Yo, what’s good my fellow cannabis enthusiasts? Are you getting tired of the same old weed flavors that promise fruity, minty, or chocolatey tastes but still taste like straight-up weed? Don’t worry fam, I got you covered with these three infusion methods to add some serious flavor to your stash.
Before Harvest:
First things first, stop watering your plants 3-4 days before you plan to harvest so the soil can dry out. But don’t let them get so dry they start dying off. If you notice any wilting, give them a light watering. On harvest day, mix up a mild solution of 15ml essential oils or food-grade extracts to 20l of water. Slowly water your plants to minimize runoff and allow them to quench their thirst for 3-5 hours before cutting.
Because they’ve been freshly watered, the flowers will contain more moisture than usual at harvest time. Keep them separated and allow for plenty of airflow during the initial dry to prevent mold.
During Harvest:
If you’ve already started cutting down your plants, it’s not too late to infuse some flavor into your weed. Fill a glass with the above “flavored water” solution and place a freshly cut branch in it. As long as the leaves are still alive, they’ll draw water up the stem and into the flower’s calyxes. After about a week, remove the cutting, then dry and cure as usual.
The same warning about mold applies to this technique.
After Harvest:
So you’ve already jarred your flowers but want to add some extra oomph to the flavor? No problem. Soak a cotton ball in an extract or essential oil, attach it to the jar lid, and let it hang down inside without touching the buds. Keep an eye on the jar for condensation or any other signs of excess moisture that could cause mold and rot.
Adding dried items to the jar works well too and minimizes the risk of mold. As long as they’re fully dried, you can add citrus peels, an apple slice, flower petals, and spices like rosemary, cinnamon, or cloves. Empty out a tea bag and fill it with loose material to keep your flavoring agent and herb separated.
But remember fam, different strains and even different plants of the same strain will absorb flavorings at different rates. Plus, each flavoring will alter the weed’s natural taste in a unique way. Until you know what will happen and what you like, experiment with a single plant, branch, or jar of weed. You don’t want to go too hard too soon and ruin an entire harvest.
Pro tips: Food-grade extracts are easily accessible at your local grocery store in the baking aisle where you can find strawberry extract, almond extract, rum extract, vanilla extract and more! These are best because they’re intended for use in food. If you choose an essential oil, look carefully at the ingredients to make sure they’re safe for human consumption. Put a tiny drop on your finger and taste it. If it burns or has a chemical aftertaste or is too perfumey – skip it.
Avoid any flavoring that contains lots of sugar because it burns easily and smells bad when it does – not what we’re aiming for here. Enhanced flavors and aromas can fade quickly when exposed to open air so make sure jars are tightly sealed to hold all that goodness in. You still need to keep an eye on humidity levels inside the jar though – use a small hydrometer that you can view from outside a sealed jar to help with this.
And lastly – infused cannabis still tastes like cannabis but better if done right! So use proper growing, drying and curing techniques to ensure that your herb has a smooth pleasant taste with or without additional help.
Stay lit my friends!