Lansterdam in Review: Dabs: The final frontier in Lansing’s marijuana market?

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This week’s review comes with a disclaimer: These powerful cannabis concentrates available at dispensaries in Lansing are not your grandfather’s brick weed. Clocking in at THC rates well above 60%, these waxes and resins give new meaning to the phrase “A little dab’ll do ya.”

If you’re not a seasoned weed smoker, please, tread lightly on these potent pot products.

Holy Grail Wax

Price — $44/gram

THC content — 70.4%

I haven’t had dabs since college, but I remember being simultaneously intrigued and sort of put off by the concept of using a butane torch to heat up a glass rig before smoking. And with prices about doubling the standard flower rate, I never invested too much into the concentrate market.

But, with the wide product availability in Lansing, I figured it was time to give it some more attention. I won’t walk through an entire instructional guide, except to recommend Wild Bill’s Tobacco for a starter kit. I found a glass nail attachment for my bong, a tool and a butane torch for under $50.

Several varieties of concentrates are on the market nowadays — like wax, budder, cured resin, live resin, shatter, diamonds and more. Wax is the industry standard, and like others, the gooey extract is just a concentrated dose of THC made using a solvent like butane or carbon dioxide.

Holy Grail Kush is an indica-dominant crossbreed between Kosher Kush and OG No. 18, probably most noted for winning the first-ever perfect score at the 2011 High Times Cannabis Cup. And the concentrated version, just as expected, rattles the mind like a freight train.

Northcoast Extracts packages its wax wrapped in a small sheet of paper inside a credit-card-sized cardboard envelope. The translucent, mustard-brown wax smells and tastes a bit like citrus. But, like with my past experiences with dabs, it’s usually more about effects than flavor.

After overheating a few rounds of dabs and breaking into a coughing fit that lasted a solid two minutes, beads of sweat were dripping off my forehead and I was ready to get outside. It wasn’t that the wax was harsh, just too smooth to notice I had practically cleared the bong twice over.

The familiar, stoney buzz that I usually experience from a solid indica-rolled joint was increased tenfold in its wax form. I didn’t feel much of the usual couchlock from this indica, instead total stress relief as I strolled down the street with my dog. This could be a powerful pain reliever.

Holy Grail — paired with the evening sunshine — washes away the anxiety while keeping you alert and awake, and still lends well to socializing with friends without putting you into a daze.

Garlic Breath Pre-Rolled Joint

Price — $12/0.75 gram

THC content — 17.4%

Not ready for dabs? No worries. Skymint also has you covered on some dank flower. Garlic Bud is reportedly the same classic strain from the ’90s using Afghani genetics. I picked up a pre-rolled joint during a recent sale, otherwise these large cones could set you back $15.

Garlic Breath carries its name for a reason. It hits with a pungent smell and taste from the moment you crack open the jar until the very last puff of the roach. But I wouldn’t describe it as pure garlic, perhaps more of a subtle blend of 420 herbs and spices with a pine-like finisher.

This is some of the best “chill out” bud I’ve had the pleasure of smoking in Lansing. My usual 10-minute scroll through Netflix ended in about 60 seconds, where I comfortably spaced out into a new sci-fi series about time travel. Prepare for dry mouth and a full night of sleep afterward.

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