We’re living in a cannabis golden age, where options abound and customization is king. Gone are the days of your great uncle’s dried-out shredded lettuce (which, to be fair, was probably a decoy to keep mom or dad off the Maui Wowie). The future is now!
These days we’ve got choices the smokers of yore would die to get their hands on, including one of the most popular cannabis concentrates around. Yup, we’re talking about live resin, a high-quality, perfectly potent, and relatively recent (think the early aughts) substance.
explain it like I’m five: WTF is live resin?
First, you have to understand what a cannabis concentrate is. Similar to essential oils, hair masks, or that frozen can of Minute Maid OJ in the back of your freezer, cannabis concentrates are highly potent distillations of the best parts of the plant.
By isolating cannabinoids and terpenes (the compounds responsible for psychoactive and physical effects, aroma, and flavors) from the rest of the plant, you get a pure substance with nothing but the good stuff. Concentrates can be ingested on their own, added to other weed, used in edibles, and more.
Live resin is considered one of the highest-quality concentrates thanks to the meticulous process the live plant undergoes. Large stems and leaves are removed, leaving only buds and desirable sugar leaves behind.
This delicately harvested plant material is flash-frozen to maintain the complex profiles within. Because there’s no drying or curing stage, the plant’s properties remain intact, yielding an extraction rich in flavor and aroma.
the look, taste, and feel of live resin
An easy hack for knowing what to expect from a cannabis concentrate is to pay attention to the name, which usually reflects the consistency and character of the substance.
Think of shatter’s hard, brittle texture or the soft flexibility of wax, and suddenly, that live resin is a pliable caramel-like material makes perfect sense. You’ll also notice that “live” references the live plant the concentrate comes from. Pretty straightforward!
Oh, and speaking of caramel — live resin is typically dark yellow (sometimes lighter), sticky, and intensely flavorful. It can have a runny, buttery, jelly-like, or sappy consistency and is extremely malleable.
who should try live resin?
Anyone who loves to play with the earthy and intricate flavors of a preserved mature cannabis plant will appreciate live resin. A little goes a long way, which makes it especially handy for those with a low tolerance. Take a quick pull off a dedicated vape pen (ahem, like the turn disposable) or add a precise amount to an edible, and you’re good to go.
Conversely, folks with a higher tolerance can layer it over fresh weed for an extra kick, dab it for the full experience, or make a mean muffin. The world is your oyster, friends!
how live resin cannabis oil is made
Do not try this at home! Unless you have some serious chemistry + cannabis know-how plus specialized equipment. First, an experienced grower and/or extractor must get their plant to a healthy and mature state. Then, using care and a gentle touch worthy of a newborn, harvest the best plant material and freeze it immediately to preserve it.
The frozen plant needs to undergo a solvent extraction process and is kept at sub-zero temperatures the entire time. Afterward, pop ‘er in a vacuum oven and turn up the heat before the packaging stage, which naturally has to happen in a sterile environment. Not the most effortless process in the world, but completely worth it!
