I'm planning to make a medicinal wine using Schisandra, but I ran out of white wine and only have two catties of yellow wine. Can I use yellow wine to soak Schisandra?
Can Schisandra be soaked in yellow wine?
It is not recommended to use yellow wine to soak Schisandra.
Schisandra is a traditional Chinese medicine that has effects such as nourishing the lungs and stopping cough, astringing and stopping sweating, and tonifying the kidneys and calming the mind. Soaking Schisandra in wine can stabilize and enhance its medicinal effects. However, Schisandra should not be soaked in yellow wine. Generally, a minimum alcohol concentration of 55 degrees is required to extract the medicinal components of Schisandra, while the alcohol content in yellow wine is too low to release the medicinal properties of Schisandra. Therefore, yellow wine is not suitable for soaking Schisandra in wine.
What type of wine is good for soaking Schisandra?
It is generally recommended to use 50-60 degree pure grain liquor.
Because the alcohol content of 50-60 degrees is suitable for soaking, a higher alcohol content may not effectively extract the medicinal components of Schisandra. On the other hand, a lower alcohol content may contain more water, affecting the taste of the medicinal wine. In addition, pure grain liquor has more nutrients compared to regular blended liquor, which is more beneficial for health.
The specific steps for soaking Schisandra in wine
Ingredients: 50 grams of Schisandra, 100 grams of rock sugar (adjust according to personal preference), 500 grams of white wine.
1. Wash the Schisandra and put it into a glass bottle.
2. Add rock sugar and pour in the white wine.
3. Seal the bottle tightly and shake it once a day.
4. It can be consumed after soaking for half a month.
5. Take 15-20 milliliters at a time, 1-2 times a day.
Precautions for soaking Schisandra in wine
Wine-to-Schisandra ratio
The recommended ratio of Schisandra to wine is 1:10, which means 1 part of Schisandra to 10 parts of white wine. In fact, there is no strict ratio requirement for Schisandra wine, and the amount can be slightly increased or decreased according to individual circumstances. However, since Schisandra is a traditional Chinese medicine, excessive consumption may cause adverse reactions such as hiccups, acid reflux, stomach pain, burning sensation in the stomach, intestinal rumbling, fatigue, and drowsiness.
Soaking time
The shelf life of medicinal wine varies from 3 to 5 years. The soaking time for different medicinal ingredients varies from 7 days to about 2 months. If the soaking time is too long, the quality of the medicinal ingredients cannot be guaranteed, and there may be spoilage reactions, which are not beneficial to the body. The medicinal components of Schisandra are easily soluble in alcohol, and Schisandra wine can usually be consumed after soaking for about 15 days.
Container selection
The choice of container is also important when soaking Schisandra. It is generally recommended to use glass containers and avoid plastic or metal containers. Plastic is an organic material, and alcohol is a good organic solvent, so it may dissolve substances from the plastic into the wine, which is not conducive to health. In addition, the components of Schisandra may react with metal substances to produce harmful substances to the body, so metal containers should also be avoided.
Contraindications for drinking Schisandra wine
1. Allergic individuals
People who are allergic to Schisandra or alcohol should not drink Schisandra wine, as it may cause allergic reactions such as fever, headache, hives, nausea, dry mouth, and tongue dryness. If you are uncertain about your allergies, you can try a small amount of Schisandra wine and observe for about 1 hour. If there are no adverse reactions, you can continue to consume it.
2. Individuals with early-stage cough
Schisandra has a sour taste and has a strong astringent effect on the lungs. It is good for treating long-term cough and dry cough. However, for individuals with an early-stage cough caused by external factors, treatment should focus on dispersing and dispelling the pathogenic factors. Taking Schisandra wine may cause the pathogenic factors to remain in the body, worsening symptoms such as cough and headache.
3. Individuals with early-stage skin rash
It is not advisable to consume Schisandra wine during the early stage of skin rash, as Schisandra wine has a certain astringent effect. At the early stage of skin rash, the treatment should focus on dispersing and promoting the eruption of the rash. Taking Schisandra wine will not relieve the symptoms and may even cause the pathogenic factors to remain in the body, aggravating the discomfort.
4. Individuals with high blood pressure
Alcohol has a vasoconstrictor effect. Drinking Schisandra wine may directly increase the blood pressure levels in individuals with high blood pressure, leading to discomfort. Therefore, individuals with high blood pressure should not drink Schisandra wine.
