Written by:
Timothy Edwards aka Tim-Me aka Tree Wr3x
Concentrate extractors are taking terpenes out of fruit and combining them with cannabis, resulting in a very tasty dab.
With 22 years of experience in cannabis and being a judge in the concentrate category of a cannabis competition this year, I was pretty confident that I had seen just about every type of dab on the market but I was wrong.
“We use a blend of cannabis terpenes and fruit terpenes to get the final product,” said MMJ extractor/provider, who wishes to remain anonymous and for this article, we will call Andy. I met him while attending a private MMJ event, which is still technically illegal in Washington state. Similar to speakeasies during prohibition, these are what I like to call, “smokeeasy” events. Reminiscent of the medical days when the community could come together, these low-key private events still take place and are invite only. It was such a great feeling to be around like-minded people again and be able to talk science about the plant and learn something new.
There are several ways of extraction, depending on the fruit, color, or other organic compound, along with what organic material is being used and what kind of oil is being made. Steam distillation is the most common method. “It works by boiling water and letting steam penetrate the biomass to a collection point where the oils are separated from the hydrosol. This is the most common and does well with several fruits and other plants,” said Andy.
Personally, if I were to be the one making this, I would probably choose the next method.
Alcohol extraction, this method works by soaking the fruit in alcohol and then distilling the alcohol out of the product. Similar to the process of making moonshine or FECO. Solvent extraction and cold press are also two other ways to make this product. “The goal is to enhance the BHO and distillate for a full entourage effect while increasing the flavor,” said Andy.
I was given three samples to try for this article. Orange, strawberry, and apple. The first picture is orange flavor, and when I opened the container, it smelled like an orange peel, followed by the taste of oranges on exhale. Comparing it to cannabis flavors, like orange crush, I would say that this has a more natural fruit flavor. Some cannabis strains with fruit in the name, don’t always actually taste like the fruit.
Another example would be the strawberry cough strain, which is one of my favorites. The flower smells and tastes sweet but I wouldn’t actually say it taste like strawberries. These diamonds on the other hand do. The smell wasn’t as strong as the orange, but it had a stronger taste on the exhale. The effects were similar to the strawberry cough, having an uplifting feeling.
The third sample is Apple, and this one is my favorite. Back when I was in college, my buddies and I used to smoke in between classes out of an apple. When the bowl would get near the end, sometimes you would hit the Apple a little bit so the very last hit of the bowl would have a sweet apple taste to it.
This Apple dab reminded me of that only with a stronger, apple flavor and smell. Other apple flavors that I’ve tried always seem artificial and more of the candy apple flavor and not all natural. This one had a fresh apple smell and taste. This was the first sample I tried, and I took a fat dab, which ended up making me cough for a few minutes. The coughing was a result of me taking too big of a dab and not anything to do with the concentrate itself. My personal preference for Cannabis is more of a all natural cannabis flavor, and less on the fruit flavors. In no way am I saying that I disliked these samples because they were fantastic.
When it comes to cannabis, I always say that everybody has their preferred way of medicating. I say to each their own and you have to try it for yourself to make your own decision. Keep tuning into cannabis legalization news for all your up-to-date cannabis content.
