Thymus vulgaris 1:1 extract: thyme in liquid form
Thyme is not a herb you pull out of the ground but a subshrub: woody at the base, green and herbaceous higher up, with wiry branches that knit into a dense mat. The plant stays low at fifteen to thirty centimetres and spreads to around forty. Its leaves sit in opposite pairs on square stems, that square stem being the signature of the mint family that also gives us sage and rosemary. They are small, a centimetre at most, grey green and strongly scented. Clusters of lilac to purple pink flowers follow in late spring and early summer, and bees make short work of them.
In its native range Thymus vulgaris grows on dry, stony slopes from the western Mediterranean down to southern Italy: full sun, poor soil, little water. Those conditions come through in the smell, because the volatile oil in the leaf is rich in thymol, accompanied by p-cymene and carvacrol among others. Thymol accounts for the sharp, savoury character you recognise from the kitchen. This extract works at a 1:1 ratio in a 10 ml bottle: roughly one gram of plant material per millilitre, so it sits close to the herb itself. A stronger extract such as 2.5:1 holds more than twice as much in the same millilitre.
Dosing and use
Shake the bottle briefly and measure a few drops into a glass of water or tea, or take them under the tongue. Thyme is pronounced in flavour, so keep it to a few drops and build up if you want to. In cooking the extract can stand in for fresh or dried thyme in a sauce, marinade or stock, added near the end so the aroma does not boil away.
Storage and precautions
Keep the bottle cool, dry and dark with the cap closed properly, and out of reach of young children. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding or on medication, talk to your doctor first. Avalon Magic Plants carries dozens of other 1:1 extracts in the same category, among them peppermint, chamomile, eucalyptus, marigold and nettle. Every order leaves our warehouse discreetly packed.
