Welcome to Weed Weviews, a verbal foible that’s become the very real name of this monthly column. Think of it like our Doin’ Beers series, but for weed. Alright, let's do this!
Drops's Hemp Jellies
About: According to the lore on their website, the Oregon-based Drops gang were winemakers for 26 years before switching over to cannabis in 2016. Their gummies have live rosin, which I learned involves a more intensive THC extraction process, but yields a more consistent high. Neato!
Also, this farmer is having a good time:
Those chickens in the bottom right hand corner are also an important (and adorable!) part of the process: “Chickens are excellent gardeners, eating bugs, scraping the soil, and leaving behind almost everything the plant needs.” Double neato!
Where I got it/price: These came recommended to me by the fine folks at Flipside. They’re $25 each, but I hear that when their new shipment arrives next week they’ll be doing a $87.50 five-pack all-strains special. A Christmas miracle!
Flavor: These are delicious. They taste like candied oranges; juicy, fresh, and bright. They’re 5mg, but you can easily layer them for whatever high you want. The cute little tins they come in also make for easy travel and sharing.
Blast-off time: About 20 minutes.
Experience: Very nice. I tried the “creative” variety, made with Oregon Sweet Gum, and found that I had good energy levels for cleaning/organizing my storage unit.
Just Bak’d Crispie Bites
About: These treats are from Nothing But Hemp, a northeast Minneapolis maker of all kinds of THC products.
Where I got it/price: These are on sale for $24.99 on their website, but I have also spotted them at Flipside and Marigold.
Flavor: I bought these because the packaging is so dang pretty, but what’s inside is also pretty dang cute. I squealed like a nine-year-old girl in her sparkly unicorn phase when I opened the bag up to find tiny, individually wrapped squares of rainbow crispies. These are a joy to eat, too. They’re soft and marshmallowy like those Rice Krispies treats you can buy in the store, and they taste bright and citrusy like Froot Loops or Fruity Pebbles.
Blast-off time: About 15 minutes.
Experience: These are only 5mg a pop, but I feel like they hit a little stronger? But that’s probably because I’m used to sipping my weed lately. It’s good to mix things up from time to time.
These would be great for folks who like edibles but are hesitant to bake their own stuff (if you do it wrong it’s such a bummer), and it would be so easy and cute to throw a bunch of these in a bowl for guests at a chill party. Uh, just make sure they are well-marked so no one gets a surprise.
Bauhaus Brew Labs’s Tetra Marigold Collab
About: You may know Bauhaus for its beer, which you can drink at its colorful northeast Minneapolis taproom. Its weed bubbly, Tetra, comes in a wide variety of flavors (and has shown up in this column a few times). Meanwhile, Marigold is a beverage store offering mocktails, NA beer, tinctures, and CBD and THC drinks in St. Paul and south Minneapolis. Together, they have given us Tetra: Lemongrass Prickly Pear.
Where I got it/price: $6 at Marigold.
Flavor: OK, I am a sucker for a pretty package, but what’s inside is good, too. It’s sparkling water with multiple flavor notes, so this is basically a fancy LaCroix. It smells like candy; perhaps a little bubble-gummy? As for flavor, something about the lemongrass makes this festive, like an antique shop that’s got a crockpot of potpourri in the corner. I know that sounds strange, but it works.
Blast-off time: Around 30-40 minutes?
Experience: I can’t really slam sparkling water—nor do I want to—so at 5mg THC/15 mpg CBD these are more of a slow and steady experience. Which makes them an easy bevvy to enjoy if you’re trying to blend the high folks with the buzzed folks at a party.
Sweet Justice’s Pacific Island Punch
About: It’s kinda hard to find info on these guys! Their website quotes anthropologist/sexual revolution icon Margaret Mead and mentions a circle of unnamed friends who are passionate about THC. Vague! The can I bought says that Surly Brewing manufactured this specific drink for Sweet Justice at its Brooklyn Park facility. OK. Their LinkedIn describes them as “Canada's #1 independent, best tasting and top-selling cannabis beverage brand.” Hm, that is a lot of qualifiers there.
Where I got it/price: $7 at Marigold.
Flavor: Fuck yeah, we got another Ecto Chill situation here. It’s giving me Hi-C Hawaiian Punch, Capri Sun Ecto Cooler, and other delicious drinks that come in packets and pockets. And it's carbonated, which adds even more fun. If you love a candy-sweet drink, you’re gonna enjoy this. It’s orange-forward on the tongue, but brings in notes of peach and passionfruit on the way down your gullet. Yum.
Blast-off time: The sugar rush is instantaneous, but the THC takes about 20 minutes to catch up.
Experience: Just like Kool Aid, this thing goes down fast. It’s 10mg of THC per can, which means you’ll be both sugar-high and stoned. Pair this with some high-energy video games and you’ve got a good time on your hands.
