into a deep adventure! My big discovery through the labyrinth of that deep red spice it revealed so many important aspects, things I didn’t know existed until started researching! This humble and tiny spice – more precious than any other on the shelves – it needs far greater care than many suspect. With better clarity we do get the right kind-of skills needed to obtain real authentic stuffs so next time you happen to walk through one shop of saffron know your own little power so no one deceives you (anymore!), which does takes the whole shopping experiences on a very higher grade and more informed level for future attempts. We discussed some solid and useful insights through these small points of identification but as any other areas where money and large demands (for scarce item!) meet; fraudulent practice exist, its a global fact so always get your research and mind in high readiness level (the tools and understanding!) for any eventual journey to find that precious spice.. Enjoy that journey, that wonderful flavor profile for generations to come!.

Superior Saffron