As our industry continues to grow, so do new products and concepts for use of cannabis. One such product is dry extracts- these are solid forms of marijuana that you mix with liquid or other substances to make a concentrated extract.
Extracts come in many forms! Some people blend them with beverages (drinks), some people vaporize them, and some people apply topicals (using it directly on your skin) or ingest them. All of these ways can result in different effects depending on how they are consumed and what kind of extract you prepare yourself.
There are several types of extracts available today- but none compare to the classic shatter. What is shatter?
Shatter is just the name given to the most common type of concentrate used in marijuana recipes. It is typically made from dried plant material like flowers or leaves, hydrocarbons (oils) derived from the plants, and ethanol (alcohol) as a solvent. These components are mixed together and heated until all have melted down and dissolved into each other.
The ratio and proportion of these ingredients will determine the strength and type of extract you get – strong sedatives/sleep aids are using higher proportions of alcohol and less oil than medicinal grade oils which contain more THC.
Cannabis flower strains and oils vary greatly in their chemical compounds, thus requiring different amounts of extraction agents to produce various results.
What are cannabis concentrates?
The term ‘concentrate’ refers to all of the parts of a cannabis product that contain THC, the compound in marijuana that gets you high. These can be powders (dabs), liquids (e.g., oil or butter) or solid foods (tobacco sticks or gums).
Some examples of common cannabis concentrates include oils, topicals, and dried flower. Oils can be mixed with other oils or alcohol to make a liquid form, such as hemp oil for skin treatments or eucalyptus oil for respiratory infections.
Topical products like lotions and salves are made from either raw cannabis extracts or pre-made oils along with some additional ingredients. People use these products to apply the drug directly onto affected areas of the body.
Dried herb is one of the most prevalent types of concentrate due to its ease of transport and wide availability. Some people mix their extract with coconut or olive oil to create an ingestible paste called crumble. This may be smoked alone or combined with dry herbs and baked into a whole plant material like pot cookies!
Cannabis flowers are the entire plant including leaves and stems. Sometimes only part of the plant is processed into a concentrate so it must be included when calculating how much THC is present in a specific dose. For example, one gram of berry chips contains about 0.5% CBD but also has 5–7% THC depending on the variety.
What are cannabis extracts?
Extracts are not to be confused with oils, which are just pure plant oils that have been mixed together to create another product. Oils can be consumed directly, but most people prefer using them as an ingredient in other products or for smoking/dipping.
Cannabis extracts are usually made by combining one of the main components of the marijuana plant-the cannabinoids, ethanol (alcohol), and/or propane. These combinations are then heated up and distilled off, leaving only the extract!
Some examples of common cannabis extracts include:
Hashish – this is typically dried out resin that has been mixed with alcohol and smoked
– this is typically dried out resin that has been mixed with alcohol and smoked Terpene-infused oil – these are often referred to as “essential oils” due to their use in self-care and cosmetic products
– these are often referred to as “essential oils” due to their use in self-care and cosmetic products CBD Oil – this is typically isolated from hemp plants that contain high levels of cannabidiol (CBD)
The benefits of ingesting cannabis extracts over simply eating weed or vaping it is that they can be used in much higher concentrations than either option! This means more active ingredients per dose, and potentially greater effects depending on what you use it for.
For instance, research shows that CBD may help relieve symptoms of chronic pain, such as arthritis.
What does the term THC mean?
The second most important compound in cannabis is called tetrahydrocannabinol (or simply referred to as THC). This molecule binds to receptors in your body that affect everything, including how you feel, interact with others, and sleep.
The amount of THC in a given product can vary quite a bit, but typically higher concentrations are thought to boost the effects of the drug. Most people agree that higher doses of THC can be more effective than lower ones, so why not just use high-THC products instead of mixing or making your own extracts?
That’s what many people have been doing for years! But there is an emerging health trend looking at the opposite approach – using low levels of THC to achieve still meaningful results.
This alternative usage pattern was coined “entourage effect” back in the 1990s. Since then, studies have confirmed that this concept works. You get the same benefits as before without the intoxicating effects. And some experts believe it could even help mitigate the adverse effects of high dose treatments.
What does the term CBD mean?
Medical cannabis is becoming more prevalent, with studies showing it to have many potential uses. One of the most popular types of medical cannabis is cannabidiol (CBD). Many people refer to CBD as “weed-derived” because it was originally derived from marijuana. However, CBD is actually an organic compound that comes from the hemp plant!
A small amount of CBD has been shown to help reduce pain in some patients, possibly through its effect on endocannabinoid systems. Endogenous or natural cannabinoids are your body’s own chemical messengers that regulate various functions, such as sleep, mood, appetite, and energy balance.
Your endocannabinoids influence how well your body responds to stress, and having adequate levels of them helps protect you from emotional trauma and physical injury.
Because CBD can sometimes have a slight hallucinogenic effect, some users report it making their daily life activities go more smoothly. Some say it even makes doing mundane tasks less stressful. Because of this, CBD is being used for anxiety, depression, insomnia, and other mental health conditions.
This article will talk about why and how to use CBD properly. Also, we will discuss what is needed for proper dosage and what should be considered harmful effects of using CBD.
Are cannabis concentrates the same as edibles?
No, they are not! Edible products contain the active ingredient of marijuana directly in the food or beverage, whereas cannabis concentrates have an additional process to go through before they can be used.
Cannabis extracts are almost always made using alcohol as the solvent. This is different than drinking ethanol, which is what people usually refer to when talking about alcoholic beverages like vodka or whiskey.
When extracting with alcohol, there are two main types of alcohol that are used: purified and less pure alcohol. Purified alcohol is either 99 percent pure ethanol (also known as wine alcohol) or 100 percent ethyl alcohol (aka rubbing alcohol). Both of these liquids can completely dissolve cannabinoids and THC-rich oils.
However, not all cannabinoids will fully dissociate into molecules of alcohol and stick around long enough to achieve effect, so most of the time only half of each cannabinoid does. The leftover portion goes back into the oil as a contaminant, reducing the overall effectiveness of the product.
What are the different types of concentrates?
Medible cannabis products include dried extracts such as tinctures, topicals (such as salves or lotions), oils, and butters. Oils can be ingested directly, applied to affected areas, or smoked in a pipe or joint.
Dried extracts contain almost zero water so they will not dissolve in your mouth like a liquid extract would. They are more potent than dry flowers because you have to use much less to get the same effect.
Some people only know about smoking marijuana, but there are many other ways to consume it. By experimenting with various methods, your experience can vary from leisurely to intense.
There are several brands that offer trichome gel capsules, which are just like taking a pill except for one small thing: You roll them into a cigar-shaped piece of glass equipment called a dosing device. When you take off the protective cover, the gel dissolves and you can mix it into food or drink.
What does the future hold for cannabis concentrates?
The past year has been exciting to watch as more and more products containing THC or CBD have entered the market, and now we are being treated to some truly revolutionary ways to use these products.
Many people enjoy using tinctures because of how easy they are to ingest and/or measure. Many people also enjoy vaping oils due to their ease of use; you just mix your oil with water and vaporize!
However, what if there was an easier way to take full doses of both cannabinoids in every area of your body? What if there were no bottles or containers to worry about? And what if you could do it at any time without having to prepare first?
Enter top down extraction!
Top-down extraction uses special filters to extract all of the active compounds from the plant material. These filters get heated up and then pressed onto other materials to filter out the components.
Some of the most well known brands of top-down extracts include dabs (vaping) and butane hash oil (BHO, sometimes referred to as “dabbing”). Both of these types of extracts can be mixed into liquids such as e liquid, saliva, or alcohol to ingest.
But what happens when the bottle is empty? You simply pour off the remaining product and start over! This is called remanufacturing and many companies actually profit off of it.
What should I try?
There are many ways to enjoy cannabis concentrates. Some people like to use them in vape pens or cartridges, either directly or mixed into e-liquids. People also use drop doses that require more consumption of the concentrate product for each session.
Many users prefer direct dabbing, where they use a torch (or blowtorch) to heat up the endocannabinoid receptors in their body. This way, you don’t have to buy an expensive vaporizer to use the product!
Some individuals mix the extracts with oils or butters to create new products such as topicals or salves. These can be applied directly onto areas of the skin needing relaxation or relief.
What is important to remember about any type of cannabis extract is that potency will vary from brand to brand. Make sure to research your marijuana extract before experimenting so you know what strength you want and which one is best for you.
**Note: Due to legal restrictions, our staff may not be able to answer questions related to specific extracts or applications.
