One of the best things about consuming cannabis today is that smoking some pot is not the only way to do it; there are other, equally effective methods to use it for both recreational as well as medicinal purposes. Currently, various forms of cannabis concentrates are extremely popular among marijuana users. Rosin, hashish, oil, kief, wax, budder, crumble, shatter – cannabis concentrates come in a variety of forms, consistencies, viscosities, textures, colors etc. You can find them in hundreds of cannabinoid-infused products like tinctures, topicals or edibles. People also consume cannabis concentrates in their purest forms with the help of some additional equipment or rig.

They are much more potent than regular cannabis buds and the effects are much faster. For those whose lungs cannot tolerate the harsh smoke of weed or whose taste buds don’t quite agree with the strong herbal flavors, concentrates are the best way to attain a blissful marijuana high. However, for the beginners, the wide medley of cannabis concentrates can be a bit overwhelming. No need to worry, this post will give you a perfect introduction to the diverse world of cannabis concentrates. Keep reading this article to know about the different types of cannabis concentrates available in the market starting from rosin to shatter.

What is cannabis concentrate?

Cannabis concentrates are basically resin extracted from cannabis flowers in which a maximum amount of cannabinoids and terpenes is retained, removing all other unnecessary components and impurities from it. Various concentrates available in the market can have an extremely high THC content (sometimes over 95%) and are much more potent than regular cannabis strains.

As all the terpenes are fully preserved in them without unwanted organic elements, the cannabis concentrates also smell and taste better. It is the trichomes, the fine, frosty and sparkling outgrowths or ‘hairs’ found on cannabis plants contain all the different cannabinoids and terpenes that give marijuana its desired effects. Cannabis concentrates are made by either mechanically extracting the trichomes or using solvents for the purpose. Different extractions methods use butane, isopropyl alcohol, ethanol, hydrocarbons or carbon dioxide as the solvent and produce a variety of concentrate extracts from cannabis plants.

Different types of cannabis concentrates

There is a wide variety of cannabis concentrates available in the market. They come in all forms from liquid to hard and crystalline; their colors can vary from golden to amber to different shades of brown. Here are some of the most popular cannabis concentrates:

Rosin

Rosin or weed wax is simply resin extracted from the marijuana buds, trichomes and kiefs by mechanically applying heat and pressure to them. Extracted through the simplest and safest method, rosin is usually sappy, thick oil-like and golden in color. As no additional solvent is used in the process, rosin retains all the terpenes of the original plant intact and thereby presents a rich aroma. Lack of solvents also ensures that there is absolutely no chance of consuming unwanted chemicals while smoking or vaping rosin.    

Wax – Budder and Crumble

As the name suggests, the cannabis concentrate called ‘wax’ has the same consistency as candle wax. Some varieties of wax are extremely gooey and have a honey-like texture, others have harder textures and are crumblier. The former variety is called budder and while the latter is known as honeycomb or crumble. Usually, wax concentrates are made by blasting the cannabis plants with some type of solvent. For example, shiny, sticky and brittle cannabis concentrates popularly known as sugar wax are usually made by the butane extraction technique. Wax concentrates can have fewer cannabinoids, but they are always richer in terpene contents.

Oil

Cannabis oils are usually extracted using carbon dioxide as a solvent. There are also Butane Hash Oils (BHO) that uses butane to blast the trichomes instead of carbon dioxide. A liquid concentrate with thick consistency, hash or cannabis oils are perfect to be used in vaping pens and cartridges. While the butane hash oils contain an extremely high THC level (70-90%), there are also CBD oils which have negligible amounts of THC in them. 

Live Resin

Nowadays, the popularity of Live Resin concentrates is dramatically rising. These concentrates are made following an extremely complicated, strictly lab-based process where fresh flowers are frozen in order to extract the resin from them. As experts claim, the live resin method is the best way to capture the aroma and flavor of the original plant in the extracts to the fullest extent.

Hash and Bubble Hash

Hash is undoubtedly the oldest cannabis concentrate invented by human beings. It is made by physically separating the trichomes from the flowers and extracting resin from them by simply compressing them into a mass. In the case of bubble hash, cold water is used to extract the resin from the trichomes. Though made using very primitive techniques, all types of hash are much stronger in effect and have better aromas than regular cannabis flowers. 

Shatter

With a crystalline, glass-like texture, shatter is a hard and brittle cannabis concentrate that usually comes with an excessively high THC content (above 80%). It is made using the butane extraction technique. Though they are not that rich in aroma like many other cannabis concentrates, shatters are much preferred for being extremely potent and fast-hitting.

There are a variety of ways you can consume the above cannabis concentrates. Nowadays, dabbing is becoming increasingly popular among marijuana users across the ages. You can easily smoke or vape the concentrates using various rigs, bongs, vaping pens and cartridges available at the local dispensaries or online. You can also use them in your favorite foods, confections and beverages.

There are lots of delicious edibles that use different forms of cannabis concentrates in them. Remember that the concentrates always contain heavy amounts of cannabinoids and terpenes in them. This means that even a small amount of the product is able to produce the desired high, and a quicker as well as more long-lasting symptom relief if you are consuming it for therapeutic purposes. From rosin to shatter – use any of the cannabis concentrates in moderation and it will make your life a lot better!