Category: denversfinest

Pure

Posted on by danielk1

 

505 W. 40th ave Denver, CO 80216

10/17/15

Tahoe OG

A++++

Pure is one of those locations that is always recommended. Other than Good Chem, people in Denver mention Pure the most. They specialize in CO2 extraction, which is a much cleaner way to extract the active ingredients in cannabis. It creates a much more versatile product than BHO extracts. It is also nice to not have your herbs cooked in alcohol. Of course, healthier is usually more expensive. Most people blast butane because a BHO extractor is much cheaper than a CO2 extractor.

But I am not here to talk about concentrates (yet); I am here to talk about the Tahoe OG that the carry there. I rarely buy Tahoe OG because I am used to the pine-cone buds of California over the popcorn buds of Colorado. Popcorn buds make me think, “what else?”.

The Tahoe OG at Pure, however, was worth a look. Their jar held Tahoe OG nugs that were almost large. Believe me, this is rare. Nobody sells big buds. (I want to see someone sell ½ oz sticks!) The budtender was also quite gracious and accommodating, which is different from many budtenders who can be quite condescending. He even dug through the jar to get the biggest buds in the jar.

This Tahoe OG has a nice, earthly smell to it. It is a bit peppery too. The color reminds me of a car with chameleon paint on it; different colors come out depending on the angle of view. There are a few shades of green that are speckled with patches of red hairs. The entire bud shimmers in a grey hue given off by the plethora of crystals.

This stuff is an amazing smoke too. It is nice and smooth, almost like menthol on the throat. This is one of those “back of the eye” buds that leaves a faint dank aftertaste on the throat.

Unfortunately, the aftertaste is like eating lamb and capers, only there is hardly a caper taste to it. Capers are an important part of the dish, and it is noticeable when it is missing. Lamb and capers is just lamb and potatoes otherwise. It is still good, but it could be great. I am forever on the quest for that aftertaste.

 

 

Headband

A+++

The Headband smelled nice and spicy. There was a strange blue/white/grey tinge to the buds as well. The red hairs dominated the color-wheel of greens that this Headband also exhibited.

This herb was easy to smoke as well. It was smooth on the throat. It tasted sweet and sat on the tongue for a while. It is a nice high. It was strong and stuck around. It was also energetic and highly functional. It looks good, and smells good. It is smooth and easy. Pure is definitely one of Denver’s Phinest.

 

Good Chem is all Good.

Posted on by danielk1

5.1.15

 

Good Chem

330 E. Colfax St.
Denver, CO 80203

Durban Poison

Good Chem came highly recommended by a co-worker. In fact, Good Chem is almost always one of the first names uttered when I ask people what shops they think are the best. Consistently. This much acclaim for a place is not accidental, and so I knew I had to try it. I chose three different flavors; Durban Poison is a landrace classic, Sour Diesel is a classic, and Ingrid is a homemade variety.

It is always easy to choose Durban Poison. Everybody loves Durban Posion, the landrace from South Africa. While I would love to try many, many more landraces, Durban and Kush seem to be the only ones that make shelves. They dominate the shelves like the two parties dominate American Politics. I only know of Panama Red from the lore of those who survived the party of the 70’s and the drug war of the 80’s. Were Thai Sticks really even a thing? This is another indication of the massive niche market opportunities that are available in this fledgling industry.

The Durban Poison bag I got was full of nice, tight buds. These dense and aromatic herbs smelled sweet. They are dark, deep green with abundant orange hairs tightly wrapped around the bud.

The smoke is smooth. It is just a tad harsh on the throat. The aftertaste was faint, and the high was mild.

#landrace
#classic

 

Sour Diesel

A+++

When grown right, Sour Diesel is an amazing strain. Its aroma is one of a kind and truly remarkable. This indica- strong hybrid can kick you in the head like a thoroughbred- when it is respected. In the commoditized cannabis world of Colorado, it is hard to find owners who respect their product. Most owners respect the numbers at the cost of quality.

The model of quantity over quality is a basic Capitalist trait, especially when demand pummels supply like big brother smothering his little brother with a pillow here in Colorado. Yet, there are owners in this muddle of marketing crap who still respect their product. Many of the best growers are still underground, but there are a precious few who made the jump to the legal market. They are hard to find-so far I have found about 5. Good Chem is one of them.

Some buds are just a mess when it comes to their form. This is one of them. This bud was thick! It was compressed together tightly, with all of the hairs smashed together. The green flower clashed heavily with the white crystals like they were fighting for dominance on a TV screen in the wee hours of the morning. It smelled sweet and, um, soapy.

This strain of Sour Diesel is in the heavy-hitter category. I puffed on a bowl for a good hour. It was nice and smooth on the throat, and very stoney. It is prolly best to enjoy this one at the end of the day when you don’t have to get off of the couch- for anything.

#classic

 

Ingrid

A++++

Ingrid. It is like so many names in the ganja scene; completely proprietary. This is a natural progression, though. As the cannabis industry grows, the business owners will want to protect their investment any and every way that they can. Monsanto has had generations of success with their proprietary seed genetics. Of course they will do this with cannabis flavors (or brands) now that there is a legal, accessible way.

Ingrid is the local flavor for Good Chem. It is in the homemade varieties where the ultimate plan of the business can really come out. You don’t go to a Bordeaux vineyard and ask for a Pinot Grigio. Some strains grow better here than others, and indicas have a long history of growing well in high altitude environments. This Ingrid is an indica that was grown well. It had dense buds that were light green. Its smoke is light and is not harsh when it is burned.

This leads to a smooth, subtle high that is also very stony. My friend was right, I might have to pick his brain for more strains that are out of sight.

#topshelf
#localfavorite

Getting Higher on the High Plains

Posted on by danielk1

Sedgwick Alternative Relief

107 Main Ave
Sedgwick, CO 80749

8/14/14

pawnee Sunrise

 Durban Poison

Grade: A++++

I have long been a fan of Durban Poison. It is one of the reasons that Omaha got the nickname Danktown. There was a flavor called squeeze, and you could only get it from one person. It was part Durban, part something else, and all good. But really expensive!

I offered him every strain and flavor I could find (which was vastly abundant in the 90’s), but he would never trade me straight up. He always wanted cash too. I eventually broke down and bought a bag. It was worth it.

The Durban Poison I bought in Sedgewick was also over priced and totally worth it. Boy, did it smell good! The incredibly sweet aroma attacks me when I open the container. The buds are meaty balls of pistils and bud. The entire package is a veritable cannabinoid bomb.

The smoke is smooth. It is a bit heavy, but not as harsh as some smoke can be. The high is fantastic. It is “put your pipe down” pot; you will be forced to put down the pipe at some point, even if it is still full. A little bit goes a long way.

Trenchtown’s Pot

Posted on by danielk1

Trenchtown

734 Sheridan Blvd
Denver CO, 80214

7/4/14

trenchtown.mmj

NYC Diesel

Grade: A+++++

You know Diesel when you smell it. NYC Diesel is like Diesels’ big, butch sister. Not only is this particular NYC Diesel a thoroughbred, it is a champion; it won the Cannabis Cup in the early part of the millennium. All of the buds were nice, healthy sized, and the red pistils dispersed nicely throughout the flowers. These buds were darker green on the outside and light green on the inside.

The smoke was a bit strong on the back of the throat (This could be because I had been smoking something a lot smoother before, or it could be real dry). The aftertaste, however, came back nice and strong.

I could feel this smoke numb the body a bit. More importantly, I could feel it in my eyes. Although it has those couch-locking effects of heavy indicas, it is no trouble to stay active and alert. This herb can keep you cool while you are busy, and the effects stick around so you aren’t left wanting. NYC Diesel did it again!

 

 

 

 

 

 

8/8/14

Hawaiian

Grade: A+++++

Ah Hawaii. Huh-Vah-eeee. It just feels good to say. It brings back memories of a barefoot youth, poi, lychee, and a messy mouthful of mangoes. But that was a long time ago. The many, many Midwestern Winters eroded away any impression of my first language and replaced it with the crisp, clean weatherman accent spoken here.

Similarly, the recent legalization took plant genetics into turbo speed here in Colorado. The isolated land-race plants of foreign lands have no place here, where all strains have to be locally sourced and from Colorado. No Thai Sticks, no Panama Red, and my Santa Cruz mold-resistant Alien O.G. seeds are useless here.

Yet, somehow, Trenchtown managed to get their hands on some locally-sourced Hawaiian. Naturally, that is what I got; I am a landrace junkie. This bag – nay- bottle did not disappoint. It smelled peppery, sweet, and dank. These light-green buds were covered in pistils. The buds were less meaty than what I like to see, but that is how some sativas go sometimes.

But then again, could it be the growing? Because Colorado is the furthest state east to really produce marijuana, I feel like there are more people coming here than anywhere else to get their herbs. The result is that supply and demand are way out of whack. The owners can’t keep the herbs on the shelf.

This means that they have to worry less about quality and more about quantity. So now the hunger of the Central and Eastern time zones created a much more pressing need to keep product on the shelves. So production is ramped up, and harvests happen as often as possible. This is bad for sativas in particular. They like to grow tall and lean. Their buds grow long and lean and flavorful.

Yet here we have a sativa that, according to seedfinder.eu, has a flower cycle of around “77 days”. This is drastically different and much costlier than growing something like an Afgan Kush, which can be harvested 55 days after flowering. Clearly Trenchtown chose quality over quantity here.

The smoke was really light to inhale. This is definitely what Bill Clinton would (does?) smoke because I could hardly tell I inhaled. The aftertaste is a bit nutty, so enjoy this on your day off with a cup of coffee if you can.

This bud to me is like a day off at the beach. The warm sun beats down on the earth and the blue ocean disappears off into forever. Just like a breeze brings that ocean moisture, this herb moisturized my eyes but did not redden them. Sometimes it is good to relax and reflect; read a book and let the wind rock your hammock. It is always better with a bit o bud, and a little bit of this bud will go a long way.

The Fantastic Fox Street Wellness

Posted on by danielk1

5/25/14

Fox Street Wellness

4773 Fox Street
Denver, CO 80216

Banana Kush

$55 per ⅛ (rec)
A++++ Ind.

Fox Street Wellness is one of the first places that I went to when I moved to Denver. I was thrilled to see the jars filled with monstrous buds that looked either delicate or radioactive or both. They grow their herbs organically in peat moss, and it is clear that they really take care of it.

I settled on a 50/50 split of Banana Kush and Durban Sweet Haze (next review). The Banana Kush was a light, lime green color and is covered in tri-chromes.

This bud has a nice, light and delicate flavor. It is also a very easy smoke. It is almost so light that I could not tell that I was even smoking it. The high was a nice body high. It was one of those highs that I can feel in the back of my eyes.

I was drawn to the Banana Kush by its light, sweet aroma. The signs were right too, because this was a quality high in flavor and aroma. The smoke was smooth and very nice. In fact, this Banana Kush was like a kush on vacation. It had nary a care in the world.

Durban Sweet Haze

A++++ Sat.

The Durban Sweet Haze was the second half of my Fox Street purchase. It also contrasted the banana Kush in a few ways. The Banana Kush was an indica, while Durban Sweet Haze was a sativa. The Banana Kush was light green, and the Durban Sweet Haze was a dark green. The Banana Kush buds appeared to have more trichromes on them than the Durban Sweet Haze. The BK smelled good, but the DP really gave off a much more dank scent. The Banana Kush had big buds in it, while the Durban Sweet Haze buds were smaller.

I was a bit confused by the last contrast, because Durban buds are often nice, healthy avocado sized buds. The Durban flowers were still chunky and covered in red hairs and the white fuzz, but their size leaned toward medium-small.

At any rate, Fox Street showed me enough quality everywhere else that I could see this as less of an indictment of quality and more the result of something innocent. My guess was that it was the bottom of the bag.

This DP is another smooth smoke that has a pleasant aftertaste. It reminded me of a flavor that I remember getting in my hometown, Danktown, almost 20 years ago. It was called Citrus Durban, and it was good. But I digress….

This sativa came on strong. It had all the makings of top shelf Dank! I felt this one in my eyes as well. It is much stonier than the BK. It is much more sedative, and best to smoke after work or when you are amidst a great scene of natural beauty.