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Reishi Mushroom Tinctures are an easy way to extract the medicinal benefits of these abundant wild mushrooms. Reishi mushrooms have been shown to be Analgesic, Anti-inflammatory, Anti-bacterial, Anti-viral, Anti-oxidant, Anti-allergenic, and Anti-tumor.
The term “medicinal mushroom” used to draw snickers and knowing glances, but these days science is recognizing legitimate medicinal uses for mushrooms. Reishi mushrooms have been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine, and western science is just beginning to explore their many uses.
Medicinal mushrooms such as reishi, chaga, maitake, turkey tail and shiitake contain both water-soluble components, known as polysaccharides and alcohol-soluble components known as triterpenes. For this reason, medicines made from reishi mushrooms often include a double extraction. This two-step process combines alcohol and water extracts to maximize the medicinal benefits.
Benefits of Reishi Mushroom Tincture
Reishi’s water-soluble polysaccharides have been shown to boost immune response, especially in relation to cancer cells. Studies show that “The polysaccharides from G. lucidum are believed to trigger an indirect antitumor mechanism in which the host immune system is altered to target the tumor cells.”
Specifically, a type of polysaccharide in reishi mushrooms know as beta-glucans “has the ability to induce both innate and adaptive immune responses…triggering a series of molecular pathways…which in turn, activate the host immune response for immune cell proliferation.”
Reishi’s alcohol-soluble triterpenes go a step further. Science has found that alcohol extracts from reishi mushrooms are “the only known source of a particular group of triterpenes, also known as ganoderic acids, which have been found to have direct cancer cell cytotoxicity on a wide variety of cancer cell lines, such as murine Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) and Meth-A, and many of them have been suggested to counter angiogenesis and metastasis.”
What does all that mean? Water extracts boost your immune system and help your body combat cancer, while alcohol extracts combat cancer directly. Talk about a one-two punch!
Some traditional reishi preparations involve making a decoction by simmering the mushrooms for 2 hours. This preparation misses the benefits of the alcohol-soluble constituents.
As a whole, western science has proven reishi mushroom extracts to be:
- Analgesic
- Anti-inflammatory
- Anti-bacterial
- Anti-viral
- Anti-oxidant
- Anti-allergenic
- Anti-tumor
Reishi mushrooms have also been shown to reduce blood pressure, blood cholesterol, blood sugar and reduce platelet aggregation that results in blood clots. Its effects on blood sugar were significant enough that it has been successfully used in the treatment of diabetes.
The antioxidant activity of compounds found in reishi mushrooms seems to target free radicals responsible for aging, and reishi helped reverse the effects of aging in lab mice. Reishi works to protect and strengthen the liver and has been successfully used for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B.
Disclaimer: I’ve written this article based on my own research and experience, but I am not a medical professional. Please do your own research and/or consult a healthcare professional to be sure a reishi tincture is right for you.
How to Make a Reishi Mushroom Tincture
Ingredients
- Thinly sliced Reishi Mushroom (either purchased dried or wild foraged)
- 80 proof alcohol, such as vodka
- Fresh spring water (or chlorine-free water of any sort)
Equipment
- Mason jar (pint, quart or a half-gallon depending on your batch size)
- Cooking pot
- Filtering equipment: funnel and mesh strainer or cheesecloth
- Tincture bottles for storage
Instructions
Fill a mason jar about halfway with dried reishi mushrooms. Dried mushrooms will expand, and need a bit of extra space. If you’re using fresh reishi mushrooms that you were able to collect yourself, fill the jar 2/3 full.
Cover the mushrooms with 80 proof alcohol, filling the jar to within an inch of the top rim.
Let the mixture extract for 4 to 6 weeks. Ideally, it should be kept in a cool dark location like a pantry. To maximize extraction, shake the jar as often as you remember (daily would be ideal).
After the alcohol extraction is complete, strain through a fine-mesh strainer and set the alcohol aside. Measure how much alcohol extract you had remaining and make a note of it.
Place the strained mushrooms into a pot, and add about a half-gallon of water for every 2 cups of mushrooms. Simmer the mushrooms on low for 2 hours, keeping an eye on the water level. Do not let it boil dry.
The water extract should be reduced to about 1/3 of the quantity of alcohol extract. For example, if your strained alcohol extract was a total of 24 ounces (3 cups), you’ll want to reduce your water extract to 8 ounces (1 cup).
This 3 to 1 ratio will ensure that your final extract has a high enough alcohol percentage to be shelf-stable. Once the water extract has cooled, mix it with the alcohol extract and bottle in an amber tincture bottle.
Store in a cool, dark place. The dosage for reishi tincture is generally 1 full dropper per day but can vary based on your particular circumstance.
Medicinal Mushroom Tinctures
The beneficial properties of medicinal mushrooms are often best preserved in tinctures, where both the alcohol and water-soluble portions are extracted at the same time.
Reminder: I’ve written this article based on my own research and experience, but I am not a medical professional. Please do your own research and/or consult a healthcare professional to be sure a reishi tincture is right for you.
I messed up! I added 4 cups of the alcohol to a gallon of water instead of adding 4 cups of mushrooms!
I still have 2 cups of the alcohol left and alot of mushrooms.
Is there anything I can do to salvage the alcohol water mix?
Should i boil the mushrooms in it? Can i boil it and just reduce the water? Would that affect the alcohol?
Boooo Hoooooo!
Thank you!
I don’t think that boiling would work. I would think that the alcohol would evaporate more quickly that the water.
Hi Thank you for your easy to understand and informative post…. Please can you tell what is the shelf life of a dual-extraction made to your recipe… I want to make two tinctures / dual extractions one with a dried powder of reishi (because I am unable to buy any at the moment) and the 2nd using fresh shitaki mushrooms. Warmly, Denny
For shelf life, it really depends on the source you read. Some day tinctures are only good for 1 year, then lose potency. Others swear it’s 3 years. The herbal academy has an article on the shelf life of all herbal preparations, and I generally defer to them: https://theherbalacademy.com/herbal-preparation-shelf-life/
I am assuming that all Reishi mushrooms fit in this recipe. I have harvested Oregon Reishi which is tincturing now.
To the best of my knowledge.
any great thing to do with remaining fresh mushroom after the soaking/ simmering is done?
Hi, I found a reishi mushroom growing on a dead hemlock by the creek. My first experience with wild mushrooms, had it a while before I got it positively identified. Found your recipe, cut it up, and put in in Everclear (75 proof), thought I could do in 3 weeks, etc. A couple days later I read what you said about higher proof, figure I wrecked it, then I thought to dilute it half with water. Any hope for me & my tincture?
Signed,
A man who reads the directions…after.
No worries. I’d say it’s fine with the higher proof honestly…if you ask 10 experts you’ll get 10 different answers, and I wouldn’t worry about it being wrecked. If anything, some constituents may have been damaged a bit, but it’s not wrecked and I’m sure it’s still got plenty of goodness in there.
I have collected Reishi mushrooms sliced them with a meat slicer dried them in a dehydrator and blended them in a juicer and now they are the same consistency as sawdust. Will this be acceptable to now put in jars and add the Vodka/Alcohol
It would be very difficult to strain a powder out of the tincture once it is finished infusing.
I have a whole pound of japanese reishi mushroom slices to go for an extract.I plan on making it at a 1:4 ratio as most herbalists recommend (100g of reishi to 400 ml vodka).While I know the alcohol percentage will change if I add the water liquid afterwards, will this ratio change too?
If yes,should I start with a 1:3 ratio instead?
What are your thoughts on this?
Also,I have some cordyceps powder from Mountain Rose Herbs that I would like to make an extract out of it.Would the powder work for this?I just can’t use the powder as is,even tried to encapsulate it,but can’t swallow capsules unfortunately.
Thank you.
Hello Ashley Is it normal after making a double extraction to have stuff floating at bottom? It’s only been a couple of day since doing the extraction with water and then putting it in with the alcohol tincture. . It seemed fine. Everything was clean. I tried to filter it but might have missed some? I used 80 proof 40% alchohol. I’m so worried.
What did you use to filter it with?
I used a sieve to filter it. Is it possible it’s the polysaccharides?
Hey Ashley! Thanks so much for this article. I have a similar question. Does your finished tincture Have floaties? Or should it be strained fine enough to be pretty much clean?
You want to strain it until it’s clear.
Hi Ashley.
Thanks for the recipe. I harvested dozens of Reishi this year and made some, well A LOT of tincture. After combining the alcohol and water distill I have a few mason jars left of the Reishi water. I was thinking I could dilute and drink as is and wondering if you advise against it? (I haven’t found any literature about this on line).
Thanks again.
Best, S.
Yup, that’s reishi tea basically, though made after they’ve alcohol extracted. I can’t see why not? It won’t keep though, so you’d have to keep it in the fridge and drink it within a week or so. Depending on how much you have, that may not be practical (or desirable), and I can’t speak to dosage.
Hi, i have a 2 year old nephew woth Desmond fribromatosis, which means his little body grows tumors, do you know if the anti-tumor properties are only brought out in alcohol or if a tea would have the same properties? Also, I have antler mushrooms we grew which were sent to us, do you know if these have the same properties and would I go about distilling or making a tea out of them the same way?
Both the water soluble and alcohol soluble constituents have been found to be beneficial in different ways. The double extraction method would be needed in order to get both types of benefits.
Hi! I made my tincture and was wondering how many mL or TSP in a “dropper full”. From what I’ve seen online, droppers and number of drops can vary! Thanks!
Generally, a “dropper full” is about 30-40 drops, and as far as I can find online it’s supposed to be around 1 ml.
Thanks for this recipe Ashley. I’m excited to try my reishi tincture!
You’re welcome!
Fresh Hemlock Varish Cap can be eaten. just trim the white portion and saute with a little oil. It is quite delicious. Don’t know if you get the same medicinal benefits.
Hi, very nice job!
I intend to use reishi powder, in 500ml jars. What do you thing should be the ratio between powder and alcohol. Would 100gr of powder be too little for 500ml of alcohol?
I’ve honestly never worked with reishi powder, but since it takes up a lot less space in the jar I’d guess something like 1 part powder to 4 or 5 parts alcohol would be right. That’s a guess though.
Thanks a lot
I have 4 jars of reishis that have been soaking for four weeks now in 80% proof vodka. I was a bit eager to fit as many Reishi in there as possible and so although I remember to shake them every 3-4 days there are corners that are not completely submerged in the alcohol. The liquid is slightly cloudy. Please let me know if I can proceed and make the tincture…I hope So! Thanks so much. Tina
They should be good to go!
Hi!
Thank you for this recipe.
What would be the recommended ratio when using a 64 proof rum? It is the highest the liquor store had available besides the 94 proof.
Thank you,
Cherry
I wouldn’t recommend doing a double extraction with 64 proof. That means it’s only 32% alcohol, and you want the finished alcohol concentration to be 30% or more. You just can’t add the water concentrate to that and ahave it work out. If you want to use it, just do a single extraction alcohol tincture.
I have a lot of left-over decoction from making a reishi/turkey tail tincture. I assume when the decoction simmered, some of the triterpenes in the mushrooms would still be in the actual marc, since I don’t have a really good press. So am I right in thinking that in the decoction, there might be a certain amount of triterpenes along with the polysaccarides? If I wanted to preserve the rest of the decoction for use, would I add 22% alcohol by volume as you do with astragalus? Thanks for your help. Really useful blog!
Yes, if you want to preserve the rest of the extract you’d need to add just plain alcohol. Some tincture recipes say 20%, others say as high as 30%, but I usually target 25 to 30% when I’m doing it. Good luck!
Question- is it possible to leave the reishi in the alcohol for too long? I had started this process about a year ago. Left my mason jar in the back of a cupboard, and never got around to returning to it, as we were building a new home, moving, etc. I brought it with me, and am now wondering if I can still move forward with the water decoction, but I’ve not read about leaving it sit so long in the alcohol. Thanks!
Honestly, I don’t know the answer, but I have personally done just what you mention. I lost a jar in the back of the pantry for a year too.
I did go ahead with the water extraction and I did use it, but since it’s not something that has visible results it’s hard to know if that method is potent/effective. I honestly don’t know if some of the water-soluble portions are damaged by that long in alcohol.
Ok, thank you! I will move forward, then.
Hello there! I was wondering if flavored vodkas would work okay with these tinctures, thanks!
Flavored vodka (or any other type of alcohol like whiskey, etc) are all fine for tincture making (assuming it’s the right proof). Good luck!
I purchased a reishi mushroom to make capsules for my dog. She is very allergic. I thought I would just grind it up and encapsulate it. However, as I research it , it appears that some of the medicinal properties are only released with alcohol and some with water. I do realize I should have researched first. Alcohol based tincture probably isn’t going to work for my dog. I was thinking I could make both the alcohol and water based extractions and mix them with something like flour, bake and grind it. Would you have any suggestions?
I know absolutely nothing about mushrooms and dogs, I’m sorry to say. I have no constructive advice for you, but I’d guess a dogs system likely wouldn’t appreciate alcohol, though who knows if it’s in very small tincture amounts. A friend of mine takes her dog to a canine naturopath vet, and I just learned that those do indeed exist. Maybe try finding one in your area and they likely would be qualified to advise?
Hi,
I accidentally poured the water into the alcohol before I boiled it down. 🙁 is it totally ruined or can I boil it down then add more alcohol? 🙏🏽
You can use it as is, it’ll just be less concentrated. If you try to boil down a tincture it’ll actually just ignight because of he high alcohol content. (This assumes you used the right ratios so that the finished tincture is at least 30% alcohol).
Hi again, how can i buy Reishi Mushrooms in a jar like you are doing? I would want to give this to my mother to use. We are just sitting and waiting for labs to find her mutation, so Dr. said we can do and try anything we want.
I’d suggest trying amazon or mountain rose herbs. Good luck!