| The philosophy behind tincture is to capture | | | | You will need 7-10 ounces of chopped fresh |
| the spiritual and physical essence of the | | | | herbs for every quart of vodka, brandy or |
| plant. This is done by using the power of | | | | rum. I prefer to use fresh herbs when making |
| ethyl alcohol to dissolve and preserve the | | | | my tinctures. When using powdered herbs, I |
| herb in question. | | | | use 4 ounces of herbs to one pint of liquid. |
| | | | If you are making a tincture from bitter |
| The substance used to extract the herbs is | | | | herbs it is best to use rum as it will mask |
| known as the menstrum. The herbs you are | | | | the taste of the herbs. To make a |
| tincturing are known as the mark. Tincturing | | | | non-alcoholic tincture use distilled water, |
| will extract and preserve both the | | | | glycerol or vinegar. Keep in mind that if you |
| water-soluble and alcohol-soluble properties | | | | use vinegar the tincture will have to be |
| of an herb. | | | | refrigerated. |
| | | | |
| In the interest of taking a more involved | | | | Put your herbs in the mason jars and then |
| stance in their health, many people are | | | | pour the liquid over them so that it comes up |
| turning to homemade tinctures made from fresh | | | | to about an inch above the herbs. Seal |
| or dried herbs. Tinctures have proven to be | | | | tightly and label the jars then put them in a |
| more powerful and longer lasting than dried | | | | very dark, warm area. Keeping them in a |
| herbs. Dried herbs can get moldy or be eaten | | | | paper bag has worked well for me. You will |
| by insects, tinctures do not. Tinctures | | | | have to shake the jar everyday, several times |
| will keep up to two years and keep their | | | | a day if you can mange it. |
| potency if stored properly. Making your own | | | | |
| tinctures will save you quite a bit of money. | | | | At first check the solution daily to make |
| If you purchase tinctures in a retail store | | | | sure the vodka, brandy or rum still covers |
| you will get a few ounces whereas if you make | | | | the herbs. Let the mixture steep for at least |
| it yourself it will yield about a quart. | | | | two weeks and up to three months. When you |
| | | | reach the allotted waiting period, line a |
| When purchasing herbs, make sure you are | | | | sieve with the cheesecloth or muslin and pour |
| buying from a reputable source. Better yet, | | | | the liquid thru the sieve into another |
| grow your own herbs to be sure of the highest | | | | bottle. Gather up the ends of the |
| possible quality. When growing your own you | | | | cheesecloth and squeeze to extract all of the |
| can make any number of combinations to make | | | | liquid. You can now fill small bottles with |
| up your tinctures. I have also found that | | | | droppers with the tincture for ease in use. |
| when growing my own herbs I get the most | | | | Be sure to label the jar with the name and |
| enjoyment, knowing not only did I make the | | | | the date. |
| tincture but I grew the herbs. I become part | | | | |
| of the process from beginning to end. | | | | The dose is one teaspoon tincture in a cup of |
| | | | tea, juice or water taken three times daily. |
| There are several items that you will need to | | | | |
| make your own tinctures. First you need | | | | There are no right formulas for making |
| either powdered herbs or fresh cut herbs. | | | | tinctures. Experiment with different |
| Vodka, brandy or rum, 80-100 proof to cover | | | | combinations. Be sure you write down the |
| the herbs. Mason jars with lids. Muslin or | | | | formula so when you come up with a winning |
| Cheesecloth that is unbleached. Lastly, | | | | combination you will have it on file. |
| labels for the jars. | | | | |
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