19-04-2025
Our April 20 THC and cannabis guide, from craft sodas to Seth Rogen, part II
Our April 20 THC and cannabis guide, from craft sodas to Seth Rogen, part II
April 20 is a hallowed day for pot smokers. But thanks to recent developments, cannabis's quasi-holiday extends to seltzer drinkers and snackers as well.
Marijuana is legalized for recreational use in 24 states. Moreover, the 2018 Farm Bill made THC products legal across the country as long as they're sourced from hemp and contain no more than 0.3 percent THC by volume. That's led to an explosion of gummies, seltzers, sodas, coffees, teas and tinctures that promise low-key highs and low-calorie buzzes.
I'm gonna write about all the best nationally legal THC I had this past year, but since there's so much I had to split this guide into three parts. The opener went live Friday. Part III will be here Sunday (right on time). But for today, let's talk about some of the seltzers and gummies that stood out most.
If you're looking for a traditional gummy experience: Canna River
These clock in heavy; at 10 milligrams of THC and 20 of CBD, this is an edible best eaten in pieces. Five milligrams of each, taken together generally gets me in a pretty good spot. Let's see how this hits.
All three flavors are your standard THC gummy. The flavors -- apple, melon (which is, unfortunately, named Major Melonz, ooooof) and blue raspberry -- are slightly tart and sweet, dusted with tiny white crystals of sugar. They're roughly the size of 1.5 Haribos but have much more give, squishing into a dense paste rather than settling in for a brief detour of chewiness.
The fruit flavor is sweet and artificial and true to gummy form. There's a minor botanical THC tinge, but all that tells you is you're not dealing with candy. It doesn't impede the flavor on any of the three Canna River varieties.
Despite the potency, the THC rolls in slowly. After about half an hour my brain is slightly blurry. I can hear slight patterns in the white noise I use to help fall asleep. My brain has unlocked special powers, absolutely none of which are helpful on a regular basis. These are, suffice to say, good things.
If you're looking for a tremendous amount of THC (that you'll almost certainly have to share with friends): Crescent-9
Crescent-9 has a wide array of sodas and seltzers at a wide array of dosages. But what stands out most are 50 milligram cans I wound up parceling out two ounces at a time. Not only did they deliver a potent amount of THC in a small package, but they tasted good enough to stand up on their own. Let's talk about the two best high-test flavors.
Raspberry Lime: A-
Right away I've got a problem. This can has 50 milligrams of THC. The label itself calls it 12 servings worth of cannabis. There isn't a chance in hell I'm gonna put this down in one night. So why is it carbonated and in a non-resealable container?
Well, I get to drink it flat again tomorrow, it seems. The first impression isn't great; the smell coming off my two-ounce pour is aggressively tart and a little weedy. That's to be expected with a raspberry lime THC drink, but it's slightly off-putting.
It tastes better than it smells, hitting the notes of a craft soda before a cannabis current leaves a ring around the last remnants on your lips. It's acidic but balanced well enough with real sugar. It clocks in at 100 calories for the can, which isn't too bad and even better when you consider that's only around 16 to 18 calories per serving.
It seems to take effect early; about one ounce and 15 minutes in I'm feeling a bit hazy. Once finished, it does a wonderful job guiding me into weird dreams before I even know I'm asleep. Perfect.
Also, it holds up relatively well on day two. The bubbles are less, but there are still enough there to be enjoyable.
Jetlife Grape Lemonade: A-
Once again we're dealing with a high-test drink. And once again, it's carbonated even though it's lemonade. Huh. Well, at least it's a unique flavor. Growing up in Rhode Island means getting accustomed to all sorts of Del's frozen lemonade flavors, but I don't think I ever had grape.
It pours slightly purple. It smells like SweetTarts. There's no weed-y undercurrent, which is promising. This pours like two ounces of candy with a little bit of Vernor's ginger ale lurking somewhere in those bubbles.
The first sip backs this up. Not the ginger, but the candy. It's sweet and slightly tangy. A little dense, but not in a way that's a problem. You do get a little bit of a cannabis taste, but you might miss it if you aren't looking for it. It's grape up front, then some acidic lemon. It's well balanced and neither side is overpowering.
If you're looking for a craft soda to get you hazy: Mary Jones
From our holiday gift guide:
It pours exactly like you'd expect a full-sugar cola. It's dark and effervescent, with bubbles jumping from the top of a glass filled with ice. That sweetness permeates the smell coming off the top of the pour, but there's just enough of a minor THC current to let you know this isn't regular soda. It's not especially weed-y, necessarily, but you can tell there's cannabis lurking inside.
The soda is sweet enough to be a bit of a shock for me, a guy who mostly drinks diet sodas to avoid cramming down 300 extra calories of caffeinated drinks every weekday at 2 p.m. It's not sickly or overwhelming, but it does stick to your teeth just enough to let you know you're dealing with real sugar.
The taste is a lovely cola blend -- cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and whatever else I can use that sounds better than "tastes like Coke." That cinnamon/vanilla is handled gently and well balanced, leaving this as exactly the kind of soda you'd expect from a craft brewer that's been around for decades. It's not quite good enough to supplant my favorite non-THC cola -- Sprecher's Puma Kola, hello -- but it's tasty as hell.
If you want a social cannabis drink (or just want that trademark Seth Rogen chuckle): Houseplant
At only three milligrams of THC per can, Rogen's brand of cannabis seltzers are more of a social drink than some of the other standouts in the category. The idea is that you could have a couple (or more) before getting too high -- something that's much more difficult when you're locked in to 10mg or more per 12 ounces. The downside is that I use these as a sleep aid. Drinking even one can of fizzy water before bed is gonna mean waking up in the middle of the night, so it's slightly less convenient for me.
Black Cherry: B
It pours clear with modest carbonation. It smells exactly like artificial black cherry. This is what I'm looking for; a drink that simulates old school, off-brand black cherry sodas.
It's not sweet enough to fulfill that dream, but the cherry flavor is much more full bodied than you'd get in most seltzers. It's a bit tart, but there's enough sugar-ish influence that the end result is balanced. It's not complex or especially interesting, but each sip finishes dry and makes it easy to roll through a can across 15 minutes of socializing (or, in my case, watching prestige dramas I'd never heard of until three days ago on AppleTV. AppleTV: We greenlit what???).
There's very little to tell you there's cannabis involved here. Dig into the aftertaste and you get a minor, weed-y note. That's it. Otherwise this is just a less bubbly, bigger-flavored La Croix at the same calorie count. One can wasn't enough to get me very buzzed, but there is a nice minor high that clocks in after about 20 minutes.
If you're looking for some basic, but reliable flavors: Stiizy
Mango Tango: B
It pours a rich copperish orange. Ever had Irn Bru? It's a lot like that. It smells sweet and slightly creamy. Low calorie seltzers have been using the rich taste of artificial mango as a cheat code for a while now. I'm interested to see how Stiizy pushes that toward a soda like the previous two flavors.
Once again, the bubbles quickly fade and you're left with a minimally carbonated drink. Even so, the flavor is bright and clear, with some creamsicle hints of orange stepping up early before fading into a wave of mango. True to form, it's more soda than seltzer, bringing big fruit flavor and a balanced sweetness behind it.
That's a plus for me, since I like soda more than dry seltzers. It may be a disappointment for folks looking for something closer to a La Croix. But either way it delivers a nice low key buzz about 25 minutes after you've finished the can.
Caribbean Breeze: B+
We go from defined flavors to regional weather. Context clues suggest something like a rum punch without the booze. A light pink pour backs that up. It smells like tangy citrus off the top with just enough of a sugary undercurrent to feel slightly like a canned cocktail.
The first sip has... much more apple than I anticipated for a trip to the tropics. Huh. That blends with some orange and a little watermelon to create a slightly weird and ultimately sweet combination. In this case the limited carbonation helps back up the idea you're dealing with an adult fruit punch.
Like fruit punch, it's sweet and juicy and, weirdness aside, enjoyable.
If you're looking for a seltzer that gets a little weird with it (in a good way): Green Street Hi*AF
Green Street's Hi Tide margaritas are totally fine, if a little familiar. Where the brand shines is in the "amazing flavors" of Hi*AF. Those range from basic (Orange Lift) to wild, and I'm gonna single out the weirdest, best one below.
Hi*AF Tiger's Blood: B+
Let's start with the most intriguing of the Hi*AF options. Tiger's Blood doesn't say what's in the mix until you look at the ingredients. There are simplified coconut, strawberry and watermelon icons in the corner of the can, but if you're ordering this from more than a few feet away it feels like you're playing a guessing game. And that's before getting to Charlie Sheen references from nearly two decades ago.
Anyway, it pours a rich red color. It smells slightly tropical and just a little too sweet. The first sip leans into that. Cane sugar and concentrated strawberry juice are the first two non-water ingredients and, hooo buddy, they come off Slurpee-sweet when you take a big gulp.
That leaves you with more of a Fanta feel than the seltzer-y vibes of other THC canned drinks. Each sip is dense; slightly thicker than a crisp carbonated water but packed with flavor. The strawberry is first up, but the watermelon and coconut also get in some shots to keep things from getting stale early on.
That coconut leaves each sip with a slightly weird tang, but it's still a unique, full-bodied sip. Like the Hi Tide before it, it kicks in before you finish the can -- as it says on the label, six ounces counts as a serving size -- which is another point in its favor as long as you aren't trying to make it through four hours of social time. After about 90 minutes I have a lovely inability to follow my train of thought to its original destination. Which is nice.
If you're looking for a functional THC drink: Brez
Brez combines two things I do not love: elderflower and mushrooms. The brand offers the mood lifting effects of Lion's Mane fungus -- something Odyssey put in an energy drink to varying effect -- with THC and CBD. While the 12 ounce cans and its five milligrams of THC and 10 of CBD are night-night fuel for me, Brez's smaller, 7.5-ounce offerings deliver half that dosage and some generally pleasant moods.
More importantly, they taste solid. Lemon Elderflower will never be a flower combination I actively seek out, but Brez does a good job balancing sour and floral flavors with modest sweetness and sharp carbonation to make easy can easy to sip your way through.
If you're looking for a craft gummy: Hometown Hero's Double Take
Hometown Hero's Double Take gummies come in a variety of flavors. I was only to try one at press time, but it was a hit and, importantly, delivered above and beyond the THC I thought I was getting.
Double Take Gummies: Passion Fruit Guava: A-
First off, I hope the nutritional info is a misprint. One gummy is four servings. One serving is 30 calories. Granted, these gummies are roughly the size of a Danish butter cookie, but in no way shape or form should they be 120 calories each.
I'm starting with the recommended five milligrams and reserving the right to bump up to 10 if I'm not feeling much in an hour. The gummy itself is a beautiful two-tone purple and green. The taste is sweet up front, then just slightly weed-y, then leans heavily into that tropical fruit. It's not my favorite flavor -- none of the Hometown Hero offerings are mixes I'd readily seek out -- but it tastes good enough.
My doubts about the label are vacated by the potency delivered. About an hour after eating one quarter of a gummy, I begin to feel a light buzz. At 90 minutes, I am floating. This leans a bit toward the heavier effects of the five milligram doses I've had in the past, but if the numbers are off on Hometown Hero's THC count it's an underestimate.
