Natives, try not to get flustered at this admission: It took me about three years of living here to realize that February was Colorado’s worst month. If it weren’t for all the stouts that breweries pour in February, the month would turn Denver into a cold pit of despair for those of us who aren’t avid snowboarders or skiers. Thankfully, March brings some warm stints and sunny reprieves, but I’ve learned not to get suckered into thinking spring is here in March, either. That doesn’t come for certain until fucking June.

To make sure I didn’t get lulled into a false sense of summer-bound security, I went with a strain called Snowball during a recent trip to the pot shop, to remind me of the impending dumps that Mother Nature will take on us in March and April. Consider me chilled and refreshed, though I’m still not certain I’ll be able to walk for another week after getting frozen to my couch.

Snowball is a cross of The White and Chem 4 OG (a hybrid of Chemdog and San Fernando Valley OG Kush) from Ethos Genetics, and it’s name is well deserved.

Get out your tiny violins, because you’re about to hear a complaint from a spoiled cannabis consumer: Shopping for weed can be sort of difficult after a long day. With so many strains, smells and highs available, sometimes you just want the simplicity of a weed dealer telling you to “take it or leave it.” All I needed on a Monday night was some classic, skunky nugs that reminded me of a different time, back when we returned for the same bag for months in a row because it was the only kush plug in town. We didn’t know which strain it really was, but we knew what smells to look for.

Citral Flo smells, looks and smokes like some of that classic mystery dank — only we know what it is. A cross of Sour Flo and Citral Skunk, Citral Flo’s throwback smell and flavor are almost like going back to a hometown hangout. It doesn’t take long to trace the strain back to Flo, Citral, Skunk, Sour Diesel and OG Kush on the family tree, and those genetics combine for a beautiful blend of Eastern and Western cannabis varieties.

In sports, the super team is usually disliked by the masses. We want our best athletes to put a team of role players on their backs, and we’ll poop on any collection of superstars who’d rather win faster and easier by joining forces. If we felt that way about cannabis breeding, we’d never have Durban Kush.

A hybrid of Durban Poison and a Chem D and OG Kush cross, Durban Kush is the equivalent of a big three in basketball. But in every big three, at least one of the stars has to make significant sacrifices for the team’s best interest. Ray Allen did it for the Celtics. Chris Bosh did it for the Heat. So which one of Durban Kush’s big three takes a back seat for the greater good?

Soda was recently cut out of my diet, but giving it up wasn’t hard; candy, pie and cereal are much more important to my sweet tooth. The few times I do indulge in a pop, however, I like to go with the old-school varieties, like root beer, cola or red, orange and original cream sodas. Black cherry is another great choice, highly underrated and hard to find — to the point of having to buy it in an overpriced glass bottle at the grocery store.

Or you can find an alternative for your favorite flavor in the cannabis world (or at least fool yourself into thinking that). So I was interested to see whether Black Cherry OG would provide a worthy substitute for that old soda flavor I craved.