On extracts...

[TheAngryBovine]

Noob to DIY. I've only done basic mixing so far to get my feet wet, but I can't seem to find certain flavors. Q.E.D. I need to make extracts. Specifically, citrus leaves...
1. Safety: Atty. Also my lungs?
2. Vodka, everclear, or pg? Water? VG?
Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[LTV1]

You want to CREATE flavor concentrates? Unless you have a strong chemistry background I suggest you do not try.

buy flavor concentrates......you mix them with liquid nicotine, PG (propylene glycol) and VG (vegetable glycerin). You can create ejuice, anybody with basic math aptitude can. You will need PG, liquid nic, VG, 14 gauge blunt tip Luer Lock syringe, bottles (I suggest glass not plastic)......flavoring concentrates.....download breaktru's ejuice ME UP calculator and put it on your desktop among your icons.

You need to research this a bit more, imo.

John M, owner of Wizard Labs, can help you with your order. But do some research first.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

I don't want to distill a concentrate, Ltv1, just make an extract, or a tincture if you will. I have some equipment and do know what's involved and have made basic recipes.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

The flavors I'm looking for are only available from alibaba by the kilo and Amoretti as an essential oil.

 

[nnote]

I've done it with PG. Put the whole leaves in a 10ml bottle, about half full and then fill with pg. Next day drip the PG from that bottle into another bottle, clean and dump the leaves from the other bottle. As far as I know the PG ......s any biological growth. I vaped it and it's good. BUT! I have part of the original liquid set aside and I will check it again in a month. Until then I and only I will vape the joose I made.

 

[MattBott]

Check out the Tobacco Extraction forum and see some of their techniques.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

Thanks, Nnote. I'm not too worried about bacteria, pg is an alcohol. I'm more concerned about sugars and particulates (oil in particular) in a citrus leaf vs. the actual citrus fruit itself... I've used search on the forum, Matt, for "extraction, extract, citrus, etc." but nothing seems to relate to my concerns as far as citrus. Everything I read says DON'T USE CITRUS!!!! Should I make a centrifuge out of a blender or am i just overthinking this?

 

[haiqu]

The two most promising extraction techniques are liquid phase CO2 under pressure, and using N20 in a Whip-It canister. I haven't tried either method but plan to at some stage.

If you want links to these methods just ask.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

Wow. That's a good idea. Please, haiqu. Now I wonder how a low pressure vacuum method would hold up vs. a high pressure extraction. I think I'll try both. The ingredients are cheap and I can try both with equipment on hand.

 

[haiqu]

Your wish is my command:

Extracting limonene using liquid carbon dioxide - YouTube

Unfortunately the second method, published a mere 6 days ago on Gizmodo, has already expired and vanished from the internet.

Wait - found a copy on Gizmodo Australia (while it lasts):

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/10/how-to-rapidly-flavour-any-booze/

After that you would just reduce it to get rid of the alcohol.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

Awesome. Thanks. Kaffir lime mojito here I come! Also thinking a mix of kaffir, toasted coconut, pineapple and poblano. The poblano might need experimentation...

 

[nnote]

Bovine, as far as particulates, I used whole leaf. Didn't shread or chop or anything just for that reason. My resulting juice is free from particulate or plant matter. Just soaked the whole leaf. Not sure about oils, the bottle I have doesn't have any oil blobs swimming, but I dont think it's a high oil leaf. I would bet if filtered through a paper coffee filter, none if any oil would pass. Sugars, well.. not really sure how you would remove that, I think the amount would be negligible.

 

[TheAngryBovine]

From everything I've read, citrus fruit and zest have too much oil and sugar to vape. If that's the case with kaffir leaves, the only way around that is using a centrifuge from what I understand. I've got a couple old blenders and food processors I can use to make one. Won't be as fast as a real one, but it'll do the job.

 

[nnote]

So I researched that particular leaf and ya, doesn't seem like the best. It's got about 80% content citronella oil

 

[TheAngryBovine]

Hmm. That's no good then. Do you think distillation would work? Maybe I should mix flavorings to approximate kaffir...that almost feels like cheating at this point, though.