Extraction Green Dragon or other tincture go to recipe
- Thread starter lunarman
- Start date
First, you need to decide what the tincture will be used for.
We medicinal users soak ground herb for long times. Concentrate makers typically use quick washes after cooling everything to freezer temperature.
I make lots of tincture, which gets reduced to FECO, which gets diluted with oil and put into caps.
(1) Decarb @ 240 F for 40 min using a verifying oven thermometer
(2) Grind to powder if doing a long soak, break into smaller pieces if using quick wash
(3) Soak in 190 proof ethanol (Everclear) for 1 min to 1 month. I do 2 weeks for medicinal, but a couple days is probably ok. 1 cup EC per oz herb is the minimum alcohol to be used.
(4) Strain thru coffee filters after allowing the material to settle out in a tall, skinny container
(5) Boil off some of the alcohol until you reach desired potency. No sparks, flames, and plenty of ventilation.
I like strength 1-3 mg thc per drop.
1/4 oz of good 15% thc herb would contain 0.15*(7000 mg) = 1050 mg thc.
To make 1 mg/drop tincture from this would require that the final volume contain 1050 drops.
That's about how many drops a 1 oz tincture bottle would hold (depends on temp and viscosity), and one dropper full is about 35 drops.
The tincture can be made stronger by using more herb, or reducing final volume.
Thank you sir. I'm going to give that recipe a go. Already scoped out some everclear locally, but its relatively rare to see on liquor store shelves. And it is pretty expensive.
I just harvested my first grow. 4 plants. I'm really excited about what I can produce out of them.
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You can get high proof rum if EC isn't available.
Here is what I do
1) Do a quick wash extract with a relatively small amount of alcohol. Bottle it and put it in a cool dark place
2) Do your soak, filter, and boil down. You'll lose a lot of terpines in that process. Once cool blend in the quick wash. This way you get more of the terpines, which I consider premium.
I think I get more from my medicine this way.
I have a method that gets more out of my weed than long soaking but in just a few minutes, while decarbing and protecting some of the terps. But it is complex so I am waiting until next time so that I can visually document it for you all.
It is potent, and I haven't used half of last year's yet, so it might take a while before I can do that, plus I just got barely enough this harvest to last me till the next.
Here is what I do
1) Do a quick wash extract with a relatively small amount of alcohol. Bottle it and put it in a cool dark place
2) Do your soak, filter, and boil down. You'll lose a lot of terpines in that process. Once cool blend in the quick wash. This way you get more of the terpines, which I consider premium.
I think I get more from my medicine this way.
I have a method that gets more out of my weed than long soaking but in just a few minutes, while decarbing and protecting some of the terps. But it is complex so I am waiting until next time so that I can visually document it for you all.
It is potent, and I haven't used half of last year's yet, so it might take a while before I can do that, plus I just got barely enough this harvest to last me till the next.
G.Leave
Cultivators Club
The Definitive Green Dragon (Revised)
Here is the very successful result of a considerable amount of research into the elusive and magical Green Dragon.
This is a simple and efficient 4 Step process.
Requirements:
1/8oz high quality cannabis
2 oz Bacardi Rum – 151 proof
Process Summary:
1. Chop cannabis very fine (coffee grinder works great)
2. Place in a shallow pan (a sheet of aluminum foil works great) and bake at 250F for 20 minutes.
3. Remove from oven and place cannabis in 2 oz of 151 proof rum (use a small wide mouth mason jar)
4. Simmer in a water bath for 20 minutes. Maintain temperature of the rum/cannabis mixture between 168 - 170°F.
5. Strain the mixture and store.
Dosage:
One milliliiter (one full eyedropper) is very nice. Two puts you in space. But you must self-titrate (test it on yourself) as each batch will be slightly different. Effects take up to 1.5 hours to begin (at least in myself) and lasted for 5 hours (1 dropper) to 7-8 hours (2 droppers).
I place one eyedropper (1ml) of Green Dragon in a small glass. I then add a small amount of water (1-2 ml) and drink. Do this on an empty stomach for best results (about 20-30 minutes before eating a main meal is good).
Process details—references and rationalizations:
1. Chop the cannabis
More surface area gives means a faster and more efficient extraction.
2. Bake the cannabis.
This converts THCA to THC via a decarboxylation reaction.
In whole-plant cannabis, THC content is expressed as THCA (tetrahydrocannabolic acid) prior to decarboxylation into THC, which takes place when cannabis is heated in the oven, and smoked or vaporized ingestion. THCA is a mild analgesic and anti-inflammatory but does not have good affinity with our CB1 receptors, so in order to make a THC-rich tincture that has many of the same therapeutic effects as smoked ingestion (including rapid absorption, quick relief and ease of self-titration), we must convert the THCA in the plant matter into THC prior to extracting it through an alcohol soak. (from Vancouver Island Compassion Society http://thevics.com/cannamist.htm)
THC vaporizes at about 380°F. We want to heat the cannabis to convert THCA to THC, but keep the temperature under 380°F. That is why 325°F is used. Between four and five minutes your oven (and house) will start to smell very strong. This is the time to remove the cannabis from the oven.
Notice also that there is considerable misinformation regarding heating the cannabis. It is true that you don't have to heat it to extract both THC and THCA, but the amount of THC in whole plant preparations is relatively small compared to after decarboxylation of the THCA. So if you want to maximize the strength of your tincture you must heat the cannabis prior to extraction.
3. Use the highest proof alcohol available.
Where I live this is Bacardi 151. The more alcohol the more efficient the extraction will be.
4. Simmer the mixture.
This is one of the areas that seems to be most debated. Many guides call for placing the normal cannabis into the alcohol and waiting 2 – 6 weeks. The main concern with heating the alcohol is that it is “explosive” (not exactly true...it is however flammable).
The purpose of the simmering is to heat the alcohol mixture to improve extraction rates and efficiencies. Heating during extraction increases the motion of the molecules (basic physics/chemistry) and drastically decreases extraction times. The boiling point of pure ethanol is 173°F (78°C). We will use the water bath to heat the rum/cannabis mixture to just below the boiling point of ethanol.
Heating the alcohol mixture can be done very safely using a hot water bath. You will need an accurate candy or quick read thermometer. Place about 1 inch of water in a wide, vertical-edged pan (9” diameter x 3” high). Bring the water to a low simmer. The rum/cannabis mixture should be in a small (1 pint) mason jar. Do NOT cover the jar.
Put the thermometer into the mason jar and place into the simmering water bath. Bring the temperature of the rum/cannabis mixture to about 170°F. The alcohol should be just barely boiling.
You should have the oven fan on high. You will notice that any alcohol fumes are mixed with water vapor from the water bath and vented out the fan. This combined with the fact that you are trying not to boil the ethanol makes the process quite safe.
5. Strain and store.
When you are finished with the extraction you will be left with about 1oz of green dragon tincture after you have strained the extract. Notice that one ounce of the alcohol has evaporated. See the tips below for a good way to strain the tincture.
A standard eyedropper will transfer about 1ml (or 1 gram) of liquid. There are 29 milliliters in one ounce. So you should end up with about 30 or so full eyedroppers (30 milliliters) of Green Dragon.
The liquid should be dark brownish-green and smell like cannabis.
6. Dosage. Titration.
Everybody is different. It takes me between 30-90 minutes to feel the effects of Green Dragon (depending on how much food is in my stomach).
I had tried a tincture someone had made using the cold extraction method with the same amount of cannabis and found that 5 ml (5 full eyedroppers) did pretty much nothing.
Using my Green Dragon technique I find that one dropper will bring effects on in 30-90 minutes and last 5 hours with 1.5 hours of lingering aftereffects.
Two droppers gave me a "spiritual dose" (as strong as any brownie I ever had). Effects lasted 7-8 hours with lingering effects for 2 more hours.
This means that 1/8oz of good cannabis yields about 30-34 doses of tincture (1 dropperful is really all I need). :edible:
Here is the very successful result of a considerable amount of research into the elusive and magical Green Dragon.
This is a simple and efficient 4 Step process.
Requirements:
1/8oz high quality cannabis
2 oz Bacardi Rum – 151 proof
Process Summary:
1. Chop cannabis very fine (coffee grinder works great)
2. Place in a shallow pan (a sheet of aluminum foil works great) and bake at 250F for 20 minutes.
3. Remove from oven and place cannabis in 2 oz of 151 proof rum (use a small wide mouth mason jar)
4. Simmer in a water bath for 20 minutes. Maintain temperature of the rum/cannabis mixture between 168 - 170°F.
5. Strain the mixture and store.
Dosage:
One milliliiter (one full eyedropper) is very nice. Two puts you in space. But you must self-titrate (test it on yourself) as each batch will be slightly different. Effects take up to 1.5 hours to begin (at least in myself) and lasted for 5 hours (1 dropper) to 7-8 hours (2 droppers).
I place one eyedropper (1ml) of Green Dragon in a small glass. I then add a small amount of water (1-2 ml) and drink. Do this on an empty stomach for best results (about 20-30 minutes before eating a main meal is good).
Process details—references and rationalizations:
1. Chop the cannabis
More surface area gives means a faster and more efficient extraction.
2. Bake the cannabis.
This converts THCA to THC via a decarboxylation reaction.
In whole-plant cannabis, THC content is expressed as THCA (tetrahydrocannabolic acid) prior to decarboxylation into THC, which takes place when cannabis is heated in the oven, and smoked or vaporized ingestion. THCA is a mild analgesic and anti-inflammatory but does not have good affinity with our CB1 receptors, so in order to make a THC-rich tincture that has many of the same therapeutic effects as smoked ingestion (including rapid absorption, quick relief and ease of self-titration), we must convert the THCA in the plant matter into THC prior to extracting it through an alcohol soak. (from Vancouver Island Compassion Society http://thevics.com/cannamist.htm)
THC vaporizes at about 380°F. We want to heat the cannabis to convert THCA to THC, but keep the temperature under 380°F. That is why 325°F is used. Between four and five minutes your oven (and house) will start to smell very strong. This is the time to remove the cannabis from the oven.
Notice also that there is considerable misinformation regarding heating the cannabis. It is true that you don't have to heat it to extract both THC and THCA, but the amount of THC in whole plant preparations is relatively small compared to after decarboxylation of the THCA. So if you want to maximize the strength of your tincture you must heat the cannabis prior to extraction.
3. Use the highest proof alcohol available.
Where I live this is Bacardi 151. The more alcohol the more efficient the extraction will be.
4. Simmer the mixture.
This is one of the areas that seems to be most debated. Many guides call for placing the normal cannabis into the alcohol and waiting 2 – 6 weeks. The main concern with heating the alcohol is that it is “explosive” (not exactly true...it is however flammable).
The purpose of the simmering is to heat the alcohol mixture to improve extraction rates and efficiencies. Heating during extraction increases the motion of the molecules (basic physics/chemistry) and drastically decreases extraction times. The boiling point of pure ethanol is 173°F (78°C). We will use the water bath to heat the rum/cannabis mixture to just below the boiling point of ethanol.
Heating the alcohol mixture can be done very safely using a hot water bath. You will need an accurate candy or quick read thermometer. Place about 1 inch of water in a wide, vertical-edged pan (9” diameter x 3” high). Bring the water to a low simmer. The rum/cannabis mixture should be in a small (1 pint) mason jar. Do NOT cover the jar.
Put the thermometer into the mason jar and place into the simmering water bath. Bring the temperature of the rum/cannabis mixture to about 170°F. The alcohol should be just barely boiling.
You should have the oven fan on high. You will notice that any alcohol fumes are mixed with water vapor from the water bath and vented out the fan. This combined with the fact that you are trying not to boil the ethanol makes the process quite safe.
5. Strain and store.
When you are finished with the extraction you will be left with about 1oz of green dragon tincture after you have strained the extract. Notice that one ounce of the alcohol has evaporated. See the tips below for a good way to strain the tincture.
A standard eyedropper will transfer about 1ml (or 1 gram) of liquid. There are 29 milliliters in one ounce. So you should end up with about 30 or so full eyedroppers (30 milliliters) of Green Dragon.
The liquid should be dark brownish-green and smell like cannabis.
6. Dosage. Titration.
Everybody is different. It takes me between 30-90 minutes to feel the effects of Green Dragon (depending on how much food is in my stomach).
I had tried a tincture someone had made using the cold extraction method with the same amount of cannabis and found that 5 ml (5 full eyedroppers) did pretty much nothing.
Using my Green Dragon technique I find that one dropper will bring effects on in 30-90 minutes and last 5 hours with 1.5 hours of lingering aftereffects.
Two droppers gave me a "spiritual dose" (as strong as any brownie I ever had). Effects lasted 7-8 hours with lingering effects for 2 more hours.
This means that 1/8oz of good cannabis yields about 30-34 doses of tincture (1 dropperful is really all I need). :edible:
Thanks for passing that recipe on. Lots of ways to make tinctures and probably 100 ways to make alchohol based ones.
So with you method it's ready right away correct? And for storing just keep it in a jar in a dark/cool place?
G.Leave
Cultivators Club
Yes no waiting necessary(well except for it to cool), i store mine at room temp and have no issues with anything.
Going to give it a go tonight. I like that your recipe is down to an 1/8th oz. Most of the others are full oz. I know I can do ratios but still I like this one. Since this is my first grow I'm not sure how potent my weed is and is prob not that high. And I have some DP white widow 1:1 flower I'll be using for this. Will be interesting to see how the dosing goes for me. Really interesting. Will go low and slow at first.
G.Leave
Cultivators Club
I literally just finished taking a bottle of DP AWW XXL in tincture. Need to whip up another batch!! I find that both high cbd/low thc and 1:1 strains help my pain quite a bit, but neither have a huge impact on the brain like high THC only tincture provides. Using the 1:1 tincture at 3ml, I have been able to function almost normal in situations being around lots of anti canna users. High test thc tincture tincture it would have been much more difficult to be in a situation like that, certainly not at 3ml in a single dose.
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