tincture recipe wanted!

[Yrekagrow]

hi people i was wondering about tincture, pf mentioned somthing about active coal or somthing like that, how do you go about getting that? exactly how do you use it?

what would help me alot is detailed instructions (or a link to instruction)on how you make tincture, you see i made tincture with a half cup of everclear and 7 grams of decent quality ground up budtrimmings, i let it sit in a ker jar in the freezer for an hour and sifted it off with a coffee filter, the final product was horrible, :( unpleasant taste, burnt underneath my tongue :confused: maybe i was trying to use it wrong; i was using a old oral medication dropper (cleaned very, very well) to dropp 20ml under my tongue at a time, it just burned my mouth and made it tingle for like fifteen minutes, no med effect at all either :(

[Lucy]

there was a post I made on the old forum with a link to making tincture (included pictures)....but that was an alchohol based....I can probably track in down again if anyone wants it

[GriM]

dont know about the coal thing but heres a link i had in storage ;) http://utut.essortment.com/howtotincture_rzwl.htm

[wizzy]

Stuff bud in a mason jar, and pour 150proof or above alcohol until the marijuana is emersed. Then seal the jar and place it in a dark closet or cabinate for 2-6 weeks, Boomer says 4 is best, making sure to shake it once a day. When it's complete, put the bud in a cheese cloth or similier and squeeze the juice out.

You'll have a really dark brown, stinky liquid.

After, there are two methods.

1. If you need the end result quickly, then VERY carefully heat it up to evaporate the alcohol, VERY carefully.

2. The best way is to let the alcohol evaporate naturally, either by spreading it out on a non-stick surface or just leaving the jar open on a counter. The warmer the room of course, the faster the process. But it'll take a while.

[nuevogro]

Although I've never made activated charcoal it is pretty easy to make, although messy. I would just purchase it online somewhere, but if you want to make your own:
"Where are we going to get activated charcoal? Why, both bamboo and coconut shells are excellent sources. Make a mound of coconut husks. Cover it with coconut leaves. Start a fire under it and let it burn; occasionally pour water on it to create steam, but not enough to put it out. After awhile, the charcoal at the bottom of the mound will be activated charcoal, because it will have burned in an oxygen-depleted environment. Crush it up and you're ready to put it in your filter."

Generally tinctures can be made like an alcohol hash-oil extraction, just use grain alcohol for the extraction and don't evaporate it all the way down.

[green girl]

Some tincture info :)

http://www.kcweb.com/herb/tincture.htm
http://utut.essortment.com/howtotincture_rzwl.htm
http://www.herbalshop.com/company/howto.html

[Yrekagrow]

thanks everybody, now i know some things i did wrong...lol :)
1. i let it sit only an hour, and in the freezer
2. i did not evaporate the alcohol at all
3. the dropper method was lame
i'd still like to here from pf about how she uses the coal. nuevo says to crush it up and put it in my filter, by the filter you mean the cheese cloth right?

[pflover]

i make tincture form whole bud matter in the following way. i freeze the alcohol (everclear) in advance. i grind the bud in my sweatleaf grinder but not in a coffee grinder. you just want it broken up so that the alcohol can get to the trichs but not the inside of the plant matter too well. after combining the frozen alcohol and bud i let them sit in the freezer for at least an hour if not over night. (if no freezer then 3-5 min contact between plant matter and alcohol is all that is needed.) the alcohol should just barely cover the plant matter. the next day, i filter it with a cloth filter that can be squeezed and then through a coffee filter to get the small particulate out. then for every 3-4 liquid oz of tincture i place a tbsp of activated charcoal for the pet store or pharmacist into the cloth fitler and tie the bundle off with a twist tie. this then goes into the tincture to soak over night. occasionally it is taken out and swirled. in the moring the charcoal bundle is removed and lightly rung out. depending on the quality of charcoal a final coffee filter filtering might be in order. then i place balk in a dark bottle in the freezer for storage and keep one liquid oz out at a time in a dropper bottle. it can be taken under the tongue but i find the best way is to add it to hot coco or hot coffee with cream (the cream is an emulsifier, with out it the cannabinoids just seperate out and stick to the side of the cup.) i have also added tincture to my ghee once or twice and it sure as hell gives the ghee and extra kick. :)

hope that helps. :)

the freezer trick and charcoal i picked up from someone else that was using it to make alcohol based honey oil. they used the charcoal in the filter too but i just did not find that satisfactory myself.

[Green Medicine]

Tincture

Jay R. Cavanaugh, Ph.D.
AAMC, National Director


Many patients who utilize and benefit from medical cannabis do not wish to smoke due to the perceived health hazards of smoking or for other personal reasons. These patients are in something of a bind. Smoking cannabis delivers the active cannabinoids within seconds. Medicine is absorbed in the lungs and goes directly to the brain and general circulation. The same effect can be achieved with a vaporizer, which is safer than smoking burning vegetable matter. Since the effects of inhaled cannabis are so quick, it is easy for patients to titrate their dose by simply waiting a minute or two in between puffs.

Oral cannabis, such as our Better Bud Butter, is absorbed in a very different fashion from smoking or inhalation. The GI tract gradually absorbs Cannabinoids over the course of one to two hours. Medicine is processed first by the liver, which converts some cannabinoids such as delta nine to delta 11 version of THC. Orally delivered cannabis requires four to ten times the amount of the smoked version in order to achieve the same effect. Orally delivered cannabis can present a problem in achieving the required or desired dose level in any consistent fashion.

Tincture is designed to address the problems of rapid medicine delivery and consistent dosing. Most tinctures are made to be used under the tongue or sublingually. English pharmaceutical companies are presently working on a cannabis extract "spray" that can be used under the tongue in a similar fashion. These sprays are not expected to be approved for use in the United States for years and will be very expensive. Absorption by the arterial blood supply under the tongue is completed in seconds. One trick is to not swallow the dose as, if swallowed, absorption will be in the GI tract. Many patients, though, add their tincture to a cup of tea or cranberry juice for easy delivery. When tincture is used in a beverage, absorption will be slower than if absorbed under the tongue. While tincture absorbed in an empty stomach is accomplished in minutes, conversion in the liver remains, as does the difficulty in titrating dose. Usually, a tincture dose is delivered by means of a medicine dropper or a teaspoon. A rule of thumb on dose is that patients receive benefit from 3-4 drops to a couple of full droppers depending upon the potency of the tincture and the patient’s own unique requirements among other factors.

The methods listed below will detail two major methods of preparing tincture. While the methods are optimized for purity and potency, ultimately these will largely be determined by the purity and potency of the cannabis from which the tincture is made. Another item of note in regard to starting material for tincture is the patient or caregiver selection of strain. A rough rule of thumb is to select Indica dominant strains for cramping and muscle spasticity and Sativa dominant strains for pain relief. The reality, though, is often that the strain is unknown or not well characterized. Trial and error is usually required to acquire the appropriate strain and the proper dose level.



General Rules:

Tincture is an extraction of active cannabinoids from plant material. Cannabis contains many chemicals that can either upset the stomach or taste nasty. One of the goals of extraction is to secure the cannabinoids while leaving out as many of the terpenes and chlorophylls as possible. Both heat and light adversely effect cannabinoids and should be avoided or minimized. Tincture should be stored in airtight dark glass containers kept at room temperature or below. Avoid plastic containers. The ethanol in the tincture may solubilize some of the free vinyls in the plastic.

Cold Method with Ethanol

Making tincture cold preserves the integrity of cannabinoids. To be potent, this method requires starting material high in cannabinoid content such as flowers or kief made from trim and leaf. The material must be mold free and dry. Drying can be accomplished in the freezer (-4-10 degrees Celsius) or better yet by placing in a liquid proof bag into a dry ice/ethanol ice bath (-70 degrees Celsius). Once water has been removed then the surface area of the starting material requires expansion. This can be accomplished a number of ways but two ways stand out:

Using flowers (bud)- Place dried buds in a coffee grinder and pulse until thoroughly ground but not powdered.

Making kief- Rub dry trim and leaves over a silk screen. Collect the powder the comes through the screen. It should be a very pale green. "Kiefing" is an age old way of extracting trichomes from plant material.

Whether kief or ground bud is used both should kept ice cold for this preparation. Similarly, the ethanol to be used should also be ice cold throughout the process.

Selection of alcohol- ethanol or ethyl alcohol is the form of alcohol that can be used by humans. The proof listed on commercial alcohol refers to the percentage of ethanol that the beverage contains. The proof is twice the percentage, so 80 "proof" means that the mixture contains 40% ethanol. The higher the alcohol content used, the better the extraction will work. Ideally, 200 proof ethanol would be best except that ethanol cannot be distilled to this proof so benzene is used to remove the last vestiges of water. This makes "pure" ethanol poisonous.

Many folks use "Everclear" which stands at 190 proof or 95% ethanol. Everclear has no taste. Apparently, Everclear is not available in all States. A close second choice is 151 proof rum. This is a light amber liquid that is 75% ethanol that has a sweet taste. One of our caregiver writers will use nothing but Korbel brandy because she likes the taste. Others use iced Russian vodka. These "normal" distilled spirits are 40% to 50% ethanol. Some patients find that the higher proofs ethanols like Everclear and 151 rum burn too much under the tongue. If burning is a concern consider a high quality 90-100 proof Vodka.

Cold Extraction and purification- Use at least one ounce of starting material to each pint of ethanol. Place cold powdered kief or ground cannabis flowers together with ethanol in a glass quart-mixing jar. Close the jar tightly and vigorously shake for five minutes then return to the freezer. Continue to agitate the mixture every few hours with refreezing. Continue for a period of two to three days.

Pour the cold mixture through a double thickness of sterile cheesecloth. Save the cheesecloth "ball" for topical uses or use the material to make bud butter once dried. The liquid collected through the cheesecloth should then be filtered twice through a paper coffee filter. Use gloves throughout the process, as it is necessary to squeeze the cheesecloth and coffee filters to facilitate the extraction. Without gloves some of the material will be absorbed on the skin.

If Everclear is used the tincture will be pale green to golden. If 151 rum is used an amber tincture results. Dark green tinctures mean that excess plant material is present. This does not mean that the tincture will not be potent, just taste nasty. When Everclear is used, various flavor extracts may be added (vanilla, raspberry, etc.). Be careful to use only a few drop of flavor extract.

Traditional or Warm Method

The old fashioned (and effective) way to make tincture from trim, leaf or "shake" is to grind the plant material to expose surface area. A fine grind is not needed and will just make the tincture cloudy. A rough chop will do. Most folks can’t afford to use kief or bud for tincture but may have leaf handy. If so, this is the way to go. Use ethanol as described above in the same proportions. The key difference is that in this preparation the materials are kept warm (not hot). Light must be avoided.

Place the ethanol and chopped cannabis in a large glass Mason jar. Shake at least once a day. Place the jar in a brown paper bag or otherwise shield the jar from light. Leave in a warm spot (near a window) for 30-60 days. The mixture will turn a very dark green. Strain as previously described through cheesecloth. Save the "shake ball" for topical applications.

While this method produces a nasty tasting tincture, it is powerful. It may upset some fragile stomachs. It is recommended that Warm Tincture be used orally in cranberry juice or coffee with sugar. Keep the filtered tincture in light blocking glass jars or bottles in a cool dry place (refrigerator or freezer is fine). The shake ball should also be kept in the freezer. For topical applications, just take out the cold shake ball and apply a few drops of fresh tincture to the cloth then hold it on the affected area for a few minutes with gentle rubbing.

[Yrekagrow]

thanks pf, that helps alot....

[Green Medicine]

Cannabis Elixir

James Freire, M.A.


This is a re-creation of an old remedy from the 1800’s. It involves suspending the cannabinoids in sugar syrup in what is known as a micellized solution. This is a very easy process similar to making candy but one should use care when evaporating alcohol (a distillation device makes this part very nice).

To begin, thoroughly dry the herb to be used and make a strong tincture (190 proof is best). Grind it to a powder and then just cover with alcohol and let it stand somewhere dark for a couple weeks. After this is done strain the alcohol from the herb and save it. The herb is now spent and can be thrown out. Place the tincture in a double boiler over ELECTRIC heat and reduce the volume in half. After this add ½ the remaining volume of tincture in honey or some other syrup and 4-6 vitamin E caps (e.g.: if you have 2 quarts of tincture after reducing you would add 1 quart of honey). This is when you can add other herb tinctures and flavors (I use a root beer flavor base). Continue to reduce the volume with constant stirring until you have nearly boiled it down to the original volume of syrup that you began with. Let this cool and bottle in dark glass, then store in the refrigerator. Depending on the original strength of the herb, the dosage should be between a teaspoon and a couple tablespoons.

This basic recipe can be used to create an elixir from any tincture and the basic cannabis elixir can be modified for specific ailments. For example, adding syrup of elderberry makes this without a doubt the most effective treatment for influenza that exists. Kava can be added for greater pain control and sedation. With a little study of herbal medicine you can customize the blend for specific ailments. There are many uses for this syrup, but my family has come to rely on it as our sole treatment for colds and flu when made with elderberry and cats claw.

NOTE: You can also add lecithin to the elixir for better absorption.

[Yrekagrow]

GM, thanks! great info... :)

[pflover]

elixir is great stuff but i often find that it burns my throat for some reason and i've never figured out how to prevent or reduce this effect. if any body knows any tips here it would be greatly apreatiated. :)

[green girl]

I was thinking of trying the applecider vinegar tincture. I can't do much alcohol anyways. Has anyone done a distilled water tincture?

[1JoeSky_IVXX]

Check this link,http://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=41802
Eventhough the alchohol directions by wizzy is how I've seen it done.

[pflover]

gigi, distilled water is not a solvent for terpine type cannabinoids. water is polar and thc cbn and cbd are predominately nonpolar. like solves like. i have never tried applecider vinegar myself but woodie use to do it once in a while since he also does not consume alcohol anylonger. he said it was not great but he believed a little was desolved in the vinegar.

[TheChronnoisseur]

this might sound stupid, as i still have yet to make a tincture, but what exactly is the purpose of the charcoal sitting in the mixture?

thanks to all for your input on this - thee are so many different ideas on how to make a decent tincture and it seems it's not as easy as you'd think :)