Herbal Extractions andPreparations

Excerpt from the handout:

Pure alcohol best extracts essential oils, resins, alkaloids, glycosides, organic acids, chlorophyll, acrid and bitter constituents, and castor oil, but not minerals, gums, or mucilage. A tincture is an alcohol extract of a plant, made using varying alcohol percentages. Some say to always use 50% alcohol (vodka) in order to get equal parts water and alcohol, and some say to always use 98% alcohol (everclear). Others tailor the alcohol percentage to the herb and its particular constituents.