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Mushroom tinctures are an increasingly popular way that many have discovered to help them add the various benefits of mushrooms to their wellness routines. A mushroom tincture is a concentrated liquid extract that basically takes all the desirable compounds found within mushrooms and combines them into an easy-to-use liquid. These compounds can be extracted in one of two ways: hot water extraction and alcohol extraction. The best tinctures will have a bit of both. These are known as dual-extraction tinctures.
Raw mushrooms are surrounded by a tough cell wall made of chitin. It turns out that our guts are not the best at breaking down these walls, making it difficult to get the beneficial compounds into your system/ Dual-extraction tinctures increase the bioavailability (fancy word for how much your body absorbs) of the mushrooms you ingest.
Alcohol extracts focus on fat-soluble compounds such as triterpenes, sterols, and phenolics. Hot water extracts mainly focus on beta-glucans. Having both is the premier method of efficiently getting all that you can from mushrooms.
Aside from being an efficient ingestion method, many learn how to make mushroom tinctures to avoid the taste of mushrooms. Mushroom tinctures are also shelf-stable so they will last longer than raw mushrooms. When you learn how to make mushroom tinctures, you are learning a skill that will help you easily dose your mushrooms as well.
High bioavailability | Full-spectrum extract | Consistency | Convenience
There are several main benefits of using mushroom tinctures over eating raw mushrooms. These benefits are why many choose to learn how to make mushroom tinctures. As we mentioned in the section above, mushroom tinctures have a high bioavailability because the extraction process breaks down the chitin cell walls which your body has a hard time doing. This leads you to have access to more of the compounds in the mushrooms.
The dual-extraction method also gives you access to the full-spectrum of compounds found within mushrooms. This gives you a well-rounded wellness supplement. The beta-glucans extracted with a hot water extract can help with gut health, inflammation, and immune support. The fat-soluble compounds extracted with alcohol can help with your body’s stress response and cardiovascular health. (source, source)
Two final benefits of using mushroom tinctures are the consistency and convenience you get from them. Mushroom tinctures are easy to dose and you can get the same dose each and every time. Convenience should go without saying. Once they are made, all you need is a few drops to get your wellness on!
Cost savings | Quality control | Customization | Potency
So, why should you learn how to make mushroom tinctures at home rather than just buying them premade? For one, mushroom tinctures are pretty darn cheap to make. They are definitely cheaper to make than to buy. Enjoy some cost savings by learning how to make mushroom tinctures at home!
Aside from the cost savings, you can control all the aspects of the mushroom tincture by making it yourself. You choose the type of mushroom, the strength of the tincture, the alcohol content, the ratio of alcohol to hot water extraction, and even the flavor.
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Here is a list of popular mushrooms used in mushroom tinctures. You can buy these mushrooms from a local farm or grocery store. Or, you can easily grow mushrooms yourself by buying mushroom liquid cultures for sale online.
Reishi mushrooms have high levels of alcohol extracted triterpenes which can help with stress and cardiovascular health. They are also high in the water extracted beta glucans which can boost your immune system. These are one of the most studied varieties of mushrooms which makes them a pretty popular choice when learning how to make mushroom extracts.
Lion’s Mane mushrooms have been shown to be beneficial for brain health (cognitive function and focus). They can also offer immune support via their high levels of beta glucans. They are also relatively easy to grow which makes them popular for those making mushroom tinctures at home.
Turkey Tail mushrooms are great for hot water extractions because of their high levels of beta glucans. Boost your immune system with a dose of extracted turkey tail!
Chaga are less well-known mushrooms, but have great benefits nonetheless. They are most popularly dual-extracted to get the full-spectrum of compounds available. Chaga mushrooms are known to be rich in antioxidants which makes them a great addition to any mushroom tincture.
Shiitake mushrooms are one of the most widely available mushroom varieties. You can easily find them in the grocery store. Heck, you can even grow them pretty easily at home. They are great for overall wellness.
A dual extraction mushroom tincture is pretty much what it sounds like - two extraction techniques mixed together into a tincture. Some compounds in mushrooms, like triterpenes, are fat soluble so they are extracted with alcohol. Other compounds, like beta glucans, are extracted with hot water. Both types of extraction are not that hard to do, so you can get the most out of your mushroom tincture by using both extraction methods to make a dual extraction mushroom tincture.
Dry mushrooms are necessary because fresh mushrooms carry too much water which can spoil eventually. If you have fresh mushrooms, dry them in the oven at 140℉ until them are just getting crunchy.
Grind the dried mushrooms until they have a coarse texture. Try to avoid a fine powder.
Use half of your ground mushrooms or just the mushroom rich in triterpenes for this step. Save the other half for the following water extraction. Place the ground mushroom in a mason jar. Add enough alcohol to the mason jar to cover the mushrooms by about an inch. Seal the jar tightly with a lid.
Store the sealed mason jar in a cool, dark place for about 4-6 weeks so the compounds can fully extract. It is helpful to give the jar a daily shake.
After 4-6 weeks, strain the ground mushrooms out of the alcohol using cheesecloth or another fine strainer. Save both the alcohol and the leftover ground and extracted mushrooms. The alcohol should be kept in a sealed jar in a cool, dark place.
Place the leftover alcohol extracted mushroom and the 2nd half of your dried mushrooms into a pot. Add enough water to the pot to fully submerge the mushrooms. You can aim for a 1:5 ration of mushrooms to water.
This is important: NEVER BOIL THE WATER. Instead, gently simmer the water for about 2-4 hours. If you have a thermometer, aim for 170℉ water. You can stir the mixture occasionally.
After 2-4 hours of gentle simmering, grab a fresh cheesecloth or clean fine strainer to separate the mushrooms from the water. The water should be a dark color. Let it cool completely before moving on. You can now discard the used mushrooms.
In a fresh mason jar or other glass vessel, slowly mix both the alcohol extract and the water extract. Be sure to stir continuously while mixing. You need to have at least 25% alcohol content in your final mixture to make the tincture shelf stable. If you end up below 25% alcohol content, add some more alcohol whether it is extracted or not.
Bottle the dual-extracted tincture in dark amber dropper bottles. The dark color will keep sunlight from breaking down the extracted compounds. The dropper makes dosing easy and convenient.
Label each bottle with the types of mushrooms in the tincture, the date you finished extraction, and alcohol percentage, and the words “dual extract”. Store the dark amber dropper bottles in a cool dark place. They will be shelf-stable for at least 2 years assuming your alcohol content is at least 25%. More alcohol means a longer shelf-life.
Congratulations, you just learned how to make mushroom tinctures at home!
Use the dropper to measure your dosage. Most people find 1-3mL per day to be the ideal dose. You can easily mix the tincture into really any beverage like coffee, water or tea. Or, you can place the dropper under your tongue to take the tincture sublingually. Sublingual usage is the fastest and most efficient absorption method.
This usually means your alcohol content is too low. Add some more alcohol and strain. You may want to avoid a moldy tincture though.
This can be a result of not fully dried mushrooms. It can also happen if the alcohol you used for extraction was too low of a proof (use 190-proof everclear to best results. It can also happen if you did not extract for long enough. In any situation, you unfortunately just have to start again and try to fix your mistakes.
This can be common for certain mushroom varieties. You can avoid the flavor by mixing your dose into coffee or tea.
This is very common with dual extraction tinctures. Simply shake the bottle before using.
Add more alcohol to fully submerge the ground mushrooms. This is crucial.
