When you’re looking for something beyond dried bud and edibles, the next step is cannabis concentrates. Many users can have questions about how they can enjoy cannabis in new ways. We’ll take a closer look at the main types of concentrates: Shatter, Wax, Crumble, and Oil.
What Is Butane Hash Oil?
Most concentrates start as butane hash oil (BHO). It’s a type of cannabis extract made using an extraction process with butane as the primary solvent. The goal is to give users the characteristics they love in their favourite cannabis strains, maximizing the flavour and cannabinoid profile without having the tar and ash that comes with combusted plant matter.
Shatter
Shatter is a BHO that has a stable, glass-like consistency that “shatters” into many pieces. All shatter appears to have the same consistency, but it can range from brittle to a snap-and-pull taffy. Shatter that’s higher in THC (the psychoactive compound) is has more sap, while one with a higher level of THCA (the precursor to THC) will have more of a fragile consistency.
Experienced dabbers love shatter because it’s known to be the purest of all concentrates. Shatter usually delivers a more potent high with flavours and smells rich in terpenes, especially in comparison to smoking dried bud.
Wax
Wax is probably the stickiest form of concentrates that really should only be handled with a dab tool. The word “dab” actually originates from wax concentrates – it refers to smoking a dab of wax. There’s a wide range of consistency and texture in waxes, ranging from gooey or creamy (often referred to as budder) to something flaky and dense (sometimes called honeycomb, though if it’s too hard, it can approach crumble).
Wax is known for delivering an intense high and flavour; it has a very high cannabinoid concentration with great THC content, averaging between 60% and 80%. A little dab truly goes a long way with wax!
Crumble
When BHO is vacuumed or whipped, the wax can become a soft, brittle substance that breaks easily. The aptly named “crumble” is versatile – unlike other concentrates, not limited to dabbing. You can sprinkle crumble on your ground weed before rolling a joint or over the top of the buds in your bowl.
Of course, it’s also suitable for any dab rig. Depending on how it’s broken down, crumble is easy to break into suitably sized dabs for a nice session!
Oil
Some extraction methods use CO2 instead of butane. This method uses pressurized carbon dioxide to remove the naturally occurring cannabinoids and terpenes from raw cannabis. The result is a pure oil that comes with little-to-no post-processing. There’s a difference when it comes to taste in comparison to BHO; what you choose comes down to personal preference.
The result of CO2 extraction is usually a thick-yet-runny oil that sometimes comes in a container like a syringe. Despite the name, many oils are thick enough to use on a dab rig, but you can also find THC tinctures and capsules. Like other concentrates, they’re high in THC and act fast.