High quality whole black pepper. Black pepper has a spicy aromatic taste and a pleasant heat. Whole pepper is good for use as is in pickles and stews. Whole black pepper can also be crushed in a mortar or ground in a pepper mill. Black pepper fits in all cooking and is of course also a beloved table spice. Many people also use black pepper in baked goods, sweets and spice mixes. However, not all pepper is real pepper, Sichuan pepper, allspice or chili pepper are not real pepper. Only Piper nigrum, the pepper that belongs to the botanical family Piperaceae, is true pepper. Black, green and white pepper all come from Piper nigrum and the only difference is when the berries are harvested. Green peppers are unripe berries that are harvested first; black pepper is harvested when the berries are still slightly unripe, and white pepper is harvested when the berries are fully ripe. India is considered to have the highest quality of black pepper and Tellicherry is the finest pepper with the largest peppercorns. There are great advantages to grinding your own pepper with a grinder. A freshly ground spice has a richer, deeper flavor. The pepper flavor comes from the balance between the piperine of the core and the essential oils of the shell. When the skin is crushed, the oils are released quickly, which is why freshly ground pepper tastes better. Whole spices, such as peppercorns, also retain flavor better over time than ground spices. Whole peppercorns last up to three years when stored in a tightly closed container. Therefore, feel free to use a spice grinder for your pepper to get more flavor. Pepper has been cultivated in India for many thousands of years. Pepper came to Europe in the fourth century and quickly became popular. Because of the long transports and the formation of trade monopolies, pepper became a very expensive spice, giving rise to expressions like pepper prices. Because pepper was so valuable, the goal of many voyages of discovery was to find pepper in particular. If you found a spice that resembled pepper (allspice) or tasted strong (chili pepper and Sichuan pepper), you gave the spice a name that contained pepper.