When most of us first heard about the Ardent Nova Decarboxylator, we more or less shared a similar reaction as 2 Chainz... cautious curiosity.

Of course, that soon gave way to the thrill that comes with open possibilities. The question “What can you make with an Ardent Nova?” was quickly replaced with “What can’t you make with it?”

Most rookies cut their teeth with batches of edibles. Understandable. But several chef’s kisses later, after perfecting our culinary artistry, what can we do to get that same novel thrill?

Many of us may find that next creative high in creating various types of tinctures.The Ardent Nova excels at concocting all sorts of tinctures.You could mix up an infused tincture, CBD oil tincture or any number of herbal tinctures and you don’t even need alcohol to do it!

So how do you make a tincture with the Ardent Nova?

(credit: hempmarket.store)

Ingredients

First, you’re going to need to gather your ingredients. Since we’re going to forego the traditional use of alcohol, we’ll need a substitute. We recommend organic MCT oil as a substitute carrier since it offers all the same benefits of using alcohol.

Why not just use alcohol? You’re welcome to it, but people have their own health and personal reasons to avoid using alcohol as a carrier. So, with that in mind, you’ll need to have the following ingredients handy:

• 2 grams of cannabis in flower form
• 2 ounces of organic MCT oil

This is our preferred amount, but you can always make less or more.The key is to maintain that even ratio. You’ll also need to have the following:

• Ardent Nova
• Infusion Sleeve (or heat-safe glass container)
• Strainer
• Funnel
• 30ml Dropper Bottles

Would you look at that? 420 Market has a thrifty kit that includes the Ardent Nova and a handful of 30ml dropper bottles. Talk about convenient!

STEP 1: DECARB THE FLOWER

We’d say it’s time to get our hands dirty, but the Ardent Nova doesn’t really let you. This self-contained decarboxylation station keeps things nice and tidy. Load your 2 grams of cannabis flower into the Nova and set your decarb cycle. Simple enough so far!

STEP 2: COMBINE YOUR FLOWER AND MCT OIL

Once the decarb cycle is complete, you can combine your flower with the MCT oil. We recommend doing this in an official Ardent Infusion Sleeve. What if you don’t have a sleeve?

Fear not; any glass container designed to withstand high temperatures should do the trick.

STEP 3: INFUSION

Once the decarbed flower has been mixed into the MCT oil, you’re going to want to pour this concoction back into your Nova. Now you’ll run this mixture through an infusion cycle of 30 minutes.

STEP 4: NO STRAIN NO GAIN

Use your strainer to separate the flower from your oil. Unlike the steps where you’re relying on the cleanliness of the Nova, this can get a bit messy if you don’t have a steady hand. Make sure that the flower remains in the strainer and the oil drains safely into your waiting sleeve or glass container.

STEP 5: PACKAGING

Now it’s time to get your infused tincture into its proper packaging. We prefer dropper bottles because they make it so easy to get the preferred dose. Use your funnel to pour your tincture into your dropper bottles.

You don’t absolutely have to use a funnel, but we’d highly recommend it. After all, the tincture is precious so you won’t want to waste even a drop of it!

STEP 6: ENJOY THE FRUITS OF YOUR LABOR

Ardent themselves recommend starting at a 1ml dose and working your way up if necessary. It wasn’t exactly hard work, thanks to the Nova, but it was smart work!

So, you’ve earned that tincture! While our recipe specifically shows you how to make a tincture with cannabis, you can definitely get creative in making your own herbal tinctures. The sky’s the limit! Or, in this case, the garden.