What is a Concentrate?
Ever wonder what the deal is with cannabis concentrates? Some of them look like tree sap, some look like tiny slices of cheese, all of them can be a little intimidating if you don’t know what they are. Let’s waste no further time and get right to the burning questions like “What exactly is a concentrate?”, “Why would I use a concentrate over a different product?”, and “How do I use concentrates?”. We’ve got you covered.
For those of you who are avid concentrate advocates already, you might want to skip this article and head straight to our New Products page to see what we currently have available.
What is a concentrate?
A concentrate is a refined cannabis product that is typically consumed by way of vaporization. Concentrates can vary in color and consistency depending on the strain, quality of the starting product, and refining process. Let’s dive into that a little more.
Extraction & Refining Processes
There are various different ways to make concentrated cannabis products. To keep it simple, we’re going to focus only on what we do here at Theraplant.
CO2 Extraction
To make a concentrate (aka concentrated cannabis product or “extract”) it all starts with quality flower. We take that flower, grind it up and decarb it. Decarboxylation is the process of heating up raw material to activate key components. From there we take the decarbed, ground flower and put it in a machine. In that machine the raw material is combined with CO2. CO2 is what is known in this scientific process as a “solvent”. There are many different kinds of solvents that can be used in this process, but we choose to use CO2. So, CO2 enters the machine and together the CO2 and cannabis are heated and pressurized. This allows the flower to break down. Through the breaking-down of the flower an oil is formed. The plant material & the CO2 are left behind and the end result is a refined cannabis oil containing key components of the flower we started with such as cannabinoids and lipids. Terpenes, which are naturally occurring essential oils found in cannabis, are extracted separately and reintroduced later in the refining process.
So now we have this concentrated, potent cannabis oil, but we’re not done yet. From here that oil will go through a variety of proprietary processes to further refine the concentrate in order for it to be turned into products like Pure Vape Oils, Oil Syringes, Oral Solutions, Capsules, and more.
Ethanol Extraction
While CO2 extraction is our main extraction method, we also make cannabis concentrates by using ethanol as a solvent. This requires a bit of a different process, but essentially the same thing happens. Ground flower goes in, meets up with its friend ethanol, they do a little dance, except there isn’t any heat or pressure at this soiree, and then the ethanol is evaporated from the extract and recollected. Believe it or not, ethanol can be reused multiple times in this manner! This process leaves more plant material intact, but strips out more of the beneficial bi-products, as compared to CO2, ultimately leaving us with a different type of concentrate. From there we can either perform a variety of proprietary refining processes to create extracts like BD, CR, HC, & SW, or distill the concentrate to further purify the oil and create distillate. Distillation is performed by introducing high heat to cannabis concentrate in a vacuum. The extracted product converts to vapor, travels through many tubular pathways to cool, and then is collected as a highly potent concentrated oil. What’s created from that process can often be close to 99% pure THC, making it a great option for some of our ingestible products.
Now that you’re up to speed on extraction processes, let’s move right along to what that cheesy lookin’ stuff is, shall we? In the next section we go into each concentrate consistency and give you visual examples of what you can expect. Remember, each of these concentrate variants go through slightly different processes to get to be their best selves. Each batch will be completely unique.
Different Types of Theraplant Concentrates
CR
A malleable, crumbly hard concentrate with a color ranging from deep orange to pale yellow. CR can exhibit a wide variety of textures and consistencies depending on the strain and terpene profile. Ranging from gooey and syrupy to soft but crystalized, each batch is unique!
BD
A hard concentrate with a slightly brittle, waxy consistency. BD will range in color from pale yellow to yellow-orange.
SW
This crystalline, golden soft concentrate is a syrupy cross between our CR and our TS. This concentrate can vary a bit in viscosity depending on the strain & terpene content.
HC
A hard concentrate that resembles honeycomb in both texture & appearance.
SH
A hard concentrate with a pull & snap like consistency and a glass-like appearance. Typically amber colored & translucent.
TS
A soft concentrate with a thick, syrupy consistency & a high concentration of terpenes. Typically ranging from a light to dark honey color.
Oil Syringes
Theraplant is proud to offer Connecticut patients a wide variety of CO2 extracted & refined 100% Pure Cannabis Oil Syringes. A base for many of our other extract products, our team has spent endless hours in the lab perfecting the art of achieving the right clarity, flavor & viscosity to support a multitude of different uses, from vaporization to ingestion. Our Pure Oil Syringes are reliable & multi-functional.
All oil syringes are packaged in glass syringes with graduations to make dosing easy and come with a screw on luer lok tip. Please ask your pharmacist or hardware supplier for instructions on how to properly dispense the oil into your refillable vape cartridge.
360X
We strongly believe in the power of whole plant cannabis extract. Our 360X is just that: an unrefined, highly-potent pure oil. Made by way of ethanol extraction to retain higher levels of cannabinoids, 360X delivers a full spectrum experience. 360X is packaged in a 1mL syringe printed with dosing measurements.
How do I use concentrates?
Good question. There are various methods to use our concentrates depending on the type. I’ll break it down for you, though it is best to discuss this with your pharmacist as they will be able to provide you with more information and options.
CR, BD, SW, TS, HC, & SH - All of the above concentrates can be vaporized. You can use a variety of different tools & vaporizers to do so. Your pharmacist can tell you more about these different options.
Oil Syringes - There are a wide variety of different uses for oil syringes. We’ll be releasing an entirely separate blog post about them soon, but I’ll sum it up for you briefly. Oil syringes can be vaporized, used to fill specifically designed refillable vape cartridges, used to infuse with one’s cooking or warm beverage, and ingested directly. I know, that’s a lot. They’re a versatile product and many patients use them in vastly different ways. They’re a great thing to discuss with your dispensary pharmacist, as they can help you figure out the right method of use specifically fit to your needs.
360X - Also referred to as Whole Plant Extract, 360X is a highly concentrated cannabis extract that is typically ingested directly, with food, or in combination with a carrier fat. Carrier fats such as coconut oil, avocado, etc increase the bioavailability of the cannabinoids and unlock the full potential of the whole plant. 360x can also be applied topically. As it does contain plant material, 360X is generally not considered a vaporizable concentrate. Due to its highly concentrated nature, please consult your pharmacist for more specific consumption guidelines and dosing recommendations.
That’s a wrap.
We hope you learned a little bit or gained some clarity from this blog post. If you have any lingering, burning questions, you know where to reach us (email us at info@theraplant.com).
Thanks for reading!
<3 Theraplant