The rise of marijuana mixology

It seems like every time you walk into a pharmacy there is a brand new way to consume cannabis. Whether as an edible as an homage to a favorite snack or as a tiny discrete vaporizer, there is no lack of creativity in product development.

One of the latest trends in recreational cannabis use is less inspired by exotic creativity and scientific advances; It originated from hundreds of years of mixing and shaking behind the world’s dark mahogany bars.

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The cannabis cocktail is rapidly gaining popularity as a fun and effective way to ingest CBD or THC. Retail beverages such as THC seltzer are available in recreational pharmacies across the country and are becoming increasingly popular.

These retail beverages are a popular way to enjoy marijuana, but some enthusiasts are turning the concept of cannabis drinking into its highest art form – the handcrafted cocktail. By enjoying cannabis through a straw, a bond has been formed between the budtender and the bartender, and the result is delicious.

Marijuana mixology can be approached in many ways. There are cocktails made with strong spirits and non-alcoholic elixirs, as well as libations fortified with THC, while others use only CBD without THC. All of the variations affect the consumer’s feeling an hour later, but in making these modern classics, taste relies on the same balancing techniques used in every classic cocktail.

Successful mixology is the art of balancing the key components of a cocktail, which, according to Diageo Bar Academy, are sweet, sour, bitter, salty, temperature, texture, and alcohol (or the lack thereof). Experimenting with cannabis cocktails maintains the same balancing act but adds the very specific flavor profile of marijuana. While the perfect balance for a great cocktail can be struck with a number of different specific ingredients, certain flavors already stand out as favorites.

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Citrus flavors like grapefruit, lemon, and lime are among the most common ingredients in many cannabis cocktail recipes. Grapefruit drinks like Wunder’s Grapefruit Hibiscus Sekt – according to Popsugar its most popular and award-winning flavor – are coveted flavors. Its light acidity and slight bitterness likely help compliment the flavor of the cannabis while balancing the flavor profile of the entire drink.

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Most cocktails play with the herbaceous taste of cannabis instead of trying to completely mask that taste, which is why other herbs may find their way into these new beverages. Basil, coriander, rosemary and even tea extracts have been incorporated into various recipes. Hollywood mixologist Maxwell Reis summed up the importance of the cannabis taste in these beverages as he said goop in an interview that his CBD cocktails “give every cocktail that could use a vegetable nuance a unique taste. “

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In cocktails with THC but no alcohol, one trend is the use of calm aromas reminiscent of spa relaxation. Notes of cucumber, aloe and even watermelon are infused into non-alcoholic elixirs to give the already relaxed drink more calm.

“The taste reminds the consumer of a healthy space, maybe yoga, the spa or the vacation,” Michelle Sundquist, director of innovation and product design, told Cannabis Products.

While it is true that great cocktails, new and old, boil down to the perfect balance between sweet, sour and bitter and salty, there is creativity and achievement in this new, exciting, and delicious realm of marijuana mixology.