Amazing Cannabis Products You Didn’t Know Existed
When I first started out in the cannabis industry, I worked as a budtender, a fancy term for someone who works at a recreational or medical marijuana dispensary. My job was to recommend products to customers based on their expressed likes, dislikes or vague memory of something they smoked 30 years ago that they were hoping to recreate. Half of my job was also interacting with cannabis brands that came into our store hoping to get their products on our shelves. I got to sample everything from cannabis lotion and salad dressing to someone trying to sell us their cannabis pet products (??). Over time I became incredibly familar with the emerging variety of cannabis products in regards to branding and quality. While I’m not affiliated with any of these brands, I’ve used their products several times over the last year and feel they are worthy of a writeup. Here are some of my favorites.
Catapult Coffee Pods: Getting high Keurig style
Back in college I had to brew a pot of coffee before enjoying cannabis or else I would fall asleep. It seems genius that now you can enjoy this classic pairing in one fell swoop. Local Seattle accessories shop Trichome made world news when they started offering their famous Cannabis & Coffee Sundays once a month. It didn’t take long before someone noticed that this powerful combination could make its way into a Keurig machine. My home city of Seattle doesn’t mess around with coffee and Catapult is no exception. The coffee is smooth, flavorful and lifts you up for a gentle take off but delivers the warm relaxing body effect of cannabis. The pods are 10MG which depending on your BMI and tolerance can be just right or too much. The legal standard edibles dose is 5mg. If you’re new to edibles or on the smaller side, I’d recommend mixing a 1:2 ratio of Catapult coffee to regular french press. The rule with edibles is, try a little and wait until you feel something. Microdosing, which is very in right now, would recommend a 1:4 ratio of Catapult to regular coffee.
Effect: Caffination meets a relaxating body high, really excellent if you have a full day’s of tasks ahead of you or are enjoying a Sunday brunch.
Price: $40 for a pack of 6
Foria, aka Weed Lube
Foria was the first cannabis product that branded themselves in the luxury market of female friendly weed products. Their promise is that cannabis lube helps women have better orgasms by increasing blood flow down there thus making us feel more aroused.
Their brand video sort of felt like watching a Calagon commercial from the 90’s except that there was some hint of sex. All in all, I was intrigued.
I imagine of all the products listed here, Foria is the one people are most curious about, the question being, does it work? The Frisky covered it and I felt the reviewer did it justice, which you can read here.
- Effect: Increased arousal, enhancement of sexual experience.
- Cost: $70 for 30ML. Contains 450ML of THC.
- Note: this is available to CA medical residents only. Bond is a cannabis lubricant available in WA state that is comparable and less expensive.
Zoots: The perfect edible for people who hate edibles
Nearly everyone who has used cannabis has a hilarious ‘edibles gone wrong’ story making most people hesitant to try cannabis candy. But there is something distinctly different about Zoots. I’m not a fan of edibles in general so perhaps thats what makes my love for them so memorable. Zoots are a tiny rock candy that come in lemongrass and chilli flavor (not sweet) and start to take effect within 2–5 minutes vs the standard 45min–2 hour onset time of most edibles. I’m guessing the reason why they kick in so fast is that they’re absorbed sublingually (dissolved under the tongue), which according to KushTours, “boosts absorption rates by 60%” versus the classic edible route of having to disgest a cannabis brownie .
All flavors of Zoots are infused with the same hybrid strain, which is balanced between cerebral and body effects. Zoots don’t make you feel sleepy or paranoid but instead give you a serious case of the giggles. I absentmindedly had a tin of these in my pocket at the Geekwire Gala two years ago and dosed some techies who perked up at the idea of trying weed candies in a professional setting. Needless to say, I made some friends that night. Tip: these are highly incognito in terms of weed treats and a great party gift if you can snag yourself a tin.
- Effect: Kick in immediately, easy to break up for smaller dosing, incredibly stealth and odor free. Excellent for beginners.
- Price: $45 for 20 candies. Total THC content 100MG.
Mary’s Medicinals: Transdermal patches, 10mg CBD, THC, and 1:1 THC/CBD Ratio
Mary’s Medicinals is hands down my *favorite* brand for its dual use as a therapeutic and psychoactive product. They have an incredibly diverse range of products. Describing everything they offer would eat up this article so I’ll just focus on my favorite product, the 10MG Transdermal CBD patch. These patches have been a game changer in my life. CBD is a non-psychoactive cannibinoid that provides deep physical and mental relaxation but can also stop a panic attack dead in its tracks. For people suffering from anxiety and PTSD, these patches are a miracle. I once attended a trade show which is the definition of an overstimulating environment, where you’re taking in a lot of information and meeting new people every few minutes. A colleague of mine looked a little uncomfortable and confided in me he was feeling the onset of a panic attack. I handed him one of Mary’s patches and he made a full recovery within 5 minutes. Mary’s CBD patches also provide incredible relief from body aches, stress, fatigue and painful periods. They’ve also allowed me to introduce the benefits of cannabis to people who normally would’ve been reluctant to do so *ahem, mom*.
So how do they work? According to KushTours, “Patches use a concentrated extract in its activated form to penetrate your dermal layer and produce an elongated high similar to an edible. These products can last for up to 8 hours”.
As a CBD evangelist, I keep a supply of these on me when I travel, in my glove compartment, and in my wallet because for people who have a high stress lifestyle, they’re life savers. While the modern world has adopted Xanax as its solution to stress and panic attacks, these patches are in my opinion, more effective. They last for 12 hours and don’t come with bad side effects. Mary’s patches have also been SUPER useful in introducing the powers of cannabis to pot-phobic acquaintances, namely friends and family members. The world seems to be comfortable with transdermal patches since the 80’s thanks to Nicorette, so I’ve found most people who don’t want to smoke or take an edible, feel safe trying a Mary’s Medicinals patch even if they consider themselves anti-marijuana. Mary herself should cut me a check for the $500+ I’ve spent giving them away.
Effect: 8-12 hours of sustained relaxation and stress relief. Excellent conversation starter for people who have no idea what CBD is.
Cost: $20 for a 10mg patch. If you’re an MMJ patient the price goes down to $8–10 per patch.Ps: you don’t need to go to a dispensary to buy these, now you can buy them online!
Shine Rolling Papers: Because they’re gold and shiny
Its hard to deny how cool one would feel smoking weed wrapped in 24K gold. The paper is similar quality wise to other high end rolling papers and doesn’t feel harsh in your throat. If I had a burgeoning rap career I might consider using these everyday, however I reserve them strictly for Christmas, my birthday and Instagram.
- Price: 12 sheet pack, $55. 2 sheet pack, $20
- Effect: You’re smoking weed wrapped in gold.
If you’re curious about more amazing emerging cannabis brands, peep our Pinterest board that covers over 40+ new products in the cannabis industry.
Xo,
FEZ.COM
