Making tinctures is a great way to preserve and consume the medicinal properties in plants. You don’t need any fancy equipment and here are 5 DIY tincture press ideas to make pressing the tincture simple.
Making a DIY tincture press will help you avoid leaving any medicinal tincture in the plant material. For most tincture-making, you don’t need to spend a fortune on a professional tincture press.
These recommendations are for people like me who are making tinctures in small batches for themselves or their family. If you’re making tinctures professionally, I’d recommend investing in a tincture press.
I use the folk method to make my tinctures which means that I don’t weigh the plant material or alcohol before steeping. I simply fill a glass jar about ⅓ full with dried herbs and cover them completely with alcohol.
If you’re making tinctures to sell, I’d recommend weighing out your plant material, so that you can be more certain that each batch will have equivalent medicinal properties.
Why pressing your tinctures is important
When making herbal tinctures, the goal is to soak the herb material in a menstruum, like high-proof alcohol, apple cider vinegar, or food grade glycerin, to draw out the medicinal compounds.
But here’s the thing: the plant matter holds a significant amount of liquid. So it’s essential that you thoroughly press out most of the liquid to ensure that you’re getting all of those wonderful medical benefits from the plants.
While you can make your own, in most cases things that you likely already have around your home can work great as DIY tincture presses.
5 DIY tincture press ideas
French press
One of the simplest tools for pressing tinctures that you might already have is a french press.
I like to steeping my herbs in a glass mason jar for the full 8 weeks in high proof alcohol. Then when it’s time to strain off the tincture, I pour everything into a french press.
Then just press down firmly and pour the liquid into your glass bottles for storing the tincture. The fine mesh strainer in a french press prevents the plant material or fresh herbs from being in the final tincture.
Potato ricer
For small batches of larger plant material, you can use a stainless steel potato ricer.
Set a clean glass jar under your potato ricer. Then carefully pour the final tincture into the ricer, squeeze the handles, and catch the liquid in the jar. Potato ricers are easy to clean so I like this option!
Layers of cheesecloth or clean tea towel
For tinctures made with powders or finer plant material, you can use doubled-over cheesecloth, a coffee filter, or a clean tea towel to strain off the tincture.
I like to put a funnel into a glass storage jar and set the cheesecloth on top of the funnel.
Then I pour the tincture into the cheesecloth, gather the corners together, and simply squeeze it out manually. The funnel helps prevent the tincture from spilling everywhere.
Citrus juicer
A manual stainless steel citrus juicer can also work as a tincture press. Similar to the potato ricer, simply add the tincture into the juicer, and squeeze down.
Make sure that you put a glass jar below the juicer. Consider also adding a funnel on top of the glass jar to help catch all of the tincture.
Pasta strainer and heavy object
For larger batches and larger plant material, you can use a pasta strainer or a fine mesh strainer and a heavy object like a heavy mug or wooden spoon. I like to use this method when I make tinctures using chunks of dried mushrooms.
I add the large strainer over a clean bowl and dump the tincture into it. Then I use the bottom of a mug or wooden spoon to press out the remaining liquid.
Then I set a funnel in my glass storage jar and pour the tincture into the storage jar from the bowl.
Troubleshooting common issues
Too much liquid remaining in plant material
If you find that your dried or fresh plant material is still holding too much liquid after pressing separate your plant material into smaller batches and press them separately.
Pressing your own tinctures and making other high quality herbal medicines don’t have to be complicated or expensive. Making potent herbal remedies is completely possible using common supplies found around your home. Happy pressing!
What to read next
The Best Alcohol for Tinctures: A Beginner’s Guide
How to Make Glycerin Tinctures: A Complete Guide
How To Use A Tincture (Simple Guide For How To Consume Them)
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