Cannabis Concentrates: Types, Usage, and Benefits

Concentrates offer many unique benefits that you won’t find smoking flower. Are you looking to try concentrates, yet don’t know where to start? Are you new to concentrates, and aren’t sure how to properly dab? Take a look below to learn about cannabis concentrates, the types of concentrates, and the benefits of dabbing.

What Are Cannabis Concentrates?
Cannabis concentrates are potent, THC-rich, and excellent for medical marijuana patients under a doctor’s care. Aromatic and flavorful terpenes are present in dense amounts in cannabis concentrates, as are cannabinoids which serve medicinal purposes.

Creating a cannabis concentrate involves distilling the most valuable part of the plant – the trichomes. Cannabinoids and terpenes thrive inside these frosty white structures that coat the whole plant surface but are most prevalent on the buds. As the trichomes go through the distillation process, the pulpy plant material is discarded.

The result is a smooth, golden-hued cannabis concentrate sky-high in psychoactive THC. For perspective, ordinary marijuana contains up to 25% of the cannabinoid, while THC concentrate levels can climb as high as 80 percent. By some accounts, THC levels could even skyrocket to 95 percent! Indeed, cannabis concentrates offer the mother lode of THC.

Type of Cannabis Concentrates
A concentrate is any product derived from cannabis flower that is processed into a concentrated form, but each type of cannabis concentrate is unique.

Cannabis concentrates come in many varieties and are made through different methods, such as solvent and solventless. Here are some of the most popular kinds to sample:

Hash: Short for “hashish,” made with a solventless method using ice water, then compressed into a ball

Rosin: Another solventless concentrate in pure form, extracted as oil directly from the cannabis plant

Budder: Whipped waxy extract, sometimes called badder or frosting for its creamy texture

Crumble: Wax that’s not as whipped as budder, has a sandy consistency

Shatter: Thin, glassy, brittle, made from raw extract

Concentrates go by many names. Imagine you’re standing at GreenLabs' glass counter and you see the following items on the concentrates menu board: shatter, rosin, wax, crumble, hash, tinctures, and capsules. Don’t let the breadth of options drive you away – many of these are different names for the same thing!  

Cannabis Concentrates and Their Benefits

Cannabis concentrates provide many distinct advantages over other consumption methods. For instance, if you would prefer a smokeless experience, cannabis concentrates can be integrated into many recipes including peanut butter and ghee. For those who are concerned with the potential health consequences of long-term vaping, cannabis concentrates may offer a safer alternative.

Because cannabis concentrates are so high in THC, they can work wonders for those seeking transient psychoactive effects. Plus, because of the condensed form of concentrates, you only need a small amount to produce a strong effect.

If your physician recommends cannabis concentrates, you may find these products beneficial to your mood. THC is known for infusing some users with energy and even bursts of creativity. Beyond mood boosting, THC has been shown in numerous studies to provide physical health benefits.

Concentrates as mentioned before are very potent and if you’re curious about trying concentrates, it’s important that you start low and go slow. Our budtenders at GreenLabs are highly trained with all of the information regarding cannabis and their methods. Ask a budtener today about concentrates and how they can work for your medical needs.