When Tim Blake first founded The Emerald Cup over twelve years ago, he never expected it to become one of California’s most coveted cannabis events. Yet this past weekend, over 20,000 people traveled to the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, California to attend The Emerald Cup, including over 100 businesses displaying their contributions to the cannabis community.
Thousands of People Attended the 2015 Emerald Cup
The Smoke Reports team was lucky enough to catch up with Tim on Saturday morning, before the thousands of patients began entering the fairgrounds. Attendance at The Emerald Cup has tripled over the last three years, with people flocking to see cannabis exhibits, vendors, seminars, discussion panels, and talented musicians from many genres.
Rapper and Cannabis Industry Pioneer Berner in Attendance
“You look at all of these booths, you see everyone coming here to be very professional. I never expected [The Emerald Cup] to get like this all those years ago, but it is very cool to be a part of it.”
-Tim Blake, Founder and Organizer of The Emerald Cup
Hats on Display at the Emerald Cup
The event took place on December 12th and 13th, and despite a winter storm, attendance was booming. The Smoke Reports media team had a wonderful time exploring the different booths, and making friends with the huge variety of businesses and organizations showing off their products and services.
20,000 People Attended The Emerald Cup Last Weekend
Awesome Exhibits at the Emerald Cup
There were over 100 groups exhibiting at The Emerald Cup, all proudly providing some type of cannabis resource for patients, manufacturers, retailers, cultivators, and everyone else in the cannabis community. In this feature, we will take a look at a few of the different companies on display at The Emerald Cup, and the innovative things they are doing to progress the cannabis movement.
All of the organizations at the event deserve recognition, and even though we are unable to highlight every group in this article, Smoke Reports encourages people to check out next year’s Emerald Cup.
AbsoluteXtracts and Care By Design
AbsoluteXtracts and Care By Design had a wonderful set up to display their products. These two companies are both groups within the CBD Guild, and were some of the main sponsors of The Emerald Cup.
The AbsoluteXtracts Booth
AbsoluteXtracts makes strain-specific vaporizer cartridges, as well as medicated tincture sprays and honey sticks. AbsoluteXtracts, abbreviated as ABX, have consistently high levels of cannabinoids, and they even have their CBD vaporizer cartridge created with the strain Blue Jay Way.
Care By Design is a cannabis manufacturing company that creates ratio-specific cannabinoid tinctures. Different levels of cannabinoids, like THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), can have very beneficial healing results. Care By Design recognized the importance of educating cannabis patients on the endocannabinoid system, and the unique ways in which our individual responses to cannabis differ.
Their goal was to produce several different cannabinoid formulas in order to offer patients a personalized dosing experience for maximum medical efficacy. Care By Design offers large (15ml) and small bottles (5ml) of their cannabis tinctures, which range from slightly psychoactive, (1:1 CBD to THC), to almost undetectably psychoactive (18:1 CBD to THC).
TreatWell
Alison Ettel, founder of TreatWell, truly cares about her patients. The amount of energy she dedicates to her medicine is fascinating, especially because she has an MBA and doesn’t even use cannabis. TreatWell offers High CBD Tinctures (1:1, 3:1, and 20:1 CBD to THC), as well as a THC-a tincture and a special cannabis tincture for pets.
TreatWell has amassed an enormous following of patients who appreciate the care that goes into their medicine. Pet cannabis medicines have been steadily emerging, yet Alison and her team have made certain to dedicate much of their research to our furry friends.
Alison and the Smoke Reports Crew
When it comes to cannabis for pets, it is very important to remember that our cats and dogs need a different concentration of cannabis because they have much smaller bodies. TreatWell offers both a Large Pet Tincture and a Small Pet Tincture.
Women Grow
Women Grow is an organization that provides several resources and networking opportunities for women entering the cannabis industry. But don’t worry guys, the folks at Women Grow are extremely inclusive, and promote collaboration between all entrepreneurs, regardless of gender.
The Smoke Reports Crew Getting Together with Liesl Finkler and Jazmin Hupp of Women Grow
There is a very distinct mission behind Women Grow that aims to appropriately represent women in the cannabis space. For decades in the cannabis community, women have been characterized in a very sexual way that does not appeal to the majority of patients being introduced to the space.
Women Grow Supports Female Entrepreneurs in the Cannabis Industry
Jazmin Hupp, the Founder and Executive Director of Women Grow, is committed to reshaping outdated cannabis legislation and stereotypes. With over twenty chapters across the country, Women Grow organizes events that connect industry members and allow for the sharing of information and inspiration.
Herbabuena
At the festival, cannabis producer Herbabuena was displaying biodynamic certification from the Demeter Association. When a farm is in accordance with the Demeter Biodynamic Processing Standard, they have proven to this strict international certification program that their farm is sustainable, with fertility resources and strategies for disease and insect control originating from the immediate ecosystem.
Herbabuena makes boutique tinctures with other essential oils designed to target specific moods and symptoms. Some of their products include “Rock n’ Roll,” “Bliss,” “Full Moon,” and “Lullaby.”
Having a Laugh at the Herbabuena Booth
Temple Extracts
Temple Extracts is entering the cannabis space with a bang. The Emerald Cup served as the company’s initial exposure to many Northern California cannabis patients, and their booth was constantly packed.
Vaporizer Cartridge and Battery from Temple Extracts
We had a chance to speak with the founder of Temple Extracts about the attention to quality that goes into every batch of oil. Their vaporizer cartridges are lab tested for each batch so that consumers know exactly what is in their medicine. Temple prides themselves on transparency, and gives their patients access to proof that their products are free from contaminants.
Temple Extracts Uses Flowers Approved by Clean Green Certified
Clean Green Certified and Artifact Nursery
Clean Green Certified is an incredible organization that offers comparable certification for organic farming methods. The Federal government does not allow controlled substances like cannabis to receive the official organic label. Chris and the team at Clean Green Certified review all farming practices and materials used to ensure that the flowers are of the highest standards.
Artifact Nursery at the 2015 Emerald Cup
Artifact Nursery was one of the only booths packed with clones. The variety of strains available was pretty substantial considering that the full nursery contains many more than can fit in a 10’x10′ booth. Artifact Nursery is the only nursery that currently holds approval from Clean Green Certified for all of their clones.
Aficionado Seeds
Aficionado Seeds, Inc. is a seed company that has been delivering boutique cannabis strains to cultivators for over two decades. The flowers from Aficionado have placed in the top three at the past three Emerald Cups. Seeds are produced in limited numbers by the Aficionado master grower. All of their seeds come with a germination guarantee or your money back!
Master Hash Maker Frenchy Cannoli
Sprig Beverages
Cannabis-infused beverages are popping up in retail locations all over California, offering consumers with a refreshing reminder that cannabis medicine can be fun. Sprig is only a few months old, yet their style feels comfortably familiar. Sprig’s carbonated soda is soon to be available in Bay Area dispensaries, with each can packing 45mg of THC for a solid, but not overwhelming boost.
Hang Loose with the Sprig Team
Peak Premium CO2 Oil
Peak is a cannabis extract company that provides oil extracted using CO2. Their strain-specific cartridges make it easy for consumers to find the best genetics for their needs.
They also had a Nectar Collector available for patients to sample their products.
The Nectar Collector
Swerve Confections
Smoke Reports is dedicated to keeping cannabis human, and loves supporting companies like Swerve Confections who are working every day to produce exceptional cannabis products. Building useful cannabis technology depends upon feedback from the community, and Swerve has been incredibly helpful with suggestions for better representing cannabis products. The treats and water hash offered by Swerve Confections are loved by all who try them.
Swerve Confections (source)
HappyDay Farms
HappyDay Farms put on quite a display of cannabis flowers at this year’s Emerald Cup. Casey and the rest of the gang are incredibly friendly, and are pioneers along with many of the other farms within the Emerald Grown Coop. All of the flowers from HappyDay Farms are Clean Green Certified.
Emerald Grown is a project that helps cannabis farms remain compliant as California regulations come into play. These cultivators work together to ensure that California remains a responsible leader through standards of farming techniques, health certifications, and plant traceability. HappyDay Farms also offers topical cannabis products as well.
Waska
Waska (formerly known as Chocowaska) has held long-standing popularity among California patients. These “milk medibles” are infused with a blend of cannabis that can be added to your favorite beverages like coffee, hot chocolate, or taken on their own. These handcrafted beverages are vegan, made with organic products, free of any GMOs, and lab tested.
Guild Flowers and Extracts
Guild Cannabis and Extracts is a highly technical group producing cannabis flowers, and then creating extractions that are closing in on purity. The company creates consistent flowers and concentrates for patients, but also enjoys experimenting with isolating individual cannabinoids. Eventually, the hope is to find a way to successfully recombine custom combinations of cannabinoids and terpenes for personalized cannabis formulas.
Bhutan
The Bhutan booth is a staple at California cannabis events. This group of producers creates well-known products like the CBD Mendo tincture line that can be found at locations like San Francisco’s 1944 Ocean dispensary.
Calm Before the Storm at Bhutan’s Emerald Cup Booth, Complete with Free Kombucha
Rebel Grown
Rebel Grown is a Southern Humboldt seed company that is dedicated to crafting the perfect cannabis genetics. The Smoke Reports team truly appreciates the cannabis folk who are so passionate about the plant and the science behind breeding and cultivation.
Double OG Sour: A Featured Strain from Rebel Grown
When you meet the team from Rebel Grown, you almost forget that cannabis is even an industry because it feels like such a genuine part of our lives. Check out Rebel Grown strains with genetics from over eight different countries.
VapeXhale
The Smoke Reports team met Seibo and the VapeXhale crew at the New West Summit, the first technology and media cannabis conference. VapeXhale is doing something very intriguing for the future of cannabis hardware.
The EVO is a vaporizer that allows patients to seamlessly consume either flowers or concentrates. While the product is in its infancy, the company’s founder Seibo has great ambitions for the future of measured consumption through precise vaporization technology.
Sensi Products
Sensi Products, creators of the Sensi Chew product line, are another great cannabis producer that know the importance of festival presence. The Sensi booth is always a guaranteed good time, with samples of products and the chance at some really top-notch cannabis information from their extraction scientist Ed.
Utopia Farms
Jay and Bruno Get the Scoop at the Utopia Farms Booth
Smoke Reports has always been a big fan of Utopia Farms and their approach to cannabis production. Utopia Farms takes special care to make sure that their cannabis flowers, edibles, and extracts are all healthy, medically beneficial, and delicious.
530 Edibles
Yum. Seriously, that is all we heard when we were at the 530 Edibles booth. These folks know how to create tasty cannabis edibles, with chocolates, treats, candies, baked goods, and anything in between.
Delicious Samples from 530 Edibles
DJ Short
DJ Short is a veteran cannabis breeder who has been crossing cannabis strains for nearly four decades. The brand is famous around the world, yet the man behind it all is as humble as can be. According to the folks at Phylos Bioscience, DJ Short’s popular strain Blueberry may contribute to the genetics of nearly 80 percent of the hybrid strains available today.
DJ Short has always been a proponent of isolating unique cannabis phenotypes, but his goal is not always to create flowers with the highest THC content possible. In fact, he has been documented as saying that his favorite strains have only mild potency, and are more notable for their flavors and subtle effects from terpene profiles.
Cannabis IQ
CannabisIQ is another fantastic technology company that Smoke Reports had the opportunity to connect with at the New West Summit in San Francisco. CannabisIQ is building inventory software that ties into a dispensary’s point of sale tools (POS), eCommerce presence, and in-store LCD menus.
The CannabisIQ Booth Never Slowed Down!
Homegrown Health
Homegrown Health is a brand new company focusing on breast health. Their product, Bōsm, is a transdermal oil that provides therapeutic support for breast tissue. Homegrown health may new to the cannabis industry, but their commitment to science and cannabis-specific clinical studies is guiding them as they create new products.
Homegrown Health Logo from a Beautiful Tapestry at The Emerald Cup
Oaksterdam University
Oaksterdam University was founded in Oakland, CA in 2007, and is recognized as America’s first college for cannabis. Oaksterdam has been persecuted throughout the years, but a strong cannabis community founded on education has been able to prevail against much of the legal onslaught.
Classes and seminars are available on everything from legal awareness and compliance, cultivation, business management, cooking classes, and more.
Looking Forward to Next Year’s Emerald Cup
The Emerald Cup has been referred to as “the Oscars for cannabis.” Yet it has become even more than that now. For the last three years, the event has been held at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, and each Emerald Cup draws about 7,000 more attendees than the previous year.
This is an event for the people of the cannabis community, and a glorious reminder that the majority of people participating in the cannabis industry are devout patients themselves.
Tim Blake originally set out to create a friendly cannabis competition for the community of growers in the Emerald Triangle (the counties of Mendocino, Humboldt, and Trinity). Now, people from all over the world come to attend The Emerald Cup with the hopes of even a glimpse of some of the most worthy cannabis flowers and products available in the world.
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