You might be already familiar with lemon balm; it will be no surprise since lemon balm is a common plant you would find at the garden. But this seemingly another garden plant contains essential oil. Not just some ordinary essential oil, lemon balm contains special essential oil, one of the most important essential oils.
Lemon balm produces one of the most expensive essential oils you can buy. It is really expensive because it’s hard to produce. While the scent of lemon can be easily replicated from lemongrass and citrus, which is cheaper, lemon balm essential oil stands out from its ability to enlighten mood.
Benefits Of Lemon Balm
Lemon balm has been used as medicine for a long time in history. Studies suggest its calmative, antibacterial and antioxidant characteristic. But it is not enough to use lemon balm as prescribed drug, some traditional herb medication just not the magical cure. But it still has many health benefits and it can be enjoyed as a cup of tea, bugs repellant, a glass of lemon balm wine. Lemon balm wine? In case this beverage pique an interest in you, here are the recipe for lemon balm wine made by the judges of beer and wine with colorful awards, Pauline Pearce.
Lemon balm wine recipe for one gallon of serving.
2 quarts lemon balm
2 large oranges (juice and rind)
1 pound of sultanas
1 lemon (juice and rind)
2 pound of sugar
1 table spoon of nutrient
1 table spoon of tartaric
1 table spoon of pectic enzyme
Gervin or any general purpose wine yeast
Campden tablets
Pick all the leaves from the pedicle, you only need the leaves. Wash it using cold water. Let it dry, and when it dry put it in some kind of container, make sure you use clean container. Pour boiling water into the container, four pints of it will be about enough. Add campden water into the mix and start stirring it. When you're done stirring it up cover it up and just leave it alone for forty eight hours.
Separate the liquor produced from the leaves. As you won’t need them you can discard the leaves. Put the liquor into sterilized container, put rind into it and add the mixture of oranges juice and lemon juice into it. Then put in sultanas, pectic, acids, yeast and nutrient inside. Leave it alone to undergo the fermentation process to around four days. Remember to keep it covered and to stir it up twice every day. After four days put it in a jar, put sugar inside and start stirring. Add cold boiled water till the jar almost full, seal it airtight and leave it for another process of fermentation. In three months you will be able to drink it.
