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Are you ready for this Cold Ethanol Simple Extraction Tek? It’s one of the most simple extraction teks, using time and ethanol to do all of the work. 

What is Culinary Ethanol?

Culinary ethanol is food-grade ethanol (grain alcohol), safe for consumption in small quantities. 

DO NOT USE DENATURED ETHANOL. This is an ethanol with additives to discourage consumption and abuse. Ethanol with additives are harmful to your health!

Personally, I like to use Everclear for this particular tek. I buy from Culinary Solvent, but you might also want to check out Lab Alley.

bottle of everclear 190 proof

Another important thing to note for this tek is…

Ethanol is highly flammable.

It’s imperative that you NEVER evaporate ethanol near an open flame, like your gas stove. Don’t even use your lighter near the ethanol. The safest way to boil off ethanol is to use an electric hotplate or heated magnetic stir plate in a different room than your kitchen (if you have a gas stove).

What you will need:

  • 10 grams dried mushrooms, coarsely ground with coffee/spice grinder
  • 120 ml (4 ounces) culinary ethanol (Everclear) 
  • 2 glass jars (one with lid)
  • Paper cone style coffee filter and funnel
  • Large glass baking dish
  • Tincture bottles with tight fitting lids/droppers

Instructions:

This Cold Ethanol Simple Extraction Tek makes about 20ml ethanol tincture.

1ml tincture = 0.5 grams mushrooms

  1. To one of the glass jars, add the ground mushrooms. 
  2. Pour in the ethanol to cover. Swirl and stir the mixture. 
  3. Close with lid and leave in dark, dry spot for 24 hours.
  4. Strain the mixture through the coffee filter fitted into a funnel, and into the second glass jar. Squeeze with back of spoon to extract as much ethanol as possible. Discard (or consume) solids. 
  5. Pour the ethanol onto a large, glass baking dish, and let it sit in a dust-free, flame-free area to evaporate. Blowing a small fan in the room (but not pointing at the dish), will speed up the process. Let evaporate until you get about 20ml of ethanol left. If you accidentally evaporate too long, just add additional ethanol to get the mixture back to 20ml.

    **NOTE: If you are making a water-based tincture – evaporate down to 14ml.
  6. Bottle the ethanol into tincture bottles.

 

OPTIONAL: Making Water-Based Tincture

Many tinctures are a mixture of both water and ethanol. Pure ethanol tincture is difficult to consume, so many people add filtered water to the mix (and flavoring or essential oils, too.) 

Alexander Shulgin, the famous American chemist and pharmacologist who created MDMA and 2CB, suggests a ratio of 70% ethanol to 30% water. 

Basic Water-Based Tincture

Makes 20ml Ethanol/Water Tincture. 1ml = 0.5 grams mushroom

  • 14ml Mushroom tincture (above recipe) 
  • 6ml Filtered water
  1. Combine the tincture and the water together. Bottle into tincture bottles.