How to Make a Tincture With Powdered Herbs

Herbal tinctures, those powerful concoctions made from healing plants and either alcohol or vinegar, once reigned as the mainstay of the family medicine cabinet. But even in modern times, herbal tinctures can have a place in your first aid kit and your beauty regimen. Depending on the herbs used, tinctures can treat wounds, soothe stomachs, ease coughs and brighten the complexion. Tinctures are quite powerful, and therefore herbalists usually recommend that they be diluted with water before ingesting; dilute at a ratio of 5 to 15 drops per glass of water.

Things You'll Need

• Dried herbs
• 80- to 100-proof vodka or brandy
• Mortar and pestle, coffee bean grinder or heavy can
• Food scale
• 6-ounce glass jar and cap
• Strainer
• Cheesecloth
• Second glass jar or bottle with lid or cork

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Dry your own garden herbs by hanging the plants in bunches in a cool, dark place for several weeks.

• 2

  Alternatively, purchase dried herbs or organic herbal tea from your grocer, health food store or online.

• 3

  Purchase 80- to 100-proof vodka or brandy. Herbalists refer to the liquid used in tincture-making as "menstrum."

• 4

  Crush the herbs with a mortar and pestle or the bottom of a heavy can. They also can be ground in a clean coffee bean grinder. The final consistency doesn't have to be a literal fine powder, but the herbs should be crushed or ground fairly substantially.

• 5

  Weigh the ground or powdered herbs. You will need 1 ounce for this method.

• 6

  Place herbs in a 6-ounce glass jar.

• 7

  Cover the dried herbs with 4 ounces of brandy or vodka.

• 8

  Cap the jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously until the herbs become fully blended with the menstrum.

• 9

  Make sure the herbs are fully saturated; some high-absorption plants might require additional menstrum.

• 10

  Label the jar, noting the date made and the contents.

• 11

  Store the jar in a cool, dark place. Make sure, however, that the storage space is accessible for daily checking.

• 12

  Shake the jar every day for at least three weeks.

• 13

  Place cheesecloth into a fine metal strainer.

• 14

  Pour the tincture contents through the strainer into a clean jar.

• 15

  Squeeze the cheesecloth to collect as much of the tincture as possible.

• 16

  Store in a tightly lidded jar or cap with cork, and take as needed.