M. Con no. 8 from Royal Key Organics

M. Con no. 8 from Royal Key Organics via Catalyst Santa Ana on 02/08/2021. THC tested out to 19.7%. Purchased for about $38 out the door because of the Super Bowl Discount, normally it would be $69 out the door. I have been admiring Royal Key’s M. Con phenos from a far for a long time now, so when Catalyst had their killer Super Bowl sale and I noticed that M. Con #8 was on the menu, I jumped at the chance to get it on a discount. The surface of these semi dense bulbous buds is a mix of fern and tea greens that subtly shift into warm pulses of plum and aubergine, coupled with sporadic pops of royal and tiger orange pistils, all of which is absolutely drenched in a deluge of white and egg cream colored triches.

The nose out of the jar is a musty spice with underlying floral sweetness and quiet grape. Busting open a bud, the sweetness amps up as the grape sharpens, while tones of mint and pine kick around in the background. Breaking it down by hand my fingertips smell of sweet pine, while the grinds themselves are a light sweet fruit coupled with pine and mint, all which is backended by a floral quality with a perfume edge. The dry pull on the joint is a light sweet floral with a hint of grape lead fruitiness and freshness. The inhale is smooth and on both the joint and the bong and carries that light sweet floral to fruition. The exhale on the joint is mostly a light sweet floral as well but it has a hint of grape and must in the background, whereas on the joint that sweet grape really comes through up top, pushing any semblance of that floral must to the wings. Cross checking the flavor on my Ghost Vapes MV1, at 170c I get a slight cooling sensation on the way in while on the exhale I catch heavy pine with a touch of sweet floral, whereas at 185c I still get some cooling on the way in but the exhale is much more floral, and the pine shifts slightly to a pine-sol like finish as opposed to straight pine. The headchange comes on quick but is very mild in nature. Physically, I feel a slight haze across the top of my eyes and a light weight in the shoulders, however it’s nowhere near incapacitating and feels very complementary to chill activities. Mentally I am relaxed and able to focus as needed. While I might be apprehensive about have to make a professional presentation or any other activity where I’m required to be on my A-game because there are real world stakes, in a causal situation, it’s perfect for kicking back and conversing because I’m easily able to stay present and not constantly losing the thread. If you’re looking for a brain busting herb that will send you to outer space this one probably isn’t for you, but I found it to be some quality long lasting any time smoke with an old school feel, and I definitely enjoyed my time with it. That said, for near $70 I’d be hesitant to cop it again just because it didn’t quite stand out enough for me effects wise to bear repeating, but for $38 it was a steal and a half and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. Great work Royal Key, from this one batch it’s evident that you put out some quality flower, I’d love to get into more of your library. 

Xeno By Alien Labs

I was very interested in this strain as it seems to be Blue Zushi with a different name. Even though I’ve yet to review it l’m a fan of blue Zushi so my interest was peeked. I’m really disappointed with the pictures I took as it really doesn’t do this flowers justice. With hunter green as the main feature the large amount of trichomes make some of it look like a lighter more muted green similar to green tea extract in color. With rusty orange pistils popping everywhere this is some wonderful looking flower. Structure was great and easy to work with.

When smelling I noticed a sweetness that reminded me of smell of sweet tarts and skittles with some skunky pine and mint. When smoking I really noticed how clean it was smoking and no taste of chemical or bitterness and very sweet candy terps with a cooling sensation in my mouth but doesn’t quite taste minty. The high was energetic and uplifting and a great strain for being creative I noticed myself getting sidetracked and spacing out on ideas quite often. I was recently told that even though they’re owned by the same parent company as connected they have completely different grows and crew. I don’t know this to be true but with differences in quality and smoke I do believe it. I can’t really say that they’re always worth they’re price tag I can tell you they’re doing much better than their sister company.

Tropnana by The Real Cannabis Chris

I was really excited about this one because two of my favorite terp profiles are citrus and banana but I had it vaulted for 420. I was a little confused and thought that this was a Banana Og x with Tropicana Cookies but in actuality it was Tropicana x with Banana Punch. All in all similar terp profiles with citrus and bananas. When looking at this melt I’m always blown away it just looks different than other melts. It gets the nickname beach sand and margarita salt for a reason. Looks super clean and like there’s nothing but beautiful trichomes in there.

I was a little confused and thought that this was a Banana Og x with Tropicana Cookies but in actuality it was Tropicana x with Banana Punch. All in all similar terp profiles with citrus and bananas. When looking at this melt I’m always blown away it just looks different than other melts. It gets the nickname beach sand and margarita salt for a reason. Looks super clean and like there’s nothing but beautiful trichomes in there. Smelling hash is always an interesting experience because I never know that expect. Some hash I feel barely smells like anything but then still has plenty of terps when you dab it. I’m not really sure what the mechanism is behind that but just what I’ve experienced. Tropnana was different you could smell the sharp smell of over ripe oranges and the sweetness and tropical smell of bananas. When dabbing it’s almost a perfect cross of overly ripe citrus and fresh baked banana bread. I was legit blown away by this taste combo it was just the right balance of the right flavors. For my 2nd time ever in weed terps I actually craved the flavors later like food. The high was an uplifting one the really sparked my creative side. Made me go from hanging out watching tv while dabbing to wanting to play music. So instead of sampling through a bunch of hash I made it through 2 flavors and spent the night playing guitar. I love when a strain does that to me. Almost like being stuck in a moment of creating. Nothing shocking here the real cannabis Chris puts out fire. This may have been one of his best yet.

Doughnut Joints By Holly Rollers

Surefire selections 1 g lemon up x hash engineers .3 SherBx1 hash. Surefire selections 2g Z41 x .5 hash engineers wedding cake.

This is a bit different reviewing some joints. I’ll start with the smaller one. The smell and dry pull was all lemon terps and had me very excited to smoke. Once smoking there were a couple issues. First and main problem was it was very hard to pull and wasn’t burning well. Also didn’t really create the famous doughnut hole that everyone looks for till the very end. The taste was nice on the flowers but couldn’t really taste the hash. I smoked with 4 people and had a decent head change from it not to bad considering the size and the amount of people I was sharing with.

The bigger one was a much better experience as first and foremost it smoked a lot easier and never felt plugged up. On the dry pull I could taste the sweet and gassy terps from the flowers. Once smoking you could taste the sweet and gassy terps but also the doughiness of the wedding cake came through along with that slightly different taste that happens when you smoke hash on top of a flower bowl. It was a really enjoyable combo and terps really combined to create a nice sweet cake and gas flavor that I think everyone would be stoked to try. I smoked with 2 people and had a strong high after that lasted for some time. Overall I think this is a very nice product that is being made with great source material. I would abandon the smaller ones and stick to the bigger ones for a better experience. I hear they’re doing even larger ones 3.5grams of flowers and 1 gram of hash and I’m going to try and get my hands on one ASAP.

Zkittlez By Surefire Selections

No fancy packaging here and none needed

I don’t know what it is about Zkittlez but it always looks like shit. 🤦‍♂️😂 This one has that same mids looking bush weed look to it. Might have had a little more frost than I’m used to seeing but yeah looking all mids. The cure was nice and the flowers were very easy and nice to work with.

The smell was amazing as this was easily some of the loudest Zkittlez I’ve ever had the pleasure to experience. Those all too familiar candy terps just smack you in the face with the sweetness and that bit of almost mint cooling on the exhale fucking love it. The other thing about this was it smacked. I mean everytime I smoked it I was oh shit I’m high. Very few strains make me feel that way with one bong rip and not even a Zkittlez dab has hit me like this one did. Not the super head rush of a dab but just a lot heavier and longer lasting. I will definitely grab more of this and wish it was the only Zkittlez I smoked.

Irene from The Russian Assassin Boyz

Irene from The Russian Assassin Boyz via #TraditionalDTLA on 3/19/2021 (big thanks to them both for making it happen!). THC not listed on this batch. I was gifted this bag but from what I see on Traditionals Menu, it looks like it would go for about $33.50 plus tax if available. After the first impressions of their Wonka hit my page, I got a few messages saying Irene was THE strain to try from the Russian Assassin Boyz, so I was stoked to see it was one of two strains in my newly acquired sample pack. The surface of these trident-esque buds are mostly a mix of raisin and aubergine with rashes of emerald and mint green, pronounced wisps of lanky tiger orange pistils, all of which is heavily engulfed in a dense flocking of egg cream colored triches.

The nose out of the bag is an intensely savory GMO like smell (which I’m told is due to the Chem in the lineage) with a battery acid edge and some underlying sweetness coupled with a very distant touch of cream. Busting open a bud, that intense savoriness stays dominant but there’s a pastry sweetness that emerges, all while still being wrapped in this acidic tinge. Breaking it down by hand, it leaves a light savory scent on the fingers with a touch of sweetness, while the grinds themselves are undeniably savory, the scent shifts slightly and dips into tones of anise or black licorice. The dry pull on the joint is super strong in that savory chem characteristic to the point it feels like it coats your tongue and it’s all you can taste. The inhale on both the joint and the bong is smooth, and the former has a savory hashy taste with a noticeable tang, while the latter I’d describe simply as a sweet hashy gas. The exhale on the joint is super savory and has a gassy aspect that leans slightly sour, whereas the bong is a bit harder to pin down, as it hits me with that savory gas but also has a light sweetness kicking around in the background. Cross checking the flavor on my Ghost Vapes MV1, at 170c I get a heavy floral with a perfume kick, where at 185c it’s still extremely floral but has a light pine element that morphs into a hoppy beer like aftertaste. The headchange comes on quick and smacks like a fully loaded Mack truck. I was totally caught off guard by it the first time I tried it, one bowl had me spacey and slack jawed, and when I came back to earth I started messaging my group chats about how it absolutely obliterated me. Physically, a calm set in near immediately as a hazy glaze made its way across my eyes, and a bit of weight settled into my shoulders and lower back. Mentally, I found myself constantly losing the thread and generally confused when challenged with simple things like spelling common words, however that cognitive chokehold laid off fairly quickly and was replaced by a chill easy going vibe that left me feeling mellow and not wanting for more. All and all, this batch of Irene is some fantastic smoke for any time you want to get truly blasted to the point you lose touch with planet earth. Even now, after growing accustomed to it’s slap, I still approach with caution as it manages to put me on the ropes no matter the time of day. While I’m able to manage certain tasks and get through my to do list with the aid of a strong cup of coffee, if I’m at all tired, Irene will for sure have me down for the count within minutes. I really enjoyed my time with this batch and I definitely plan on picking more up again in the future. Fantastic flower Russian Assassin Boyz, you absolutely killed it on this one, keep up the awesome work!

Sunset Cookies By 710 Labs

This flower as with every 710 flower I’ve ever had looks beautiful! Nice neon greens and dark purples hidden under the sporadic orange pistils and healthy coating of trichomes. Great cure that gives you that satisfaction snap as you break apart.

The smell on this was very underwhelming and smelled like fresh baked dough of some of the cookie strains and maybe slight bit of gas but just barely. Also some musky pine and earthiness to it. When smoking the taste was just as boring and just tasted like that earthy and doughiness. No sweetness and not much funk or gas and the flavors that were there were all very subtle. Still smoked smooth and clean. The high was decent with a nice relaxing feeling coming over me when I smoked. Overall this was very disappointing “top shelf flower” and that seems to be a problem with 710 flowers very hit or miss considering the price they demand. Overall I’ll keep trying their flowers and definitely rebuy some of their top strains but definitely need to choose wisely.

Rainbow Belts By Jungle Boys

The name alone had me excited about this latest offering by The Jungle Boys as I love sour candy belts and this made me think of that instantly. The buds on her look quite nice, big and fluffy with bright neon greens with subtle darker greens hidden in there. Lots of little orange pistils peeking out everywhere and a nice dusting trichomes really rounds out this wonderful but not to unique looking flowers. Great structure and easy to work with.

When sticking your head in the bad your instantly met with musty sweet and fruity smell that really met my expectations of what I was hoping for. With citrus and berries and candy terps coming out the strongest. When smoking the first thing I noticed was a nice wave of euphoria wash over me and then a nice body relaxing sensation settles it out. Not too crazy strong but definitely a sit back and relax type smoke for me. As almost always this was well cured and smoked so nice. I’d definitely like to get this strain again from Jungle boys but would like to try some other brands take on it as well. I think this in hash would be really nice too. I know there’s a lot of hate out there but for me Jungle Boys has consistent fire that’s easy to get and seems to always smoke clean. At Med prices at 49 an eighth and constant deals and discounts they definitely keep it at reasonable price.

Banana OG from Fresh Baked

Banana OG from Fresh Baked via The Circle in Long Beach on 12/10/2020 (big thanks to Fresh Baked and The Circle for making it happen!). THC tested out to 29.39%. This was gifted to me but at the time I picked it up was going for $55 on the menu. Last time I went to the Circle in Long Beach to pick up Fresh Baked’s limited edition batch of Ice Cream Cake, they were awesome enough to also include this bag of Banana OG which I’d heard nothing but good things about, so I was absolutely stoked to jump in. The surface of these semi-dense fat bottomed shrub shaped nugs are a mix of forest, fern and tea greens, with wisps of twine brown pistils timidly clinging to the canopy, all of which is flooded over with copious amounts of tall cream colored triches.

The nose out of the bag is a delicious smelling sweet candy fruit with a minty back end and a waxy quality that feels like something you might come across in a Bath and Bodyworks candle as you sniff your way through the shelves. Busting open a bud, that same sweet scent remains essentially the same, but gets louder. Breaking it down by hand, I get a subtle sweet musty fruit rind scent on the fingers, while the grinds themselves come with an even more intense sweet waxy fruit scent that makes my eyes widen and gives me some strong banana Hi-Chew vibes. The dry pull on the jay is also very fruity candy sweet, but has this pleasant vaporous undertone that all together, nearly makes my mouth water. The inhale is smooth on both the bong and the joint initially, and on the joint I get a general sweet floral, whereas the bong is essentially the same but leans just a tad more sugary. The exhale on the joint comes off like banana taffy at first, but as I got towards the middle, it got slightly harsh which sort of muted the flavor experience as a whole. The bong was consistently smooth, but much more floral in nature, with that banana aspect being highly tamped down in comparison to the joint. Cross checking the flavors on my Ghost Vapes MV1, at 170c I get a very light cooling sensation accompanied by an unexpectedly strong pine taste with just a touch of floral on the back end, whereas at 185c the pine still remains the dominant player but there’s a perfume like floral that also makes its presence known. The headchange comes on quick, and brings a very mellow yet feel good energy with it, while still managing to put some pressure behind the eyes and weight on the body to boot. Over time the sedation effect set in harder, and I quickly went from bright eyed, alert and active, to heavy legged, dough faced, and looking for a place to kick back on the couch for a possible weed nap. Mentally I felt fairly present, spacing out on only the rare occasion, yet was easily distracted which had a tendency to take me away from the task at hand if said distraction ended up with me unwittingly going down some kind of hazy rabbit hole. All of that said, if I had to pick between this strain and the Ice Cream Cake I got from Fresh Baked on the same day, I’d probably lean toward the ICC as that one in particular ticked all of the boxes for me personally. This Banana OG looked and smelled fantastic, but slightly stumbled in the flavor arena, yet recovered beautifully in the effects department as one big bowl had me ripped to the point I was wondering if I really needed to take on the second one I’d just finished packing. In the end this was a pretty solid showing, and I could definitely see myself picking this up again if I saw it on the menu at the right ticket and were in the market for some relaxing, clear headed, feel good smoke.

Rozay By 710 Labs

I hear a lot of negative feedback on 710 flowers how they always look pretty but never have any flavor or power. I do feel they’re a bit hit and miss on that point but I wouldn’t say they never have any flavor or that the high is always weak. There are very few growers that put nothing but fire out and none at the scale 710 is at so I don’t hold that against them. There is nobody at their scale that I know uses living soil and organic inputs so from my understanding their flowers will just keep getting better and better. Ok let’s try this again! 🤦‍♂️😂 This is some striking flowers to the eye. Very dark purple calyxes with some tiny bits of green around the edges. Vibrant orange pistils climbing out of almost every nook and cranny and coated in trichomes in a way that reminds me of gum drops. Just amazing bag appeal and great structure that was very easy to break apart.

The smell on the Rozay was very interesting it’s a sweet sour floral smell that ends up smelling like sour wine. So I really thought the name was getting to my head as I know not every strain taste like the name so I followed up with a buddy who I knew had just bought the same thing and he agreed with me totally. The taste was very similar to the smell except much sweeter and more pleasant than I was expecting ( I hate wine) was a very sweet floral taste with a slight bit of a wine bitterness. The high was nice too it was a full body relaxing strain but just really weak. While looking for the genetics I saw that this was a normally heavy strain but that definitely wasn’t my experience. That leads to the beginning of this review and this being a tasty beautiful looking flower that really lacks the punch it should have. I’d like to try again after more dialed in and see if that punch starts to show up. They also have new containers to help keep their flowers fresh. In my experience these new containers don’t work as well as the old ones. All in all I love 710 flowers and I love their company goals and work practices that I’m aware of and will definitely continue to pick up.