Cannabis wine

A post post from Kat on making cannabis wine properly, and a reminder of the GC rules against discussion of brewing

- Q. of BKCannaPharm


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Unfortunately, no discussion of even brewing or distillation is allowed at GC.


We can talk about drinking alcohol, but not making it, even fermenting... keep in mind we get a different crowd here than they do in the brewers forums, some kids with the best of intentions, often can't seem to manage to follow a simple firecracker recipe. We're lucky we're allowed to discuss making concentrates and tinctures starting with extracts made from non-food grade solvents.


It's a bummer, but it is what it is, and I definitely do understand their concerns.


Fortunately, there are PLENTY of forums you can check out specifically for brewing!





And (in the spirit of being helpful  ) here are a few past posts I've made on the same topic, staying within the guidelines....



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(**Following a question on merely adding raw/active cannabis or hash during fermentation....)



Keep in mind that cannabis glandular material is not water soluble, and there is no where near enough alcohol in beer/wine to perform an extraction even over the course of several weeks, or several months.

(*Consider that when making a hash oil or concentrate or green dragon, a VERY high proof alcohol is required, higher than the average hard stuff you'll find on the shelves of your local liquor store, and without heat those high proof blends still take quite some time to finish ie. become active and bioavailable.)

What you will get, is a bunch of nasty tasting chlorophyll and bitter, water-soluble plant salts!



Adding cannabis flowers or leaves, as they are in the ferment, or just boiled, only serves as a flavoring/bittering element! And the results are not always very pleasant.




That being said, we're unfortunately not allowed to discuss brewing of any kind here, but fortunately there ARE ways to infuse home brewed beverages with actual cannabis potency rather than just flavor!



Here are some old posts on the topic;

Brewing with ABV. Need advise

Brain Death - Marijuana Beer

Home Brew and Tincture

Canna-beer




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Disclaimer ( ):

We're not allowed to discuss the process of brewing, or distillation here. 


Before you ask why, please: Don't turn this into yet another 'why not' thread!

Once the search feature is back, and if you're really still curious, you can easily find a dozen or so threads explaining why.
Among the reasons, there's the fact that even with the numerous tutorials and threads dedicated to them, many members here often can't seem to follow instructions for making a simple firecracker properly. People frequently get ahead of themselves, get 'creative', and sample their product before even asking if it's a good idea.


If you get creative in the wrong way, when brewing on the other hand, the consequences can potentially be as simple as drinking harmless bacteria and vinegar, or, the consequences can be substantially more severe.



If you over-consume cannabis, or make an oil based edible wrong entirely, the worst that happens is you get very, very stoned, maybe a little nauseous or anxious, and sleep for an extra 5 or 6 hours. Medically, health-wise, you are fine after the fact and there are no long term side effects. If you screw up an edible entirely, nothing happens at all, and you're just left disappointed! No one has ever died, or suffered permanent harm, from cannabis over-consumption. A glass of high-proof red wine on the other hand, directly off the top of a 10 - 20 gallon carboy, can potentially be deadly.
Brewing is certainly and absolutely easy to get right, if you know what you're doing and you understand the importance of sanitary tools, but if done improperly or if the novice brewer gets over-excited and 'creative', then confuses simple brewing with distillation, it can potentially cause harmful, long-term health effects. For instance, even some 'adept' brewers are often unaware that particularly high-proof wine and some beer can produce toxic or harmful levels of methanol, which needs proper purging/evaporation... this is why even some store-bought brews and (especially) red wines, can cause terribly harsh inebriation, devastating hangovers, and blackouts, even after only light consumption.

When brewing wine or beer, it's formed by fruit pectins, and to a much lesser extent, by grains. A small batch *shouldn't* be deadly, but it can still produce permanent liver and pancreas damage, and reduce their ability to function properly in the future.


A cheap wine known as 'Buckfast Tonic', for instance, has been reported in an unusually high number of violent incidents. In other countries, with less scrutiny and little to no pre-sale testing or analysis, or where illegal wines are sold openly in store-fronts while the authorities 'look the other way', hundreds of people have been killed at a time by single batches of poorly brewed beverages.




We should be grateful that we're still allowed to discuss alcohol/hash extractions... if people abuse the rules (which is why the discussion of other substances was banned), the discussion of alcohol based extractions will very likely be the next to go!
It wasn't all that long ago that I had to explain, painstakingly, to an insistent younger member, why he shouldn't drink an Iso-alcohol hash extract.


It's also just a courteous gesture to respect the rules of the forum, and the wishes of the owners who are kind enough to provide it. 



There are a TON of forums and websites dedicated specifically to brewing, feel free to check some of them out.



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Now that the above is out of the way, I will also say this:

You need to add an activated, and already-bioavailable concentrate or extract, either before the ferment, or after bottling and at least a few weeks prior to consumption. I recommend using a citric acid (powder, not simple lemons!) and lecithin extraction. You can also make a golden or green dragon, but adding excess alcohol before the ferment can potentially hinder the actual alcohol production that you're trying to encourage.
Without adding a properly made, activated, bioavailable concentrate, the amount of alcohol you create is simply not sufficient to break down cannabis glandular material, nor is it enough to promote efficient bioavailability.




Adding cannabis flowers or leaves, as they are, or just boiled, only serves as a flavoring/bittering element!




You will not create sufficient alcohol to perform an extraction, and the flavor is not very palatable unless the plant matter has been properly cured, and often even water-washed beforehand.. and again, it would be for flavor alone with virtually no transfer of active potency.

I'll add the link from the 'not-tutorial' in the CannaPharm...


Simple: Triple Berry Hash Wine








edit - Vids of the fermentation...

http://forum.grasscity.com/photopost...wine3&cat=3362

http://forum.grasscity.com/photopost...wine2&cat=3362

http://forum.grasscity.com/photopost...wine4&cat=3362



Bear in mind, these were made for a tutorial for simple, cheap home-made 'carboys', best for short-term use, so folks can decide if this is a hobby they really want to pursue, before they invest a lot of time and money... we have several 5 - 10 gallon standard glass carboys going, especially during bloom, in the grow rooms (concealed in wrapped, light-proofed cardboard); they provide fairly adequate CO2   )

We regularly make hash infused sake, mead, miodomel, hippocras, wheat ale and more.