herbal tinctures are still popular today! Cannabis and opium are the most powerful ones but many others are useful
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Lower Proof Alcohol
It is recommended to use a 190 proof grain alcohol for a better extraction. The additional water in lower proof alcohol will have a tendency to pull more chlorophyll and other polar compounds. Lower proof alcohol can still be used, but an additional step is required to remove all the water.
You will need
[ul]
[li]Electric heating source[/li]
[li]Double boiler[/li]
[li]Ventilation[/li]
[/ul]
Directions
[ol]
[li]Setup the double boiler on the heating source under the ventilation hood.[/li]
[li]Add Green Dragon to the double boiler.[/li]
[li]Continue to boil the alcohol until the until it begins turn a milky color and the THC oil begins to separate.[/li]
[li]Continue to boil the water out until it is a dark, viscous oil, this is usually referred to as Rick Simpson Oil (RSO).[/li]
[li]Now add 2 oz. of low proof alcohol to dissolve the oil.[/li]
[li]Remove from heat and allow to cool before using.[/li]
[/ol]
Natural Decarboxylation
Using the oven to decarboxylate the cannabis is quick and effective, but there is a cost. Cannabis contains many terpenes and flavonoids that give each strain it’s unique character. These terpenes and flavonoids have medicinal benefits as well as modulating the effects of cannabis, thus creating an “ensemble effect”.
It is possible to decarboxylate cannabis using time instead of heat. This preserves the terpenes and flavonoids. The Green Dragon is made according to the standard recipe without the first step to decarboxylate. For the reduction step, again heat is avoided. Place the Green Dragon in a pyrex baking dish covered with cheesecloth to prevent dust and debris from falling in. A fan blowing over the dish will speed up the process. After the reduction, place the green dragon in an airtight container and age in the cupboard for 3-4 months. After the Green Dragon has aged, store it in the refrigerator to prevent further degradation.
Winterization
Some recipes, such as the hard candy recipe, work better with a more pure extraction. The Green Dragon recipe uses ethanol which will also pull some plant lipids and waxes. While this Green Dragon recipe here is intended to minimize these impurities, winterization can be used to clean up some of the remaining impurities. Winterization is done by freezing the Green Dragon for 48-72 hours at 0°F, then filtering out the lipids and waxes that fallout of precipitation.
You will need
[ul]
[li]Glass jars[/li]
[li]Coffee Filters[/li]
[/ul]
Directions
[ol]
[li]Place Green Dragon in the freezer at 0°F.[/li]
[li]Leave the Green Dragon undisturbed for 48-72 hours.[/li]
[li]Wet a coffee filter with fresh ethanol.[/li]
[li]Filter out the lipids and waxes with a coffee filter.[/li]
[/ol]
Green Dragon with waxes precipitating out.
Using Concentrates
Green Dragon can also be made using concentrates. Concentrates often have a lot of the chlorophyll and other water soluble compounds removed as part of the process. Therefore, the freezer is not necessary when using concentrates. Additionally, when using concentrates, you can go directly to the desired potency without the need to reduce.
Concentrates can be decarboxylated in the oven just like cannabis, or naturally using time. The suggested potency to start with is about 1 gram of concentrate to 1 oz. of alcohol.
Rosin decarboxylating in the toaster oven.
Water Curing
Another technique to reduce the chlorophyll in the final tincture is water curing. Water curing can be done with either dried or fresh flowers. This technique relies on the fact that trichome heads are not water soluble while the chlorophyll and other polar compounds are.
You will need
[ul]
[li]Glass jars[/li]
[li]Cheese cloth[/li]
[/ul]
Directions
[ol]
[li]Place the flowers in a mason jar.[/li]
[li]Cover the flowers completely with distilled water.[/li]
[li]After 24 hours, gently strain out the water by placing some cheese cloth over the mouth of the jar and securing with a rubber band.[/li]
[li]Cover the flowers completely with distilled water again.[/li]
[li]Drain and refill every 24 hours for about a week.[/li]
[li]Allow the flowers to dry and use them as normal.[/li]
[/ol]
Water curing buds for a cleaner extraction.
Tailoring your own medicine
Different cultivars of cannabis can have different effects. Some cultivars will give you a burst of energy, while another may put you to sleep. These effects carry over in the tincture. A tincture of “Haze” will likely be more energizing, while a tincture of “Kush” may put you right to sleep. By making a tincture of each, we now have a morning tincture and an evening tincture, or we could combine them and get varying effects.
Occasionally, a medicinal dose is required without the psychoactive effects. Having a Green Dragon tincture that has not been activated can be useful for daytime use. A tincture with CBD/CBDA will also lack the psychoactive effects while still providing relief of many symptoms. My current favorite tincture is made with a 1:1 THCA:CBDA ratio that has not been activated. This tincture has stopped panic attacks and allowed me to go out in public multiple times. It provides no other effect than a feeling of well being.
87 Likes
I love me some tinctures. I use my dab reclaim to make mine. It’s decarboxylated during dabbing and still very potent, so I just have to dissolve it into warm ethanol and I’m good to go.
Have you researched SkunkPharm’s ethanol Tek? Because your method and theirs is near identical and their method works gangbusters if you can keep the ethanol cold enough during extraction. I also believe some people add dry ice to the herb during the extraction to get the temperatures even lower.
6 Likes
very informative article 
Your report makes me want to experiment with non-decarbed tincture also. Some strains of herb actually have good amounts of non-acidic THC naturally - I"ve seen lab reports of 50-50 ratio of THC and THCa.
I prefer tinctures to edibles because you have precise control over the dosage and the medical effects on me seem better. Less irritation of my stomach than oil-based edibles.
TIncture made from high-quality trim leaves is almost as good as pure bud too, I can barely tell the difference. 190 proof alcohol seems very efficient at pulling out the cannabinoids.
21 Likes
Glad you all like it, this is just the tip of the iceberg!
16 Likes
Dragon Breath Spray
Sublingual dosing is one of the most efficient and quick ways of consuming Green Dragon tincture. While using the Green Dragon sublingually is very effective, the alcohol can burn the sensitive skin under the tongue. By cutting the alcohol with vegetable glycerine and adding some flavoring, the burning is reduced significantly. Peppermint extract works well to mask the stinging and leaves your breath minty fresh.
Ingredients
[ul]
[li]1 oz. Green Dragon[/li]
[li]1/2 oz. Vegetable Glycerine[/li]
[li]1/4 tsp. Peppermint Extract[/li]
[/ul]
You will also need
[ul]
[li]Double boiler[/li]
[li]One ounce pump spray bottle[/li]
[li]Syringe or measuring spoons[/li]
[/ul]
Directions
[ol]
[li]Reduce the Green Dragon tincture to 1/2 oz.[/li]
[li]Combine green dragon and vegetable glycerine in the spray bottle[/li]
[li]Add peppermint extract to taste[/li]
[li]Shake vigorously before use[/li]
[/ol]
Supplies for Dragon Breath Spray
47 Likes
You can also use a 240°-250°F hot oil bath to decarb the concentrate which I like better than the oven because I can see it better and it doesn’t take as long.
Good show. I’m looking forward to the rest of it. 
15 Likes
Next up will be double whammy sugar cookies to demonstrate the solvent transfer. I need more hard candies too! 
11 Likes
You sure can, the kief won’t bubble as much as the oils will, but the process is the same. Using dry ice hash is a good way to limit the amount of alcohol needed as well.
15 Likes
Hard Candies
Not only are hard candies a tasty way to medicate, they are also great for buccal or sublingual dosing. By sucking on the candy without chewing, the THC enters the blood stream through the mouth tissue within a few minutes. The effect is similar to smoking because the THC is not metabolized in the liver.
Ingredients
[ul]
[li]2 oz. Green Dragon[/li]
[li]1 cup sugar[/li]
[li]1/3 cup light corn syrup[/li]
[li]6 tablespoons filtered water[/li]
[li]Food coloring[/li]
[li]1/2 dram (1/2 teaspoon) candy flavoring[/li]
[li]2 teaspoons citiric acid (optional)[/li]
[li]Sherbet powder or confectioners’ sugar (optional)[/li]
[/ul]
You will also need
[ul]
[li]Parchment paper[/li]
[li]Candy thermometer[/li]
[li]Candy molds (optional)[/li]
[/ul]
Hard candy ingredients
Directions
[ol]
[li]Reduce the Green Dragon down to 1/2 oz.[/li]
[li]In a thick bottomed sauce pan, add sugar, water, and corn syrup.[/li]
[li]Stir over a medium heat until sugar is dissolved.[/li]
[li]Insert candy thermometer and bring to a boil without stirring.[/li]
[li]Once the sugar solution starts to boil, add the desired food coloring.[/li]
[li]Continue boiling until thermometer reads 300°F.[/li]
[li]Remove from heat and wait for bubbling to stop.[/li]
[li]Add candy flavoring, Green Dragon, and citric acid (if making sour candies) while stirring. Make sure not to inhale the fumes as the alcohol quickly evaporates.[/li]
[li]Quickly pour into candy molds or pour onto a parchment paper lined pan.[/li]
[li]Allow to cool, then remove from molds or break into bite size pieces.[/li]
[li]Optionally, coat them with sherbet powder or confectioners’ sugar.[/li]
[li]Store in an airtight container at room temperature.[/li]
[/ol]
Finished cinnamon hard candies
Sherbet Powder
Ingredients
[ul]
[li]4 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar (sifted)[/li]
[li]2 tablespoons citric acid[/li]
[li]1 tablespoon baking powder[/li]
[/ul]
Directions
[ol]
[li]Combine ingredients in a food processor and process until very fine.[/li]
[li]Store in an airtight container at room temperature.[/li]
[/ol]
70 Likes
As long as you have a thermometer in the candy, make sure the temperature has dropped a little below 270°F before adding the GD to the mix. That is usually when the bubbles flatten out as described above. THC begins to degrade above that temperature. Many people complain that hard candy isn’t potent enough for them but that’s because they mixed the GD or oil in the mix then heated it to the hard crack stage.
This makes some very strong and delicious hard candies that are easy to dose. If you know the approximate potency of your GD then you can calculate the mg/g of candy. For example, using ReikoX’s potency formula:
15mg/ml final strength and you want to use 1oz of it for your candy. That would be 30ml/oz = 450mg and that will be the total for your batch, however much you made. Let’s say that your batch of finished candy weighs out to 150g total. In that case each gram of your candy would be 3mg no matter how big or small it is. If you wanted a 30mg piece then you’d ingest 10g of candy. 
19 Likes
Hard candies are my jam 
the only problem is managing concentrations between batches when you’re repeating the recipe. And it’s best to use a candy mold so you can have uniform pieces for better dosing. Lollipops are a great way to achieve this, but any hard candy mold, even diy powdered sugar and starch ones, will help make the end product easier to work with.
6 Likes
The beauty of starting with the Green Dragon is just that, predictability between batches. 
Once you know your dose, it’s easy to estimate. If a particular batch isn’t very potent, I will reduce another 1/2 oz. and try it again. This recipe makes about 120 pieces. With 60 ml, that’s about 1/2 ml per piece, or about 10mg per piece. I prefer the molds too, they make it easier to package and dose.
17 Likes
Admittedly, molds are better but there are folks like me too disabled to really manipulate the candy into molds. I shake a lot and have tendon damage in my arms that make it difficult so I pour it out on a sheet of aluminum foil then score it into equal size pieces once it cools enough. They break apart into whatever shape I score…squares, rectangles, diamonds…for similar sized pieces. I weigh them for my dose.
45 Likes
Been eating cookies for a few years now and getting a little tired of them. The hard candy recipe looks easy enough. Going to give it a try. Now that I have a still. Plan on making my own corn liquor too. Have some banana liquor we made to try making green dragon with. It’s around 120 proof.
Thanks for the info ReikoX
10 Likes
A question about the relative quantities… Is that ratio getting close to the saturation point of the alcohol (assuming 190 proof) as far as how much THC it can extract, or could you use the same amount of alcohol to process larger batches of bud and still keep similar efficiency of extraction?
5 Likes
While that ratio is not anywhere near the saturation point, the ratio is enough to cover the material. Some will also be absorbed by the buds. Running lots of alcohol can be expensive, especially when evaporating it all away.
When processing larger amounts, we are left with several options. First, you can start with a concentrate like rosin, wax, kief, etc. This will only require a few ounces of alcohol per run. Another option would be to run the alcohol through multiple batches. For example, run a batch with the given ratios, then use that alcohol for the next batch. Finally, the optimum way would be to use a still and use it to recover most of the alcohol.
19 Likes
I imagine trim can be used only that maybe I would have to do more reduction at the end? Great thread!!! Thanks!!!
3 Likes