As promised, I will share my opinion about a concentrated oil (in shatter form) that was made from a strain of cannabis called King Kush.
Shatter, as it is often called, is an exceptionally concentrated form of the essential oil of cannabis. It's usually extracted under pressure with a solvent of some sort (like butane, carbon dioxide or pure hydrocarbons.) Next to a pure THC Crystaline form of cannabis (which can reach a 99% concentration level of THC) shatter is recognized as one of the strongest forms of cannabis plant medicine. Shatter routinely clocks in at a 80% (minimum) concentration level of THC which makes a small amount of it, extraordinarily potent.
What sets a shatter apart from a wax or a sap is largely related to nuances in how the extraction was achieved, how much water exists in the finished product and whether the solvents have been completely removed or not.
This is what shatter can look like:
It resembles a sticky, hard taffy with gas bubbles dispersed through it. I have been told that shatter made on the west coast of Canada (British Columbia, to be precise) is heavily bubbled but by the time it travels to Ontario, (which is a 5 hour domestic flight) it looses most of its bubbles and all melds together.
A very good quality shatter will be quite thin and translucent. You should be able to see through it and it should resemble a yellow to amber glass. It should also be very brittle and easy to break into small pieces, which is what you do with it, and why it's called "shatter."
(Please file this piece of cannabis trivia under: " Today I learned why a specific type of cannabis oil concentrate is called shatter").
This particular shatter is made from a strain of cannabis called King Kush and it's 1 gram in weight.
In this photo you can see the full gram of shatter beside my Puffco vape pen (which is the size as a regular ball-point pen that a person would write with).
Shatter usually comes wrapped in parchment paper because it does have a tendency to be sticky.
In my area, a good quality shatter sells for $70 per gram. A gram of the same strain, in its dried flower or bud form will run you about $12. The reason shatter is almost 6 times more expensive is because of the work and the cost of the other materials and equipment involved in extracting the cannabis essential oil from its flowers. The price is also directly tied to the volume or the amount of dried flowers that it actual takes to make a gram of shatter. The ratio is approximately 3.3: 1. I've never made shatter myself, but my understanding is that for every 3.3 grams of dried flowers you can expect to recover 1 gram of shatter.
The reason shatter is sought after is because it's an exceptionally concentrated form of cannabis and as such, a person usually only requires a small amount or just a "dab" of it. This is where the term "dabbing" has come from. When people say they are doing a "dab sesh" they are usually referring to ingesting shatter by vapourizing it. They'll do this by using a hot nail bong or by using a vapourizer designed specifically for shatter or waxes.
(Please file these bits of cannabis trivia under"Today I learned why the technique of dabbing is called dabbing and what a dab sesh is."
King Kush is a 70% Indica dominant hybrid. In its dried flower form it clocks in at 20% THC. In its shatter format it's over 80%!
Its parents are Grape Ape and OG Kush.
Once ingested, this strain provides almost an instant euphoria with pain relief and a cerebral high. It's fantastic for lowering inflammation and as such, is great for any chronic pain or arthritic conditions. Within about 30 minutes the cerebral high lessens and transforms into a gentle body high which allows muscular tension to magically melt away. As the experience progresses, it becomes more sedative which makes this a wonderful night-time strain. As a result, it is prized by Insomniacs.
No kidding aside, this is a stronger sedative strain and in its shatter form it is exceptionally potent. 3 inhalations from my vape pen is all I need to reach my ideal dose.
I use a special vapourizer, called a Puffco Pro 2 Vapourizer Pen. It has been engineered to effectively vapourize shatters or waxes, as opposed to other vapourizers which are designed to vapourize runny liquids or vapes that are designed to rapidly heat dried, ground flower.
The pen comes in it's own hard cover carrying case. The body is made of stainless steel and the bowl that contains its heating element is completely ceramic. This produces great clouds of vapour in less than 5 seconds of heating.
Here you can see the 3 individual pieces (which all thread together). There's a mouth piece, the ceramic chamber with heating element and then the rechargeable battery compartment. The case is molded plastic and is felt lined. A USB battery charger comes with it, completing the kit. The battery (when fully charged) will last for up to 100 uses before it needs to be recharged.
This is difficult to show because of the slim design of the vape. It's currently the smallest vapourizer that I own. This is its ceramic bowl and it has a heating element in the middle of it. You simply drop a small piece of shatter in the middle of the bowl and you can use a small pick to position it more precisely in the middle of the heating element if you need too. Then you screw the mouth piece in place and it's ready for use.
I dropped a small piece of shatter into the ceramic chamber with the mouth piece off so that you could see the cloud of vapour. It was able to produce this cloud, in about 3 seconds after I activating it.
It's no wonder, this vape has won a High Times award for the best vape pen in its category.
The benefits of using a Puffco pen over a bong (in my humble opinion) are:
- its sleek design that is exceptional portable;
- its stainless steel durability which won't easily break if it's accidentally knocked over;
- its temperature can be controlled which makes the inhalation experience easier on the throat;
- it doesn't require a blow torch to heat a nail head which greatly reduces the risk of personal burns;
- and its price point at approximately $80 USD. It's a great value for your vaping dollar.
All in all, I really like the strain King Kush in its shatter form. The taste was a heavy citrus, grapefruit.
I need a strong sedative Indica for night-time relief and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to any "seasoned" canni-sseur or experienced cannabis user, especially if they need something effective to treat chronic pain or insomnia.
I also wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Puffco Pro 2 Vapourizer Pen. I've owned mine for over a year and it has always worked flawlessly.
I welcome your questions and I invite you to follow me on my journey.
~ Rebecca Ryan