Making a tincture (Thanks Boogity!)

[kristenm1975]

A while back a friend kindly gifted me with her entire apothecary, jars and jars of beautiful herbs and even more incredibly, several gallons of organic biodynamic grape alcohol for tincturing. This is basically everclear, super high proof, and perfect for tinctures. I've made hundreds since being gifted and thought I'd post the basic formula I use.

There are several ways to tincture. The method I use is the folk method. First, I choose my herb. Echinacea is a good one. I take a clean, dry pint jar and fill it up to the shoulder of the jar. Then I pour the alcohol in slowly, covering the herbs. Lid on, I let it sit overnight. The next day, I open it up and add a little more alcohol, as the herbs will have absorbed some. You don't want herbs sticking out above the level of fluids.

From there, just let it sit in a cool dark place, tightly sealed, for at least two weeks. I shake the jar twice a day to make sure there are no dry pockets of herb hiding out in there.

After the two weeks or longer are up, I take a clean dry dish towel (the thin white cotton kind, like muslin) and line a kitchen strainer with it. I set it on the top of a 4 cup glass measuring cup and pour out the herbs and alcohol. It will be a nice deep greenish brown after that length of time. I leave it to sit and drain out all the fluids, then squeeze out the herbs to get the last of the tincture.

From there, it's easy to bottle up. You can buy 1 ounce amber glass tincture bottles online or at herb stores, or you can just put it back in the rinsed out pint jar you used to make the tincture.

Everclear being rather hard to come by, you can substitute higher proof vodka or brandy. I've heard you can even use vinegar but I don't know anything about that. You can use vegetable glycerin if you're concerned about the alcohol content or are wanting to give the tincture to children. I also experiment with blends off alcohol and glycerin and that seems to be effective.

Have fun!

 

[CJW]

Have you heard anything regarding the moon cycles and making tinctures, picking herbs, etc?

 

[CrimsonRose]

Thanks for the advice! I just started getting into herbs a few years back and I'm just now starting to grow some of my own... Will definitely put this to use!

 

[country freedom]

This is something I had never even thought about!
Valuable!

 

[FarmerDenise]

I also use a good quality high alcohol rum, I like the taste better

But whenever I make a new to me tincture I use a high alcohol vodka as per my German Herbal. I figure those people know what they are talking about.
With many herbs it is important to keep them away from light. There are a very few, that require light. It is always good to get all your directions right.

 

[Boogity]

Thank you Kristen. Now I have some questions:
1. How do you know how much to drink?
2. Do you wash the herbs first?
3. What herbs seem to work best?

Now a question for FarmerDenise . . .
You said -
"But whenever I make a new to me tincture I use a high alcohol vodka as per my German Herbal."

What is your German Herbal? What does that mean?

Oh boy! Everclear. I can see myself getting schnockered on booze. Well, only if it tastes good ;-)

 

[Blackbird]

Each herb has different healing and medicinal properties, so it really depends on what your need is, but some herbs do have properties that don't extract well.

You can use both dried and fresh herbs for making tinctures, but those using fresh herbs are much better, faster to prepare and the properties are distributed somewhat faster, and it is more potent. Dried roots and barks would also take longer. My local herbalist recommends over a month of 'brewing' for roots and barks.

As Denise said, a high alcohol liquor is recommended. 100 proof vodka is commonly used. Some dosages vary in regards to the liquor used.
PLEASE do not DRINK an entire glass of pure tincture.. Not a smart idea. I recommend finding a local herbalist to get proper dosages on tinctures in regards to the herb you are using and the problem at hand. Sometimes you only need a drop, sometimes 20, and sometimes more. You do NOT need a lot. Tinctures are usually diluted in water or taken in small dosages under the tongue.

Many elements are not extracted as well in water, which is why alcohol is used.. There has been quite a bit of debate about whether or not glycerin is effective, so I would stick to alcohol. Which children should have no issue with, being it is in a small amount.

CJW, Susun Weed says that tinctures are more potent when prepared while the moon is new and finished when the moon is full. This is because along with the seasons, times of day, etc. the water content, absorption rates, growing of herbs and so on vary in coorelation to the waxing and waning of the moon. No only does it affect plants and herbs and the earth, but animals and people, too. You should look into a Gardening by the Moon calendar!

 

[FarmerDenise]

One of my favorite herbals is The Family Herbal by Barbara and Peter Theiss. It was actually written in english, not just translated, in order to make sure the information was correct. Translations can often get things wrong, because some words or phrases don't translate well.

As Blackbird says, the dosage for tinctures depends on the herb and what you need it for. You do not take it by the shot glass!!! rather by drops or fractions of a teaspoon.
When giving cannabis tincture to people undergoing chemo therapy, the instuctions are to take one or two drops under the tongue to prevent nausea. This will neither get you drunk nor will it get you high. This is medicine. !!!

Too much of an herbal medicine can be just as bad for you as too much of an OTC or prescribed medicine. It is important to follow the correct dosage.

If you follow the correct dosage, a tincture will not harm a child, even though it is made with alcohol. Remember cough syrup has alcohol in it too. Alcohol can be medicine. Most kids don't like alcohol anyway.

 

[Blackbird]

Excellent point Denise!
I just looked in Healing Wise by Susun Weed and she says that recovering alcohol addicts can take tinctures diluted in water and have no affects or cravings to re-start the habit. Strictly medicine.

 

[kristenm1975]

There are a lot of really good tips being given here! I forgot to mention a couple of important bits, such as keeping tinctures out of the light. It's also important to mention the amounts used. On this, I have nothing helpful to add, as I am not a trained herbalist in any way, simply an enthusiast using myself as a guinea pig.

In response to your questions Boogity,

1. How much do you drink?
It varies hugely depending on what kind of tincture. From one dropperful a half dozen times a day in the case of echinacea, to 5 droppersful at a time with lemon balm when I'm experiencing high levels of stress and want to calm down immediately. This is where it's important to check with an herbalist, or read any of the good books by Susan Weed, Rosemary Gladstar, etc.

2. Do you wash the herbs first?
I use dried herbs mostly, as that's what I have available to me. In that case, I do not wash them first. When I do use fresh, I wash and shake dry or pat dry with paper towels. I don't obsess about getting them all dry because a little water in with the alcohol is sometimes good anyway.

3. What herbs seem to work best?
Well, it depends on the quality of the herb used, and whether you've used the proper ratio of alcohol to herb. All in all though, I've found the best results with the echinacea, lemon balm, astragalus and goldenseal.

I have found out the hard way that it's best to go easy with tinctures. They are concentrated and you don't generally need much. I took too much lemon balm once, and didn't have water to mix it in. I felt almost immediately nauseated. My daughter (almost 18) once took a dropperful of goldenseal straight before I could warn her that you must take that one in fluids. The poor kid didn't feel right the whole rest of the afternoon. That's a gross one. Just exercise caution.