Cannabis alcohol tinctures are an incredible thing, with plenty of uses and applications. It is an essential ingredient in certain cannabis infused recipes (like our cannasugar recipe), as well as a great way to dose discreetly without calories. This article will teach you how to make a cannabis tincture recipe at home quick and simple. You do not need any sort of special equipment to make tinctures at home, just your cannabis and a solvent. We will be using high proof alcohol as our solvent in this recipe. If you were wondering why we mentioned dragons in the post title, it’s because cannabis alcohol tincture is often also called “Green Dragon”.
If you want to jump straight to how to make cannabis tincture, click on the “jump to recipe” button above or scroll down to the recipe section.
What is a cannabis alcohol tincture?
Tinctures are concentrated extracts that are made by soaking material in a solvent (in this case – alcohol). This article is specifically about alcohol based cannabis tincture, but there are a few other types you can make. Cannabis alcohol tinctures are arguably one of the easiest tinctures to make and you can pack quite a lot of potency into a tiny amount of droplets.
When you make a cannabis tincture, the alcohol is used to extract the cannabinoids and active ingredients from your weed (like THC & CBD). The alcohol also extracts the terpenes as well as other good stuff from the cannabis.
Tinctures are usually kept in a small glass bottle with a dropper lid which makes for easy and precise dosing.
Why should I make a cannabis alcohol tincture?
Tinctures are an amazing way to intake your daily dose of cannabinoids, and they’re perfect for infusing food with! Cannabis alcohol tinctures have very fast absorption when used sublingually (put under tongue & absorbed directly into your bloodstream through your mouth lining). Which makes them great for people who need fast acting relief. They can also be used like edibles and swallowed or dropped directly onto food.
They are also great for finding the exact dosage that works best for you. It’s much easier to count how many drops of tincture you require for your sweet spot compared to edibles like brownies or cookies. As well as the drop-by-drop dosing, tinctures are also very discreet to use which is great for when you are out in public. No smell, no smoke, no vapour. Just put your desired amount of drops under your tongue and hold it there for 15-30 seconds. Tinctures are also low-calorie and have a long shelf life. A properly stored cannabis alcohol tincture can last years without going bad!
Remember to decarboxylate first
It is essential you decarb your cannabis before making a tincture if you want to feel the effects of the cannabinoids. If you skip this step, your tincture will not have the lovely effects of THC & CBD. Decarboxylating weed is very simple – check out our decarboxylation guide if you need help on how to decarb weed.
How to make cannabis tincture at home
Once you have decarboxylated your cannabis, and have your high proof alcohol on hand, you are ready to get brewing. Let’s get into it!
Quick & Easy Cannabis Tincture (Alcohol)
Ingredients
- 14 grams Cannabis (Decarboxylated)
- 375 ml High Proof Alcohol (150+ Proof) (Everclear, Spirytus, or similar high proof alcohol)
Instructions
- Decarboxylate your cannabis. Decarboxylation is essential if you want your tincture to have the lovely effects of THC & CBD when ingested.
- Fill a large glass jar with the decarboxylated cannabis roughly 2/3 full, then pour alcohol over it until it is completely submerged. Put the lid on the jar and ensure there is enough space left to shake the mixture.
- Allow the mixture to infuse. Give it a vigorous shake twice a day. We recommend letting the mixture infuse for at least 2-3 days but the longer, the better potency and flavours. Read the recipe notes at the bottom for how to make a tincture in 2 hours if you are short for time.
- Once the cannabis and alcohol have infused, pour the mixture through a coffee filter to strain out the cannabis material. Pour the liquid into a clean jar after straining.
- Allow some alcohol to evaporate by leaving the lid off of the jar for a few days. To speed up evaporation you can use a warm heating pad or hot plate on low setting. Make sure you evaporate in a well ventilated area away from any open flames as alcohol fumes are highly flammable.
- Check on your tincture jar periodically as the alcohol evaporates. When you are satisfied with how much alcohol has evaporated, test the potency. Start with one or two drops and if your tincture is not strong enough for your liking, allow more alcohol to evaporate.
- Once you are finished with evaporating the alcohol and the tincture is as strong as you desire, it is ready to store. Put it in a tincture bottle with a dropper lid and store in a cool dark place.
Notes
- Once your decarboxylated cannabis and alcohol are in a jar, vigorously shake and put the jar in the freezer. Take it out every 30 minutes and shake hard for a minute or two then return it to the freezer. Repeat this until you are ready to start evaporating the alcohol off.
- It is possible to make a decently potent tincture in 2 hours using this method and heat-evaporating off the alcohol.
Nutrition
How much cannabis tincture should i take?
Cannabis tinctures can pack quite a punch! You would be very surprised how potent you can make them. A single droplet can be enough for people with no tolerance, so it’s important to start with a small dosage (1-2 drops). You can work your way up to your sweet spot once you know how strong your tincture is.
The best way to dose with an alcohol tincture is sublingually (absorbed under the tongue). Keep it under your tongue for 30 seconds then swallow. Have something to drink afterwards to wash away the taste if you are not a fan.
Can you make cannabis tincture with hash, kief, or other concentrates?
Absolutely! And the process is pretty much the same. Once you have decarboxylated your concentrate, you can follow the same steps to make it into a tincture as if it were normal cannabis. The biggest difference is in the decarbing process. Hash and concentrates like wax or shatter are decarbed at different temperatures and times compared to cannabis buds. Have a look at our guide on how to decarb weed concentrates if you need help with the temperatures/times.
Will cannabis tincture get me high?
Yes it will (unless you made a CBD tincture with no THC in it). Always remember to start with a low dose when first testing your tinctures potency as it is very easy to accidentally take too much. Tinctures are generally quite potent extracts.
what can i use instead of everclear to make this? they dont sell it in shops in the UK and hard to get online as well without paying an arm and leg..
You can get this stuff called “spirytus” online in the UK. It’s a 95% ABV grain alcohol. It’s a great alternative to everclear for people in the EU/UK
Anything 150 proof
The quick freeze method works well, thanks!
Straightforward tutorial. Well written. Refilled one of my old tincture dropper bottles and kept the rest in a mason jar for future refills. This batch should last me a few months at least (hopefully.)
I tried this recipe before with weed and it was a success but not strong enough for me.. perfect for my gf though.
How can I make a stronger version using weed? I don’t have access to concentrates where I live unfortunately☹️ And with the first batch I made, I needed a good 15+ drops per dose and that stuff doesn’t taste good at all. My gf on the other hand was out of her mind from 3 drops 😂 (she doesn’t have a big tolerance like me). I want to make one strong enough so I only need 3 drops too
Try adding a bit more weed and letting it infuse a little longer.
How do you know when the alcohol is evaporated off? That’s the only part that I’m a little confused about other than that straightforward recipe
It will not feel “wet” when you stir it around once it has fully evaporated. It shouldn’t clump together once it has evaporated and dried.