Sassafras flavor / alternatives

[TimpanogosSlim]

It is very tempting to think so but actually I don't think this is very likely.

On two accounts:
First, If I am correct about the 2nd point,
then the date of the legislation doesn't match up.

Second, arn't you thinking of another substance?
(PM me the method if you are adamant!)

But in general, yes that is the lion by the tail!
and that is why it will require a lot of science and a lot of noise to get the law rationalized.

What, you mean eugenol?

 

[Blue-Frog]

no

 

[aruzinsky]

no

Why so coy? <- This is not a rhetorical question, nor, was , "So, you must have real sassafras oil?" I would have been more explicit and forthright with information so that there was less opportunity for confusion. Given TimpanogosSlim's confusion, which I would have tried to avoid in the first place, I would now say to TimpanogosSlim,

"No, you are confusing methamphetamine with methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine .

Safrole is not used to make methamphetamine. Methamphetamine is often made from ephedrine or pseudo-ephedrine which are commonly sold as nasal decongestants behind the drug store counter. In Illinois, pharmacists require an ID and signature so that the state can limit the amounts sold any individual.

Safrole is often used to make the recreational drug, Ecstacy (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA)).

I am unaware of any recreation drug that can be made from eugenol, which anyone can easily buy to treat toothaches."

However, I hate pontificating on irrelevancies even more than coyness. In this case, the extra info should help TimpanogosSlim avoid future confusion.

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

*shrug* fine. MDA rather than methamphetamine. It was still an early volley in the war on drugs.

As an aside, by the way, a couple years ago during a visit to seattle i wandered into an artisanal candy shop deep in the bowels of pike place market.

All kinds of hand made sugary whatnots. An emphasis on hard white candy.

The place REEKED of safrole.

 

[aruzinsky]

For some people other than FlyingDutchman, it may interest you to know that there is another plant that contains substantial amounts of safrole. The plant, piper auritum, is sometimes called the "root beer plant." See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piper_auritum .
You can buy seeds or plants online. I have no experience with this.

 

[Crazy8]

I use Sassafras in my root beer and have heard some safrole debate in different areas but I am just not sure about it all. I am not directing this towards anyone, but these are questions I have wondered based on some little research and conversation I have had in the past...
1. Am I wrong in saying that there is no solid proof to safrole (in Sassafras or other plants) and cancer?
2. I thought that original link that was established with safrole being a carcinogen was dismissed ages ago?
3. Is there not more carcinogens in the very air we breath every day, than what we would get from sassafras consumption?

I cant imagine that the government (FDA) would allow such massive sales of Sassafras, or other safrole plants, if they in fact do and will cause cancer with enough consumption of those plants.

That's all based on my findings anyway. Whatever the case may be, good luck with your brewing and hope all goes well.

 

[MapRef41N93W]

SpringMom, 10-4 on the toxicity. Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that if the flavor of the wintergreen is reasonable (ie. less strong than chewing a piece of wintergreen gum, which uses methyl salicylate as flavoring) it's probably fine. Where the problem comes in is if I were to over-dose the soda in such a way that the concentration of methyl salicylate would be so strong that it would make anything even resembling root beer...perhaps a mouthful of Bengay? I would think that using a handful of fresh wintergreen leaves would be pretty safe...? I mean, they used to make tea out of it...but then, they also used to make sassafras tea...

Also, I'm not ruling out the Pappy's extract, I'd just rather find a combination of raw ingredients other than sassafras that works.

Shooter, yeah, I just want to make a straight wintergreen soda for experimental purposes. I have single flavor sodas of each of the other flavors, so as I'm developing the recipe, I can more easily recognize which flavor component needs to be adjusted.

It also helps me set a benchmark for single ingredient proportion. For example, the sassafras soda that I made was WAY too strong, whereas most of the others were pretty close to ideal. Now I have a benchmark for how much of each component to add.

Just found this thread while searching through google to see if Camphor was a suitable replacement taste wise for Sassafras and I have to say that reading this post concerned me. Please do not ever use oils of Wintergreen or Birch to flavor sodas unless they are doubly diluted (meaning the EO is first diluted to 5% in carrier oil or another solvent and then diluted in the liquid). These oils are extremely toxic in levels well below what you are describing (doses as low as 101mg/kg have been found to be lethal). Just a few drops of wintergreen can lead to a hospital trip.

Now that that is out of the way, can anyone here confirm if they've found camphor to be a suitable replacement for sassafras?