[4] Due to its poor solubility in water, piperine is typically extracted from black pepper by using organic solvents like dichloromethane.

[7] The solution is decanted from the insoluble residue and left to stand overnight in alcohol.

The platinichloride B4·H2PtCl6 forms orange-red needles ("B" denotes one mole of the alkaloid base in this and the following formula).

Iodine in potassium iodide added to an alcoholic solution of the base in the presence of a little hydrochloric acid gives a characteristic periodide, B2·HI·I2, crystallizing in steel-blue needles with melting point 145 °C.

[9][2] Piperine was discovered in 1819 by Hans Christian Ørsted, who isolated it from the fruits of Piper nigrum, the source plant of both black and white pepper.