THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PAIRING CANNABIS
GROWING TOGETHER
Breeding Grounds is a project under which Sensi Seeds releases its cutting-edge strains. As part of this program, we join hands with breeders of Sherbinskis, Serge Cannabis, Champelli, Humboldt Seed Company, Fat Beans, and more.
We are proud to be at the forefront of developing ground-breaking genetics, working in collaboration with some of the best breeders worldwide.
SENSISEEDS.US
@SENSISEEDS_US
@SENSISEEDS.US
Ready to Redefine Cannabis Banking?
We Support Cannabis Businesses
At Mission Valley Bank, we understand the Cannabis industry deserves a banking partner that gets the challenges and opportunities.
With our approach, entrepreneurs and owners will receive personalized service so you can focus on what matters - your business.
Cannabis. Banking. Redefined
WES ABNEY CEO & FOUNDER
wes@leafmagazines.com
MIKE RICKER OPERATING PARTNER ricker@leafmagazines.com | advertising opportunities
TOM BOWERS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER tom@leafmagazines.com
DANIEL BERMAN CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER daniel@leafmagazines.com
BOBBY BLACK LEAF BOWL DIRECTOR & HISTORIAN bobbyblack@leafmagazines.com
MATT JACKSON CA CONTENT DIRECTOR + SOCIAL mattjackson@leafmagazines.com
MICHELLE NARANJO COPY EDITOR michelle@leafmagazines.com
ABOUT THE COVER
For this year’sTannins & Terpenes cover, Leaf photographer Josh Monthei captured Casa Flor Family’s new Chile Mango THC Tincture refreshingly paired with the Sparkling Grapefruit Ginger Yerba Mate from Yerba Madre. This fun and sunny combo made for the perfect pairing to adorn the cover of this special annual issue. Find the thirst-quenching review by Tom Bowers (@megabombtom), along with several other memorable pairings, in this month’s edition. And when you’re done, visit our website for pairings from around the country!
PHOTO BY JOSH MONTHEI @CAPTURECANNABIS
@YERBAMADRE | @CASAFLORFAMILY
CONTRIBUTORS
ANGELA-JORDAN AGUILAR, FEATURES
JORDAN BADRAN, PHOTOS
DANIEL BERMAN, DESIGN BOBBY BLACK, FEATURES + DESIGN
TOM BOWERS, FEATURES
JIMI DEVINE, REVIEWS
JEFF DIMARCO, GLASS
DAVID DOWNS, FEATURES
REX
JAMIE EVANS, PHOTOS
HILSINGER, FEATURES + PHOTOS
ELLEN HOLLAND, FEATURES
MATT JACKSON, FEATURES
DANSTAN KAUNDA, PHOTOS
TERPODACTYL MEDIA, FEATURES + PHOTOS
SHARDELL MONIQUE, PHOTOS
JOSH MONTHEI, PHOTOS
MIKE RICKER, PRODUCTION
JAMIE VICTOR, DESIGN
BRUCE & LAURIE WOLF, RECIPES
We are creators of targeted, independent Cannabis journalism. Please email us to discuss advertising in the next issue of California Leaf Magazine. We do not sell stories or coverage. Email ricker@leafmagazines.com to start advertising!
WITH CALIFORNI A LEAF
Thanks for picking up The Tannins & Terpenes Issue of the Leaf!
This month’s focus is on the dynamic and experiential bliss that comes from pairing Cannabis with delicious drinkables, as our dedicated writers sipped and savored to bring the freshest heat for your reading pleasure.
The Tannins & Terpenes Issue has been an annual tradition since 2011, when the idea of pairing wine and weed together was edgy and illegal. Back when Cannabis was marijuana, and having a few grams of the sticky icky could cost time in a real jail cell, the Leaf set out to pair flavors and break down barriers.
In pre-legalization, early medical days, the science of Cannabis was still in the stoned ages. The concept of strains was not yet cultural knowledge, and most people thought of pot as pot. Among the maturing medical Cannabis scene, the concept of strains, terpenes and flavor profiles was sprouting, thanks to deli-style sales where patients could smell flower before buying, leading to awareness of the beautiful and varying flavor profiles in the plant.
At the time of our first pairings, testing for THC and potency did not yet exist, so all Cannabis in medical shops was judged on a combination of smell, looks and effects. No high-THC-chasing bullshit clouded the growing or buying process. In many ways, the early medical days were the purest when purchasing Cannabis. The focus was on personal experience, flavors and effects, with a spirit of healing and gratitude for the plant that was emerging from the closet of criminalization.
"IN PRELEGALIZATION, EARLY MEDICAL DAYS, THE SCIENCE OF CANNABIS WAS STILL IN THE STONED AGES. THE CONCEPT OF STRAINS WAS NOT YET CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE, AND MOST PEOPLE THOUGHT OF POT AS POT. ”
To honor these flavors, we launched The Tannins & Terpenes Issue. The idea was to highlight Cannabis varieties alongside wine, which is culturally known to have wide differences in flavors, styles and even effects. We needed to transform the vision of weed as a singular plant to that of wine, in that it all comes from grapes, but the results are based on the cultivar, cultivation method, region and how the grapes are processed into a final wine. For growers, this should sound familiar.
Over the decade-plus of this project, I’ve worked with sommeliers who can blind sip a wine and name the style, region and production methods that led to the bottle’s bombastic flavor. I’ve seen the same evolution with Cannabis, which today is known for thousands of strains and crosses, all with unique flavor profiles and highs for every occasion.
Whether you sip and savor a glass of wine with your favorite flower or are California sober like me (skipping the booze) and prefer to pair heady hash with classic sodas, you’re in for an equally invigorating and tasteful experience. No matter how you pair weed with your favorite drink, one thing is certain: you won’t have cotton mouth!
Just 12 miles from the Santa Cruz boardwalk and 5 miles from the gravity-defying Mystery Spot, Treehouse isn’t hard to find. It’s emblazoned with eye-catching murals by artists Augie Wk, Jessica Carmen, GATS and BB Bastidas. Treehouse opened its doors on January 1, 2018, at the start of adult-use Cannabis sales.
TREEHOUSE TREEHOUSE
TREEHOUSE
3651 SOQUEL DR., SOQUEL, CA WWW.OURTREEHOUSE.IO
@TREEHOUSEDISPENSARY_SC
STORE: 11 A.M. TO 7 P.M. DAILY
DRIVE-THRU: 8 A.M. TO 9:50 P.M. DAILY
OWNERS BRYCE BARRYESSA AND KYLE GIROCHINO, who had previously operated a shop as owner and general manager, wanted this new endeavor to have a name that made people feel comfortable hanging out. Jenna Gallant, chief operating officer, told the Leaf that “they wanted to create a place of community, and the way to go about that is to create a vibe of nostalgia, comfort and creativity.”
Gallant says the space and staff have embraced the identity over the years with tons of plants and wood as well as a centralized sales floor.
Art by GATS
Peep the BB Bastidas mural in the drive-thru
THIS STORE is one of the only places in California where you can order right from your car. The state famously outlawed drive-thru pot shops, but Gallant explains the concept was something the owners had in mind from the very beginning. “The parking lot is U-shaped, and the owner dreamed about one, so he applied for a permit back in 2018 before the regulations,” Gallant said. In 2020, when dispensaries were declared essential businesses, Treehouse was able to open a roll-up door. Then, through discussions with the local government, they were able to create a proper drive-thru, though they did need to get special permission from Santa Cruz County.
“It’s been a really great way to serve our community, especially people who can’t get out of their cars and easily walk through the parking lot into the store,” Gallant said.
As if giant murals and a drive-thru weren’t enough reasons to stop by, the store also hosts community events and acoustic musical performances, and it houses an art gallery. AJ Culp, engagement manager, says the gallery rotates through four different artists every three months, offering them a space without taking any percentage from the sale of their work. Culp says, so far, the dispensary has worked with over 80 painters, ceramists, glassblowers, illustrators and artists of many other disciplines to show people that anything can be Cannabis art if the artist connects to their work through the plant.
Culp often gets submissions through social media, but says most of their exhibitors get discovered just by being around Santa Cruz County’s thriving and diverse art scene.
Community is massively important to Treehouse. It currently operates as the hub for the Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana compassion program, which helps source quality medicine for around 95 patients with chronic and life-threatening illnesses.
An old-school dispensary with modern amenities, Treehouse even offers every shopper a personal consultation experience. Customers can talk to a staff member who can offer suggestions or help find a product, which is probably why one online reviewer wrote, “Treehouse is setting the standard for what a real community-centered dispensary should feel like.”
“THEY WANTED TO CREATE A PLACE OF COMMUNITY, AND THE WAY TO GO ABOUT THAT IS TO CREATE A VIBE OF NOSTALGIA, COMFORT AND CREATIVITY.”
Don’t miss the art gallery!
First Friday performances
Wish upon a rainbow!
BB Bastidas Browse around
AMANDA FERRON
THOUGH SHE SHOPPED AT LYTT FOR YEARS, Amanda told California Leaf she reached a moment where she needed some extra work hours and joked with a store employee friend about whether they needed any help. To her surprise, her friend immediately asked her to apply, and before she knew it, Amanda was a budtender. In the little over a year she’s been budtending for Lytt in Pacifica, she has put her own advice to use, rising to become a lead budtender and then an assistant manager. Now finding herself in the world of retail, Amanda says, “I think I’ve really found a home at Lytt. I feel like I’m genuinely making a difference in this job. Getting to take my decade of experience and apply it towards making people feel better feels incredible.”
She says one of her secrets to budtending success is learning how to personalize each interaction to the consumer and concentrate on how Cannabis can or can’t help what they’re going through. “It’s important to be empathetic and listen to what the person’s saying,” Amanda said.
As someone who has used Cannabis medicinally to help her with PTSD, a graduate of the Ganjier program and a mom, Amanda says she’s found countless ways to relate to the wide array of people who come into the store.
“I FEEL LIKE I’M GENUINELY MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THIS JOB. GETTING TO TAKE MY DECADE OF EXPERIENCE AND APPLY IT TOWARDS MAKING PEOPLE FEEL BETTER FEELS INCREDIBLE.”
To survive in the Cannabis industry, you have to learn how to wear a whole bunch of hats. That’s exactly what this month’s featured budtender, Amanda Ferron, has done. Over the last 10 years, Amanda has worked with farms, Cannabis software companies, publishers and extractors. She is also the co-founder and writer of the Cannabis normalization blog For:20 Minutes and was highlighted by Nor-Cal Women in
Cannabis as one of the “Queens of the North.” When we asked her how she’s been able to accomplish so much in such a short time, she told us you have to be ready for whatever opportunities are coming, even if that means starting at the bottom. “I started on farms in the trim room. I started in the industry from the packaging room. Don’t be afraid to put in the work on your way up,” Amanda said. Follow her on Instagram @canna_panda
“I wouldn’t be able to eat if I didn’t have Cannabis. It’s changed my life completely,” she said. “I want to normalize the plant and also help other parents realize you don’t need to hide this from your kids.”
Amanda says her favorite way to consume weed is a good old-fashioned jay. “I love rosin and resin, but nothing helps like smoking flower. A joint just calms my anxiety and stomach,” she said. When we asked for some of her favorite strains, she fired them off quickly.
“I’m an OG Kush Girl, so when I can find some, I grab it,” she said. “Otherwise, I like God’s Gift for anxiety (Happy Trails has a great God’s Gift) and anything from Huckleberry Hill Farms or Ridgeline Farms; they’re two of my favorites.
When we asked what her dream gig in the industry would be, Amanda said, “I really feel like I’ve found my niche, but I guess one day I’d love to have my own Cannabis lounge. I think that would be the ultimate goal, to have a place to sit and smoke a joint while enjoying dinner. Until then, I’m relishing this feeling of helping people.”
LYTT PACIFICA
2110 PALMETTO AVE., PACIFICA, CA MON. - SAT. 9AM-8PM / SUN. 10AM-7PM ITS-LYTT.COM
Ganjier Certified
THE SMELL TEST
What the minimization of weed’s sensory experience means for Cannabis consumers and the industry at large
The smell of Cannabis has never been neutral. It was once an unmistakable warning sign, drawing the attention of police or neighbors and making consumption a risk. At the same time, that skunky punch was a signal to the initiated, a kind of social bat signal that weed was near. To this day, smell remains one of the most recognizable parts of the Cannabis experience. And yet, in the supposed era of normalization, it is being targeted in ways that reveal how little has actually changed.
Scent, especially, is under pressure. Products are marketed as being low-odor, discreet and “lifestyle-friendly.”
Vaporizers, edibles and tinctures avoid the smell altogether.
Even flower, the most aromatic format, is increasingly sealed inside multiple layers of plastic and cardboard designed as much to mute odor as to comply with regulations. The message is clear: Weed should be consumed politely behind closed doors without notice.
But scent is not a superficial detail. It is memory, emotion and culture. Consider how fragrance is utilized in other industries. Perfume houses build entire empires on the power of scent. Food is unimaginable without aroma. Coffee, wine and whiskey all rely on deeply developed vocabularies to describe their smells, which in turn are celebrated as central to the experience. Cannabis has its own lexicon — skunk, gas, fruit, pine — and those descriptors connect directly to how the plant feels, grows and works in the body.
"The smell of Cannabis can be a comfort, a warning or a reminder of history. It is never neutral."
IN RECENT YEARS, “nuisance” complaints have become a primary tool in policing Cannabis. Homeowners associations enact weed bans under the cover of neighborhood decorum. Cities pass odor ordinances that treat the plant as if it were toxic waste. These rules may not look like Prohibition, but they carry its spirit forward. They rely on the idea that Cannabis should stay hidden.
Simultaneously, the legal industry has found its way of downplaying Cannabis’ sensory presence. Packaging has become sleeker, quieter and more “design-forward.” In California, to give just one example, you can’t even smell the buds before you buy them. Talk about antithetical to the spirit of things.
The idea is to make Cannabis products resemble skin care, matcha or boutique supplements — anything but weed. Of course, there are arguments in favor of this strategy: a wider audience, less stigma and easier retail placement. But the result is a flattening of the culture and enthusiasm that allowed Cannabis to become semi-legal at all, that ushered in a subculture. The unruly qualities that made it distinct — its funk, visibility and reputation as a disruptor — are now subdued, disguised or stripped out entirely.
There’s also a political truth to odor. It has long been used to criminalize. Police officers regularly cite smell as probable cause. Landlords use it as justification for eviction. Municipalities treat it as a public health hazard, despite lacking evidence to support claims. When brands or consumers lean into the idea that weed’s smell is something to hide, they reinforce those structures, whether intentionally or not.
At the same time, there is something deeply human in the way Cannabis odor has historically built community. People remember catching whiffs at concerts, in college dorms or on city streets and feeling both curiosity and recognition. Scent draws lines, sometimes between safety and danger, but also between inclusion and exclusion, familiarity and fear. The smell of Cannabis can be a comfort, a warning or a reminder of history. It is never neutral.
What we’re witnessing now is a reshaping of weed shame into something softer, but no less real. It is not the blunt force of Prohibition, with raids and arrests, although those still occur in many places. It is the pressure to assimilate. To keep Cannabis presentable, muted and palatable enough to pass in spaces that still don’t accept it fully. More polite does not mean more freedom. If normalization is going to mean anything beyond market growth, the sensory reality of Cannabis has to be included. It is integral to the plant’s identity, science and culture. To deny that is to deny the very thing that made Cannabis powerful in the first place: its ability to announce itself, unapologetically, to the world.
DELIVERY AREA
WE DELIVER ACROSS THE SOUTH BAY AND SURROUNDING
⏰ DELIVERY HOURS
AVAILABLE DAILY FROM 7:00 AM TO 9:00PM. ORDERS AFTER 9 PM ARE LIKELY DELIVERED FIRST THING NEXT MORNING
PLAN AHEAD, STAY AHEAD
WANT YOUR ORDER AT A SPECIFIC TIME? PLACE IT AHEAD OF TIME AND CHOOSE THE TIME THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU.
PAYMENT METHODS
ACCEPTING DEBIT CARDS AND CASH
HOTEL DELIVERIES
YES! JUST INCLUDE HOTEL INFO IN “ORDER NOTES”. TO ENSURE SMOOTH SERVICE, PLEASE MEET YOUR DRIVER OUTSIDE. WE’RE UNABLE TO DELIVER DIRECTLY TO ROOMS.
QUESTIONS?
OUR DISPATCH TEAM IS ALWAYS READY TO HELP. WE’LL KEEP YOU UPDATED EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. (310)533-9363
FIRE FOLLOWER HEMP LEGALIZATION TURBOCHARGES CLONE SCENE
THE ANNUAL North American outdoor Cannabis crop is weeks away from finishing, but indoors, a robust “clone” season runs all year long. And hemp legalization has supercharged the clone scene. Put a clone in a grow tent today, and you’ll have fresh zaza by the new year.
The 2018 Farm Bill change that legalized hemp also laid the groundwork for a utopia of Cannabis cuttings, or clones. Since these snips of stem and leaves don’t have any THC in them, they are legally equivalent to the starter plants at your local gardening store.
In 2025’s U.S. clonetopia, you can get starters of vintage and hype strains for sale at events or shipped to you alive. These cuttings have the same DNA as the mother, a clone of an already hit strain. Clones can go for $20 to about $100, with Rebel Grown’s Double OG Chem #15 far exceeding that at $420,000. The price varies depending on how commercially exciting the mother is.
Award-winning journalist/author and former Leafly Senior Editor David Downs’ new genetics intelligence dispatch.
Breeders newly offering direct-to-consumer clones in 2025 include Rebel Grown (maker of Double OG Chem) and James Loud Genetics with Cereal Milk, RS11 and GMO (loudclones.com). Hash strain experts Bloom Seed Co. and maker of the modern hit MaiTai, Clearwater Genetics, both offer clone lists via Discord and their websites. In California, groups like Phinest, Purple City Genetics, HendRx Nursery and Constellation Nursery shine bright.
THE $420,000 CUTTING
Double OG Chem #15 won The Emerald Cup Breeder’s Cup four times, including three times in a row. “The loudest, gassiest fuel herb we have found in over 25 years,” Dan Pomerantz, founder and CEO of Rebel Grown, stated.
For September, Pomerantz is listing new clones on his website every Friday, especially “reliable, trusted classics” like OG Kush, Triangle Kush, Headband and Cherry Pie (rebelgrowngenetics.com).
Pomerantz listed the Double OG Chem 15 at $420,000 as “a little bit of a joke,” he said. We mere mortals can smoke the strain in Arizona, Ohio and New York starting this month.
James Loud Genetics ships a slate of hype in custom containers all year, like Violet Dripz and Candy Dripz (two Grape Gas crosses). Violet Dripz is a Black Runtz x Grape Gas cross that makes great rosin. “It’s very grapey — like an Alexander the Grape Otter Pop,” founder and CEO James Loud said.
You can jump on the Leafly Strain of the Year 2024, Super Boof, with clones from breeder Blockhead or selector Mobile Jay (beanfiendz.com). Blockhead’s Breeder Cut, aka Pink Panty Cut, is $600 at blockheadbuds.com.
MR. SHERBINSKI CHANNELS VOICE OF THE PLANT
Mario “Sherbinski” Guzman — popularizer of Sunset Sherbert and Gelato — is working on his next project, Voice of the Plant (voiceoftheplant.net).
Twelve years after launching the Sherbinskis flower brand, he said he was ready to get his hands dirty and be more punk rock. This fall and winter, Voice of the Plant has new rec flowers for New York, a podcast in development, six recordings with M-1 from Dead Prez and a seeds show at MJ BizCon in December.
“I was looking to start something from scratch. No investors. I wanted the challenge,” Guzman said from New York.
Guzman says VOP aims beyond the profit of “a cookie-cutter flower brand” to be a community catalyst, to have fun and to connect. Working with his wife, he is raiding his contacts for collaborators to cross-pollinate with.
“I WAS LOOKING TO START SOMETHING FROM SCRATCH. NO INVESTORS. I WANTED THE CHALLENGE.” -SHERBINSKI
“I might make an organic vegan frozen food line, why not?” Guzman said. “We just want to connect people with plants through food, art, music and business.”
This next chapter is Sherbinski “paying it forward,” he said. Guzman says it’s also an answer to the part of himself who wants to be more than a “one-hit wonder” for Gelato. “A brand or a genetic does not define who we are,” he said.
September 7 North America’s Cannabis crop flowers (and “early girls”) finish in September. In the garden, scout for nutrient deficiencies, mold, pests and hermaphrodite plants (whose pollen can destroy the crop). Also, lock in harvest prep, and get the drying room ready. Make sure the dehumidifier and air conditioning are working. Gather harvest supplies and clean gear. Autumnal Equinox: September 22 or 23. Days are exactly 12 hours long. Weather outlook:
CANDY DRIPZ
PHOTO BY JAMES LOUD GENETICS
DOUBLE OG CHEM PHOTO BY REBEL GROWN
REBEL COOKIES
PHOTO BY REBEL GROWN
VIOLET DRIPZ
PHOTO BY JAMES LOUD GENETICS
CANNABIS TAKES FLIGHT
Jamie Evans brings the mentality of wine tastings toweed.
On a traditionally chilly July evening in San Francisco, a small group gathered at a wine bar for an event that combined the aromas and flavors of wine alongside another one of California’s most celebrated agricultural products: Cannabis.
TUCKED IN a narrow street near San Francisco’s famed Zuni Café, Hotel Biron is not a hotel, but a wine bar and art gallery. This summer, Hotel Biron joined with certified sommelier and Cannabis author Jamie Evans to take part in her educational series, Terpenes and Tannins. The series, which has also taken place in areas best known for their wine production (such as Napa Valley and Anderson Valley), presents how Cannabis can complement a meal following the road map of wine tastings. At the events, Cannabis and other culinary ingredients are placed in wine glasses for sniffing (and sometimes smoking) as Evans demonstrates how the aromatic and flavorful elements of the world’s most favored flower can enhance the tastes of wine.
“There is this level of connoisseurship when you think about Cannabis,” Evans said to introduce the evening.
“When I came into the space, what I thought was interesting was learning about how farmers think about Cannabis. It’s very similar to how a grape farmer thinks about wine, and it’s really about that sense of place and practice. Cannabis does have that sense of terroir.”
As a loyal reader of Leaf Magazines, you likely already know about the gospel of departed hash educator Frenchy Cannoli. But if not, “terroir” is a French word that’s most often associated with wine and the characteristic aromas and flavors created by environmental factors, such as the climate, soil and farming practices. As Cannoli often said, the best Cannabis showcases a sense of place.
Evans approaches enjoying Cannabis in the same way that people appreciate wine at a tasting: meeting the producer, talking about how the products were created and breaking down sensory characteristics like appearance, aromas and flavor balance.
SAMPLING FLOWERS AND FRUITS
Terpenes are aromatic and flavorful compounds found in plants. Terpenes are in flowers (like Cannabis) and also in fruits (like grapes). Tannins are present in Cannabis, but these chemical compounds play a larger role in red wines and black teas. They taste bitter and make your mouth dry.
For the event in San Francisco, Evans combined a cabernet sauvignon — a grape known for its high tannin content — with a Blueberry Cupcake grown by Sonoma Hills Farm. Blueberry Cupcake is a cross of Blueberry Muffin and Wedding Cake bred by HendRx that’s true to its name in expressing elements of cake batter and blueberries.
HendRx reports that its terpene profile includes myrcene, limonene, pinene, beta-caryophyllene, humulene, linalool and guaiol.
Located in Sonoma County, the Cannabis grown at Sonoma Hills Farm originates from a delineated grape growing region, or American Viticultural Area, called the Petaluma Gap.
“She definitely does give blueberries to me,” Joyce Cenali, chief operating officer of Sonoma Hills Farm, said.
“She’s one of the ones that you notice in the field immediately when she starts to flower. She goes in a cheese direction as well.”
The proteins and fat in cheese combat the puckering sensations of tannins in wine and have been paired since the early days of winemaking. Because cheese and wine have a long tradition of being coupled, it makes sense that Cannabis strains that express cheesy smells and tastes would go well with a tannic red wine. Evans explained that the pairing she chose isn’t as tannic as cabernet sauvignons from the Napa Valley. The night’s selection was from Goose Ridge Estate Vineyard located in the Yakima Valley, the first AVA in Washington state. The wine Evans selected for Blueberry Cupcake takes on the berry notes the region is known for, she said.
CLEARING THE SMOKE
It’s 2025, and even in states where Cannabis has been legalized, it’s challenging to find venues that are open to hosting weed-themed events.
HOTEL BIRON
ANDERSON VALLEY WEED & WINE PAIRING
Because smoking Cannabis or tobacco isn’t allowed in bars in California, the tasting in San Francisco involved touching and smelling the weed, but not smoking it.
Hotel Biron’s owner, Ron Ramsubhag, is an organic chemist by day who, in 2024, became the proprietor of the bar he used to patronize.
“A lot of our regulars here, even staff, enjoy (Cannabis), even myself,” Ramsubhag said.
When asked if he was afraid people would start toking up inside, Ramsubhag said the thought had crossed his mind, but that ultimately he knew “it was going to be a fun educational experience.”
“Our regulars that come to the bar, they’re advocates for weed and marijuana and the medical properties that come with it,” he said.
TAKE FLIGHT
The San Francisco tasting event also included Pink Jesus, the signature strain of Sonoma Hills Farm. Pink Jesus is a cross of Pink 2.0, Starfighter and Heirloom OG. Cenali described the Cannabis as having notes of ginger, pink bubblegum, black raspberry and licorice. The primary terpenes in Pink Jesus are ocimene, beta-caryophyllene and humulene, she said.
Evans followed in describing the wine pairing, a cava rosado. The pink sparkling selection was from Spain and is a blend of two types of grapes, garnacha and trepat. Evans described the wine as having notes of cherries and strawberries and the aroma of rose petals.
"What I thought was interesting was learning about how farmers think about Cannabis. It’s very similar to how a grape farmer thinks about wine, and it’s really about that sense of place and practice.”
Guests were invited to smell the wine and the Cannabis side by side to evaluate if they could identify any similarities or differences.
“The truth is you can evaluate your Cannabis just like you can wine,” Evans said. “So this is what we’re trying to demonstrate tonight: that you can find different aromas and flavors in different strains. You can almost have like a flight of Cannabis and taste through it just like we do with wine.”
THE OCCASION
When it comes to choosing weed and wine, Evans said pairings come with occasions.
“When you’re out on the beach or you’re enjoying something on a hot day, you’re probably not going to reach for that big Napa cab,” Evans said.
“You’re probably going to go for that chilled albariño or like a grüner veltliner or something like that. And I think Cannabis is the same. You think about the occasion that you want to pair with, like how do you want to feel? And then you can customize it that way.”
Thinking of it that way, a full-bodied red wine is the indica of weed. It’s best when you want to relax in the evening.
For daytime affairs, Evans recommends going with lighter-bodied white wines and strains that contain terpenes associated with uplifting and energizing effects, such as pinene, which was in the rosemary that was passed around in a wine glass at the Terpenes and Tannins event.
Evans said when you’re in doubt about what wine might work best with your weed selection, go with bubbly.
“I think with bubbles, with sparkling wine especially, it very much cleanses your palate,” Evans said. “You salivate. It’s such a good match, so I always say champagne or cava, and bubbles and Cannabis is one of my favorite pairings.”
| @THEHERBSOMM
CANNABIS SOMMELIER JAMIE EVANS PHOTO BY MONICA LO/HIGH TIMES
GREENDAWG CULTIVATORS
STARKILLER
paired with DOMDECHANT WERNER RIESLING TROCKEN
“This match highlights the zesty fruit and the powerful petrol in the wine, and it brings out the best components of the flower.”
create balance and highlight the best in each component.
TANNINS
The word “riesling” may evoke memories of sweet summer sips on sun-dappled verandas, often from domestic producers such as Chateau Ste. Michelle and Charles Smith, with sweet hints of stone fruit and unchallenging characteristics.
A true German riesling, like the Domdechant Werner Riesling Trocken, is a different beast entirely. Racy rubber and potent petrol aromatics with highlights of lemon peel give way to bracing acidity and elegant minerality in this dry wine. The lack of residual sugar in this puckering riesling may surprise the casual fan of the style, but this traditional trocken (or “dry”) expression of the varietal is a serious sipper, and it would complement a wide variety of bright, light fare.
TERPENES
The crew at GreenDawg Cultivators built a reputation on breeding bulletproof genetics and cranking out banger batches in its indoor facility in Sacramento, the City of Trees. Anytime they lay a new batch of cultivars on the table, we pay close attention. This go-round, GreenDawg launched a new winner, Starkiller.
A bright green cross between Zkittlez and GSC, this loud dankness features a potpourri of earth, lemon peel, fuel, tropical fruit and floral aromatics. Co-founder Drew Coggio described it as “super mouth-coating candy gas terps,” and he’s not wrong. It leans a little heavier on the earth and gas on combustion, keeping its character all the way through a greasy doink, making it a stellar choice for this pairing.
PAIRING
Matching the Domdechant Werner Riesling Trocken with the GreenDawg Starkiller highlights the zesty fruit and the powerful petrol in the wine, and it brings out the best components of the flower. The mouthwatering acidity of the wine also keeps the cotton mouth at bay, begging for another sip and another toke. Try this combination before the waning warmth of summer gives way to cooler fall flavors.
@GREENDAWGCULTIVATORS
flavor savor
JUDGING FLOWERS BY THEIR FLAVORS (AND TERPS) AT THE LEAF BOWL
Since we launched the Leaf Bowl competitionsinlate2021,the Leafstaffallagreedthatweneeded tomovebeyondthethreetraditional flowercategoriesofIndica,Sativaand Hybrid.Somuchprogresshadbeen madeinunderstandingthenumerous terpenesandothercompoundsthat giveCannabiscultivarstheirdistinctive aromas and flavors that those old classifications had become outdated for judgingpurposes.Andso,wecreated ourownflowercategories based on flavorprofiles.
BUT SOON AFTER, while judging hydrocarbon concentrates for the Emerald Cup, I learned about the terpene classification system developed by PhytoFacts and SC Labs. And while the categories we came up with were very similar, their categories were based on a detailed analysis of thousands of different strain samples. So last year, with SC Labs’ blessing, we adopted their data-driven classifications as the official flower categories of the Leaf Bowl, with the addition of two of our own nonterpenebased groupings: CBD and Open Category. Ideally, all flower samples should be entered into the flavor category that best fits their terpene profile. That way, our judges can rate each entry against other entries with similar characteristics. For anyone hoping to enter or judge the Leaf Bowl next year and beyond, here is a brief overview of our flower classifications...
SPECIAL THANKS TO PHYTOFACTS AND SC LABS FOR THEIR OUTSTANDING WORK IN DEVELOPING THESE PROFILES AND ALLOWING US TO UTILIZE THEM FOR OUR COMPETITION.
Flavor/Aroma: Orange, Tangerine
Typical Cultivars: Tangie, Mimosa, Forbidden Fruit // The most recent addition to their classification system, this category is based less on terpene dominance and more on the prevalence of an orangey-smelling compound dubbed “tropicanna sulfur,” which often overpowers the terpenes.
Flavor/Aroma: Piney, woodsy, fruity
Typical Cultivars: Jack Herer, Trainwreck, various Hazes
// Most associated with what we’ve historically considered “sativas,” these cultivars are dominated mainly by a combination of myrcene, caryophyllene and terpinolene.
// Cultivars with unusual terpene combinations that don’t fit into any of the previously outlined categories, including those with high levels of less-common terps like ocimene, humulene or linalool, among others.
Flavor/Aroma: Spicy, sweet, doughy
Typical Cultivars: Girl Scout Cookies, various Cake and Gelato strains // Cultivars featuring a codominance of caryophyllene and limonene.
Flavor/Aroma:
Sweet, hoppy, herbaceous
Typical Cultivars: Blue Dream, Grandaddy Purp, Cherry AK // These cultivars exhibit high levels of myrcene, accompanied by secondary codominance of pinene and caryophyllene.
Flavor/Aroma: Varied
Typical Cultivars: Charlotte’s Web, Ringo’s Gift, Cannatonic // Strains of any flavor profile that have a significant percentage of CBD.
Flavor/Aroma: Sweet, gassy, peppery
Typical Cultivars: OG Kush, Chemdog, Sour Diesel // Closely related to Desserts, cultivars in this category also feature a codominance of caryophyllene and limonene, but with the addition of a heavy myrcene presence. Many strains in this classification also feature high levels of thiols, the compounds that give Cannabis its fuel-like aroma.
Flavor/Aroma:
Tropical fruit, flowers, herbs
Typical Cultivars: Hawaiian, In the Pines, most Pineapple strains // These cultivars have high levels of ocimene co-dominated by myrcene and/or caryophyllene.
// This is a catch-all category we created for competitors who don’t know which category their entry belongs in or who prefer to have their entry compete in a broader field rather than against similar strains.
Mimosa 1937 Farms
Jack Herer Curio Wellness
Blue Dream Sky High Gardens Flyin’ Hawaiian 1937 Farms
Gelato Cake District Cannabis Sour Diesel Sense Cannabis
Dutch Treat WoodWide
Blue Raspberry Icee Terp Mansion
Cannatonic x Ringo’s Gift Hogwash Pharms
SNIFFING OUT SOLUTIONS TO FIND TRUTH IN TERPS POTENCY PROBLEM
HIGH STAKES AND NUMBERS
It’s no secret that potency drives the Cannabis market, even though patients and producers alike have been screaming about the plant’s many other beneficial compounds, like terpenes, for 10-plus years. This trend — driven by a lack of general consumer education and a viciously volatile market where producers are forced to compete at all costs — has snowballed into a situation where it seems no side is winning.
Breeders and growers are discarding unique profiles in favor of culling cultivars that produce potency. Shops are stuck with stale shelves that won’t sell. Consumers are paying premiums for results they can’t trust and, more importantly, missing out on a pivotal part of the plant’s experience. Cannabis testing labs are at the forefront of this issue, stuck in the same cycle of survival where potency pays the bills.
To dive deeper into this problem, we sought the expertise of Taylor Pearce. He is currently the lab director at Green Leaf Lab (Sacramento), and he has a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry and over 12 years of testing experience (spanning four companies) in Oregon, Arizona and California.
TESTING STANDARDS
Similar problems plague all of these markets. From California to Arkansas, class action lawsuits have been filed against brands and labs alike for inflated THC numbers.
In California, a 2022 independent study reported on by Cannabis Industry Journal showed that out of 150 products tested, 87% were greater than “10% deviant of their labeled values.”
Legalized states around the nation are facing the same story, with state reference laboratories continuing to find flaws in private-party potency results.
Pearce adds that testing standards lacking state-to-state fluidity and scientific language stunt the evolution of overall testing procedures, while market pressure pushes producers to “shop around” for labs more likely to inflate numbers.
With such great variance from lab to lab Pearce adds that, “potency results vary so much, you can’t even rely on them.”
UNTAPPED TERPENE TREASURES
After years of what Pearce accurately calls “lukewarm public attention,” terpenes have failed to gain real traction among the masses as a marker, largely due to a lack of state-mandated testing and, therefore, consumer information. But these compounds offer a vibrant picture of aroma, flavor, effect and overall experience.
Terpene testing has caught on in multiple markets as a way for concentrates, in particular, to set themselves apart. But it’s up to brands to push the trend and labs to inform them of their testing options.
Pearce acknowledges that this has its own obstacles, like the same risk of percentage inflation and the limitations of the tests commonly requested. His proposed solution: relative abundance terpene testing.
A FULL FINGERPRINT
The relative abundance method doesn’t focus on exact percentages of top terpenes, but on whether a terpene is “present at statistically significant levels.” This provides a much deeper look at a profile’s unique “fingerprint.”
In 2024, the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission investigated seven of the state’s (then) 11 licensed testing labs for inflating THC results, citing three. One year later, the problem persisted. A 2025 report by the OLCC and the state’s Cannabis Reference Laboratory found that “third-party laboratory results were 13% higher” than CRL’s findings. For consumers, this is bad news. If the only metric the masses rely on is unreliable, then what markers are actually meaningful?
“A 2022 independent study reported on by Cannabis Industry Journal showed that out of 150 products tested, 87% were greater than ‘10% deviant of their labeled values.’ ”
“I think the approach to terpene testing is wrong. We’re often asked to look for the top two or three terpenes, which generally results in the same ten or so common compounds across strains,” Pearce shared. “The more interesting question is: What is the full terpene fingerprint? That’s where you really start to see how two strains with similar THC can have such different effects.”
If we can’t count on THC as consumers, a more comprehensive snapshot is necessary. The latest research points to the presence of nearly 120 terpenes in Cannabis. Limiting our understanding of a profile to THC and just two or three terpenes restricts our ability to wield its effects, whether you’re looking at this from a marketability or medical perspective.
GREEN LEAF LAB SACRAMENTO DIRECTOR TAYLOR PEARCE
A big reason we chose the Streetlevel coffee blend for this pairing is that it gave a consistent yet robust presence that complemented the Yellow Zushi rosin, regardless of whether we went in at 400 or 650 degrees Fahrenheit.
Not only did the coffee provide a flavorful experience, but its versatility also contributed a control element for this experiment.
TANNINS
When crafting this month’s pairing, we wanted something from Roast Magazine’s 2024 Roaster of the Year: Verve Coffee. Started in Santa Cruz, Verve also recently partnered with the Grateful Dead to drop a limited-edition Morning Brew. We looked at two or three single origins for this pairing but landed on the Streetlevel blend for its ability to shine through different brewing methods, as well as dab temps. As a straight pour-over coffee, there is a strong sweetness that mixes around the top of your taste buds, but the base is a velvety cocoa. Bold without being overbearing, Verve’s blend of Guatemalan, Colombian and Honduran beans is considered one of its greatest accomplishments.
TERPENES
There are only 420 grams of this special Black Label drop between Rosin Tech Labs and 3rd Gen Family Farms, and once you smell it, you’re going to want to grab an extra for the head stash. Some may be more partial to the Blue or the Black Zushi, but hash makers like Fort Wendy and Uplift Farms have established that the Yellow Zushi is a banger for rosin. Like its cousins, The TenCo’s Yellow Zushi is Z x Kush Mints and is known to lean more toward the Z side, with a daytime-friendly high.
Yellow Zushi could honestly be a cologne or perfume in the way you catch yourself opening the jar just to keep the scent in your nose. Clean, fresh and slightly sweet while still retaining that Z bite right on the edge.
PAIRING
Together at 450 degrees, the brightness of the Yellow Zushi and these full-bodied beans reach out to meet each other like two halves of a friendship locket. The bright but not overly astringent top flavors of the Yellow Zushi have no problem slipping into step, fitting together like a firm handshake and creating a complex and complete picture. At 550 to 600 degrees, that wave of coffee flavor seems to isolate the Z terps and pack them at the front, creating a pushand-pull effect between the roast and rosin that allowed me to experience that crisp sweetness as an aftertaste.
VERVECOFFEE.COM @VERVECOFFEE ROSINTECHLABS.COM @ROSINTECHLABS
"Yellow Zushi could honestly be a cologne or perfume in the way you catch yourself opening the jar just to keep the scent in your nose."
MAKE GROWING EASY AGAIN
SIMPLIFY YOUR GROW BY SWITCHING TO A GRANULAR FERTILIZER THAT HAS BEEN SPECIALY FORMULATED FOR CANNABIS. IT’S AS SIMPLE AS MIXING IN WITH SOIL OR COCO THEN IT’S WATER ONLY AFTER THAT. FOR AS IN WITH
CUT COSTS REDUCE ERRORS INCREASE QUALITY AND YIELD MOST AFFORDABLE FERTILIZER AT SCALE
So many of the blunts we roll are hybrid or indica. There are so few opportunities to get the experience of putting an elite run of Super Silver Haze into arguably the best blunts on the market (curated by Paxton and Dawson Newman, fourthgeneration cigar makers).
TANNINS
Tannins are very prevalent in a Connecticut Broadleaf, the style of tobacco leaf we used for this pairing. Broadleafs have a higher tannin content than thinner styles of tobacco leaves, due in part to being grown under the sun. This promotes the plant’s defense system (increasing the level of tannins) and raises the levels of nicotine and alkaloids that contribute to the flavor of the cigar. The result is a sweet, earthy flavor with an almost chocolaty note on top.
“... a fantastic example of why people love smoking blunts of exotic terpene profiles.”
TERPENES
Super Silver Haze has been winning awards for nearly 30 years, and the awards are still coming. CAM’s rendition just took home top honors at the California State Fair.
In a world of candy and dessert terpenes, Super Silver Haze provides a fantastic homage to the European Haze terps created by Scott Blakey (aka Shantibaba) with Nevil Schoenmakers. Those terps hold a special place in the hearts of many smokers around the globe. The sharpest versions feature an almost musty pine smell that feels a little bit different from the original Haze or its cousin, Jack Herer.
The CAM version (Haze × Skunk #1 × Northern Lights #5) holds up against the modern elite phenos, but has a few extra Jack notes compared to the haziest versions of the strain. While we can’t exactly compare CAM’s rendition to the phenos of 30 years ago, the cerebral experience is one of the best you’ll find in a recreational market that tends to lean more on full-bodied and relaxing cultivars (named after snacks and ice cream) from the last 15 years.
Super Silver Haze is considered one of the more uplifting, sativa-heavy strains of the modern era. But you don’t see too much of it because it can take longer to grow than other strains that may be more coveted at the moment. Thankfully, the CAM team’s dedication provides an authentic representation of how good Super Silver Haze can be.
PAIRING
When you combine all of the above, you get a fantastic example of why people love smoking blunts of exotic terpene profiles. The Broadleaf’s flavor contributes a large amount of the haziness that comes through when smoking this pairing. The Haze in Super Silver Haze is the main flavor profile that comes through from the Cannabis. The robustness of the Broadleaf mutes some of the other little notes you might get out of a paper. Regardless, the pairing is fantastic.
TANNINS
In much of South America, the elixir created from steeping the leaves of the yerba mate plant has been a popular tea-like beverage for hundreds of years. Dubbed “mate,” the beverage offers naturally occurring caffeine along with other stimulating compounds, such as theophylline and theobromine. The company Yerba Madre — until recently known as Guayaki — popularized mate in the United States with canned and bottled versions. While far from traditional, the sparkling versions offer a naturalistic contrast within the energy drink world. With 80 milligrams of caffeine (comparable to an 8.4-ounce Red Bull), the Grapefruit Ginger flavor is tasty and delivers a zing and a zip without a sidecar of anxiety.
The interplay of caffeine and cannabinoids can be even more fun than tannins and terpenes, so pairing the Casa Flor Family Chile Mango THC Tincture with the Yerba Madre Sparkling Grapefruit Ginger Yerba Mate makes for a perfect collaboration.
PAIRING
The sweet and spicy chile mango syrup complements the zippy citrus and ginger flavors in the mate, making for a refreshing punch. Make sure to keep an eye on the dosage lines on the cup — just 5 mL contains roughly 83mg of THC. We’ve seen people free-pour this into a soda and not bat an eye, but anyone with a low tolerance might want to start with a few drops in their can of yerba mate and go up from there.
YERBAMADRE.COM
@YERBAMADRE
CASAFLORFAMILY.COM
@CASAFLORFAMILY
TERPENES
An entire family of true Northern California OGs, Casa Flor Family always delivers on quality products that you can feel good about buying. Released earlier this year, their new line of flavored live-rosin-infused tinctures delivers in every way possible. We’ve tried a few flavors, including the Watermelon Tamarindo, Pineapple Pina and the Cucumber Pepino, but for this pairing, we chose the caliente Chile Mango. At 1,000mg of THC per 30-milliliter bottle, it’s good that these tinctures come with a dosing cup. To say they’re potent is an understatement. Luckily, they’re also potently delicious, so it doesn’t take much to add a little flavor to a mocktail, soda or other beverage.
“An entire family of true Northern California OGs, Casa Flor Family always delivers
on quality products that you can feel good about buying.”
Four artists at the top of their game showcase the wonder of functional vessels.
A CUP ABOVE
@FRITGLASS GLASS
PORTLAND, OR
Anthony Charles hails from Long Island, New York, but he’s made Portland, Oregon, his home over the last 10 years. For years, he was predominantly a marble artist, and then for many more years, he was mostly a pipe maker. During a slow period around 2019, Anthony started making cups. He was doing some gig work to make extra money, and he would come into the shop and make a whole cup in a couple of hours versus making a rig that took two days. When the cups started doing well at auction, he was able to go back to just doing glasswork full time. When COVID-19 hit, he thought it would slow down, but it was the exact opposite. Demand for craft beer glasses exploded during lockdown, and sales of Anthony’s one-of-a-kind drinking glasses
He would come into the shop and make a whole cup in a couple of hours versus making a rig that took two days.
Although Ben Burtoni is mostly known for his intricate marbles and sculptural designs with a tropical avian influence, he also likes to make very unique drinking vessels. One of them features a complex wigwag pattern with highlights from a satin turquoise color known as “neptunium.” In another example, we have that same color, but it has been ghosted (a technique that allows the artist to control the density of a particular color) for more transparency and paired with an epic hand-drawn cloud scene. And finally, we have what I call a perfect breakfast set: two handled glasses and one larger tumbler. You never know what Ben will come up with next, so don’t miss out on the constant evolution on his Instagram page.
One of them features a complex wigwag pattern with highlights from a satin turquoise color known as
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO
@BURTONIGLASS
@WHITNEYHARMONGLASS
WHITNEY HARMON GLASS
BELLINGHAM, WA
Whitney Harmon’s talents spread far and wide, and you can enjoy a few of his cup designs here. Each piece is completed with a lot of focus on cold work. You’ll notice beveled edges and lapped bases among other small details. These are celebration pieces, but they are sturdy enough for daily use. The unique layering utilized with his millefiori and some luster makes this masterpiece really pop. His utilization of reticello patterns for border and center pieces makes for a clean look. And how about those platinum bands? They are actually painted by hand on the piece, adding another spectacular dimension to the colorways and shaping of these works of art.
@MOTHERSHIPGLASS MOTHERSHIP GLASS
BELLINGHAM, WA
These are celebration pieces, but they are sturdy enough for daily use.
To say Mothership Glass never disappoints is certainly not an exaggeration in this case. The level of intricacy in the patterns on both of these sake sets is stunning. With a tokkuri and matching cups from the “Temple” and “Dragon’s Gate” series, these sets command a presence anywhere they go. Along with clean lines, perfect shaping and insane graphic details is the perfection in wall thickness and finishing touches that Mothership is known for. If you are looking for a gift for the sake lover in your life, you may have found it.
With a tokkuri and matching cups from the “Temple” and “Dragon’s Gate” series, these sets command a presence anywhere they go.
“Dragon’s Gate,” left, and “Temple” Sake Set, right.
AMORP SYMPHONY
HOUS
Kensington, Pennsylvania, a place that has become a Philadelphia art haven, is where this artist’s journey began. It was a typical hot, humid summer, but this particular evening would include a small thunderstorm while another large spark was happening below. It was July 26, 2017, and Amorphous Symphony was born into the world of glass art. A few of Brandon Spencer’s friends saw his interest piquing, and they decided to enable him to follow his inspiration by renting him space at their glass studio. Since that point in the timeline, Brandon’s switch has always been in the “on” position.
At the 2025 Mini Masters Champs Glass Games in Las Vegas, Brandon took home first place in the Expanding Consciousness category for his “Shivasaurus.”
COMMONLY KNOWN for his love of dinosaurs, paleontology themes shine through in his creations. This subject matter requires an amazing amount of dexterity in regards to sculptural skills, which he shows prominently in each piece. After being exposed to a variety of his Amorphous Symphony works over the years, I would point out that his colorways definitely set him apart, as well as his attention to detail with his connections and shaping.
ANOTHER THING BRANDON travel. He’s not constantly on the road, but when he is, you can guarantee he’s making solid connections with people and enjoying all the culture he can find. Speaking of traveling, Brandon recently won first place at the 2025 Mini Masters Champs Glass Games in Las Vegas for his sculpture, “Shivasaurus,” in the Expanding Consciousness category. Artists were limited to a 4-by-4-inch box of prep material and only six hours to complete the project.
I CAN’T
Massachusetts, Rip Tide in Belfast, Maine, and Beaufort Glass Art Gallery in Beaufort, South Carolina. A U.K. Dino drop and a few more openings will be posted on his social media, so stay tuned.
Amorphous Symphony continues to push the boundaries of borosilicate art.
a few years ago, and his kind demeanor and obvious dedication to the craft set him apart from a lot of the artists that were coming on the scene at that time. I would see this kid call it a night when the party was just getting started. He knew he needed to be well-rested to perform his best every day. Now, to be clear, there have been nights when I’ve watched the sunrise on a New Jersey shore with him and an amazing group of people.
But most nights, he’s focusing on his art and what goes into it, whether it’s learning new techniques or collaborating with some of the world’s most renowned artists.
Amorphous Symphony continues to push the boundaries of borosilicate art.
When Brandon isn’t on the torch, you’ll find him hanging out with his girlfriend and dogs, watching anime or playing video games.
BEYOND THE BUD
GROWING TANNINAND TERPENE-RICH PLANTS FOR THE BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT
Long before pharmaceutical laboratories and prescriptions, the Native American medicine chest was the home garden, and the pharmacy was nature. In Ayurveda, the ancient system of wellness born in India over 5,000 years ago, plants are more than just food or fragrance. They are sacred allies, each carrying a unique vibrational signature and a spectrum of botanical compounds that nurture the mind, body and soul.
TWO OF THESE botanical treasures, tannins and terpenes, are often celebrated in fine wines, craft beers and Cannabis. However, they aren’t just found in bottles and buds; these potent plant gifts are alive and thriving in the lush green world surrounding us.
Tannins are plant polyphenols: potent antioxidants with a knack for detoxifying, reducing inflammation and toning tissues. They protect against cellular damage and help the body release what no longer serves it. Terpenes are found in the essential oils of plants. These are the compounds that
give herbs, flowers and trees their distinct scents and colors, as well as antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory and mood-elevating powers.
Cannabis is a rich source of beneficial terpenes and tannins. For example, terpenes like myrcene (found in Blue Dream) ease stress and relax muscles, while limonene (abundant in Super Lemon Haze) uplifts mood and boosts immunity. Cannabis tannin content contributes antioxidant and anti-inflammatory support, especially in sun-grown, full-spectrum flower.
CULTIVATING AROMATIC HERBAL WISDOM
Want to cultivate an elevated medicine chest? Here are four plants that are guaranteed to overflow with beneficial tannins and terpenes.
HOLY BASIL (TULSI)
In Ayurveda, Tulsi is called the “incomparable one,” and for good reason. This fragrant green goddess is a terpene powerhouse, exuding eugenol and other aromatic oils that soothe anxiety, balance the breath and ignite spiritual clarity. Her tannins bring immune-boosting and detoxifying strength, making Tulsi a daily tonic for both body and spirit. In tribal traditions, Tulsi’s leaves are often brewed into teas for purification rituals. Plant her in a sunny spot, and she’ll fill your garden with sacred vitality.
ROSEMARY
Rosemary is a garden guardian and mental clarity muse. terpenes like rosmarinic acid and cineole give this plant focus-enhancing and antimicrobial gifts, while its tannins lend astringent and anti-inflammatory magic. Indigenous herbalists have turned to rosemary to awaken memory, stimulate circulation and protect against illness. A simple sprig in your tea or tucked into your hair during meditation can invite focus, courage and clarity into your day. Additionally, drinking a cup of rosemary tea twice a day helps prevent parasites.
When we welcome these plants into our home grow, we are weaving ourselves back into an indigenous relationship between humans and the plant spirit world, a relationship of care with these plant teachers who, in return, care for us. As a true OG full circle wellness advocate, I encourage all OGs to welcome this Native wisdom into your garden. Bond with them, grow with them and harvest their gifts with gratitude.
SAGE
Known to Native American tribes as a sacred ancestral teacher, sage has been burned in ceremonies for purification and spiritual clearing for centuries. Beyond the smoke, her leaves are rich in terpenes like thujone and camphor, which support respiratory health and soothe inflammation. Her tannins act as natural antiseptics, helping the body’s tissues heal and tighten. In Ayurvedic wisdom, sage tea is used for digestion and cooling excess heat in the body. Keep her near the entrances and exits to bless the energy of your home.
POMEGRANATE
The pomegranate tree is a tannin-rich beauty that bridges sweet fruit with deep medicinal potency. Its bark and rind hold concentrated tannins that cleanse the gut, strengthen the heart and act as natural antimicrobials. Terpenes in the flower and leaves stimulate anti-inflammatory and hormone-balancing benefits. In Indigenous traditions, the pomegranate is a plant of fertility, abundance and longevity. This plant is worthy of a sunny corner in any sacred garden.
Touching Grass at Outside Lands
The catchphrase “found myself out in the lands” couldn’t be more appropriate for Outside Lands, the annual music festival that transforms San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park into a haven for the artistic and the adventurous each August.
Spread like tentacles into the vales and meadows among the tall trees, the festival’s many environments act as their own stylized venues, each tailored to a different vibe and aesthetic.
As the evening fog rolled in at the dusk of each day, the rush to get from stage to stage to catch that must-see act became a psychedelic quest, with vibrant multicolored lights illuminating the trees.
Predictably, the most difficult thing about an event the magnitude of Outside Lands is the decision-making. At any given time, on any given stage, you could find a top-tier act blowing minds with energy that deserved its own stand-alone show.
The music marathon was well worth the effort, and the highlights were many. Here are some bright spots (find more photos and coverage at leafmagazines.com and on the @californialeafmag Instagram):
Grass Lands returned with a Cannabis sales and consumption oasis among the trees, filled with booths and brands, including a marquee outing from Zig-Zag rolling papers, and Embarc, the Sacramento-based dispensary chain. The prices were good, the product was tasty, and the set and setting were amazing. Someday, regulations may let some of these brands activate out in the general festival grounds like the alcohol vendors, but for now, the fact that Outside Lands even has a Cannabis activation is a landmark win for the community.
The Bay Area showed out big time, especially with a legend-making set by LaRussell, who packed the stage with local voices, jumped into the crowd and threw down verses while feeding off the energy of the surrounding throng. That’s become a LaRussell trademark, and we’re here for it. His set was the perfect lead-in to an epic showing by Ludacris
New-school indie rock up-and-comers Royel Otis and Wallows brought guitar textures and sincere emotions to the late afternoon sets at the Twin Peaks Stage on Saturday, and BigXthaPlug hyped that same stage so much that the ground shook on Sunday.
The Soma Stage wins for the most impactful stage activation, with its triangular, LED gateways that made the EDM crowd feel like they were headed into hyperspace during its all-day DJ showcase.
We caught a killer set from Nico Moreno, as well as Dirtybird veterans Walker & Royce
GRASS LANDS
PHOTO BY TOM BOWERS
LARUSSELL
PHOTO BY JOSH WITHERS
NICO MORENO
PHOTO BY TOM BOWERS
BECK
PHOTO BY TOM BOWERS
TYLER THE CREATOR
PHOTO BY TOM BOWERS
“New-school indie rock up-andcomers Royel Otis and Wallows brought guitar textures and sincere emotions to the late afternoon sets at the Twin Peaks Stage on Saturday, and BigXthaPlug hyped that same stage so much that the ground shook on Sunday.”
Speaking of DJs, Anderson .Paak surprised the crowd by spinning an insane all-vinyl set as his alter ego, DJ Pee .Wee, absolutely rocking the party during sundown on day two and getting people ready for the evening’s headliners.
Each night’s marquee acts brought the heat. Beck, backed by a symphony, was about as beautiful as music gets, and Doja Cat on night one and Tyler, the Creator on night two had people debating who had the better set. By the time Anderson .Paak brought out E-40 on night three, the crowd was overwhelmed by the onslaught of legendary performances.
On the recap, one of the biggest surprises was Doechii, who easily had one of the best sets of the entire festival. From the stage set to the choreography to the musical performance, she proved why she’s one of the best currently doing it. Next time we see her at Outside Lands, she’ll no doubt be in a headlining spot.
When that happens, the Leaf will be there, hopefully raising a joint in the air in the front row after a day of questing through the trees finding the music, and ourselves, out in the lands.
WALLOWS PHOTO BY ALIVE COVERAGE
LUDACRIS PHOTO BY ALIVE COVERAGE
DJ PEE .WEE
PHOTO BY ALIVE COVERAGE
DOJA CAT
PHOTO BY ALIVE COVERAGE
LARUSSELL
PHOTO BY ALIVE COVERAGE
WELCOME IN!
PHOTO BY TOM BOWERS
On July 27, the Cannabis community lost one of its most consequential activists: Richard Lee, the paraplegic medical marijuana user turned entrepreneur who came to be known as the “Mayor of Oaksterdam.” This month, we look back at Lee’s life and his role in transforming Oakland into one of the nation’s Cannabis reform capitals.
The Mayor of Oaksterdam
THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST
Raised in a conservative Republican household in Houston, Texas, Richard Lee was an adrenaline junkie from a young age — developing passions for riding motorcycles, diving, flying gliders and live music.
In 1984, he dropped out of college and spent the rest of the decade as a roadie, eventually landing a gig as a lighting tech for Aerosmith on their 1990 Pump Tour. One day, while working at New Jersey’s Meadowlands, he slipped and fell from a catwalk. Tragically, the accident left him paralyzed from the waist down, condemning him to life in a wheelchair at the age of 27.
In addition, Lee also suffered from chronic nerve pain and muscle spasms, and soon realized that Cannabis was the best treatment. But it would take another unfortunate incident a year later to turn Lee into an activist.
“In 1991, I was the victim of a carjacking, and the police response time was 45 minutes, which angered me more than the actual carjacking. I blamed the lack of police protection on Cannabis prohibition,” he told High Times in 2009. “I felt like,
here was this wonderful medicine of Cannabis that had helped me so much, and why were the cops going after people using and selling it instead of the psychos and sociopaths who are out there robbing people?” Lee later told SF Gate. “I thought I should do something about it.”
GOING TO CALIFORNIA
In 1992, Lee opened one of the nation’s first hemp shops in Houston, Legal Marijuana - The Hemp Store, and began publishing a pro-pot newsletter. It was while handing out these newsletters at a smoke-in on the steps of the Colorado state Capitol in Denver in 1993 that he met a young activist from South Dakota named Jeff Jones, who was inspired by the information in the pamphlet.
The following year, Jones moved to Oakland, met activism icons like Debbie Goldsberry, Ed Rosenthal and Dennis Peron, and dove headfirst into the movement. In mid-1995, he started a Cannabis delivery service, and within a year, it had blossomed into one of the nation’s first dispensaries, the Oakland Cannabis Buyers’ Cooperative. The club was so popular that, in July 1996, the city of Oakland
officially endorsed it four months before Prop 215 was even passed.
After visiting Jones in Oakland in 1996, Lee offered to provide the dispensary with Cannabis at a discounted rate. Upon returning to Texas, Lee began mailing pounds of weed to OCBC, which alarmed Jones.
“I’m like, oh my God — I can’t do business like this!” Jones recalls. “So I got him on the phone and convinced him to move to Oakland.”
Lee relocated to Oakland in 1997, co-founded the Hemp Research Company, set up an indoor grow and began supplying the shop with high-quality, low-cost Cannabis.
U.S. V. OCBC
Under Prop 215, OCBC was thriving, servicing upward of 2,000 patients. Unfortunately, the feds would soon step in to reassert their authority.
On January 9, 1998, the U.S. government sued the OCBC in an attempt to shut it down. The district judge issued an injunction prohibiting them from operating until the case was
Lee’s hemp shop in Houston.
MIKKI NORRIS
resolved. When their appeal was denied, Jones defied the injunction and continued to distribute medicine. As a result, he was held in contempt, and on October 19, federal marshals shut down the OCBC for good. Jones instead opened the Patient ID Center to help Cannabis patients.
Meanwhile, Jones continued appealing his case all the way to the Supreme Court, hoping to force federal recognition of medical Cannabis … but on May 14, 2001, the Supreme Court unanimously rejected Jones’ medical necessity defense.
BRINGING AMSTERDAM TO OAKLAND
Nevertheless, Oakland’s other activists remained undeterred. After its closing, OCBC’s CFO Jim McClelland opened a speakeasy-style dispensary called the Zoo. And in 1999, Lee opened his own dispensary, the Bulldog Coffeeshop, modeled after Amsterdam’s classic Cannabis cafe.
In 2003, he opened a second coffee shop called SR-71, which was renamed Coffeeshop Blue Sky four years later. Lee’s goal in opening these Cannabis cafes was to “bring Amsterdam to Oakland,” as he later explained in a 2010 NPR interview: “Amsterdam is our model city. When I go there, I see tourists and jobs and taxes being created from the Cannabis industry, and I think we can do that here.”
So naturally, it was only a matter of time before McClelland thought up the brilliant pot-manteau “Oaksterdam.”
In 2005, Lee opened the Oaksterdam Gift Shop and partnered with activist couple Chris Conrad and Mikki Norris to publish the Oaksterdam News, a quarterly newspaper covering all things California and Cannabis-related. But it was while attending the 19th Cannabis Cup (to receive High Times’ Freedom Fighter of the Year award) that Lee got the inspiration for his most impactful endeavor: Oaksterdam University.
SCHOOL OF POT
“Oaksterdam University started after I went to Amsterdam in 2006 and saw the Cannabis College, a kind of small information center,” Lee once explained. “I thought it would be a good idea to take it to the next level by actually offering classes.”
And so, Lee and his team wrote up a curriculum and launched Oaksterdam University. The first classes, attended by 22 students, were held on November 10th, 2007, in a small room across the street from his gift shop.
Three months later, Jones began hosting classes at his Patient ID Center (Oaksterdam’s LA campus). It was here that Dale Sky Clare entered the picture. In the summer of 2007, Clare was working with a medical marijuana doctor in Orange County when she contacted California NORML director Dale Gieringer for some information. Gieringer referred her to Jones, who not only won her over to the cause but also won her heart. Within a year, she was dating Jones and working full time at OULA.
By 2010, the university had expanded into a 30,000square-foot space that included multiple classrooms, an auditorium, a theater, a horticulture lab, a nursery and even a museum, as well as auxiliary campuses in Sebastopol and Flint, Michigan. That July, Clare became Mrs. Jones.
Despite heavy opposition, Lee spent $1.3 million of his own money (his life savings) to get his initiative, Prop 19, to the finish line.
MARIJUANA MEASURES
The media attention surrounding the university drew tourism and revenue to Oakland. Lee used the profits generated by his businesses and the goodwill he’d garnered among local officials to advance a series of local legalization initiatives.
In 2003, he formed the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance and put forward Measure Z, a city ballot question that made sales, cultivation and possession of Cannabis the lowest priority for law enforcement. The measure passed in 2004 with 65% of the vote. Next came Measure F, another citywide initiative seeking to impose a 1.8% tax on Cannabis businesses. In July 2009, the measure passed with 80% of the vote, making Oakland the first city in America to tax Cannabis sales.
With two electoral victories now under their belts, Lee and his crew were emboldened to swing for the fences: full statewide legalization and taxation of Cannabis.
PROPOSITION 19
In 2009, Lee, Jones and others drafted a four-page voter initiative entitled the “Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010,” and began the laborious task of gathering the 434,000 signatures needed to get it onto the ballot for the November 2010 election.
Among its provisions, the measure would repeal all previous local and state Cannabis laws and expunge all convictions under those laws. It would allow adults 21 and over to possess up to an ounce of Cannabis and cultivate a personal garden up to 25 square feet.
Despite heavy opposition (including from some within the movement), Lee spent $1.3 million of his own money (his life savings) to get his initiative to the finish line, collecting almost twice the number of signatures needed in less than half of the time allotted. Polling at 56%, Proposition 19 (coincidentally, the same number as another legalization initiative in 1972) was on track to pass.
Unfortunately, a pair of October surprises ultimately caused Prop 19 to fall short. What’s worse, their near victory once again drew unwanted attention from the feds.
OAKLAND RAIDERS
On April 2, 2012, agents from the IRS, DEA, ATF and U.S. Marshals Service raided Oaksterdam University, as well as Lee’s home and other businesses. Hundreds of outraged locals protested outside as officials looted Lee’s establishments, shutting down streets, brazenly blazing, booing and cursing at the police and chanting “Shame!” and “DEA, go away.” Ultimately, authorities confiscated around 60,000 plants, as well as all of their computers, files and bank accounts.
Lee was detained, but was not arrested and never charged. Nevertheless, the raid forced Lee to reevaluate his situation. Facing a mountain of debt and likely future “criminal enterprise” charges, he decided it was best to retire early. And so, Lee divested from his businesses and entrusted them to the longest-standing employee in each company, which, in the case of Oaksterdam University, was Chancellor Dale Sky Jones, who became president and CEO.
KEEPING THE FAITH
With the loss of most of their assets, faculty and students, Sky Jones would have to start from scratch — relocating to a smaller space and rebuilding the staff and curriculum to keep the school afloat. Under her stewardship, the university rose from the ashes to become more successful than ever. Today, the school is mostly online, offering dozens of courses and boasting over 100,000 alumni from 116 countries.
As for Lee, he continued to inspire Cannabis justice nationwide. In 2018, he moved back to Houston to care for his mother, with whom he founded Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition (RAMP).
Richard Lee died in a Houston hospital on Sunday, July 27, from cancer-related complications. He was 62 years old. The announcement of his death elicited memorial messages of admiration from all across the Cannabis community.
“There are few people who have single-handedly advanced our cause as much as Richard Lee,” Paul Armentano, NORML’s deputy director and Oaksterdam University’s science chair, memorialized. “His contributions and his legacy will not be forgotten.”
To read the unabridged version of this story and hear Bobby’s interview with Jeff and Dale Sky Jones, visit worldofcannabis.museum/cannthropology.
MIKKI NORRIS
Lee campaigning for Prop 19.
Celebrating Measure Z’s passage at Lee’s Bulldog Coffeeshop.
Protesters outside Oaksterdam Univerity confront authorities conducting the raid.
Lee with Dale Sky Jones at OU.
CHRIS CONRAD
OAKSTERDAM.COM
COURTESY OF MIKKI NORRIS
HOW CANNABIS INSPIRES ART
TREVYMETAL
Known for his intricate glass engravings, vibrant illustrations and creative vinyl figures, Philadelphia-based artist Trevy Metal (Trevor Johns) has a playful, recognizable style that has helped design products for brands like Chinatown Market, Dab Rite and Diamond Supply Co.
HE’S COLLABORATED with just about every big-name glass artist out there, and his collection of art and merchandise has been the focus of gallery shows nationwide. Raised in tattoo shops where his dad was working, Trevy Metal says he’s been largely inspired by things that were in the background during his childhood. This meant a diet of Heavy Metal magazines, Ralph Bakshi cartoons and the world of illustrators like Peter Max and Mark Bode.
Looking at Metal’s work, it’s easy to see his connection to comic books, Jim Henson monsters, pop culture from the last 50 years and Japanese animation. “My dad loved ‘Astro Boy’ and ‘Speed Racer,’” he said. These are the types of things, he says, that stay with him in his studio today.
“Right now, obviously, you’ll hear a lot of Sabbath and Ozzy on repeat while my TV plays all the ‘Aliens’ movies, but I’ve also been hard into ‘Plastic Beach’ by the Gorillaz.”
As an artist, he says Cannabis helps him “dig into the deeper themes” in his head. “I think even during my early experimentations with Cannabis, I noticed these dreamy states that let me zone out and uncover themes and concepts in a way that a typical daydream or free drawing session doesn’t fully do,” he told the Leaf. He described how it’s not just the state of being high that allows him to connect with his past for ideas, but that it also helps him feel calm enough later to sit and sift through that intense flow of images to consciously decide which idea to pursue. “The afterglow of getting high is when I get most inspired,” he said.
Metal says his art is also born out of everyday occurrences in life.
“I live in a big city on purpose. There’s something new around almost every corner, and you never know what might trigger a memory or idea,” he said.
“I can literally get inspired by a pile of trash on the ground if the trash is the right color or texture.”
@SENSISEEDS_US SENSISEEDS.US
@SENSISEEDS.US /SENSISEEDSTV