The inaugural winners of the California State Fair Cannabis Awards

To celebrate 166 years, the annual California State Fair has finally got on the weed train. Joining the established roster of olive oil, beer, wine and cheese competitions is the inaugural California State Fair Cannabis Awards.

The Best of California winners earn a Golden Bear from the Golden State. (Courtesy of CA State Fair)

A total of 60 awards were presented to the crème de la crème last Thursday from entries from over 300 licensed operators. But instead of a series of celebrity judges smoking their way through the samples, the California State Fair has partnered with SC Labs to take a “science-based” approach that focuses cannabinoid and terpene content into 10 divisions across three major growing technique categories: Indoor, indoor, outdoor and mixed light.

There was also an overall Best of California category, the winners of which were awarded gold bear trophies. Vertically integrated MOCA Humboldt led the field with six wins; Her Grape Cookies and Wookies won Best in California for CBGA and THCA, respectively, and Gold for Indoor Flowers. Grape Cookies also took home gold for Ocimene and her ZOG won silver for Caryophyllene.

Head Cultivator Sarah Wright led MOCA Humboldt to six awards for cannabinoids and terpenes. (Courtesy of Matt Engel)

Cannabis is farming

Aside from the recognition of good weed, participants also view the competition as a badge of legitimacy as a farm worker. “This year’s inaugural awards are symbolic in the sense that the state recognizes cannabis as a valid agricultural contribution and awards awards based on science, not taste (not that we don’t love a good tasting contest),” Greenline Organic Nursery wrote on Instagram Indoor Gold Winner for their Animal Tree Pine.

Both Esensia Gardens and Greenshock Farms, regular participants in the Emerald Cup, have proven how great outdoor can be with five wins each. For Greenshock, G Lime Burst (CBDA) and Passion Orange Guava (Ocimene) were both overall and outdoor gold winners. Esencia could count on several gold wins in different categories for Lemon OG (Caryophyllene) and Buddha’s Hand (Terpinolene).

“We are honored and honored to be recognized for our craft, among top California farmers and alongside the best agricultural products the state has to offer,” said Ben Blake, co-founder of Esensia, in a press release. “It takes three to four years of meticulous work to develop a variety from scratch to sale, much like winemaking; it really is an artisanal process.”

Five wins for Esencia proves that outdoor buds can be just as potent and hot as indoor buds. (Courtesy of Syra McCarthy)

Both NorCal and SoCal shone

Other Best of winners include North Country Pharms (Tractor Gas), Naughty Squirrel Farms (Lemon Vuitton), Gentleman’s Cut (Laughing Gas) and Silver Dragon Cannabis (Mendo Crumble). Category winners include experienced veterinarians such as Ridgeline Farms, Talking Tree Farms, Huckleberry Hill Farms and the Harborside pharmacy chain.

In a twist, Emerald Spirit Botanicals’ THCV-rich Pink Boost Goddess, which also won the 2021 Emerald Cup, received a “unique” category win.

The full list of winners can be found here. There will be an official ceremony for the winners (but no consumption!) at the show’s upcoming CA Cannabis Exhibit, taking place July 15-31, 2022 at the Cal Expo Fairgrounds in Sacramento, California.

Amelia Williams

New York-based freelance cannabis journalist Amelia Williams is a graduate of San Francisco State University’s journalism program and a former budtender. Williams has contributed to GreenState, MG Magazine, Culture Magazine and Cannabis Now, Kirkus Reviews and The Bold Italic of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Check out Amelia Williams’ articles

By submitting this form, you are subscribing to Leafly news and promotional emails and agreeing to Leafly’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe from Leafly email communications at any time.