This blog provides educational guidance for herbalists and apothecaries using food grade ethanol for tinctures, botanical extractions, and traditional herbal preparations. Articles focus on solvent selection, proof considerations, and best practices for working with plant material. Content is intended for lawful, informed use by practitioners and experienced makers.

Alcohol For Herbalists Blog

Homemade Elderflower Extract Recipe Using Food Grade Ethanol

Elderflower extract is made from the fragrant flower clusters of elder plants, most commonly species in the Sambucus genus. Elderflowers are delicate, floral, lightly honeyed, and traditionally used in teas, cordials, syrups, liqueur-style projects, and seasonal botanical preparations. This recipe uses...

Homemade Elderberry Extract Recipe Using Food Grade Ethanol

Elderberry extract is made from the ripe fruit of the elder plant, most commonly species in the Sambucus genus. Elderberries are tart, dark, color-rich fruits with a long history in syrups, wines, jams, cooked juices, and traditional seasonal preparations. Because elderberries...

Cedar, Thuja, and Food Grade Ethanol: Safety Notes for Botanical Extract Makers

Cedar is a meaningful evergreen ingredient with deep traditional, cultural, aromatic, and botanical significance. It is also an ingredient that deserves more caution than many beginner tincture recipes provide. The word “cedar” can refer to several different plants, and some...

Homemade White Pine Tincture Recipe

Homemade White Pine Tincture and Extract Recipe Using Food Grade Ethanol White pine tincture is a classic conifer preparation for herbalists, hands-on DIY enthusiasts, and anyone interested in working with aromatic evergreen ingredients in a shelf-stable form. White pine offers...

What Not to Extract with Alcohol, and Why

Not every ingredient belongs in a tincture jar. Herbs, roots, citrus peels, resins, and spices often contain compounds that ethanol can extract effectively. Other materials, like gelatin, cod liver oil, and emu oil, behave very differently because they are proteins...

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