never heard of someone getting black extracts. Just gonna throw out a couple theories and suggestions until someone more knowledgeable clears this up.
Is there the same about of base in the water in the first extraction?
Too much time in the basified methanol?
What were you using as a non-polar solvent? Sound like that you may have pulled jungle on your first pull.
Or you could have unknowingly gotten your "MHRB soup" into your solvent
I would recrystallize and see if that clears it up.
We must overcome the notion that we must be regular. It robs you of the chance to be extraordinary and leads you to the mediocre - Uta Hagen
TheScholar is a fictional character, anything that is posted by TheScholar is pure fiction and should be read as such..... just so you know