Solventless Extracts come in many forms.

Many are available in liquid or sappy forms but a few maintain a more of a solid consistency. Their color can vary from a golden opacity to a darker amber depending on many production factors. Cure time, temperature and starting material play a big role in dialing in the perfect product.

Heat, pressure and exposure can impact the consistency of what comes out of the extractor. Higher temperatures create stable products that resemble shatter, whereas lower temperatures produce a "sappier” and less stable product but retain more of the volatile terpenes. Both high and low temp products appear on dispensary shelves these days and have formed respective niche markets.

Kief

A.K.A dry sift or pollen, kief is the sifted resin glands on cannabis flowers (called trichomes). These glands produce the terpenes and cannabinoids that create all the flavors and effects of cannabis. Kief is often turned into hash and can be collected in a grinder. It is normally sprinkled onto flower or vaporized for a high stronger than smoking flower alone.

Rosin

Rosin opened the door for several new products. Solventless shatter (rosin that maintains a glass-like consistency) resembles butane hash oil but is manufactured with heat and pressure. It is becoming more and more popular due to the simplicity and but still having a very potent product. It is also more common in dispensaries because they do not need to have a fancy machine to make an extract and is very safe to create.

It is very simple to make and requires nothing more than a hair straightener and parchment paper. Once you have your bud in the parchment paper, apply pressure and heat with the straightener. This will immediately create the rosin and then all you have to do is remove it from the paper and it is ready to smoke or dab. It is THAT easy.

Hash

One of the oldest concentrates the cannabis industry has. Hashish, Hash, is made by compressing the plant’s resin or kief from a powder into a patty or paste. Where kief keeps the trichomes loose, hash merges them into a single superstructure. The powdery kief that coats your cannabis flowers can be collected and pressed together to form hash by hand or with industrial equipment for large batches.

One way to create hash is called hand rolling. It is the easiest and least expensive although the most time consuming. Make sure to have clean hands and dry flower then take it between your hands and start rubbing. Rub gently to gather the crystals on your hands until a black film forms. Collect this black film, resin, in your fingers to form a small ball or simply press into whatever form you prefer.

Adam Rhodes

An adventure seeking nerd, nothing too serious but people seem to like him, Adam is also the creator and writer for The Strain Domain