medicinal metheglins
- Thread starter Teufelhund
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Astragalus doesn't have a flavor. I understand not adding because you're not familiar with it, but it is something to put on your list to get familiar with.
I also understand not using Golden Seal on deep cuts, but it is great for mucous membranes. But it does taste BAD!
I also thought of mentioning Osha. It does wonders to knock out colds/flus, but it tastes earthy - like licking dirt! I actually make a myl with it - ground Osha in honey, turned and aged for a month. It is amazing on sore throats!
I also understand not using Golden Seal on deep cuts, but it is great for mucous membranes. But it does taste BAD!
I also thought of mentioning Osha. It does wonders to knock out colds/flus, but it tastes earthy - like licking dirt! I actually make a myl with it - ground Osha in honey, turned and aged for a month. It is amazing on sore throats!
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Just a general comment: I have always been interested in the subject of herbs and their use in alternative medicine, etc., so this is all extremely fascinating to me. I am glad that there are a number of people on the forums with such deep knowledge of the subject and look forward to learning more. I have made a definite note of some of the texts mentioned (I already have a copy of the Herbal PDR), and will start to seek them out.
Now back to our regular programming ... ;D -- Olen
Now back to our regular programming ... ;D -- Olen
Check out Michael Moore's website (the herbalist, not the filmmaker). I haven't heard how he's doing lately. He's been sick and wasn't been doing well. Anyway, there's been a big effort the last few years to capture his knowledge before he passes. I believe it's free.
DD - Astragalus doesn't have a noticable flavor. Definately one to put on your list to learn.
DD - Astragalus doesn't have a noticable flavor. Definately one to put on your list to learn.
Kee, just to echo what you said about suppliers, I also order from Mountain Rose and they are one of the most consistent online herbal suppliers that I've found. BTW - Wolfie if you're going to use meadowsweet, order the dried whole flowers. You'll get more of the sweet flavor and more of the nutty flavor from the flowers. The leaves tend to taste more medicinal.
Alcohol vs. Herbs?
I've found that mead works fine as a tincture alternative. Rosemary/lavender mead is tasty and cures headaches - chocolate mead has a great reputation here as an aphrodisiac - hawthorn blossom mead soothes jumpy nerves and calms down heart palpitations due to hormonal surges.
But I wonder how useful medicinals could be in cases of respiratory disease. I can imagine that a glass of mead drunk while running a fever would make a patient feel worse. That is, *my* head spins when I have a fever, never mind the alcohol. Umm...diaphoretic and sleep-inducing, though, especially if it has chamomile.
I agree that adding goldenseal to a mead is wasting honey. Thinking of this topic, it strikes me that for urinary tract infections, a combination of echinacea, uva ursi and juniper would be both tasty and effective.
I've found that mead works fine as a tincture alternative. Rosemary/lavender mead is tasty and cures headaches - chocolate mead has a great reputation here as an aphrodisiac - hawthorn blossom mead soothes jumpy nerves and calms down heart palpitations due to hormonal surges.
But I wonder how useful medicinals could be in cases of respiratory disease. I can imagine that a glass of mead drunk while running a fever would make a patient feel worse. That is, *my* head spins when I have a fever, never mind the alcohol. Umm...diaphoretic and sleep-inducing, though, especially if it has chamomile.
I agree that adding goldenseal to a mead is wasting honey. Thinking of this topic, it strikes me that for urinary tract infections, a combination of echinacea, uva ursi and juniper would be both tasty and effective.
As for how much medicine you can get out of a medicinal meth, if the marc to menstrum ratios are high enough, it won't be an issue. It never occured to me anyone would have glass of mead or two before bed. I thought of it as another delivery system. That much alcohol in general wouldn't be good when you're sick. 
uke:
I was taught to consider actions. Flavor is more of an afterthought. Yea, Golden seal isn't the best tasting, but if you need it...
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I do like the idea of meadowsweet or rosemary/lavender for headaches. I'll have to buy some one gallon containers soon...
uke: I was taught to consider actions. Flavor is more of an afterthought. Yea, Golden seal isn't the best tasting, but if you need it...
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I do like the idea of meadowsweet or rosemary/lavender for headaches. I'll have to buy some one gallon containers soon...
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Hey there, Oskaar me boy!
Your kind greeting makes me feel sheepish for not having shown my face around here...but I'm out of excuses. That is, you've heard them already.
Thinking of medicinal mead, I made a blueberry/chamomile mel two years ago - recipe culled off the Net, maybe from The Bees Knees. I know you were curious about it. But it tastes soapy. I decided that I wasn't racking my meads quickly enough. If they're on the sediment too long, they go soapy on me. Dern it, now I have to go and open a bottle - it's been a year since I tried it.
...Well, it's improved, but the soap is still frustratingly there. It's a separate overtone that appears in the nose after the gulp, with its odd, chili and almost chocolate-like notes goes down. I'll open another bottle a year from now, hoping that the off-taste goes away by itself.
I don't think I'm talking myself into it, but although the chamomile is not at all noticeable, I do feel the same effect of slipping out of tension and into a relaxed mode, that I get from a cup of chamomile tea. Ah, honey, how it does enhance any fruit, flower, or herb. I think my next metheglin will be flavored with flowers from my lemon tree. An orange-blossom meth I made three years ago was very good indeed (no soap).
What do the herbalists say about citrus-blossom metheglin? And I'd like to try a mimosa meth some day; can you imagine how soothing and comforting it would be?
Your kind greeting makes me feel sheepish for not having shown my face around here...but I'm out of excuses. That is, you've heard them already.
Thinking of medicinal mead, I made a blueberry/chamomile mel two years ago - recipe culled off the Net, maybe from The Bees Knees. I know you were curious about it. But it tastes soapy. I decided that I wasn't racking my meads quickly enough. If they're on the sediment too long, they go soapy on me. Dern it, now I have to go and open a bottle - it's been a year since I tried it.
...Well, it's improved, but the soap is still frustratingly there. It's a separate overtone that appears in the nose after the gulp, with its odd, chili and almost chocolate-like notes goes down. I'll open another bottle a year from now, hoping that the off-taste goes away by itself.
I don't think I'm talking myself into it, but although the chamomile is not at all noticeable, I do feel the same effect of slipping out of tension and into a relaxed mode, that I get from a cup of chamomile tea. Ah, honey, how it does enhance any fruit, flower, or herb. I think my next metheglin will be flavored with flowers from my lemon tree. An orange-blossom meth I made three years ago was very good indeed (no soap).
What do the herbalists say about citrus-blossom metheglin? And I'd like to try a mimosa meth some day; can you imagine how soothing and comforting it would be?
I think it's time this thread is revived. I think the idea of using mead to deliver herbal medecine is fascinating. I only stared making mead last January and now have 7 batches aging along nicely. I only use a no heat methodolgy. I just racked two of my traditionals onto herbs to make tonics.
To 3 gallons of 16% ABV (using D47) traditional I added:
20g Eleuthro (Siberian Ginseng)
40g Burdock Root
40g Astragulus Root
30g Fo-Ti
20g Echinacea
15g Saw Palmetto Berries
40g Ginger Juice
2 Medium roast Oak Cubes.
I plan to leave them to extract for 4-8 weeks.
To one gallon of the same traditional I added:
20g Ginger Juice
40g dried Elderberries
40g dried Hawthorne Berries
2g Star Anise
Lastly I racked 5 gallons of 15.5% and rising ABV (K1) Traditional to:
115g dried Hawthorne Berries
95g Elderberries
35g Saw Palmetto Berries
20g Eleuthero
15g Echinacea
In the future however, I plan to experiment with making herbal decoctions and using that to dilute my honey before I pitch my yeast. This way I can extract the herb with hot water or by boiling as the case may be and have a strong medicinal component, with the option of course to add more things to the batch in secondary.
To 3 gallons of 16% ABV (using D47) traditional I added:
20g Eleuthro (Siberian Ginseng)
40g Burdock Root
40g Astragulus Root
30g Fo-Ti
20g Echinacea
15g Saw Palmetto Berries
40g Ginger Juice
2 Medium roast Oak Cubes.
I plan to leave them to extract for 4-8 weeks.
To one gallon of the same traditional I added:
20g Ginger Juice
40g dried Elderberries
40g dried Hawthorne Berries
2g Star Anise
Lastly I racked 5 gallons of 15.5% and rising ABV (K1) Traditional to:
115g dried Hawthorne Berries
95g Elderberries
35g Saw Palmetto Berries
20g Eleuthero
15g Echinacea
In the future however, I plan to experiment with making herbal decoctions and using that to dilute my honey before I pitch my yeast. This way I can extract the herb with hot water or by boiling as the case may be and have a strong medicinal component, with the option of course to add more things to the batch in secondary.
I've been thinking about this a lot lately, as I've been tincturing more. Does anyone have any sense of dosage, or of concentration of plant material in a metheglin to create a potent enough drink to be useful in acute situations (like the flu) as well as tonically? I'm looking particularly at you, wirewraps, since you've got pretty specific measurements for your tonics. Also, certain constituents extract better in water than alcohol and vice verca; usually I'll use 50% abv to extract from dried herbs, unless I'm looking to extract a polysaccharide or other primarily water-soluble material. So what can we do when we're trying to extract something better extracted with alcohol?
My thoughts thus far:
Desired dose size, 1-3 oz?
If 1 oz, and usual tincture dose is from .75-1.5ml (~30 ml/oz), then we'd want it to be 1/30th as strong?
Assuming no loss of potency, and 1:4 ratio of dried herb by weight to liquid volume of menstruum, or 1 lb of herb per half gallon in tincture...
1/3 lb (150g) of herb per five gallon batch of mead, or 30g/gallon?
Of course, that's assuming equal potency. Maybe double or so to account for lower abv? Obviously, this lends itself to blends well, since it's more dilute.
Thoughts?
My thoughts thus far:
Desired dose size, 1-3 oz?
If 1 oz, and usual tincture dose is from .75-1.5ml (~30 ml/oz), then we'd want it to be 1/30th as strong?
Assuming no loss of potency, and 1:4 ratio of dried herb by weight to liquid volume of menstruum, or 1 lb of herb per half gallon in tincture...
1/3 lb (150g) of herb per five gallon batch of mead, or 30g/gallon?
Of course, that's assuming equal potency. Maybe double or so to account for lower abv? Obviously, this lends itself to blends well, since it's more dilute.
Thoughts?
