Toke of the Town

Filmmaking Couple Touches on Medical Marijuana’s Social Stigma in Denver Short

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By on Media, Medical
scott-takeda-lori-alreder-movie2018Courtesy of Scott Takeda and Lori Allred

Cannabis historically catches a bad rap in motion picture, depending on your views of the sweet leaf. It may have started with Reefer Madness in 1939, which created an initial scare about the dangers of cannabis use. Skip ahead four decades to the slack-jawed ramblings of Cheech and Chong, followed by such films as Friday, Half Baked and Pineapple Express, and cannabis in motion pictures became a caricature of mislabeled stereotypes.

Remembering Us, a forthcoming short film from Denver’s BS Filmworks, may be a needed step to change the stigmas surrounding cannabis, as well as stigmas attached to other issues. “We have a history of creating films that start the conversation, especially on topics that people don’t necessarily want to talk about,” says director and co-writer Scott Takeda

Craft Brewing Inches Closer to THC and CBD Beer

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By on CBD, Follow that story, Hemp, Say what?
hemperor.glass.bottleNew Belgium Brewing

Craft brewers are known for their collaborative spirit. But that’s within the walls of the beer world. When it comes to other vices — like wine, spirits and cannabis — some industry leaders have been a bit standoffish.

Boston Beer Company, the biggest “craft brewery” in the country, for instance, warned in early 2016 that marijuana legalization could hurt breweries if people spent their dollars there, and the Brewers Association has been so uncomfortable around the subject that the industry trade group has barely mentioned it in past years — though it did offer some analysis of that competition in early 2017.

Cacao and Cannabis With Coda Chef Lauren Gockley

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By on Cannabusiness, Culture, Stoner MacGyver
simply_cooking_lindsey_bartlett_01_Lindsey Bartlett

Once a rare treat, cannabis-infused edibles ain’t no longer a thang here in Colorado. In fact, they’re a large and growing presence in the legal pot industry, now accounting for around 15 percent of the recreational market share…and that’s still rising, according to several industry studies. Infused-product companies are using tasteless distillate, isolates and water-infusing powders to cook with cannabis, making the possibilities virtually limitless.

Today you can find anything from coffee to beef jerky and Dutch stroopwafels infused with THC and CBD on dispensary shelves in Colorado, and making pot-infused dishes at home has never been more popular. So what’s still sexy about old-school edibles, such as chocolates? We asked Lauren Gockley, chef for award-winning edibles company Coda Signature, about the evolving art of cooking with cannabinoids.

Slightly Less Lame Kansas Now Allows Sale of New Belgium Hemp Beer

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By on Hemp, Legalize It, Products
hemperorCourtesy of New Belgium Brewing

It took long enough, but the country is finally starting to come around to hemp. Kansas is just taking a little longer than the rest of us.

The non-psycoactive cannabis plant and the oils, fibers and cannabinoids derived from it have seen a huge boom in consumer interest over the past few years and grew 16 percent in sales from 2016 to 2017, according to a recent analysis from Hemp Industry Daily. Hemp has even become an ingredient in beer, with Fort Collins-based New Belgium Brewing Company (the fourth-largest craft brewery in the country) releasing a pale ale in March that is brewed with hemp seeds to extract cannabis-like flavor and aromas.

Toxic Waste, Carbon Emissions and Other Sustainability Problems for Legal Pot

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By on Cannabusiness, Growing, Technology
the_green_solution_marijuana-grow-collins2017Jacqueline Collins

Legal cannabis is growing fast. Since November 2012, when voters in Colorado and Washington approved legalizing the plant, seven more states followed suit, and two more have legalization measures on the ballot next month. And don’t forget Canada, where marijuana became officially legal in mid-October.

All that growth brings a growing demand for energy and other resources, however. Cannabis business analytics firm New Frontier Data recently released a report showing that electricity consumption by America’s pot industry will increase by 162 percent by 2020, with the industry currently consuming 1.1 million megawatt hours of electricity annually, or enough to power 92,500 homes for a year.

Marijuana Smell Lawsuit That Could Endanger Colorado Pot Biz Goes to Trial

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By on Cannabusiness, Feds 'N Heads, Follow that story, Say what?
horseback.riding.thinkstock.800Thinkstock

A lawsuit filed by two Colorado landowners who claim that a nearby marijuana grow has reduced their property values in part because the smell makes horseback riding less pleasant goes to trial in Denver federal court today. And the repercussions of the suit’s strategy, based on federal racketeering laws, could have far-reaching effects on the cannabis industry in Colorado and beyond.

The case was filed in February 2015 by Safe Streets Alliance, a national anti-pot group, on behalf of two members, Phillis Windy Hope Reilly and Michael P. Reilly. Early on, the effort didn’t seem particularly professional: Note that the organization misspelled marijuana as “marajuana” in its initial press release on the subject. But SSA’s success in court over the past three years-plus has overcome this gaffe.

Why Colorado Tokers Love Triple Diesel

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By on Culture, Dispensaries, Growing, Medical
triple dieselHerbert Fuego

Fun fact: You can never have too much Sour Diesel. Don’t believe me? You’re about to read the word “diesel” so often that you’ll swear you were wearing a trucker hat.

I’m not saying you can never smoke too much weed — smoking is still bad, mmkay? — but if I had to puff one strain for the rest of my life, Sour Diesel would be a strong candidate. The popular sativa’s lasting, uplifting high and rubbery stank make it an easy choice for the novice and experienced alike, so naturally, the Diesel family tree has branched out to create to a number of different strains. But how many of them carry the genetics of three Diesels in one?

Four Colorado Weed Industry Rules That Are About to Change

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By on Cannabusiness, Follow that story, Legislation, Medical, Products, Technology
the_green_solution_collins20171215_003 (1)Jacqueline Collins

Colorado’s cannabis industry is still changing at a rapid pace. The industry’s watchdog, the state Marijuana Enforcement Division, updates its rules and regulations every year in hopes of catching up with the expanding field, which is growing like a weed in more ways than one.

The MED’s annual meetings aren’t unique to cannabis; plenty of regulatory agencies update their rules each year. But governing a federally illegal industry that is continually developing new methods for ingestion, packaging and product extraction takes a lot of work. That’s why the MED held six stakeholder meetings over the summer and into the fall, with public health and regulatory officials, industry members, law enforcement representatives and other individuals that make up Colorado’s legal cannabis picture.

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