When medical marijuana became legal in Missouri several years ago, followed a few years later by recreational marijuana, stoners everywhere rejoiced. At Sauce HQ, we were most looking forward to the wide array of edibles that would become available.
Now that dispensaries have been up and running for some time, we’re seeing increasingly more options of edibles. Most notably, we’ve noticed that rosin edibles have joined the throng, whereas we previously were primarily seeing those made with distillate. Of course, distillate is still the largest percentage of edibles available at most dispensaries in Missouri; however, the increase of new types of edibles has us excited.
But what exactly are rosin and distillate? We chatted with some experts from Proper Cannabis to get to the bottom of it.
Essentially, distillate is extracted via a chemical process using a solvent such as butane, whereas rosin is extracted through a mechanical process.
“The vast majority of our edibles are distillate,” said Matt LaBrier, COO and co-founder of Proper Cannabis. “The upside of distillate is that they’re super consistent. Especially when we make the distillate, we control every step of the process. We take crude oil then distill it down and what you’re left with is an oil, or distillate, that’s almost exclusively THC, getting rid of impurities and anything that would add smell or flavor, so you don’t taste the cannabis.”
Distillate allows Honeybee Edibles (Proper Cannabis’ house brand of edibles) director of culinary Dave Owens’ incredible flavors to shine, LaBrier continued. “It’s a really consistent experience, eliminating all the other cannabinoids that might impact your experience because even different harvests of the same strain can have different terpene profiles,” he said.
The downside of distillate, he explained, is that “some people report that they are kind of one note – a less comprehensive high,” he said.
As the cannabis market has matured in Missouri, the Proper team has found that their customer base is becoming more educated and asking for new products such as rosin-infused edibles, which are often referred to and labeled as “solventless.”
“For rosin, the process is different. It’s a mechanical separation using ice and water to separate trichomes from the plant material. We take that and press it with heat and pressure and that spits out rosin. It’s a different method of extraction that preserves a more plant-native cannabinoid profile, which will change a bit from batch to batch,” he said.
This leads to a more comprehensive high, LaBrier explained, thanks to the presence of more types of cannabinoids and terpenes, which lend nuance to various types of cannabis.
“It’s less one-note, so you feel it a little more physically behind your eyes,” he said. “It allows the entourage effect to take place in your body – it’s a little bit more akin to smoking flower than the distillate-based edibles. That said, it will taste a little bit earthier, more plant-like.”
Due to the more complicated extraction process, rosin edibles are typically more costly – often 20% higher – than those made with distillate. “There’s not a ton of strains that work well for rosin,” he said. “You might yield half as much rosin as distillate.”
However, it seems a growing number of consumers are willing to pay a premium for a more well-rounded high. Head to your local dispensary and speak with your budtender to learn more about the burgeoning rosin market.
This article appears in November 2024.