Re: MH, tincture-making Question--And praise for the heart of Autumn: the assimilable spectrum of yellow gold- red

As a novice herbal enthusiast with a few tinctures now under my belt, I can say this about that. Here in Pennsylvania Grain Alcohol is no longer sold legally. Grain Alcohol is AKA "ever clear", and AKA "190 proof". It's been over 25 years since my college years and thus 24 years since I'd last purchased Grain, so I had not been aware that it had since become illegal to buy commercially (at least down at the street consumer level) here. So, my very first tincture was done soaking the green hulls of Black Walnuts in plain vodka to make the basic dewormer following the simple Clark instructions. I used plain, clear, bottom-shelf vodka and the tincture turned out fine. By the time I made some additional tinctures of Cayenne, Mint and Tyme this past spring, I'd managed to acquire some of the real stuff - the good stuff (190 proof) while visiting out of state. The good stuff cost about $25 per 1.75 liter jug. This situation does make me curious as to where, exactly, can Grain still be purchased in the Union.... and for how long ? Grain Alcohol is generally produced from distilling pure grains, corn is a popular one, and the label will generally indicate this. Tincture alcohol is made by mixing 1/2 an amount of 190 proof with 1/2 distilled water. For instance, pour 8 ounces of 190 proof into a glass container, add 8 ounces of distilled water, you now have 16 ounces of 50% alcohol AKA 95 proof.

For those who go the vodka route, try to stay away from those modern tricked-up cutesy colored & flavored vodkas. These are often found in bars and clubs, frequently served in funky "hey, look at me!" drinks that include a cute miniature umbrella along with a very small fruit salad attached to the rim of the glass. These vodkas are often manufactured from plain vodka combined with a vairety of additives & chemicals to fabricate the trendy colors and tastes being pushed by the present alcohol cabal.

With plain vodka, usually right on the bottle label in small print will be words to the effect of "this vodka made from 50% grain alcohol" and the other 50% is usually comprised of distilled water.

One needs to exercise some care and common sense in handling and storing Grain Alcohol. 190 Proof drunk in even modest amounts, uncut, can make one very ill and possibly blind. This said, I've taken to using 190 Proof as an alternative cleaner, disinfectant and occasional antiseptic gargle..... all kidding aside, I've taken a page out of slick willie's book - I do take it into my mouth, but I don't swallow, but in comparison, this leaves a clean feeling behind.... a mouth-puckering one at that. Judging by the kinds of stuff that's routinely emanated from his mouth, I doubt anything the so-called brilliance he's continually lauded with has ever caused to leave the lips of one WJC anything that can be in anyway even remotely considered clean, even in the most liberal sense ;)

PS - I've tried the "shake it daily" method of tincture making, but then I compared notes and asked MH"s advice. He explained how to use the blender method. Using a glass jar (like a Ball jar) as an example, fill roughly the bottom 1/4 to 1/2 full of the jar with fresh herb of choice, whatever you want to make a tincture of. You may want to pack it in just a little. Then pour in enough 50% alcohol (AKA 95 proof)to cover the herb. Then take some more of the fresh herb, put in a blender, add enough 95 proof to cover it, and blend or pulse for 30 seconds or so. Pour add this to your jar to fill it near the top but not all the way to the top. Cap the jar and store in a cool dark place. Within the next day, check the jar to see if any of the herb has surfaced to the top of the jar and is sticking out a little above the surface of the liquid. If it is, top off the jar with a little 50% alcohol to cover up any pieces of herb so that all the herb is submerged. You now have made a strong tincture. As you use some of it, just pour a bit out of the jar as needed, perhaps into a smaller jar or dropper bottle. Depending on which tincture you've made, you may want to take the smaller jar or dropper bottle and strain the tincture to remove any big chunks.... or maybe not, it's up to you.