I Follow My Nose
In celebration of the legalization of adult use cannabis in Ohio and anticipation to the roll out of Kentucky’s Medical Marijuana program, I wanted to share the most important lesson I learned when shopping for legal cannabis. In total I have been visited recreational/adult use cannabis dispensaries in Michigan a total of maybe 4 times now. The first two visits were educational experiences where even the bad lessons weren’t so bad. And the one overriding lesson I learned was to trust my instincts. The friend with whom I travel enticed me with stories of first-time buyer discounts and free samples. More importantly he shared the excellent ganja he had purchased at absurdly low prices. OK, the hook was set, I needed to see it for myself.
My first visit was the most educational. We visited 2 maybe 3 dispensaries in pursuit of discounts and free samples. The discounts were usually for first time customers and were only available on regular price items. At the first dispensary we visited I focused on the discount/budget flower. At $60/oz the “budget” grade ganja that was still as good or better than what is available on the underground market back home. I selected two strains based strictly on price. (authors note: I come from the generation where we had very few “strains” but plenty of names: creeper or creep weed, laughing pot, munchie pot…) The free “gift” for 1st time customers was an edible.
One of the strains I purchased strictly on price, Poddy Mouth, was a treat. It had a great aroma and taste and presented a clean high. On a subsequent visit I was bummed to learn this strain was sold out. The other strain did not have the same aesthetic appeal when I initially checked it out. The aroma was more earthy, the visuals not as crystally, I justified the purchase by saying “I have spent a lot more on lower quality bud.” That said, I hate to admit I sort of became a snob about that particular strain. It’s what I used when I rolled a doobie to take to the club to share with random people. It is what I gave to friends who were hard up. It was decent, and in years past I would have been over joyed with it. However, I had different reefer that I enjoyed more and this sat forever. I used my first time buyer discount on bubble hash.
At the second dispensary we visited I fell trap to exotic strains. This experience generated more questions than answers. All the dispensaries we visited have elaborate grading systems and tiers for their product. Different strains occupied the “platinum, gold, silver, bronze” tiers at one store, while another dispensary had “diamond, emerald and ruby levels”. Personally, this was information overload and confused me more than helped. I did not see an explanation of how or why the classifications were assigned, what criteria was used to define each classification. Do all dispensaries operate by the same grading criteria or does each dispensary have its own unique system? Is there a Cannabis Czar who awards the gold seal of approval?
I essentially lost my sense of mission at the second dispensary, and it cost me. We did not indulge in any cannabis between dispensaries, so the explanation likely lay in more basic explanations. The second dispensary was aesthetically more appealing. It was a dedicated building, whereas the first shop we visited had more of a strip mall or repurposed building feel. The second dispensary was painted nicer on the outside, better decorated on the inside, the effect loosened me up a little. Inside the high-end strains were well displayed with each strain having its own magnified sample you could observe. And, if I am being completely honest, the budtender was attractive, an adult and friendly enough that it changed my demeanor. (I know. It should not have impacted me. But I like thinking I am clever and smart when someone cute laughs at my jokes.)
At this dispensary I saw a strain that I recalled from the 1990s, Durban Poison, and had to buy it. It was listed as a “gold level”, so not even the top tier, and I want to say retailed for $400/OZ or something close before discounts. The amount of Durban Poison was limited so I also selected another top tier strain, Lemon Hash Plant(?). (Hey, I wanted to look like I knew what I was doing and impress the cute budtender….dumbass!) While conducting my transaction, the budtender kept going to the back of the dispensary to get the pricing and confirm the discount I was allowed. When I actually took the time to review my receipt, I realized I DID NOT get the discounts I was told. I had become so invested in flirting with someone I would never see again, that I left money on the table. That’s one painful lesson I doubt I learned.
The ganja itself was a HUGE disappointment. Neither of the two top tier strains I purchased had the aroma or taste of the budget strain that cost $60/oz. More importantly, the high was not perceptibly better than either of the discount strains I had purchased. The best analogy I can make is that top strain ganja was like owning a showroom new Corvette, but knowing your used Subaru WRX is just as much fun or more to drive.
On subsequent visits I have been much more attentive to my nose. I try to set a limit of $90/oz and shop strictly from the clearance/discounted section. Most of the “display” samples are open so you can stick your nose in and take a big sniff. Personally, I prefer a piney smell, or a citrus tone to my ganja, but a skunky scent is also acceptable. I find these aromas translate into taste with some fidelity. More importantly, I find that these aesthetic attributes correlate with a high or effects I prefer. This is probably the impact of the terpene profile and minor cannabinoids known as the “entourage effect”. RARELY, do I look at the THC% prior to purchase.
My most recent acquisition included a couple of strains I did not smell prior to purchase. When I got the chance to evaluate, the split between strains with the smell I gravitate towards versus that I avoid was 50/50. All the ganja tested between 17-26% THC. One strain that is 19% THC but with good aroma and taste seems to have the same impact on me as the 26% THC strain with similar aroma and flavor. Of the two strains I do not find aesthetically appealing one has an aroma and taste with chocolate under tones and the other is more earthy. I did not experience any noticeable difference between the high from the ganja I like aesthetically with 19% THC and the one that tests at 26% THC that did not tickle my nose as pleasantly. When consumed I still find that the aesthetics of the raw flower are a better indicator of my personal enjoyment of the high more than raw THC%.
None of this is scientific, it’s all completely subjective. That may be the point of this article. Cannabis and humans have a unique relationship. The effects of cannabis are not “intoxicating” like alcohol or most other “drugs”, as the effects of cannabis are a result of the active compounds in the smoke bonding with receptor sites within the human anatomy. And, everybody’s body is different. For example, it has been shown that a percentage of people cannot feel the effects of edibles because they lack an intestinal enzyme that breaks down THC. This type of natural variation logically extends into other areas of the human/cannabis interaction. Individual human physiology likely reacts to the different levels of compounds found in different strains of cannabis. Conversely, on the cannabis side of the equation, there is likely more variation, even batch to batch (crop to crop) variance of compounds within strains. In other words, no 2 growers produce identical flower, even if the seed stock is homogenous.
In the end, it’s what works for each individual. Personally, I prefer flower with a specific aroma and taste profile. The “exhale” is particularly important to me. Concentrates, especially the newer ones that can be up to 90% THC, tend to overwhelm me or just bring on a headache. I don’t find concentrate consumption as enjoyable because I can’t control the effect like I can with properly cured flower. To that end, I am able to meet my personal needs from the budget/discount bin. Other people interact with cannabis differently. For some, consuming a concentrate with delivery device that hits like a truck is just enough. I guess the moral of the story is that because consuming cannabis is an interaction between two naturally occurring life forces everyone has to be aware of their own right path. In other words, you do you, Boo. As for me, I need to remember the lyrics to the song Next Time You See Me which says, “it’s a true, true saying, all that shines is not gold.” Maybe not, but that piney, lemon fresh smell sure is a good sign for me.
