It makes me wish I could go buy some acid beer

alcohol prevents headaches????

might be an interesting brew but I wouldn't count on ethanol as the ideal complement substance here. would also love to hear from someone who actually knows the biochemistry of these substances how an alcoholic fermentation changes any of the active alkaloids in morning glory (I'm willing to bet dollars to donuts...and I don't even LIKE donuts....that that there is more than one active constituent to the morning glory extract.


as for vasoconstriction, the most powerful headache remedies we know for certain types of vascular headaches are ergot-derived and are vasoconstrictors, not vasodilators. same goes for feverfew, to a lesser extent.

I;'d look into sodium/potassium balance regarding blood pressure regulation.

interesting idea though, brewing the stuff.

just updating this thread- toward the end of the growing season, i harvested a couple ounces of morning glory flowers and fermented them in a batch of mead. the end product was a very simple mead with a subtle floral essence, probably more from the wildflower honey than the morning glories. however all who have imbibed agree that it is mildly psychoactive, producing a slightly different buzz from other meads i've made. looking forward to increasing the amount of flowers next year. as far as the headache the next day = epic!

the seeds are the only really part that contains psychoactive compounds and these develop as the seed matures. apparently the plant itself does not even produce ergotamine alkaloids but instead it is a symbiotic fungus that occurs on the plant and in the developing seeds.
the green parts of the plant have other ergolioid like - and i mean only generally similar - alkaloids in low quantites again due to the fungus. many of these are actually antibiotic antifungal chemicals designed to protect the host plant and the symbiote from pathogens.

there are also quite a number of resinous compounds that are technically termed lipopolysaccharides and chemically they are rather like Olestra (anyone remember that and the 'fat free potato chips' that caused 'anal leakage'?). They occur in most parts of the plant but especially the root, I would also expect they may occur in the flowers since they function to prevent browsing by predators. Jalap a very very powerful laxative once used in herbal medicine is repared from morning glory roots. Interestingly enough these compounds are also a new drug discovery target since in low doses they are powerfully toxic to MRSA (the drug resistant superbug). They also do quite a number on your own friendly bacteria in the intestine.

The way yeast work, and the delicate nature of the structure of ergot alkaloids I would expect that the yeast would actively deaminate them 9remove the amide group) and convert them into inert compounds. I wuld however be a bit concerned about the lipopolysaccharides, since alcohol would make them more soluable and bioavailable. They may well make a brew more potent as I can see them affecting the rate the liver metabolises alcohol (and other toxins) but I would not want to guess at long term effects of regular consumption of anything made with the plant material rather than the seeds.
Alonjg the same lines there is an herb known as Clary Sage that was often added to beers or meads to give it a subtle floral fruity flavour and also to make them a potent as being hit with a 2x4 because of the way it's essential oils interacts with alcohol and the brain receptors but not the liver detox system.