Friday Five
Here we are in 2021, still sheltering in place — but now, we have a new president, a vaccine in the world, and most of us are okay on toilet paper. Things are looking up, but it’ll likely be a while until most of us get our shot at the shot. So, we still have a lot of time to kill.
Weed, anyone?
We’ve rounded up five of the California cannabis products we at The Bold Italic are very into right now, with some suggestions from readers as well.
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1. Bougie weed from the French Laundry’s former gardener
Last year, Aaron Keefer (who used to be the culinary gardener for Michelin-starred Napa restaurant the French Laundry) joined Sonoma Hills Farm, which aims to grow “sun-grown, premium craft cannabis”— aka, fancy-ass weed. Their plants are carefully tended to in a one-acre outdoor cultivation zone nested on 40 acres of naturally farmed land.
The farm has just completed its first harvest and is now offering its cannabis flower to wholesale partners throughout California, as well as selling direct-to-consumer in limited batches of jarred flower. Strains like Pink Jesus, Orange Açai, Cherry Cheesecake, and Banana Kush are available at stores like Sava (Bay Area), Solful (Sonoma County), Oakland Organics (Oakland), MendoCann (Hopland), OrganiCann (Santa Rosa) and California Street Cannabis Co. (San Francisco).
The farm also has a relationship with Chemistry to create limited edition Pink Jesus single origin infused pre-rolls with part of the proceeds going to Openhouse SF, which serves LGBTQAI seniors. In the future, the team plans to experiment more with pairing its cannabis with high-end culinary and hospitality industries.
2. Oakland Extracts
These extracts are derived from cannabis flower and processed into a concentrated form and truly are the crème de la crème. This premium weed from Oakland Extracts is hand-crafted and sourced from small, local farms. The company’s slogan is “Terps from the Town” — which is fitting, as CEO and Founder Terryn Buxton emphasizes that he started the company to serve the community.
“We believe that our Town should have access to great quality hash at a price we can all afford,” he says on the website, noting that when cannabis became legal, they almost didn’t make it. “As a Black-owned business, we struggled to raise enough capital to get licensed and stay in the game.”
Oakland Extracts is available on Eaze and via Ganja Goddess, as well as dispensaries like Harborside and 7 Stars Holistic Healing Center in Richmond. See all locations.
3. Kikoko Calming Cannabis Tea
If you haven’t tried CBD-infused tea yet, the next six months is a great time to do so. Products from Emeryville-based company Kikoko, which focuses on organic cannabis women’s wellness, are all high-quality. The woman-owned business offers herbal teas that are a great alternative to edibles and meant to ease pain as well as relieve anxiety.
The company also offers Manuka honey shots, “little helper mints,” and more. Some have THC, some don’t have a high feeling at all.
4. Mondo Cannabis Powder
This recommendation came from friend of TBI Marcia Gagliardi, a food and drink blogger in San Francisco. Mondo’s artisan cannabis powder has a loyal following — it almost disappeared when weed became legal in California, but founder Emily O’Brien worked to bring it back to shelves.
This is basically cannabis sprinkles. It is a dissolving powder made from ingredients like organic cacao butter and coconut oil, infused with infamous Blue Dream cannabis from Humbolt County. You can put the powder on anything you dream up — a smoothie, pancakes, toast, you name it —or put it directly under your tongue to make it even more fast-acting. One scoop is 3 mg of THC, and the high is uplifting and mellow. As always, start small and up your dose from there.
You can order Mondo on the company’s website or on Sava.
5. Kiva Raspberry Gummies
Kiva is a household cannabis name — for households that use cannabis, at least. Best known for its chocolate bars, the company has also gotten into the gummy space. Not only are they delicious, but they are great for newbies to start with low doses.
These raspberry gummies in particular are tasty with a fun, uplifting high. Infused with 10 mg of Blue Dream cannabis per serving (as mentioned earlier, high-quality weed from Humbolt), these have a slightly higher concentration than other gummies from Kiva, so start with a quarter or half of one if you’re new.
