What is the difference between our 3 main vapes distillate, liquid shatter, and live resin? If are thinking of vaping marijuana recreationally or for medicine, it is important to know which will be best for you. Here’s the low down between distillate and liquid shatter.
With a potency as high as 95%, cannabis distillate is not for the new and inexperienced. This is THC in it’s purest form. Distillates come from an extraction process called “short path distillation” that separates and refines molecules and contaminants to create a clean, almost clear concentrate. Other extraction methods don’t produce nearly the same purity level or the variety of uses as this technique, making it highly regarded as a “top-shelf” concentrate.
When it comes to short path distillation, the end product has no measurable amount of terpene content. The cannabis terpenes are generally lost in the extraction process due to the amount of heat used. But extractors now introduce flavours into the process as we do with ours.
This customization option has prompted a bit of a debate within the cannabis community since, as stated above, the distillation extraction method directly destroys the natural cannabis terpenes throughout the process. Because of this, there are no specific indica or sativa properties that you would get with other forms like flower and shatter. That said, most would say the high is more sativa-like. Our THC infused e-juice and Fog Pods are made using distillate.
Shatter is another type of extract from the cannabis plant. Shatter typically yields over 80% THC content. It usually looks like honey with varying degrees of transparency and colour profiles. When this type of concentrate is warm, it has a consistency quite similar to very thick honey. When it’s cold, its texture is more similar to glass. It shatters just like glass does if it is dropped or tapped, hence the term “shatter.”
The first step to making shatter is to take the cannabis buds and a solvent (usually butane, CO2, or propane) and run them through to extract all of the necessary chemicals from the plant. The solvent is then evaporated from the compound and you are left with the plant’s resins, the psychoactive chemicals in marijuana.
The advantage of this process is that the terpenes are left intact, giving you those coveted sativa and indica properties of the strain that was used during extraction. If you prefer that couch-lock feeling that a heavy indica gives you, or that energy buzz that a high sativa has, liquid shatter is your best option.
The potency of pure shatter is over 80%. However, for it to be vapable, it has to be diluted, unlike distillate which is vapable in its original form. Diluting does lower the potency to around 30% THC per volume (which is still plenty potent) but the upside is you can choose specific strains (indicas, sativas, and hybrids) and different flavours (ice, grape, strawberry, pineapple, banana, or plain) to enhance your vaping experience. This makes our liquid shatter perfect for newbies, casual users and medicinal users.
Live Resin is another type of concentrate that getting quite popular. Unlike most cannabis concentrate, Live Resin extract is made from plant material that hasn’t been dried or cured. The starting plant material used for Live Resin includes fresh flower buds and leaves. It is flash frozen which helps to preserve the most desirable compounds and retain the full flavour of the originating cannabis strain.
When producing Live Resin, the primary goal is to capture the massive essence and aroma of the live cannabis plant. Products extracted using the Live Resin process — flash-freezing the cannabis plant material, then extracting it — are associated with high-quality and flavorful concentrates. Bypassing the typical drying and curing processes allows for a greater proportion of essential oils. These essential oils, technically called terpenes, are the compounds responsible for the distinctive flavours and aromas in cannabis, and other characteristics to be expressed in the final product. Because of this, our Live Resin vapes are come in one flavour: plain. This way you can experience the full glory of the plant. It’s like smoking a joint but in cloud form. The effects might feel stronger as well, thanks to the intense terpenes.
