I tincture everything. AMA! :)

[Shrike]

Thank you again everyone!

I feel good about the tinctures.


Ohhh! Another question.


I find that alcohol is slowly evaporating from some bottles so I ended up taping and plastic wrapping the bottle. Should I top of the alcohol or just ignore the evaporated amount.

I would try to find bottles that have a tighter, more airtight seal. Maybe something with a rubber ring inside.
I wouldn't add more unless you have a specific weight of your material to begin with and can add exactly that amount back. Otherwise, I'd either ignore it, or evaporate off the excess ethanol to make a resinoid. I use the term resinoid but I haven't found an exact name for when you make a tincture and evaporate off the ethanol. Marijuana manufacturers seem to have a few, though.

 

[Tamai]

Freezing the tincture helps debris to precipitate out of the solution, creating larger motes to be filtered out.

Yes, two filters takes longer than usual for filter out. Time is something that you dedicate when doing tinctures.

The top part of the liquid should be the same as the bottom, but when you pipette the top part, you can go all the way down to the debris line as long as you dont suck up the debris itself so it wont make much of a different, either way. Most of what the ethanol pulls out is going to be distributed more or less evenly.



Alcohol and material is really all you need, especially with resins. Getting those resins down to a powder will help with dissolving more of it in faster time. Have fun!

Oh right, thank you so much! That'll save me some money alright, maybe I'll go buy some more materials with it 😏

Will a ceramic pestle and mortar suffice?

 

[Shrike]

Oh right, thank you so much! That'll save me some money alright, maybe I'll go buy some more materials with it 😏

Will a ceramic pestle and mortar suffice?

Use what you have on hand, especially if it helps get more materials!

Thats what I use with resins. Its a bit difficult to clear it out between materials but a mortar works splendidly.

 

[sorance]

For those who have problems with coffee tincture; it seems that prolonged tincturing is the secret (maybe multiple fold too). Today I filtered my 18-month coffee tincture, and voila: a pleasant smell, long-lasting and moderate sillage. I will do a few folds to see how strong I can get it.

 

[papadooku]

Hi Shrike! Sorry in advance for the onslaught of questions, but I just have so many.

- Treemoss (Usnea hirta)
- Another Treemoss (pseudevernia furfuracea)

I Googled these to see what they look like, and I have two questions about mosses/lichens :
- How do you know the difference between Pseudevernia furfuracea and Evernia Prunastri (oakmoss)? I've got a fabulous tincture of what I think is oakmoss, but there's a doubt because the two look so much alike in Google Images...
- Have you tried the fluffy green kind that's common on pines? It's got this perfect damp, almost moldy undergrowth aspect to it, it's less conventionally pleasing than oakmoss but it creates such an atmosphere. It tinctures well, just need to reload it quite a lot.

- Tonka Beans

How does tonka tincture compare with its absolute? The absolute I have smelled quite beautiful when pure, but upon dissolution at 5% it's still super powerful but has a strong "dark" "groany" aspect that puts me off. I'm gonna try to dilute the abs down to 1%, but I'm wondering whether a tincture would be softer...

- Mexican Marigold

How did this oen turn out? Did the plant keep its fruitiness upon drying?

- Rose
- Neroli (Orange Flower)

Are you drying these flowers before tincturing, or somehow doing a short dip of fresh ones?

- Local Lime Zest
- Local grapefruit zest

Could you elaborate on your method for zests? I'm wondering how to go about these: grating, zooming, cutting... Also, what are the differences with an EO?

 

[papadooku]

I'm having trouble filtering fine powders specifically boswellia serrata and willow bark.

Wait, willow bark? How would you describe the smell?

 

[papadooku]

To make them stronger , last longer some have to be heated- some have to be rebatched-some left longer- it’s a matter of messing about - oh - and tarragon,works well and lasts-kaffir lime - ditto , Cuban coffee- again love
carob which is musky lovely, galangal very fleeting but starts strong
licorice which is a low woods- doesn’t last - rebatching now

In your experience, which tinctures have benefitted from being heated? I'm really thinking of giving it a try with a quick bain-marie or a vacation on top of the radiator, but maybe it's only good for certain plants?

 

[Jolieo]

I find that heating the resins - or anything that will dissolve- that heat can help- but to get stronger or more depth, putting fresh in works better for me
i have a question about my orris tincture- first the orris powder is almost a paste after maceration-nothing else has reacted to ethanol like this-
and I left a 10 ml of tincture to evaporate- refill evaporat- perhaps 20 times- it is now quite thick, translucent and resinous-
orris is a resin?

 

[mnitabach]

I find that heating the resins - or anything that will dissolve- that heat can help- but to get stronger or more depth, putting fresh in works better for me
i have a question about my orris tincture- first the orris powder is almost a paste after maceration-nothing else has reacted to ethanol like this-
and I left a 10 ml of tincture to evaporate- refill evaporat- perhaps 20 times- it is now quite thick, translucent and resinous-
orris is a resin?

Yes, orris resinoid exists.

https://matieres-premieres.robertet.com/orris-resinoid

 

[Norther]

Is it necessary to add some kind of antioxidant like BHT to the tincture? Or would this depend on the material?

 

[Mr.P]

I’ve recently set up a few tinctures for use in blending. Costus, spikenard, Siam benzoin, Sumatra benzoin, myrrh, Kunroku, and sanna / Kaempferia rhizome (sometimes also called galangal but I don’t think it is the usual species).

I’ve been testing on blotters and on skin and I like what I smell. These are young tinctures. The Siam benzoin dissolved quickly and completely, with some bits of plant debris left on the bottom - bark i believe. Sumatra benzoin is much slower to dissolve and the aroma is so different I am surprised it is considered a type of benzoin at all.

 

[Alex F.]

Is it necessary to add some kind of antioxidant like BHT to the tincture? Or would this depend on the material?

I don't add antioxidants to my tinctures, but I have thought about it. I experimented with tincturing lots of materials for flavouring experiments. I ended up not using most of them for years and then throwing them away, so I decided to use cheaper 80% alcohol for experiments, and I've noticed off-notes appearing in some tinctures (usually top-notes only - it's quite possible that the lower grade alcohol is at least partially responsible for them), particularly the following:
- orris root (one of my favourite tinctures for perfumery)
- tonka bean (another favourite, along with vanilla tincture in which I haven't noticed any off-notes so far)
- myrrh (although this one sat at the back of the cupboard for quite a long time)
I'll add some tocopherol to the next batches and see how it goes...

I’ve recently set up a few tinctures for use in blending. Costus, spikenard, Siam benzoin, Sumatra benzoin, myrrh, Kunroku, and sanna / Kaempferia rhizome (sometimes also called galangal but I don’t think it is the usual species).

My costus tinctures have turned out great every time. It reminds me of greasy hair or old dolls, for some reason, it's such a weird but interesting smell, it always puts a grin on my face when I smell it.
Siam benzoin tincture used to be a staple "fixative" in perfumery. Usually sold as 'tears', en larmes is the French expression I've come across in old books, somewhere between yellow, ochre and orange. Very nice and useful. Sumatra benzoin is less commonly used, if I'm not mistaken, but I prefer it to the former. It's less prominent and sweet, and there's something a bit "animalic" about it. I've only seen it sold in heterogenous looking greyish-yellow blocks, en pains I think is the old French expression. Highly recommended, too.
The two benzoins are indeed quite different, I've said a few words on that before.
Myrrh's great, very typical, quite like the EO, and surprisingly tenacious - but, as I've said above, I noticed that off-notes had appeared when I smelled the tincture again after not having used it for more than a year.
I don't know kunroku (I've read it's fossilised resin, similar to fossilised amber), but Kaempferia (galanga) is great. A very fresh, clean, camphoraceos smell. I looked for it after jolieo asked what to reinforce the CO2 extract with that Eden Botanicals offers. Surprisingly easy to find at Chinese supermarkets. I've seen it sold as "shan nai" rather than "sanna". This is what it looks like dried, in case anyone is interested:


PS: Some more recommendations. Dried rose buds (sold as tea) - great for tincturing, quite tenacious. Rose root (Rhodiola rosea, sold as an "adaptogen"), a beautiful, clean rose note, unfortunately rather fleeting. Dried orange flowers, also sold as tea - my aged tincture smells quite honey-like. Cassia cinnamon and cinnamon buds (the bark tincture is wonderful).

 

[_delayed]

Love this topic! I picked up some angelica root to tincture from the Chinese grocer (Angelica Sinensis), even though it's not the kind typically used in perfumery (Angelica archangelica). It's still very fragrant. PSA, I once picked up jasmine flowers from the Korean market and quickly realized if it doesn't smell in the package, it's not gonna smell in your tincture! : D

 

[steventeddy]

My costus tinctures have turned out great every time. It reminds me of greasy hair or old dolls, for some reason, it's such a weird but interesting smell, it always puts a grin on my face when I smell it.

How long do you usually let your costus tinctures sit? I got two at 10 and 20% coming up to the 6 month mark but I'm wondering if they should be given more time.

 

[Alex F.]

How long do you usually let your costus tinctures sit? I got two at 10 and 20% coming up to the 6 month mark but I'm wondering if they should be given more time.

I am impatient and I rarely let tinctures macerate for more than a month. (Notable exceptions being my tinctures of animal origin. I've given all of them more than a year.) Costus is quite nice after a month already. Half a year should be more than enough. Are yours not turning out as expected?

 

[steventeddy]

I am impatient and I rarely let tinctures macerate for more than a month. (Notable exceptions being my tinctures of animal origin. I've given all of them more than a year.) Costus is quite nice after a month already. Half a year should be more than enough. Are yours not turning out as expected?

Oh I haven't even evaluated them yet. I just do the daily shake and let them sit. I'm currently debating if I wanna let my civet paste/vanilla/tonka bean/orris root tinctures sit more than 6 months before filtering.

 

[Alex F.]

Oh I haven't even evaluated them yet. I just do the daily shake and let them sit. I'm currently debating if I wanna let my civet paste/vanilla/tonka bean/orris root tinctures sit more than 6 months before filtering.

I haven't tinctured civet yet - I haven't found a reliable source. I don't filter my vanilla tinctures. This is one that can sit for a long time and just gets more interesting. Tonka, on the other hand, smells better when it's fresh in my experience, orris too - 1 month or so is enough for me. (Could be different if you use better alcohol.)

 

[steventeddy]

I haven't tinctured civet yet - I haven't found a reliable source. I don't filter my vanilla tinctures. This is one that can sit for a long time and just gets more interesting. Tonka, on the other hand, smells better when it's fresh in my experience, orris too - 1 month or so is enough for me. (Could be different if you use better alcohol.)

Oh yikes I'll go evaluate my orris and tonka tinctures asap then.

 

[Mr.P]

How long do you usually let your costus tinctures sit? I got two at 10 and 20% coming up to the 6 month mark but I'm wondering if they should be given more time.

I haven’t yet developed a usual yet - I am at an early stage of experimentation. I tinctured at 20% and it has a great odor after a few weeks.

The Kunroku is aromatically a bit like Sumatra benzoin - it shares a dry mineral aspect to my nose.

 

[mnitabach]

That seems penny wise & pound foolish to try to save money on crap alcohol for making tinctures...