With a growing marijuana industry, seems to be a growing number of terms – Indica, Sativa, hybrids, concentrates, shatter, distillates, dabbing, vaping, edibles� and the list goes on. In lieu of Fair Canna Care adding a line of concentrates to our online cannabis dispensary, we thought it was a good time to give our fellow users a rundown on understanding cannabis concentrates.
What Are Cannabis Concentrates?
The process of extracting cannabis concentrates beings with mixing the bud or plant with a solvent, then purging it to remove any remaining unwanted plant matter and solvents. The goal is to only extract the resin and trichomes, thereby producing a far more pure form of cannabis as opposed to the bud, which is trimmed direct from the plant. The solvents used can range from butane, alcohol, H2O, C2O. In addition, the cannabis can even be extracted using non-solvent methods. Solventless extracts use water (to result in hash) or heat (which creates rosin).
As stated, the goal of producing concentrates is to generate a more potent form of cannabis. While the potency of bud ranges between 10-25% THC, a concentrate is between 50-80% – sometimes even reaching up to 90% pure THC! As a result, users require far less of the compound to reach the same high as they would with a joint.
Types of Concentrates
Depending on the method and solvent chosen for processing, extraction can lead to many different forms of concentrates. Often, the name of these concentrates refers to their texture. For example: shatter, wax or oil.
Shatter
This concentrate is referred to as “shatter”, as it is likely to break into dozens of pieces if dropped on a hard surface – similar to glass. This concentrate is very stable and can be adhesive or smooth to the touch depending on the methods and process used. Shatter is thought to be one of the purest forms of concentrate, but because of its delicate nature it can be hard to work with. Most individuals prefer to “dab” shatter as opposed to trying to load it into vaporizers, which can be done as well. Visit our online cannabis dispensary to shop our shatter selection.
Dabbing is flash vaporization of concentrates such as shatter. Typically, you use a small torch to heat up a nail. When the nail is red hot, you apply the dab (of shatter in this case), directly on the nail and inhale slowly through a glass piece, like a bong.
Oil
Oil can be made with both CO2 or Butane processes, resulting in slightly different consistencies and taste. This is a popular option for individuals who prefer to avoid smoking as oils can be ingested directly, like edibles. In addition, ingesting them this way produces a slow onset of effects for the user, but also last longer. For individuals who are fans of vaping, oils can be easily consumed through a vape pen. Most of these concentrates, such as Clear Distillate, don’t produce any smell or smoke. Click here to buy Clear Distillate in our online cannabis dispensary.