Just thought I'd let you know the measurements I used with the echinacea.  Like I said I used 1/2 gallon jars.  I put 1-1/4 cup of each echinacea root in the jar and filled it about 1/2 full with vodka.  I kept shaking it all day long and watching it because Uny had warned me about the swelling, echinacea is the worst one I've used for the swell factor!

Within about 3 hours I had to add more vodka and still more later on.  I got up the next morning and I had to split the jars and add yet more vodka.  The next time I tinctured the echinacea I used 3/4 cup of each root and that gave me about 2 inches of float but that made a very strong tincture.

When you put the root in the jar it doesn't look like much but believe me this is the ever expanding root lololol so BEWARE.

I did all my tincturing by myself, well my husband watched and laughed with me for a little while but you're doing it with the gals so you'll have a blast and if you're anything like me you'll laugh your head off and feel like a mad scientist!

Have loads of fun!

For 3 women that don't drink, our traipsing about town to find vodka was very amusing. I bet is was a hoot n' a half!  What we learned from the manager is that Everclear, made from corn, is even cheaper than regular grain vodka. Hmmm, hate to be a party pooper person, but did you say made from CORN?  As in GMO Monsanto corn?  I used Everclear (190 proof) diluted to 100 proof with distilled water initially, because it IS cheaper in many states.  But when I found out (directly from an Everclear rep) it was made from whatever "grain du jour" they choose (which included GM corn), then I decided "all done Everclear".  HOWEVER, since alcohol IS distilled, there's a strong possibility that the distillation process would somehow "neutralize" the toxic effects of GM corn...but I wasn't able to solidly prove that to myself.   We purchased 2 half gallon containers today and that's enough to cover our herbs for today (favoring the echinacea for the swelling it'll go through). Our question is - do y'all use Everclear for tincturing or is that a no-no? You'll have to decide for yerself, gals.  The guy at the store said Everclear tastes like rubbing alcohol and since we couldn't remember our tinctures tasting that horribly from Unyquity - we assumed she doesn't use corn vodka. (???)  Everclear is not "corn vodka" it's "grain alchol" (alcohol made from grain - any type of grain they choose).  Vodka is made from potatoes.  And yes, Everclear tinctures do taste different (to people who have 'alcohol discerning tastebuddies' :)

Thanks for answering all our questions guys! We're over here giggling, drinking juice and making tinctures. The man just walked in to join us and laughed at us women burning a candle in the middle of the table with 100 proof alcohol going around. Hey - whatevah works! lol   If yer gonna use the Everclear, better get that man (and his math brain and 'fluid milliliter metric brain') and tell him you need to dilute 190 proof Everclear with distilled water so that it ends up being 100 proof Everclear.   You must pre-dilute it before adding it to the jars, or you'll never know exactly how much you put in the jars - and never know exactly how much distilled water to add to get the 100 proof you want. And guess who USED  to have those calculations calculated on a piece of paper in my "important paper pile" and then threw it away when she decided not to use Everclear anymore?  ARRRGGGH - that'd be Uny.

Love & Vodka!!  And I bet you thought there wasn't going to be any ...what?...any MATH!  

Sweetie, if EVER a song was written for you, this is definitely IT :)

You don't have to spell it, all you have to do is YELL IT! Yell What?  MATH SUKS! (lyrics below)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o10W_63spDE&feature=related

If necessity is the mother of invention
Then I'd like to kill the guy who invented this
The numbers come together in some kind of a third dimension
A regular algebraic bliss.

Let's start with something simple, like one and one ain't three
Any two plus two will never get you five.
There are fractions in my subtraction and x don't equal y
But my homework is bound to multiply.

Math suks math suks
I'd like to burn this textbook, I hate this stuff so much.
Math suks math suks
Sometimes I think that I don't know that much
But math suks.

I got so bored with my homework, I turned on the TV.
The beauty contest winners were all smiling through their teeth.
Then they asked the new Miss America
Hey babe can you add up all those bucks?
She looked puzzled, then just said
"Math Suks".

Math suks math suks
You don't even have to spell it,
All you have to do is yell it...
Math suks math suks
Sometime times I think that I don't know that much
But math suks.

Geometry, trigonometry and if that don't tax your brain
There are numbers to big to be named
Numerical precision is a science with a mission
And I think it's gonna drive me insane.

Parents fighting with their children, and the Congress can't agree
Teachers and their students are all jousting constantly.
Management and labor keep rattling old sabers
Quacking like those Peabody ducks.

Math suks math suks
You don't even have to spell it,
All you have to do is yell it...
Math suks math suks
Sometime times I think that I don't know that much
But math suks

One more question and I swear we'll stop bugging y'all!! Okeedokee, I'll see if I can figger it out :)

If we use 100 proof vodka (not Everclear now???? what happened to the 190 proof Everclear? )

to begin the strong tincture process 100 proof vodka doesn't play into a "strong tincture process" (to me anyway) - 100 proof vodka is what I consider "normal strong".   (and I think since today's the Solar Eclipse it'll be even stronger!!! - this is likely true, no matter which proof you use) - can we then, add 40% in the next few days? Or only 100 proof (50%) goes into the tinctures?  Our tinctures are always 50% alcohol (100 proof) - but herbalists all over the world use 40% (80 proof). 

With our Cayenne #3, that sounds like what we're doing but slightly less, we're hoping to get more near the heat of Cayenne #2. I dunno what ratio of dried habbie powder to african bird pepper powder you're using, but it's not going to be anywhere near Cayenne #2 - it's going to be scorching (even to most experienced 'pepper-heads'...but not all).  So, with our 2 gallons of tincture with 100 proof - can we then dilute them down with lesser potency?  Depends on what you mean by less potency -  if you put 10 drops of cayenne tincture in 1/8 cup of water, and then put another 10 drops of cayenne tincture into 1/4 cup of water, will the effect be less "potent"?  It's the same 10 drops of cayenne - it'll just be diluted by the water and won't assimilate as rapidly as 50% alcohol.  If you mean can you take a tincture of cayenne that's over 350,000 HU, add more vodka and make it 200,000 HU?  Well, of course the HU are going to lower as you dilute it...but the alcohol seems to make it absorb 'substantially more into the tongue' than the powder, so even though the HU may be lower "technically", you have to dilute it a LOT to make your tongue/mouth think the HUs are lowered.   Of course, that's just our experience...your mileage may vary.  

We understand only beginning the tincture with 100 proof but thereafter - will the tincture efficacy be lowered with 80 proof alcohol?  Alcohol is a solvent, right? If you dilute the solvent, will the solvent's efficacy be lowered? Yes.  Will the efficacy be lowered substantially?  When mixing equal parts 100 proof and 80 proof, you end up with 90 proof...so you'll be going from 50% solvent to 45% solvent.  That 5% may not be important in most cases, but if I'm having a "heart event", I want that 5%!!!

Thanks guys! We're giggling like mad over here! lolol  You're more than welcome - enjoy yourselves!

...and don't forget to SHAKE THOROUGHLY once every 1-2 hours for the first 14 days with the tinctures made with powdered herbs :)

Hugs n' such -

Uny