Cannabis concentrates are available in a variety of items, including cannabis oil cartridges and medicated muscle creams.
Concentrates are cannabis products that have been processed to retain only the most desirable plant components (particularly the cannabinoids and terpenes), while removing unnecessary plant material and other impurities. When compared to natural cannabis flowers, marijuana concentrates have a greater proportion of cannabinoids and terpenes per ounce.
Concentrates can also aid in the potency of your flower. When you prepare a bowl of cannabis flower next time, try sprinkling kief or a few drops of concentrated oil on top. Concentrate items may also be consumed separately. Dabbing, for example, is one of the most popular forms of consumption in recent years.
It’s critical to understand about each type, how to dab or consume them, and how they’re produced in order to prepare for the vast world of cannabis concentrates. As a result, when someone asks you what marijuana wax or cannabis concentrate is, you’ll be able to offer your newly acquired wealth of information. Concentrates allow you to enjoy cannabis in a variety of ways; they come in a range of textures and can be consumed in a number of different ways. Concentrates enable you to experience cannabis in a wide range of ways; they have a lot of different textures and may be consumed using a variety of methods. The appearance and feel of a concentrate do not always reflect its quality (effects, flavor, potency); these are simply aesthetical categories that might help you keep track on your particular tastes.
Concentrates are more potent and have a quicker onset time than cannabis flower. Concentrates have a high bioavailability, which means that the effects you feel and experience as well as the rate of absorption into your body happen almost immediately. A cannabis concentrate’s effects can last anywhere from 1 to 3 hours, depending on the user.
What are concentrates and extracts?
Concentrates come in a variety of forms and include the most desirable components of a thing. For example, orange juice concentrate has the fragrance and flavor of an orange fruit but lacks extra liquid, peel, or pulp. The same is true for cannabis plants: aromas, tastes, and other appealing qualities can be maintained while removing the leaves, stems, and other undesirable materials from the plant.
Extracts are a form of concentrate that use solvents to extract the plant’s, seed’s, or fruit’s active ingredients. Vanilla extract is one example, as it is created by extracting the flavor component vanillin from vanilla bean pods using alcohol as a solvent.
Cannabis plants produce a variety of chemicals, or chemical substances, that may be utilized in a variety of items. These compounds impact the appearance, odor, taste, and texture as well as physiological and psychoactive effects (if any) of cannabis products. The most prized cannabis components are found in tiny sparkling structures known as trichomes throughout the plant. A concentrate is defined as any Cannabis product resulting from the accumulation of trichomes from the plant.
Trichomes are tiny, sparkling structures that cover the entire cannabis plant. The most useful compounds are located in the cannabis plant’s leaves, buds, and flowers.
These frosty appendages coat the entire surface of the plant, especially the flower buds. Trichomes contain all the cannabinoids (THC, CBD, etc.) and terpenes that give different cannabis cultivars, or strains, their unique aromas and physical effects.
Compared to the raw plant form of marijuana, cannabis concentrates offer a more potent high, quicker onset of action, and a wider range of consumption methods. Depending on your consumption preferences and tolerance level, the ideal dose can vary widely from person to person and even product to product.Cannabis concentrates are diverse and used in a wide range of products. With a selection of options, you can fine-tune your cannabis experience and find the ideal combination of cannabinoids and terpenes that appeals to your taste and provides the most benefit.
Is there a difference between a concentrate and an extract?
All extracts are concentrates, but not all concentrates are extracts. While those terms are used interchangeably, the primary difference between a concentrate and an extract is how trichomes are collected. Extracts are a type of concentrate created using solvents (alcohol, carbon dioxide, etc.) that essentially wash the trichomes off the cannabis plant. Concentrates made without the use of solvents are produced using mechanical or physical means to remove and gather trichomes.
Butane Hash Oil (BHO), Rick Simpson Oil (RSO) and CO2-extracted cannabis wax are examples of extracts; each of these comes in varying textures such as shatter, badder, budder, and crumble. Different extracts and the varying textures may yield different experiences from one product to another.
Rosin, dry sift and kief are examples of concentrates that are made without using solvents.
How to talk about concentrates
“Reduced Fat Homogenized Ultra-Pasteurized Milk” is also known as “2% milk,” but that may sound baffling until you’re familiar with the product and its name. Once you familiarize yourself with the terminology used with concentrates, the more comfortable you’ll feel when reviewing descriptions and labels. The product names can seem complex. For example, a product named “Hardcore OG Nug Run Shatter” may sound confusing. What do each of these words mean?
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
Everything starts off with cannabis plant material. The cannabis plant’s flower buds, leaves, and stems are collectively referred to as the starting, or input material. The input material can alter the resulting cannabinoid and terpene profile of the cannabis concentrate. Additionally, the quality or grade of the input material also affects the potency and flavor of its resulting concentrates.
Process type
Cannabis concentrates are products created by the accumulation of trichomes (the gland that makes the cannabinoids and terpenes). There are a variety of ways to separate the trichomes from the starting material. Each of these processes needs its own specific materials and/or physical actions, or methods, in order to produce a concentrate.
Consistencies
Once the cannabinoids and terpenes have been removed from the plant material, the resulting solution can take a variety of forms. These forms allow patients and consumers to pick and choose their preferred texture of the concentrate product; they aren’t necessarily an indicator of how the concentrate will taste or affect an individual.
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 safe, yet potent. 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. A fair amount of thought should be put into the components when building the ideal dab rig. For instance, some users prefer to dab their concentrates on a titanium nail, while others might opt for quartz nails or bangers. While quartz is less durable than titanium, it heats up much faster than titanium and offers a cleaner taste. Depending on the banger nail, most users will heat it up for around 30 seconds or until the banger starts to show an orange or red hot glow.
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
Terms like shatter, badder, crumble, sugar, oil, and sauce refer to a concentrates’ appearance (texture, color, malleability). In other words, these terms simply inform us about the look and feel of the concentrate. For example, a concentrate product with the name “Nug Run Blue Dream Shatter” tells you three things:
- 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 brittle, glass-like texture. It can also have a snap-and-pull consistency. (Imagine taffy candy being pulled really tight before snapping). Shatters usually have a golden yellow to bright amber color throughout.
Budder and Badder are oilier and softer in texture. (Think of a stick of butter or cake batter.) They’re malleable, easy to handle and have a sun yellow to bright orange coloring. The butter-like consistency allows the extract to be easily used as a spread on blunts or joints, or to be dabbed using a dab rig.
Crumble is a brittle version of budder or badder. As the name suggests, it has a crumbly-like honeycomb consistency. The color tends to be similar to budder or badder, but instead of having a glossy texture, they tend to have a matted shade of yellow.
Sugar, sauce, and crystalline
Sugar is a term used for any concentrate that has a similar consistency to wet, sappy sugar. They’re not uniform in nature and typically have colors ranging from a bright yellow to a deep amber.
Sauce is thicker, more viscous in texture and looks stickier. The color of sauce can range from deep amber to bright mustard. Sauce is similar to sugar in both its consistency and color, but has a more uniform and prominent crystalline structure.
Crystalline is a single, crystallized compound. Just as the name implies, THCa and CBD crystalline are white crystals that can vary in density and size from small rocks to powder.
Smoking methods
A cannabis concentrate can be consumed in a variety of ways, from sprinkling it on a bowl or adding it to a joint for added potency, to vaporizing them using a dab rig or portable vape pen. The ideal method for consumption depends on the type and texture of the selected concentrate as well as the personal habits of the person consuming. When deciding which method will work best, first consider the tools you have at your disposal and the texture of the concentrate. Perhaps you’ve seen extracts like shatter and badder and wondered how best to smoke them? These extracts are malleable and easy to use in a dab rig, while powdery concentrates, such as kief and crumble, can be easily enjoyed by adding them to a more stable foundation like flower. Here are some of the most common methods for smoking or vaporizing concentrates.
Topping your flower
Adding powdered kief to your bowl, or wrapping wax around a joint, are the most cost-effective methods to using cannabis concentrates. These methods don’t require any of the expensive tools necessary to dab oil, while still increasing the potency of your smoke and adding extra flavor from the concentrate.
Dabbing
The most popular way to consume cannabis concentrates is by vaporizing the concentrate using a “dab rig.” This method consists of heating a “nail” (made from either glass, ceramic, or titanium) and then applying the concentrate directly onto the hot surface, instantly turning it into a vapor for consumption.
Vaporizers
Pre-filled vape pen
Vaping is the most discreet and portable option for consuming cannabis concentrates. The most common form of vaping is a pre-filled cartridge that attaches to a battery. The cartridge contains a heating element that comes in contact with the battery and heats the concentrate when activated. This battery-and-cartridge combination is collectively referred to as a vape pen. Standard vape pens are operated by pressing a button or, in the case of a buttonless pen, simply taking a drag from the mouthpiece of the cartridge. These pre-filled cartridges aren’t refillable and are to be discarded after the concentrate runs out, but the battery can be saved and reused many times.
Handheld vaporizer
If you want to know how to use cannabis oil in a more discreet and portable way, look into using a handheld vaporizer. With a vaporizer, you manually fill a chamber with any type of concentrate and attach the chamber to a battery. The chamber typically contains a heating coil that turns the concentrate into a vapor when the user presses a button. Unlike a dab rig, this method does not require any additional equipment, but still gives you the ability to pre-fill the chamber with any type of concentrate and use it on demand.
Badder and budder
The textures badder and budder are the result of agitating terpene-rich shatter into a more creamy consistency. To achieve this frosting-like texture, technicians whip the shatter under low and even temperatures to introduce and redistribute air molecules. The volume of these air molecules determines the density of the resulting texture.
The textures badder and budder are the result of agitating terpene-rich shatter into a more creamy consistency.
Crumble
Crumble is shatter that has been whipped, like badder and budder, and then purged in a vacuum oven at low temperatures to “dry” the concentrate while retaining its cannabinoid and terpene content.
Crumble is shatter that has been whipped and then purged in a vacuum oven at low temperatures.
Crystalline
Crystalline is a transparent or semi-transparent cannabis concentrate that may resemble coarse decorative sparkling sugar or kosher salt. Multiple methods can be used to produce crystalline, but they all follow the same basic principles of crystallization.
Crystalline is a transparent or semi-transparent cannabis concentrate that may resemble coarse decorative sparkling sugar or kosher salt.
An example of crystallization is making rock candy. Rock candy is a flavored confection that’s produced when sugar (a chemical solid) is slowly added to boiling water (a liquid). The resulting solution cools a bit, then flavor and color is added. A prepared stick is lowered into the solution. Over time, crystals form and grow on the prepared stick, eventually yielding the desired product.
Crystallization is a process where a chemical solid is mixed with a liquid to create an initial solution. Any impurities are removed from the initial solution, and the extract is then mixed with another solvent under a different set of conditions to start the formation of pure crystals.
Distillate
Distillates are made by exposing a winterized and decarboxylated extract to heat and vacuum, which promotes the separation of cannabinoids based on their different boiling points.