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71 posts tagged Cannabis
Chocolope Kush is a cross of Chocolope, popular for its euphoric sativa effect and dessertlike flavor, and Kosher Kush, a heavy indica known for its powerful medicinal qualities. The result is a perfectly balanced hybrid, offering a deeply soothing Kush stone that does not overpower the uplifting sativa high.
The aroma is complex and dankly evocative, with sweet scents of grass, earth, mint, chocolate, and pine layered over spice, musk, and fuel. The taste is mild and smooth, subtly earthy, sweet, and somewhat spicy, with chocolate undertones in the exhalation.
The effect slinks up suddenly, with a strong cerebral rush that expands and distorts perception, inspiring a blithely wandering mind inclined to forget and lose track of time. Physically, it’s fairly sedative, relieving pain, tension, stress, and anxiety with a swishy, flowing, gliding sensation.
Candy Jack is a sativa-dominant hybrid of the iconic Jack Herer, possibly crossed with Cotton Candy. The aroma is sweet and slightly skunky with strong notes of menthol and overripe fruit, and the flavor lives up to the name: sweet, smooth, floral, and a bit fruity with hints of cotton candy and pine.
The effect is uplifting, cheery, and alert, but not energetic. It’s tranquil, carefree, and hazy, and would be an ideal choice for creative activities, watching a movie, or listening to music. It’s potent and heady with a quick mental rush followed by a noticeable crash. This strain could help with anxiety or depression and may also enhance focus.
I don’t want Mitt Romney to become president — I’m neither an ignoramus nor a monster. But since there is no danger of Romney winning California, I don’t see any reason to give President Obama my support. I don’t support Obama’s use of drones or the Espionage Act. I don’t support warrantless wiretapping or indefinite detention or silencing whistleblowers. I don’t support the construction of new oil pipelines. I am disappointed by Obama’s failure to make climate change a priority or to close Guantánamo.
To say that I don’t support the President’s handling of medical cannabis would be putting it mildly — Obama appointees shut down the dispensary where I worked, as well as Northstone Organics and Cornerstone Research Collective and countless other collectives that were operating in full compliance with state and local law, for no other reason than to aggressively undermine California’s ability to regulate medical cannabis.
Dr. Jill Stein seems like a lovely, intelligent woman and I will be pleased to vote for her and her running mate Cheri Honkala. But since there is no possibility of Jill Stein actually being elected, what I am really doing is using my vote to endorse the Green Party platform. The Green New Deal may be implausibly idealistic, but so am I, and I’m relieved by the existence of a candidate, viable or not, who is representative of that implausible idealism.
Raindrop Kush is an indica-dominant hybrid descended from OG Kush x Hash Plant and Bubba Kush x Mr. Nice Guy crosses. Neither too dense nor too fluffy, this flower breaks up and burns well. The powerful spearmint aroma is enticing, with floral, herbal, and pine notes. The flavor is clean and clear, predominantly floral but with some earthiness and a hint of campfire.
The effect feels physically and mentally restorative as it glides up smoothly after smoking or vaporizing, subtly evaporating stress and pain. It’s mentally uplifting and energizing, faintly psychedelic, fairly clear-headed but slightly loopy. Raindrop Kush melts away tension and imparts a sense of calm serenity, and would be ideal for sedentary activities that require some cerebral focus.
Cannabis prohibition is a policy propped up by lies. If our government were honest, cannabis would be legal.
After reading about about Cornerstone Research Collective in Heart of Dankness, I knew I had to check out this invitation-only LA dispensary’s “rare and unique strains of connoisseur-quality cannabis.” Mark Haskell Smith was kind enough to vouch for me, and the strains I sampled did not disappoint in the slightest.
Nevil’s Haze is an absolutely superb sativa-dominant hybrid with a powerful and immediate cerebral effect that is somehow hazy, clear, relaxing, profound, and uplifting, all at once. It’s mellow, mood-enhancing, and incredibly focused. I loved everything about this truly magnificent strain.
Dos Genios is an indica-dominant hybrid of Blackberry Kush, Platinum Kush, and Pure Kush. Perfect for pain relief without sedation, the effect is physically soothing with some head heaviness that is pleasantly calming without being sleepy or foggy.
Kilimanjaro is a pure sativa with a stimulating, euphoric effect. I was a bit wary of this strain because it tests high in limonene, and pure sativas that are high in THC and limonene tend to give me an uncomfortably speedy sensation. But I didn’t have that issue with Kilimanjaro. Instead, I felt energized and sociable with no anxiety or paranoia whatsoever. It’s alert, upbeat, and mentally distorting, but not particularly disorienting.
All three strains were remarkably potent, functional, nuanced, and smooth. I’m definitely looking forward to revisiting Cornerstone the next time I’m in Los Angeles.
Fun fact: I was valedictorian of the basic weekend seminar I took at Oaksterdam. They gave me a certificate and a sweatshirt, which often elicits interesting reactions when I wear it—like the waiter in Big Sur who complimented the sweatshirt and then pointedly complained about how difficult it is to find quality cannabis in Monterey County while making intense and significant eye contact.
Anyway, I would like to go see this movie on 4/20, but who knows if I’ll be adequately motivated to BART to Oakland. It’s ridiculous that it isn’t playing in San Francisco. Someone should really do something about that.
Discussing dankness with Mark Haskell Smith.
Caitlin Podiak: Your quest for the “heart of dankness” centers on the annual High Times Cannabis Cup event in Amsterdam. But how relevant do you think those awards are to cannabis users in California? I know many of the strains we have here come from Dutch seeds, but beyond that, I wonder how much the Amsterdam Cannabis Cup results should matter to us in the United States.
Mark Haskell Smith: Oh, I think they’re very relevant to what goes on in California. The strains that win the Cannabis Cup ultimately become the popular strains you find in medical dispensaries or being sold by dealers. AK-47, Super Silver Haze, Willie Nelson, Lavender, LA Confidential…these are all fairly common strains nowadays, but they were first introduced at the Cannabis Cup. I imagine Kosher Kush, which is originally a SoCal strain, will become huge in the next year or two because it just won the Indica Cup in Amsterdam. It’s sort of like Coachella for cannabis. It’s where the unknowns get their shot at the big-time. And that resonates in California. We want those seeds.
Keep in mind that there is an established infrastructure for the development and distribution of cannabis seeds in Amsterdam; it’s a multimillion dollar a year business, and the competition between seed companies keeps the Cup relevant.
CP: I’m just not sure how seriously to take any competition in which so many strains are sampled in such a short time frame. I don’t feel comfortable writing a strain review or even a brief menu description for a strain until I have sampled it more than once, and had time to evaluate the effects completely on their own, without the lingering effects of any other strains in my system.
MHS: Yeah, if you were going to judge all the entries in all the categories you’d be smoking something like seventeen samples of imported hash, Dutch hash, and cannabis a day. I know I couldn’t do it and be able to put a sentence together, much less judge a winner. But then, that’s how they do wine tastings. Judges taste literally thousands of wines in a week.
I talked to a few celebrity judges who took part in the blind tastings for the seed company categories and it was pretty well organized. For sure they’re smoking a lot, but they do it one category at a time. So like, Tuesday is for sativas, Thursday is for indicas, etc. Also, I think they’re able to look at the entries and know which buds are going to be worth smoking and which aren’t.
That said, I think that’s why strains with strong flavors, like Super Lemon Haze, win these prizes. They’ve got a distinct taste and a pretty strong rush, so they can cut through the pack. Personally, I prefer more equatorial strains, like John Sinclair or some of the Jamaican sativas. These strains don’t give you that uplifting head rush—they creep up on you, but they’re more psychedelic.
Yup.
