For some time now, Cali plate hash has established itself as a benchmark in the world of high-end hashish. Its name immediately evokes California, premium quality and a certain idea of modern know-how applied to cannabis resin. However, behind this attractive label lie realities that are not always well known. What exactly is Cali plate hash, and why does it attract so much interest among enthusiasts?

A term inspired by Californian cannabis culture

The term Cali is now much more than a simple geographical reference. In the cannabis world, it symbolises a culture of excellence, forged through decades of innovation, advanced genetic selection and increasingly sophisticated production techniques. Cali plate hash fits into this dynamic, adopting the aesthetic and qualitative codes associated with the Californian scene.

However, this is not an official designation nor a guarantee of origin. A Cali plate hash can be produced outside the United States, but it aims to reproduce a high quality standard, both visually and in terms of aroma and sensory experience.

Hash Cali Plate: a recognisable and carefully crafted presentation

Cali plate hash stands out first and foremost for its format. It is generally presented in the form of flat, thin plates, regular in shape, easy to handle and cut. This presentation is reminiscent of premium resin slabs and contributes to its high-end image.
Visually, the resin displays shades ranging from light brown to darker brown, sometimes with golden highlights. The surface may appear slightly shiny, a sign of a high concentration of trichomes and well-controlled pressing.
Most Cali plate hashes are obtained through dry sifting, a traditional method that mechanically separates the trichomes from the plant material. When carried out precisely and using high-quality flowers, this process results in a clean, rich and highly expressive resin.
Pressing also plays a fundamental role. Performed at low temperature and with controlled pressure, it allows the resin to be compacted without degrading the terpenes. The result is a living hash whose texture evolves with heat and over time.

Texture and aromatic profile of Cali Plate

To the touch, Cali plate hash is usually malleable and greasy, becoming more flexible with the warmth of the fingers. This texture is highly appreciated by connoisseurs, as it indicates a well-preserved and properly worked resin.

Aromatically, these hashes stand out for their notable intensity. The most common profiles recall very popular modern genetics, with earthy and kush notes, sometimes creamy, sweet, fruity or slightly gassy. Terpene richness is one of the main factors explaining the enthusiasm surrounding this type of product.

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Thanks to a high concentration of trichomes, Cali plate hash is usually potent. Its effects are often described as deep and enveloping, with a gradual onset followed by marked body relaxation. Depending on the genetics used and the level of resin maturation, the experience may be more cerebral or more physical, but in most cases it is aimed at a public with some degree of experience.

A sometimes misused term that reflects the evolution of the market

It is important to maintain a critical perspective when it comes to this designation. The success of the term Cali has led to its overuse, and not all hashes sold as Cali plate truly meet the expected standards. The lack of an official framework means that quality can vary considerably.
A true premium hash is recognised above all by its natural aroma, its lively texture, the finesse of its flavours and the quality of its burn. The name alone is not enough to assess a product.
Cali plate hash perfectly illustrates the evolution of the hashish market. Consumers are increasingly seeking better-crafted, more aromatic products with greater transparency regarding their production methods. This trend brings the world of hash closer to that of modern extractions, without losing its connection to traditional methods.

The post Hash Cali Plate: the origin of a hash that has become essential appeared first on Alchimia blog.

It’s that time of year again, which is to say, roughly the same time as last year — but never exactly the same time — because it’s Hanukkah… right? Yes! As a genuine Jewish person with access to a lunar calendar, I can assure you that tonight is indeed the first night of the “festival of lights.”

Hanukkah commemorates the military victory of warrior priest Judah “The Hammer” Maccabee’s guerrilla army over the numerically superior forces of the Seleucid Empire and the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem. It’s kind of a long story, but here’s the gist: A Syrian king tried to outlaw Jewish worship and claim the Temple — the nucleus of ancient Jewish culture and law — for Hellenistic rituals.

It didn’t work out.

In the end, the victorious Maccabee rebels regained control of the Holy Temple, which contained the menorah, a ceremonial oil lamp that needed to be lit to rededicate the temple for worship. Left with only enough oil to light the sacred lamp of the Holy Temple for one night, the Maccabees fired up the lamp anyway and it stayed lit — for eight days and nights.

Now, if you have enough oil, staying lit for eight days is just a matter of persistence and scheduling. But what if you only have one gram of oil? For me, making one gram of oil last eight days would be nothing short of miraculous. Frankly, I don’t recommend doing this on purpose, but if circumstances require you to be especially economical with your oil, here’s a few tricks — eight of them, because Hanukkah:

1. Take smaller dabs

Experiment with microdosing — it’s so hot right now anyway. This isn’t exactly advanced calculus here; if you take smaller dabs you’ll use less, which should help stretch out your stash. The nice thing about smaller dabs is they often provide a more accurate and balanced expression of the flavor profile than a huge glob.

2. Take larger dabs

Alternately, you can take larger dabs and get the heavy lifting out of the way when it comes to the desired impacts. I mean, if your goal is to get lit every day for eight days you could just portion your gram into eight 1/8-gram globs and take one every day. This method works best if combined with methods #3 and #6 — and all of these work best if you follow method #5.

3. Roll or press your shatter

This is just my pet theory, but I’m convinced the volume of vapor you pull from a dab has more to do with surface area than weight. Hear me out. Based on my extensive personal research, if you take a quarter gram of shatter and roll it up into a ball, it will produce less vapor when dropped on the nail than the same quarter gram pressed out into a thin strip and laid across a larger section of the heating element. This sounds weird, but in my experience it works and the pressing will generally improve the clarity of your shatter.

All you need to do is take some shatter, warm it gently and roll or press it out through a silicone mat or wax paper: I like to sandwich the shatter between two small non-stick mats and use a lighter and/or my hands to heat it slightly, then I use a lip balm tube or a lighter to press it out. This also makes it easier to take a “bigger” dab while using less product.

4. Re-heat liquefied oil

Assuming you’re taking proper low-temp dabs (because the alternative is dumb and dangerous), you should usually end up with at least a small amount of liquefied oil in your banger. Generally this would probably end up soaked into the ends of a q-tip, but if you’re looking to stretch your stash, you might consider running the torch under the nail for a few seconds, just until you see any activity in the oil, then recap and hit it again. The flavor profile will likely be diminished slightly, but there are still cannabinoids in there, and if you’re so inclined, you can get them.

5. Buy better oil

This is actually the easiest way to stretch your oil out as far as possible. It’s pretty hard to justify taking baby dabs of bland soup, but then again, it’s even harder to justify taking big ones — just don’t dab bland soup. It’s not worth the money you save, because you just end up buying more. It’s like buying one-ply toilet paper at the dollar store; sure you save money, but the poor quality always gets you in the end. And anyway, it’s a celebration! You don’t have to buy the $100-a-gram stuff, but get something tasty and potent — think of it as a present to yourself.

6. Follow up with some bud

You should really be doing this anyway, but if you’re one of those “no pre-run” people who doesn’t smoke flowers anymore, you should really reconsider. Sure, there’s no substitution for a great dab, but the full spectrum benefits of an old fashioned joint or bong bowl provide a fantastic compliment to the more refined effects and flavors of your oil.

7. Press rosin from your bud

The upside is you’ll have more dabs. The downside is you’ll be dabbing homemade rosin. Your call.

8. Pray to the wrathful Old Testament God for more oil

It can’t hurt.

TELL US, how do you make your cannabis concentrates last longer?

The post How to Make One Gram of Oil Last 8 Lit Days appeared first on Cannabis Now.

Colorado cannabis labs consistently produce unreliable and inconsistent THC potency results, according to results of a new study.

Study: Colorado cannabis labs produce unreliable THC potency results is a post from: MJBizDaily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Bluetooth-enabled "smart" dab rigs are a harbinger of consumer cannabis trends.

How high-tech dab rigs are shaping the cannabis industry is a post from: MJBizDaily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

The primary goal of any extraction method is to separate the cannabinoid-rich resin of the cannabis plant from the inert plant matter. In the dry ice kief separation process, dry CO2 literally freezes the resin glands on the plant, making them easy to shake loose from foliage. These frozen glands fall through a 120- to 220-micron mesh sieve and are collected in a container below.

Done properly, CO2 extraction is exceptionally efficient, and the most common method of small-scale CO2 extraction is dry-ice separation.

A Few Notes on Dry Ice

Dry ice is actually solidified CO2 gas.  It’s super cold, because the freezing point of CO2 is very low, and it must be kept in specialized freezers that are even colder.

When not kept in a frozen state, dry ice doesn’t melt — it “sublimes” or “sublimates.” That means it transforms directly from a solid to a gas without going through a liquid state. This unique feature, along with its super-cold temperature, makes it ideal for CO2 separation.

As a safety note, remember that dry ice is so cold that it can cause frostbite on contact, so always handle with gloves and wear eye protection.

Getting Started

The following step-by-step technique is excellent for processing and preserving large quantities of leaf and small buds that might otherwise go to waste. In simple experiments, this method yields 15 to 18 percent of the source material’s weight in the final product —kief.

As with any kief or concentrate, that final product is contingent on the original buds. Resinous buds make the best kief. Lower-quality leaf and buds make lower-quality kief. The final product can be of many grades, but the first few shakes will always yield the highest quality. These smaller sieves (120, 160, etc.) let less green matter through. Larger mesh (200, 220, etc.) lets a lot through!

And always remember to shake over a large, flat mirror or large, smooth surface. Such an area makes it easy to scrape up kief.

The Dry-Ice Kief Separation Process

 Step 1: Place a few chunks of dry ice directly into a container. A can would work. Add about 3 times as many leaves and small buds to the container and let the pieces of dry ice mix with the chilled cannabis so it freezes the resin glands. The cannabis should be as intact as possible, so don’t grind it up.

Step 2: Use a Bubble Bag (or something similar with a 160-micron mesh sieve) to cover the opening of the container. The sieve end of the bag should be secured so it is pulled taut over the opening of the container.

Step 3: Holding the container right-side-up, shake the CO2 cannabis mixture in the can so the chunks of dry ice break up and freeze the supercooled cannabis.

Step 4: Turn the container upside down so the sieve is facing the mirror below. Shake the container for a few seconds or up to 5 minutes. During this time, white vapor should emerge from the container as the CO2 sublimes and resin glands slide through the sieve onto the mirror.

In the first couple of shakes, you’ll get top-quality resin glands. The resulting powder progressively turns to green leaf matter. Shake the container a few times so that the highest-quality kief passes through the sieve. Collect this kief before progressing to the next grade. Repeat the process as many times as desired and keep separate jars for different potency grades

Step 5: Remove any remaining pieces of dry ice. Scrape kief still stuck to the sieve and the inside of the container onto the mirror. Scrape all this kief into a pile and store it in a glass container to use for cooking. This hash is of lower quality and contains contaminants, but the cannabinoids are concentrated in the final product when you cook with it.

This story was originally published in the print edition of Cannabis Now.

The post Demystifying the Dry Ice Kief Separation Method appeared first on Cannabis Now.

Nowadays, more and more people are being made aware of the benefits of consuming cannabis resin extracts or concentrates, which are more efficient, with higher purity and potency, and they have better flavour and give relief more quickly than smoking or vaping flowers. Indeed, in California, cannabis flowers currently make up just over half of the market (55% in the 2nd quarter of 2017.), with extracts making up the remaining 45%, and according to figures from Colorado, another beacon of legalisation in the US, the concentrate market is growing at an astounding rate, with sales increasing by 125% from 2015 to 2016, compared to an 11% rise in flower sales and a 53% rise in edibles.

Solvent, Non-solvent, Solventless, and Solvent-free. What’s the difference?

These terms are increasingly common to see in the menu in dispensaries or cannabis clubs, but they can cause some confusion, so let’s examine the real meaning behind them within the context of the cannabis world. Solvent extracts are those that are carried out using a (usually a hydrocarbon like purified butane gas) solvent to dissolve the active ingredients and separate them from the plant material. Solventless or non-solvent is a label applied to products that have been extracted mechanically, without the use of solvents. Now, here’s where it can get a bit confusing. Solvent-free is a term used to describe products that were originally extracted with a solvent but later distilled in a laboratory to remove any trace of solvent residue. So they started as solvent extracts but now are 100% free of any residual solvents, as opposed to a well-purged BHO, which will always contain a certain, however minuscule, amount of solvent.

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Solventless or Non-solvent Concentrates

These are extracts or concentrates produced without the use of a solvent, sometimes referred to as mechanical extractions, including hash, dry sift, bubble hash, and rosin. Many smokers and dabbers prefer to consume extracts for health reasons (especially those using medical cannabis), as opposed to solvent-based extracts; there’s no risk of inhaling any residue of potentially harmful solvents if the product isn’t properly purged. Solventless extractions have the added benefit of being almost completely safe to carry out at home, with no risk of burning or explosion from using flammable solvents and no need to invest in expensive equipment. While solvent extracts boast a higher purity overall, with quality material, skill, and patience it’s possible to achieve similar, or even better quality results using non-solvent techniques. (Although yields at this higher quality tend to be much lower than, for example, BHO, solventless devotees are undeterred and more than willing to take this loss in exchange for consuming clean, natural concentrates.)

Hash

When we talk of hash, we’re usually referring to dark block resin imported from hash-producing countries like Morocco, Lebanon, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Hash has a very long history and is produced in large quantities using traditional methods that vary according to the country, but often involve drying plants in full sun and vigorous beating over fine screens to collect the resin heads. These are then heat-pressed into blocks for export. Quality can vary wildly, with the very finest blonde hashish commanding high prices in the coffee shops of Amsterdam. Most of what is produced, however, is of medium to low quality, has a very low THC content, from 6-17%, some CBD and very low terpene levels, with a typically generic and degraded terpene profile and containing much contamination in the form of plant matter as a result of the lively bashing the flowers receive as the farmers try to shake all the resin off the plants.

In the worst cases, imported hash has been found to contain such adulterants as henna, shoe polish, rubber, beeswax, animal dung, and pine resin, among other unsavoury substances added to increase the bulk or to make the hash softer and appear of a higher grade. Fortunately, the increase of home growing has reduced the demand for imported hash somewhat, and at the same time awareness of issues surrounding quality have increased in both import and export countries so, at least in Morocco, farmers and hash producers are beginning to change methods and export a much higher grade product, as you can read in our article Origins and evolution of Moroccan hash.

Charas

A traditional Indian method, this is possibly the simplest, most straightforward method of hash production, and one of the oldest. No equipment is required, as the process involves hand-rubbing live cannabis flowers (on the plant or freshly cut, not dried) to remove the resin. This results in a hash that is much more squidgy and soft than that beaten over screens and has a good reputation for high quality worldwide, especially for its higher terpene content. Charas is normally quite dark in colour and sold as balls or sticks, and traditionally would be smoked in a stone chillum by Sadhus, the Hindu monks, for whom it plays an important part in their rituals and religious practices. While it is made in other hash-producing countries, Indian charas is widely accepted as being the best quality, with different regions gaining a reputation for the standard of their products, with perhaps the most famous and demanded being Malana Cream from the Parvati Valley.

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Dry Sift/Kief

This is hash made with light agitation of dried buds over a fine mesh screen, basically a refinement of the traditional sieving process updated to yield a much higher quality end product. Indeed, true connoisseurs consider the highest grade of dry sift to be the absolute pinnacle of extracts; this is static-cleaned dry sift, refined with the help of silkscreens and static electricity to contain 99% pure resin heads. Made under optimum conditions of temperature and humidity with expertly-grown flowers of selected genetics, this technique can produce an extract of astounding quality, light golden coloured with a sand-like texture and a terpene profile as near to the plant as possible, untouched by water or solvent. The big drawback of this technique is the small return achieved from the starting material at this quality, often as low as 2%!

Much higher yields of dry sift can be achieved by using a tumbler machine fitted with a screen mesh drum to agitate the flowers or trimmed sugar leaves. Yields and purity will vary in relation to the quality of the material and the duration of the spin, with more and more contaminants being introduced to the hash as time passes and the vegetable matter breaks up from agitation. Most of the dry sift that is commercially available in dispensaries and clubs will be of this quality, denominated “farmers grade” with a THC content of anything from 30% to 50%, compared to connoisseur quality static dry sift which can reach as high as 75-80%, and is reflected in the premium price it commands, within reach of precious few. Good quality dry sift will be light coloured without any green tinge, and have the appearance of desert sand, and when pressed between finger and thumb should readily stick together and form a ball, rather than breaking up again, which would indicate a high content of vegetable matter such as trichome stalks and pistillate hairs. If you’re interested in trying it out for yourself, here’s a post about how to make dry sift.

Static Dry Sift

This is the purest form of dry hash, resin heads that have been subjected to a thorough cleaning process employing various screens and using static electricity in one form or another to remove anything apart from the trichomes, a long and laborious process that results in hashish of extraordinary quality but with very low yields indeed.

Dry Ice and Nitro hash

These two methods are basically super-cooled dry sift, where the material is exposed to extremely low temperatures (-78.5ºC in the case of dry ice, and much, much lower for liquid nitrogen) and then agitated on a mesh screen to separate trichome glands from leaf matter. These methods both have the advantage of being very fast processes, enabling a full extraction in a matter of minutes, and offering very good yields compared to regular dry sift. The disadvantage to these extractions, at least from the point of view of a hash connoisseur, is that the extreme temperatures being used lead to the leaf matter becoming so brittle that if not treated with utmost care, it can break down to form a fine dust that contaminates the result, often leading to hash with a green tint. We’ve written an article about how to make dry sift with dry ice. Please check the link!

Fresh Frozen dry sift

In the last year or so, some industry leaders have been experimenting with this method in an attempt to produce the most terpene-rich solventless extract possible, comparable to “Live Resin” a hugely popular form of BHO. Fresh frozen dry sift is made with freshly-harvested frozen buds, tumbled in a pollinator machine adapted for use in a sub-zero environment (a chest freezer or an industrial freezer unit) and dried via lyophilization in a freeze-drier after separation. This means that the cold chain is uninterrupted throughout the entire process of extraction and drying, resulting in total retention of terpenes and some of the most intensely flavoured extracts that this writer has ever had the pleasure of tasting.

Bubble Hash/Ice-o-lator/Water Hash/IWE (Ice Water Extract)

These are all terms used to describe the same product, cannabis resin extracted from the plant material using very cold water, ice cubes, and agitation. Buds or trim are stirred by hand or spun in a portable washing machine, then specially made mesh bags or screens are used to filter the water and separate the resin heads from the vegetable material and then further separate the trichomes according to size.

Like most things, the quality depends on the starting material used, and bubble hash can be of varying quality, with the lowest grade being dark brown pressed resin, little better in appearance and purity than import hash, but on the other hand, when well-cultivated flowers are extracted with the utmost care, the end result can be of the utmost quality, exquisite golden caviar approaching BHO and Rosin in appearance, terpene content and cannabinoid content. Indeed, many connoisseurs consider bubble hash to be the finest of all concentrates.

While we’re on the subject, it’s a good time to clear up an issue that is the source of frequent controversy and argument amongst extractors. The idea that water hash, bubble hash, or ice-o-lator is somehow not a solventless extract because it’s made with water, which is known by many as the universal solvent. Unarguably, H2O is indeed a solvent, and a great variety of things will dissolve in it. However, this mechanical separation technique involves employing water not as a solvent, but simply as a medium that allows us to create the perfect conditions in which to carry out the extraction by which the trichomes sink and the plant matter floats. At no point are the resin heads dissolved in the water for later recovery, and while a certain amount of water-soluble terpenes may be taken on by the water, this cannot in any way be considered a solvent extraction.

Fresh frozen bubble hash

Ice water extract made with freshly cut plants frozen immediately after harvest, this makes the most terpene-rich and therefore most intense-tasting hash, and while bubble hash made with dried and cured flowers may boast less flavour, it results in a more physically stable product that is far less likely to degrade during long-term storage. We did a head-to-head comparison between fresh frozen and bubble hash made with dried flowers. Check it out here.

Rosin

Possibly the newest method of solventless extraction, Rosin involves extracting a full-melt oil of high purity from flowers or hash using nothing more than heat and pressure. This method, in its current form, came to popularity around the spring of 2015 when Phil “Soilgrown” Salazar exposed the technique on Bubbleman’s weekly YouTube show Hash Church, showing just how easy it was to produce top-quality oil with as little equipment as a hair-straightening iron and some parchment paper. This revolution democratised oil production, placing it in the hands of anybody; no longer was it necessary to face the risks and dangers of butane extractions or to spend vast sums of money on closed-loop extraction systems to get high-grade resin products suitable for dabbing.

These days, the industry has expanded, and the market is full of rosin presses suitable for all pockets, from heavy-duty industrial presses capable of exerting more than 30 tons of pressure for the professionals, to small hand-held units ideal for beginners. The final texture of rosin can vary greatly from shatter to wax to budder to sauce, and this will depend on many factors, from the condition of the starting material, the genetics used, the temperature of the press, and the subsequent storage of the rosin. As a general rule, flower rosin will be tastier, while hash rosin will be more potent, but there will always be exceptions to this rule.

Flower Rosin

This is produced with cannabis buds, and the best results will come from flowers that have been dried but not cured for very long, as the longer the cure, the more the trichomes will oxidise and lend a darker colour to the extract. Unlike with BHO or Bubble Hash, it’s not really possible to process freshly-harvested buds and satisfactorily produce “Live Rosin”; the moisture content of recently-cut flowers is far too high to yield a stable product. Find out how to make it for yourself here.

Hash Rosin

As the name implies, this is Rosin pressed using Hashish as the starting material. and using some kind of filter, such as specially made rosin bags or coffee filters, to keep any plant matter contamination out of the extract. Because we’re dealing with a product that is already in a concentrated form, the yields obtained are typically much higher than for flower rosin. All kinds of hash can be pressed, though the yields and the quality obtained will depend entirely on the quality of the raw material, with street import hash producing around a 20-50% yield of dark oil with typically floral hash terpene profiles while a full-melt single-source bubble hash can produce yields of up to 90% of an almost transparent, golden/yellow colored oil with an aroma that’s very faithful to the original plant. One of the more recent novelties has been the introduction of “Live Rosin”, a term referring to rosin pressed from Fresh Frozen bubble hash, resulting in a very sappy and terpene-heavy extract. We’ve written an article detailing how to make your own Hash Rosin at home. Check it out here.

Solventless THC-A

A new process that is still very much in its infancy, this is made by taking terpene-rich rosin and re-pressing it at a very low temperature (around 55-60ºC) through a 25-micron screen. This separates the rosin into two fractions: the filter will contain yellow/white crystal-textured THC-A and a high-terpene sauce will ooze out onto the parchment. While this may or may not result in 100% pure THC-A, it’s certainly an interesting product for those who prefer medicating with fully solventless extracts.

We hope this guide will be useful to better understand what solventless concentrates are and how they’re obtained.

Happy extracting!

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Publications referenced for this article:

• Marijuana Business Daily: Sales of marijuana concentrates, edibles surging in Colorado
• Forbes: California Cannabis Retail Market Revealed: Big Data Tells All 
• Lumír O. Hanu, Rina Levy, Dafna De La Vega, Limor Katz, Michael Roman & Pavel Tomíek: The main cannabinoids content in hashish samples seized in Israel and Czech Republic
• Low Temp Plates: Solventless THC-A separation tutorial
• Dimethyl Ether toxicology report
• n-Butane toxicology report
• Master Organic Chemistry: Polar Protic, Polar Aprotic, Nonpolar: All About Solvents
• A Wohlfarth, H Mahler, V Auwärter: Rapid isolation procedure for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA) from Cannabis sativa using two flash chromatography systems
• Dilini Vethanayagam, Stewart Pugsley, EJ Dunn, David Russell, J Michael Kay, Christopher Allen: Exogenous lipid pneumonia related to smoking weed oil following cadaveric renal transplantation.

The post Complete Guide to Solventless/Non-solvent Cannabis Concentrates appeared first on Alchimia blog.

Welcome to the wonderful world of solventless cannabis concentrates! These products are what true canna-conniseurs (canniseurs??) are smoking on these days. Solventless products include bubble hash, hashish, hash rosin, & dry sift. In this article we will be discussing bubble hash and dry sift. We’ll touch on their differences and similarities as well as how […]

The post Dry Sift vs Bubble Hash: Differences and Similarities appeared first on The Weed Blog.