# 1st time alcohol extraction info and advice



## Bogart Mc Thunderdunk (Jan 3, 2012)

im just about to try my first alcohol extraction i want to make a tincture, strong as possible with what i have so that i wont have to take much for a dose. on a tolerance break at the moment so less chance of me getting stoned and screwing this up 

to work with i have a 50cl (~18oz) bottle of poteen (basically moonshine) liquor 90% volume 180 proof, 15 grams of easy ryder that i took probably a week early as it was underwatered and as much as i need from a few other strains if needed.

ive been looking around the net for different recipes and so far this seems to be the best put together ones i have found but obviously i dont know if they are or not so im asking which would be best or for an alternative.

i am also happy to try a few different recipes maybe 2 or 3 anyway so whichever seems easiest/stongest with what i have. 

also recipes seem split on cooking before or reducing after or nothing atall. which gets best results.. time is not really an issue though i would like to try something in the next few months so i was thinking maybe one short method like the first and one long (shaking bottle in the dark for months. 


way too much to read probably but any help is appreciated id like to get started in the next few days so if i dont hear anything ill just try a few that i think sound good.

as ive said i dont know if these are useful so sorry for any misinformation posted but there arent too many threads on here with info (that i could find atleast) so maybe this will help someone anyway.
also i dont know who these are by as they are copy+pasted from many different sites.

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"The Definitive Green Dragon (Cannabis Tincture)
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.

Ingredients:
1/8oz high quality cannabis
2 oz Bacardi Rum &#8211; 151 proof


Process Summary:

1. Chop cannabis very fine (coffee grinder works great)

2. Place in a shallow pan (pie pan with aluminum foil works great) and bake at 325°F for 4-5 minutes.

3. Remove from oven and place cannabis and place in 2 oz of 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 150°F &#8211; 165°F.

5. Strain the mixture and store.


Dosage:
One eyedropper is very nice. Two puts you in space. But you should self-titrate. Effects take about 1.5 hours to begin (at least in myself) and lasted for 5 hours (1 dropper) to 7-8 hours (2 droppers).


Process details&#8212;references and rationalizations:
1. Chop the cannabis&#8212;more surface area gives means a faster and more efficient extraction.

2. Bake the cannabis.
In whole-plant cannabis, THC content is expressed as THCA (tetrahydrocannabolic acid) prior to decarboxylation into THC, which takes place when cannabis is heated during cooking, 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. In my area this was 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 recipes call for placing the cannabis (unbaked of course) into the alcohol and waiting 2 &#8211; 6 weeks. The main concern with heating the alcohol is that it is &#8220;explosive&#8221; (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&#8221; wide x 3&#8221; 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 165°F (I maintain it between 150°F and 165°F). You want the alcohol mixture to be just barely moving (not boiling, but showing active convection within the mixture). If the mixture starts to bubble too much, just turn down the water bath.

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, titrate, and store.
When you are finished with the extraction you will be left with about 1oz of green dragon tincture. Note that one ounce of the alcohol has evaporated.

Now you should test your eyedropper. In my test 34 full droppers equaled one ounce of liquid (this is a little less than one gram of liquid per dropperful as 29g equals 1ounce).

The liquid should be dark green and smell like cannabis.

6. Dosage.
Everybody is probably different. It takes me 1.5 hours to feel the effects of eating cannabis. Similarly this tincture also takes 1.5 hours to take effect. 

I had tried a tincture someone had made using the cold extraction method with the same amount of cannabis and found that 5 droppers did pretty much nothing.

Using my Green Dragon technique I find that one dropper will bring effects on in 1.5 hours 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). And is much more pleasant than smoking (which really is bad for you and your lungs and the reason I've stopped smoking entirely).

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Aye mates. Been seeing lots of Green Dragon threads lately, thought why not just do a big thread on it

The basic recipe is such as this:

Materials: 

400 mL Vodka (Anything Higher than 40% Alc)
~6.5g Bud (For .7g Per Shot - If This Is Too Much For You, Lower It)
Mason Jar

Optional Prep - The taste of Green Dragon is not a great taste in particular. This taste can be reduced quite well by watercuring your bud for a day. Watercuring consists of completely submerging your bud, unground, in water. It is not to be covered as evaporation is good. Do this for a day or so, maybe two. The whole week is not needed for watercuring. After this, you can shake excess water off the buds and put them right into the vodka. If the bud isnt completely submerged, it will mold. You dont want this to be ground. Whole buds work much better. Then grind them for the actual procedure.

Procedure:

1. Add Ground Cannabis to Jar

2. Pour in 400mL Vodka into Jar

3. Close Jar and Shake - Put the jar somewhere you are near often so you can give a good shaking whenever you pass it etc. Keep doing this for about 3 weeks. Many people say for 2 months, however this is more time than necessary. As long as you shake it anyway.

4. Optional - Boil a pot of water and put the mason jar into it with the cap off. Leave for a couple of minutes, you dont want it to be on extreme heat, maybe 4-5 out of ten heat settings. You can have it on high to boil it then turn it back down once you put the jar it. This adds a bit of potency by converting the THCA to THC inside the buds, releasing the COOH from the compound. The added potency will not make a dramatic difference however you are making sure your bud is getting used for all its worth. Some alcohol will boil off resulting in a more concentrated mixture, just remember that this recipe is targeted for a shot a dose. You may want to use less if a lot of alcohol boils off.

5. Strain and enjoy!
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grow weeds coming from
hxxps://www.autoflower.net/forums/f43/first-auto-grow-t5s-3095-7.html

if theres any difference between methods in resulting effect(i doubt there is much) i would probably prefer a cerebral trippy high but doesnt matter anyway i enjoy it all.
is there any point in water curing the weed first?
any help appreciated.
thanks.


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## bigsmokie (Jan 12, 2012)

The green dragon tincture will have you floored  Here's a tip spike a coke with a shot of the tincture you'll have your own chronic candy tasting soda


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jan 12, 2012)

A couple of things here--first of all, I think I would decarboxylate at a lower temp for a longer period of time.  I go about as low as the oven will go which is 170 on my stove for about 30-60 minutes.  I worry about using too high of temps and losing THC.  I would not use any recipe that did not call for decarboxylation.  Next, be very very careful if heating inside, even with a double boiler.  One of the problems is the flammable/explosive vapors that the alcohol will give off as it is evaporating.  This is the main reason that _I _have not used any heat methods to make tinctures.


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## teddy d (Jan 29, 2012)

when you say "one eye dropper" how manny ML are you talking about? one drop? 3ml? 5ml?....


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## HemperFi (Jan 29, 2012)

decarboxylation?


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## Tom O'Bedlam (Jan 30, 2012)

the first recipe is the exact same recipe I've always used.


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## trillions of atoms (Jan 31, 2012)

yes, first recipe sounds like the method ive used....i did decarb at a lower temp for a little longer but not as low as thg or for as long..... but im going to try that next time!


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