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Cannabis beverages have been legal in Canada for nearly a year now so you may be wondering just where they are. Unfortunately due to the nature of the regulations being imposed upon the legal cannabis marketplace commercially available cannabis edibles, weed drinks and other consumables are restricted to low doses and typically sold individually at high prices. For anyone with even the slightest tolerance to cannabis products or a medical patient in need of stronger dosages to aid with relief from their symptoms they would simply not be able to afford the necessary amount required to get a proper dose. What’s more, nobody wants to have to eat four or five candy bars or drink an entire six pack of soda in order to get the very slightest of background buzzes.
Even the language discussing cannabis beverages and edibles is still couched in the “danger” of people having too high of a dose. It’s absolutely absurd given that there have been zero recorded deaths in all of human history from overconsumption of cannabis. The only “danger” is that you might not be able to leave the couch for several hours and may come to wish you hadn’t taken so much. But it passes, time moves on and nobody dies or is left permanently scarred mentally or physically.
This absurd nanny state mentality coupled with the failure of the speculative investor class and the government to capitalize on the legalization of a recreational substance that quite literally sells itself when it is offered at high quality, good prices and in consistently good dosages is a clear indicator that the legal recreational cannabis space is still struggling to find its appropriate niche. There are many reasons why the black market is still alive and thriving in Canada despite the legalization of cannabis products happening years ago and the blame rests solely with the government and the speculators who were so busy hyping each other up about how much money they could make that they never bothered to learn anything about the product they wanted to sell or the people they hoped to sell it to.
Now the first legal recreational weed drinks are starting to trickle into the Canadian marketplace but of course the prices are high and the dosages are set for novice and new users with no options for people with higher tolerance limits. At 2mg per can of soda and 10mg total for a six pack a seasoned cannabis user or medical patient would need to drink 24 – 48 sodas before they were likely to register an effect on their mind and body. Before the Cannabis kicks in they would be sugar sick and full of garbage calories and other additives and preservatives!
These so called cannabis drinks may as well be promoted as having been stored near some cannabis at one point for all the THC they contain. “May have come into contact with cannabis products”. It’s no surprise nobody has been crashing through the doors of any dispensaries looking for THC drink products given the restrictions that have been imposed on them.
Investors, speculators and giant industries all had their hearts set on developing noteworthy brand identities based around products that were effective and enjoyable but sadly that is just a pipe dream now. We won’t be getting brands of cannabis infused beer anytime soon from companies Canadians already love and trust like Molson, Labatt or Alexander Keith’s. Even if they were able to make them the cannabis content in their THC drinks would be so low they may as well be sold as “cannabis free” alongside the non-alcoholic beer.
If you are new to cannabis or don’t have any experience with edibles at all then the government regulated low doses that are available at retailers may in fact be just what you need to get started and learn your tolerances. For most extremely casual users and newcomers the 2mg – 10mg doses that are legally available for recreational cannabis may be suitable but that certainly doesn’t mean that they should be the only option available to consumers.
Consider that alcohol is a regulated substance that is readily available to you in stores no matter where you are in the country. Imagine if booze was being regulated in this same way because of its much greater and more immediate potential to cause harm. As we discussed earlier no matter how many edibles or liquid marijuana cocktails you slam down in a day you will never be able to consume enough to cause yourself physical harm. You might end up locked on the couch or curled around the toilet feeling awful for a few hours but you will not overdose, you will not go crazy, you will not collapse and die.
Regardless of common sense alcohol is available in large quantities and in extremely high strengths that would be extremely inadvisable for a novice user to ingest. If we follow the logic of the cannabis regulations should not all hard liquors be taken off the shelves so nobody hurts themselves? Should we lower the alcohol content to just above negligible so that only people who drink extremely rarely will be able to enjoy the effects of a single beer?
Of course not. There would be riots in the streets over it. People would accuse the industry of attempting to sell them watered down piss! Perhaps everyone enjoying cannabis products is just too laid back to kick up too much of a stink about this but it is a real shame that we aren’t likely to see real, potent and effective cannabis drinks and edibles on the legal marketplace for anyone who has a tolerance higher than an absolute newcomer.
If reading all of this has left you feeling frustrated and disappointed about the state of edibles and THC drink products in Canada you are certainly not alone. Fortunately there is still a thriving underground craft market of producers creating their own edibles, products and thc capsules with reasonable potency levels for customers with higher tolerance limits or important medicinal dosage requirements.
Of course this “black market” is criminalized and vilified by the failing legal cannabis industry as they attempt to staunch the bleeding of their abysmal failure to inspire confidence and satisfaction in cannabis consumers across the country. As more and more people discover or return to the grey and black cannabis markets in Canada they are sure to thrive and true innovation will continue to take hold without the government or the investor class who never should have been invited to the party anyhow.
The underground of cannabis growers, producers, retailers and crafters who have dedicated their lives and passion into innovating and improving products for cannabis users of all tolerance levels have been largely left in the dust by greedy big industry. What should have been a cause for celebration in our Country and a method of encouraging and inspiring small and local business entrepreneurship – most of which was largely already in place and needed only to be legitimized instead of being rooted out and handed over to a bunch of corporate interests.
Just as craft beer producers had to fight for the ability to exist and rub elbows with the monopolizing giants they compete with, so too will small batch and craft producers of cannabis products including edibles and cannabis drinks. They will try to re-criminalize cannabis use by making it harder to produce and sell for anyone who is not a massive corporation but the little guys will continue to fight for what is good and necessary for us in the cannabis culture and community.
It is important to remember that the people the government and these industries will insist are “criminals” are people who enjoy cannabis just like you and me. Some are grandmothers baking potent edibles in order to combat medical conditions that the legal producers cannot assist with offering products at such laughably low dosages. Some are teachers, students, doctors, members of your church or community. To criminalize their hobby and passion in an effort to monopolize the profits from it is nothing short of organized crime in itself.
If you are looking to enjoy a good liquid marijuana cocktail or a smooth and frosty cannabis infused beer you may be waiting for a long time unless you take matters into your own hands. If you are a newcomer with no experience or tolerance when it comes to cannabis edibles and beverages you might be best suited trying out the very low doses available on the legal marketplace first and see how it hits you. Remember to give it some time before you drink your way through a whole six pack or eat an entire package of infused thc gummies – the onset time can be anywhere from a half an hour to two full hours and the high can last up to twelve!
Drinking cannabis tends to have more of a cerebral effect than a body high which is distinct from the edible experience which usually functions in the opposite direction. This makes the low dose sodas and other cannabis drinks available ideal for newbies to try and experiment with relatively little risk of “greening out” – the unaffectionate nickname given to the experience of doing too much cannabis in one session and feeling awful.
If you have a higher tolerance limit or require higher doses for medical reasons however you will find yourself pretty much out of luck when shopping in the legal cannabis marketplace. Unless you have loads of money to spare and don’t mind digging through a giant pile of wasteful cardboard and plastic packaging to get to your medication you may prefer to make your own cannabis drinks at home to save on money, time and waste.
Before you throw a bunch of fruit and some raw bud in a blender and call it a smoothie or a liquid marijuana drink you’ll probably want to spend some prep time making one of the varieties of THC infused bases you can use to make a wide range of drinks with the most effective and potent THC content possible. At this point it’s a good idea to decide which kind of beverage you would most prefer.
To keep things as simple as possible you could just make some quick and easy cannabis tea as outlined in our previous blog How To Make Cannabis Tea. If you are ready to try something a little more advanced than that with a lot more possible liquid marijauna drinks you can make then why not try making one of these fun and functional THC infused bases which will allow you to make a wide range of drinks from cool and refreshing to frothy, warm and seasonal favourites!
Get a good sized pot of water boiling on the stove and then insert a metal bowl into it and place finely ground cannabis and milk – about 0.5 to 1g of weed per quart of milk should work well and give you a nice potent base. Because the milk and cannabis isn’t directly in the boiling water and is slightly removed from the source of heat it should not curdle or burn if left to simmer however you should still stir the mixture once in a while.
After the mixture has simmered for a few hours strain it through some cheesecloth and discard the unnecessary leftover material. You can now use your cannabis infused milk to make lattes, teas and delicious smoothies and milkshakes!
If you prefer to make drinks that are lactose free you can use this same double boiling method to make cannabis infused coconut oil. This takes a bit longer to do properly but the end result is a lactose free THC infused oil that you can add to just about anything!
If all this seems like a lot of hassle for a small amount of enjoyment consider using the shortcut and hack of simply adding a cannabis infused tincture, honey or oil to whatever drink or food you plan to enjoy. Haute Health has several fantastic varieties in stock in lots of great flavours!
While you are snagging some great tinctures, topicals or oils from our online shop be sure to check out some of the other amazing cannabis products we also have available. Currently we are featuring 5mg THC gummies for the beginners and lightweights, Delta 8 THC Distillate for those who want something cutting edge and some fantastic West Coast Hash for the connoisseurs. Looking to try microdosing magic mushrooms? Pick up some Golden Teachers today!
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