If you’re wondering whether it’s possible to make cannabis tincture without alcohol, then the short answer is yes! Now, you might be thinking how can tincture be made without alcohol?

Well, the thing is cannabis tincture is now typically just an umbrella term, especially as alcohol is a conventional method of creating this highly concentrated cannabis infusion. Similarly, cannabis can also be infused with non-alcoholic base like coconut oil/olive oil, vinegar and vegetable glycerin to make cannabis tincture.

To make things clearer, whether you use alcoholic, or non-alcoholic base, it mainly involves soaking the decarboxylated weed to extract THC from the cannabinoid, and terpenes.

So, you’re infusing the decarbed cannabis with the solvent, which also works the same way for any non-alcoholic base. Even though it’s called cannabis tincture, it is literally cannabis infusion.

Now, if you’re keen to learn how to make cannabis tincture non-alcoholic, this guide covers everything you need to know starting with decarbing the weed, and four effective methods to infuse cannabis with non-alcoholic bases like coconut oil, vinegar, and vegetable glycerin.

Decarboxylate the Cannabis Bud

Before you get started with the infusion process to make cannabis tincture, you will first need decarbed weed. The thing with the raw cannabis is, it’s THC, that is the psychoactive compound that makes you high, and spurs the euphoric effect is inactive in the form of THCA.

Just by soaking the raw cannabis, you wouldn’t get the concentrated potency that you’re expecting. So, the first step is to decarboxylate the cannabis bud by baking it in the oven at a high temperate of 220°F to 250°F for 25 to 30 mins.

So, in this step, pre-heat your oven, and in the meantime get the cannabis bud chopped into tiny pieces, or grinded into a fine powdery mix. After that put the chopped or grinded weed evenly on the parchment paper sitting on the oven’s tray and bake it.

After baking it for 25 to 30 minutes you will notice that the color of the weed has changed to yellowish or brownish green which means it has been decarbed. Now that you have your key ingredient, it’s time to explore 4 methods of making non-alcoholic cannabis tincture.

The potency of the cannabis tincture basically depends on the strain and quality of the flower, so it’s always best to buy it from an established cannabisdispensary.

How to Make Cannabis Tincture Non-Alcoholic?

There are four non-alcoholic methods of making cannabis tincture which includes using oil, vinegar, and vegetable glycerin as the base liquid. Regardless of whichever method you choose, the main step typically involves infusing the decarbed cannabis with your preferred base.

There are specific steps, and ways to create non-alcoholic cannabis tincture for each of these methods. While there are faster processes like boiling the oil and simmering it with decarbed weed. There are also simpler and more time-consuming methods like dissolving the decarbed weed in the base liquid whether it’s oil, vinegar, or vegetable glycerin for 3 to 4 weeks.

Let’s get down to the details and learn how to make your very own non-alcoholic cannabis tincture by using each of these methods in the following sections.

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Oil-Based Method

So, here’s what you will need to make non-alcoholic cannabis tincture with the oil-based method:

· 1 cup (250ml) of Coconut or Olive Oil

· 7 grams of Decarbed Weed

·  Saucepan or Double Boiler

· Cheesecloth

· 1 Glass Bowl

· 1 Ounce Glass Bottles

· Funnel or Dropper

Let’s start by putting a saucepan on the stove and setting it to low heat. Wait for about 30 seconds for the saucepan to heat up, and then pour 1 cup of coconut or olive oil on the pan. Once the oil heats up, put the decarbed weed on the pan, and stir it well to ensure that the weed completely mixes with the oil.

Now cover the lid of the saucepan letting it simmer in low heat for about 3 hours. While it’s simmering, you need to open the lid every few minutes and stir the mixture. After simmering it for 3 hours, turn off the stove, and wait for about 20 to 30 minutes for the mixture to totally cool down to room temperature.

Once it cools down get a glass bowl and cover its top part with a cheesecloth. You can even use a rubber band to ensure the cheesecloth firmly stays in place. Now slowly tilt the sauce and pour the mixture on the bowl over the cheesecloth. The cheesecloth will strain all the plant materials while the oil seamlessly drips into the bowl.

Once all the oil gets strained into the bowl, you can open the rubber band and throw the cheesecloth along with filtered weed. Done! Your cannabis tincture is now ready.

Now you can use a funnel or dropper to transfer it into the 1-ounce glass bottles. But it will be faster to transfer it with a funnel.

P.S, you can also use a double boiler or a crockpot to make cannabis tincture using the oil method but make sure it does not exceed over 200°F. To stay on the safe side, it’s best keep it in a low heat of about 170-180°F to ensure that the heat does not burn the weed or destroy its chemical compounds.

The Simple Method

The simple method is also an oil-based method, but instead of heating up the oil, you will just have to soak it in a mason jar with the decarbed weed. Here’s what you will need to make cannabis tincture using the simple method:

· 1 cup (250ml) of Coconut or Olive Oil

· 7 grams of Decarbed Weed

· Cheesecloth

· 1 Mason Jar

· 1 Spoon

· 1 Ounce Glass Bottles

· Funnel or Dropper

Now let’s get started with the process. Open the lid of the mason jar and put 7 grams of decarbed weed and 1 cup of oil into the jar. Stir the oil in the jar to properly mix it with the weed. Once that’s done get the spoon out, and close the lid of the mason jar, and shake it vigorously for about 5 minutes.

Store the mason jar containing the mixture in a cool dark place, either in the kitchen’s cabinet or the pantry. Now comes the hard part, you will have to let the decarbed weed soak in the oil for 3 to 5 weeks.

So, you will sure need a lot of patience, and on top of that, you will have to shake the jar at least once every day. It’s better if you can shake it two to three times a day, this will help the weed mix faster with the oil and release its extracts. Repeat shaking it for about a month, and then similarly like the oil method you will have to strain out the plant materials using a cheesecloth.

After straining it out, transfer it to the 1-ounce glass bottles, and keep it stored in a cool dark place to ensure that it stays out of direct sunlight.

Using Vinegar

The biggest advantage of using vinegar to make cannabis tincture is, it produces a very similar cannabis tincture like the alcohol-based recipe. Also, the process is simple, and a lot faster, as you need to soak the decarbed weed in vinegar for just 2 weeks.

Here’s what you will need for making non-alcoholic cannabis tincture with vinegar:

· 7 grams of Decarbed Cannabis

· 1 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar (250ml)

· 1 Mason jar

· 1 Spoon

· Cheesecloth

· 1 Ounce Glass Bottles

· Funnel or Dropper

Similarly to the simple oil method, you will have to mix the 7 grams of decarbed weed in a mason jar with 1 cup of apple cider vinegar. Make sure to stir the mixture properly, and then close the jar’s lid to shake it well for about 5 minutes.

Once that’s done close the jar’s lid, and keep the mixture stored in a cool dark place for about 2 weeks. Make sure to shake the jar at least once every day, although it’s recommended to shake it 2 to 3 times a day, once is fine too. If you accidentally forget to shake it one day, it’s fine, do it as soon as you remember it. Repeat this process for up to 2 weeks.

After 2 weeks, it’s time to strain the plant materials from the vinegar as the THC, and other desired compounds are now concentrated in the vinegar. So, use a cheesecloth to strain the plant materials from the vinegar in jar or glass bowl, and done, you now have the non-alcoholic cannabis tincture made using vinegar.

Transfer the cannabis tincture into glass bottles and keep them stored in a cool dry place. There is one thing though compared to other methods the shelf life of cannabis tincture made using vinegar is a lot shorter. It stays fresh, and safe for consumption for up to 1 year.

So, make sure to either consume it in one year, or throw it away after a year. It's best to label it with the manufacturing and expiry date just to ensure that it does not get consumed after expiration.

With Vegetable Glycerin

When it comes to making non-alcoholic cannabis tincture with vegetable glycerin, you will have to give quite a bit of an effort. But just like the oil method, this is also an effective approach to make cannabistincture a lot faster.

So, here’s what you will need to make non-alcoholic cannabis tincture with vegetable glycerin:

· 2 Cups (500ml) of Vegetable Glycerin

· 1 Cup of Decarbed Weed (14 grams)

· 1 Mason Jar

· Crockpot

· Tea Towel

· Oven Gloves

· Glass Bowl

· Funnel or Dropper

· 1-Ounce Glass Bottles

Get a tea towel and place it evenly inside the crockpot. Fill half of the crockpot with water and turn it on in a low heat setting. In the meantime, put 14 decarbed weed in the mason jar and 2 cups of vegetable glycerin, close the lid and shake the jar vigorously.

Now slowly put the mason jar inside the crockpot and let the mixture get simmered for 24 hours. After it cooks for 24 hours use your oven gloves to carefully take out the glass jar. Wait for an hour or so for the jar and the glycerin to completely cool down to room temperature. 

Then, strain the mixture using a cheesecloth into a clean jar or bowl. After that use a funnel or dropper to transfer the cannabis tincture into the 1-ounce glass bottles and store them in a cool dry place. Make sure to consume them within a year as glycerin-based cannabis tincture also have a short shelf life of up to 1 year.

Bottomline: Which Non-Alcoholic Method Would You Use?

If you have read this far, you know all four methods of making non-alcoholic cannabis tincture. Each of these methods is quite similar with a few significant differences. For instance, the oil-based method, and vegetable glycerin method are typically much faster approaches, but they require a lot of hard work in the kitchen.

While the simple oil and vinegar method are much simpler which basically requires storing the decarbed weed in a jar, and shaking it a few times, or at least once a day. But you will have to wait for about a month for the extracts to properly mix with the base liquid, whereas the oil-based and vegetable glycerin methods would need a couple of hours to a day at max.

So, it basically comes down to two choices; are you willing to make the extra effort to produce the non-alcoholic tinctures faster? Or go for simpler methods which require time and patience.

Well, regardless of whichever method you choose, you can easily produce high quality non-alcoholic tincture at home by applying the methods in this guide. So, what are you waiting for? Gather your supplies and start creating your own non-alcoholic cannabis tinctures at home!

FAQ

How to make non-alcoholic non cannabis flavored tincture?

You can mix honey or maple syrup with the mixture of decarbed cannabis, and any of the non-alcoholic base which includes coconut oil, olive oil, MCT oil, vinegar or vegetable glycerin to replace and alter the smell the non-alcoholic base as well as the cannabis.  

Are cannabis tinctures better with or without alcohol?

Cannabis tinctures are better with alcohol especially because alcohol can effectively extract the desired compounds and produce higher potency than non-alcoholic cannabis tinctures. But on the other hand, if you follow the right methods then it’s also possible to make closer non-alcoholic tincture that have almost the same potency.  

What is a tincture without alcohol called?

A non-alcoholic cannabis tincture is often referred to as a cannabis-infused oil or cannabis-infused elixir. These terms emphasize the use of a non-alcoholic base, such as coconut oil, olive oil, or vegetable glycerin, to extract the cannabinoids and terpenes from the cannabis plant.