Cannabis concentrates can be found in a variety of items, ranging from weed oil cartridges to medicated muscle creams.
Concentrates are cannabis extracts that have been refined to focus on the most valuable plant components, such as THC and terpenes, while minimizing unneeded plant material and other impurities. When compared to natural cannabis buds, marijuana concentrates contain a greater amount of cannabinoids and terpenes per ounce.
Concentrates may also help to increase the strength of your flower. When rolling a joint the next time you make one, sprinkle kief or drops of concentrate oil on top of your cannabis flower. Concentrate chemicals may also be used alone. Concentrates, for example, can be vaporized via a personal vaporizer or dab rig (also known as “dabbing”). Dabbing has emerged quickly as one of the most popular methods for consuming marijuana in the sector.
To be prepared for the wide range of cannabis concentrates, it’s vital to understand about each type and how to dab or consume them, as well as how they’re produced. If you’re wondering whether or not cannabis oil is legal in your state, the answer might depend on what “marijuana wax” or “cannabis concentrate” means. Concentrates allow you to explore cannabis in a variety of ways; they come in a variety of textures and may be consumed in a number of different ways. Concentrates allow you to experience cannabis in a variety of ways, beyond buds. They can be smelled, tasted, breathed, or consumed in a variety of ways. A concentrate’s look and feel do not necessarily indicate its quality (effects, flavor, potency); they are simply aesthetic signals that may help you keep track of your own preferences.
The rapid onset time of concentrates, as well as their potential to generate a more powerful high than cannabis flower, are amongst the most significant advantages. Concentrates have a superior bioavailability rate when compared to cannabis flower. The length of an individual’s cannabis concentrate effects last from 1 to 3 hours.
What are concentrates and extracts?
Concentrates are made from the most flavorful components of a food or beverage. In the case of orange juice concentrate, for example, it contains all of the characteristics of an orange fruit, but without the extra liquid, peel, or pulp. The same may be said for cannabis plants: aromas, tastes, and other desirable ingredients can be preserved after removing foliage and stems while eliminating undesirable substances.
Extracts are plants, seeds, or fruits that have been immersed in a solvent to extract the components. Vanilla extract is made with ethanol as a solvent and vanillin as the flavor component extracted from vanilla bean pods.
Cannabis has a wide range of chemical components that may be utilized in a variety of products. These elements have an impact on the appearance, aroma, flavor, and texture as well as any physiological or psychotropic effects (if any) of cannabis products. The most valued cannabis chemicals are found in tiny sparkling trichomes throughout the plant. A concentrate is a preparation made from the trichomes of the plant.
The cannabis plant’s most precious compounds are located throughout the plant in tiny, glittering structures known as trichomes. These icy appendages cover the entire plant, with particular attention paid to the flower buds. All cannabinoids (including THC and CBD) and terpenes found in trichomes give each distinct aroma and physical effect to different cannabis cultivars or strains.
Cannabis concentrates, as opposed to raw plant marijuana, tend to be more powerful, faster-acting, and flexible in terms of consumption methods. The optimum dose varies considerably from person to person and even product to product based on your usage habits and tolerance level. Cannabis concentrates are available in a wide range of forms. You may customize your cannabis experience by selecting a variety of options that cater to your preferences while providing the greatest health benefits.
Is there a difference between a concentrate and an extract?
Extracts are trichomes that have been removed using a solvent, while concentrates do not. While those words are sometimes used interchangeably, the most significant difference between a concentrate and an extract is the method by which trichomes are collected. Extracts are concentrated extracts created through the use of solvents (alcohol, carbon dioxide, etc.) that wash away the trichomes from cannabis plants. Concentrates manufactured without the use of solvents can be produced via mechanical or physical means for removal and collection of trichomes
Extracts are cannabis products that have been produced by extracting cannabinoids from the plant material with solvents. They’re extracted using butane hash oil (BHO), rick Simpson oil (RSO), and CO2-extracted cannabis wax, among other things. Each of these comes in various textures, including shatter, budder, crumb, and crumble. Different extracts and the diverse textures may create different feelings in each product.
Rosin, dry sift and kief are examples of concentrates that are made without using solvents.
How to talk about concentrates
The terms “2% milk,” “Reduced Fat Homogenized Ultra-Pasteurized Milk,” and other variations are sometimes used interchangeably. This type of milk can also be called simply “2 percent milk.” However, it may seem strange until you’re familiar with the product and name. When reading descriptions and labels, you’ll feel more at ease if you understand the lingo. Product names might appear to be complicated. For example, a product named “Hardcore OG Nug Run Shatter” may sound perplexing. What do these words imply?
Producers and manufacturers use specific words and phrases to help you identify key characteristics and qualities of cannabis concentrates. Certain terms may be used on labels and descriptions on concentrate products to identify:
- The type of cannabis plant materials used to make the concentrate
- The processing techniques
- The resulting textures
- The intended consumption methods
Input materials
Cannabis plant material is the first step. The starting, or input material, consists of the flower buds, leaves, and stems of the cannabis plant. The input material has the potential to modify the composition of the cannabinoid and terpene profile in cannabis concentrates. Furthermore, the quality or grade of the input material has an impact on its potency and flavor.
Process type
Cannabis concentrates are made by collecting and concentrating trichomes (the gland that produces cannabinoids and terpenes). There are a variety of techniques for removing the trichomes from the source material. To make a concentrate, each of these procedures needs its own specific materials as well as physical methods, or processes, to function.
Consistencies
The solution produced after the cannabinoids and terpenes have been removed from the plant material can take a variety of forms. These shapes allow patients and consumers to choose their preferred concentrate texture; they aren’t always an indication of how the concentrate will taste or affect them.
Once the cannabinoids and terpenes have been removed from the plant material, the resulting solution can take a variety of forms.
Dabbing equipment
Concentrates are both safe and powerful. To use a cannabis concentrate safely and effectively, you’ll need the right equipment to fully activate the concentrated cannabinoids and terpenes. When developing the ideal dab rig, some people like to dab their concentrates on titanium nails, while others prefer quartz nails or bangers. Quartz is more combustible than titanium, heats up considerably faster, and has a superior flavor. The majority of consumers will heat their banger nails for approximately 30 seconds or until the banger begins to glow red or orange.
To consume a cannabis concentrate safely and effectively, you must have a specific setup with the appropriate equipment in order to properly activate the concentrated cannabinoids and terpenes.
Textures and consistencies
Shatter, badder, crumble, sugar, oil, and sauce are terms used to describe the look (texture, color, malleability) of concentrates. In other words,’
- The strain of the cannabis plant used was “Blue Dream”
- “Nug run” indicates that the plant material used to make the extract was dried and cured flower
- The extract has a “shatter”-like consistency and texture
The following seven terms describe the most common concentrate textures found in the market.
Shatter, budder, badder, and crumble
Shatter is known for its glass-like texture and brittle, snap-and-pull consistency. It may also have a snap-and-pull feel to it. Shatters are typically golden yellow to bright amber in color throughout.
The oilier and softer of the two, Budder and Badder are used in cannabis cooking. They’re flexible, simple to use, and have a bright orange color to them. The butter-like texture makes it easy to apply as a spread on blunts or joints, or dabbed with a dab rig.
Budder or badder is a crumbly variant of budder or worst. It has the consistency of honeycomb, as the name implies. They have a matted yellow tone rather than a glossy texture like budder or worst, according to their color.
Sugar, sauce, and crystalline
A syrup is a type of concentrate that has the look and feel of wet, soggy sugar. They’re not consistent in form, and they usually have hues ranging from an intense golden yellow to a rich brown.
The salmon is moist and flaky. The sauce has a thicker, more viscous texture and appears stickier. Sauce may be golden brown to dark mustard yellow in color. Sauce is comparable in consistency and color to sugar, but it has a more regular and apparent crystalline structure.
Crystalline is a term used to describe a single, crystallized substance. THCa and CBD crystals are white crystals with different degrees of density and size, from little pebbles to fine powder.
Smoking methods
Cannabis extracts can be taken in a variety of ways, including sprinkling them on a bowl or adding them to a joint for greater potency, or vaporizing them with a dab rig or portable vape pen. It is important to consider the kind and texture of the chosen concentrate as well as the person’s personal habits when determining which method works best. First think about the equipment you have available and the texture of the concentrate. Have you ever seen extracts such as shatter and worse and been unsure how to smoke them? These extracts are flexible and simple to utilize in a dab rig, while powdery concentrates, such as kief and crumble, may be simply added to a more stable base like flower for inhalation. Here are some of the most popular techniques for smoking or vaporizing concentrated compounds.
Topping your flower
The most cost-effective ways to use cannabis concentrates are to add powdered kief to your bowl or wrap wax around a joint. These techniques don’t require any of the pricey dab equipment required for dabbing oil, but they do improve the potency and flavor of your smoke as well as adding additional taste from the concentrate.
Dabbing
The most common technique to use cannabis concentrates is by vaporizing the concentrate using a “dab rig.” The concentrate is directly applied to a heated surface, turning it into a vapor for inhalation right away.
Vaporizers
Pre-filled vape pen
Vaping is the most inconspicuous and portable way to consume cannabis concentrates. The most common type of vaping is a pre-filled cartridge that is connected to a battery. The cartridge has a heating element that comes in touch with the battery, heating the concentrate. A vape pen consists of two components: a battery and a cartridge. Vape pens work in the same manner as e-cigarettes do.A button or, in the case of a buttonless pen, simply taking a puff from the cartridge’s mouthpiece activates the device. These pre-filled cartridges aren’t refillable and must be thrown away once the concentrate has run out, but the battery may be recharged many times.
Handheld vaporizer
Look into using a handheld vaporizer to learn how to utilize cannabis oil in a more discreet and portable manner. Fill a chamber with any kind of concentrate and affix it to a battery with this method, which does not require additional equipment like as a dab rig. Unlike a dab rig, this technique does not need any additional gear but still allows you to pre-fill the chamber with any type of concentrate and use it on demand.
Badder and budder
The textures budder and badder are created by agitating terpene-rich shatter into a creamier texture. To create this frosting-like feel, the shatter is whipped in low and even temperatures to introduce and redistribute air molecules. The amount of these air molecules determines the texture’s density.
The textures budder and badder are the end result of stirring terpene-rich shatter into a more smoother consistency.
Crumble
Crumble is shatter that has been whipped and then purged in a vacuum oven at low temperatures to “dry” the concentrate while retaining its cannabinoids and terpenes. Crumble is shatter that has been whipped and subsequently purged in a vacuum oven.
Crystalline
Crystalline is a transparent or partially translucent cannabis concentrate that may be confused with decorative rough sparkling sugar or kosher salt. The creation of crystalline varies depending on the method used, but they all follow the same basic rules of crystallization.
Crystalline is a transparent or semi-transparent cannabis concentrate that looks like coarse ornamental sparkling sugar or kosher salt.
Making rock candy is an example of crystallization. Rock candy is a flavored confection that’s formed when sugar (a chemical solid) is slowly added to boiling water (a liquid). The solution cools somewhat before flavor and color are added. A prepared stick is lowered into the solution. Crystals develop and grow on the prepped stick over time, culminating in the intended product.
The formation of pure crystals is called crystallization. A chemical solid is combined with a liquid to create an initial solution, and any impurities are removed from the solution. The extract is then combined with another solvent under different conditions to begin the formation of genuine crystals.
Distillate
Distillates are produced by heating and vacuuming a winterized and decarboxylated extract, which causes cannabinoids of various boiling points to separate.
