This isn’t 1960s pot. In competitions held throughout the year in several marijuana-friendly states, High Times magazine’s Medical Cannabis Cup seeks out the best strains being offered to patients. (Yeah, we were surprised this contest is legal, too.) Here’s a selection of winners from last year’s competitions.
Sour Grape• • • The winner in Denver’s hybrid category, which recognizes the best blend of indica and sativa strains. Indicas are known for their “body high” effect, as opposed to sativas’ “mental high.” Hybrids are supposed to deliver a balanced, lighter high. |
Obamanator• • • Taking a gold medal in Detroit, this “highly uplifting” organic sativa strain blends Kenyan and Hawaiian seeds in honor of the first President to admit that he inhaled. |
Granddaddy Urkle:
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Snowdawg• • • The origins of this sativa can be traced to a premium Colorado strain called Chemdawg. According to the grower, Snowdawg is especially beneficial for PTSD, depression, headaches, and “light muscular pain.” |
Bay 11• • • A first-place sativa winner in San Francisco, this strain has a high 20-percent THC content. (The average “good” weed has around 15 percent.) Medical users say it helps with anxiety and depression. |
Sour OG Kush• • • This hybrid combines two popular sister strains, Sour Diesel and OG Kush, known for their flavor, aroma, and potency. “It’s one-hit-wonder stuff,” says Nico Escondido, High Times’ cultivation editor. |
Photographs courtesy of High Times.
This article appears in the February 2012 issue of The Washingtonian.
Michael J. Gaynor has written about fake Navy SEALs, a town without cell phones, his Russian spy landlord, and many more weird and fascinating stories for the Washingtonian. He lives in DC, where his landlord is no longer a Russian spy.
