Good morning and welcome back,
We are making a lot of life changes around here and I’m excited to share more information with you each week in our series. We will be updating PDF's and pushing those through, and I am also in the process of creating eBooks for you all to use at home to keep up with your home apothecary in an easy to read, step by step manner. Go ahead and download and print the attached PDF to keep on hand for info and note taking!
This week I wanted to give an overview of tinctures and the types that are commonly used and made.
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I’m sure everyone has heard the word ‘tincture’ in some manner over the years. It most recently became a popular word again due to the rise of CBD use and legalized cannabis in certain states here in America. They make tinctures out of the plant for you to use medicinally, and that is what I wanted to break down for you today.
What are they? How are they used? How can I make one? And so on.
Types of Tinctures:
We have, generally, three main types of tinctures: alcohol based, apple cider vinegar based, and glycerin based.
These all are great options for tinctures, depending on your specific situation and needs. If you are someone who tolerates alcohol well, generally this is your best option for tinctures because this one lasts the longest of all three.
Alcohol based
We generally separate alcohol-based tinctures into two subcategories: folk method and calculation method. The folk method I like to call ‘measure with the heart’ as you stuff your jar with herbs and pour until the alcohol completely covers the herbs. It may also be called the traditional method. The calculation method is using ratios of herbs, which can differ depending on which herb you use but is generally a 1:5 ratio by weight.
The recommended proof range to make a tincture is between 80-120 proof depending on the herb, and the most common two chosen alcohols are vodka and brandy. Alcohol-based tinctures have the longest shelf life of up to ten years because of the shelf life of the alcohol creating a stable environment for the plant constituents.
Waiting time for this one to be done is anywhere form 2-6 weeks. I usually pull and decant mine around 5 weeks.
Vinegar based
The vinegar you choose is important as well as how it was made. You can make your own apple cider vinegar for tincturing. I prefer ACV for tincturing, but you can use distilled white vinegar, red wine vinegar, and more. Your herbs can be fresh or dried but ensure there is no extra water content as it will cause bacterial growth. If you aren’t sure, use dried herbs/fruits for your tincture.
There are two options you can use after you pick your vinegar: heated or unheated for extraction. With dried herbs, some say they get a better extraction from warming the vinegar first. 3 or so tablespoons per pint of vinegar is a typical recommendation.
Waiting time for this one to be done is 2-4 weeks. I shake this one more often to ensure it mixes and doesn’t breed any bad bacteria. The shelf life on this one is between 6 months and three years. You may get different answers depending on who you ask.
Glycerin based
This uses vegetable glycerin and water mixed together to create a liquid we can infuse our herbs with. We use a typical 1:5 ratio for these ones as well. Let’s say you’re going to use 500mL glycerin mixture to 100mL herbs. For a shelf stable tincture, we need to use 75% glycerin to 25% water (375 mL glycerin and 125mL water).
Since this one is thicker than the other tinctures, we want to shake it more often and it will be ready in a minimum of 2 weeks. The shelf life is 1-2 years.
Straining this is going to be more difficult than the other two and we will need some gloves and a cheesecloth bag. Straining through the cheesecloth will involve a lot of squeezing.
Why do we use tinctures?
They’re relatively easy to consume and are small and portable. Alcohol-based tinctures are great for long-term keeping in first aid kits or good to make in batches for long-term herbal storage. If you have dried herbs, you have maybe three years before they lose their potency.
Tinctures are easy to absorb and can be more bioavailable than other types of preparations. Think of them as a ‘form of medicine.’ Tinctures have been around for many many years. We can date them as far back as distilled alcohol - ancient Egypt used tinctures as medicine for a wide variety of health concerns. Ancient Arabic alchemists made tinctures over wood fires before distillation was widely practiced. Cool, right?
Since the old days, tinctures have been traditionally used over each generation for their easy storage and effective treatments. The idea is that you take a higher concentration of plant material that gets absorbed in your mouth first and can have a better impact with medicinal qualities.
To get the same effect as a tincture, you’d need to drink six or more cups of tea to get the same benefits from a few droppers full of a tincture. We use them for their highly concentrated plant materials to treat ourselves quickly.
Most of the world has relied on and still relies on tinctures as a form of medicine to help what ails them. This includes cold and flu, indigestion, seasonal allergies, sleep complaints, stress, anxiety, pain, and more.
Recipe:
100 proof vodka - 2 cups
dried nettle - 1 cup
clean canning jar
wax paper
4 weeks sitting time
place the wax paper as a barrier to the alcohol to prevent corrosion of the lid. Nettle is rich in iron, calcium, magnesium, and other trace minerals. Great for balancing hormones and helping women with deficiencies.
Let me know what you think, and we will see you next week to discuss Damiana! Happy herb prepping!