Customers at New Vansterdam, one of Vancouver’s two recreational marijuana stores, got to witness something brand new last week.
CannaMan Farms, a Vancouver grower, quietly premiered two entirely new cannabis strains at the store, under the names “Lemon Sweat” and “Berry UW.”
Much like brewers who like to experiment with a variety of beer types — pilsner, lager or porter, for instance — marijuana growers like to experiment with a variety of popular pot strains, with names like “Blue Dream,” “Sour Diesel” and “Bubba Kush.”
Many of those strains are available throughout the world, through recreational or medical systems, and are further cultivated by growers to get signature flavors, much like a brewer might add a variety of hops to get a unique tasting stout or ale.
But brand new strains are more rare. And the two, cultivated by CannaMan head grower Shane Wahl, are exactly that.
“I’m the only one on Earth that has these,” Wahl said proudly. “I mean, who else would name something ‘Lemon Sweat.’ I never thought I’d get to a place where I could have a world release like this.”
Wahl grew the “Lemon Sweat” strain from seed and bred the “Berry UW” from the more common “Blackberry” and “UW” strains. The “UW” strain, as an aside, is rumored to have been stolen from a marijuana study at the University of Washington many years ago, although it’s never been verified, Wahl said.
Having a world release like that less than two months after opening his store is a thrill, said Brian Budz, one of the owners of New Vansterdam.
It’s also not a common occurrence, he said.
“We think it’s fantastic,” Budz said. “That’s what I think this business is all about. I was thrilled to get two strains on the market that haven’t been seen before. And we’ve gotten great feedback from both customers and employee testers.”
Don Joling, a manager at the store, said the “Lemon Sweat” sold out quickly. A small amount of the “Berry UW” remained available as of Friday going into the long weekend.
“Customers, the feedback I’ve gotten is that they liked both strains,” Joling said. “The ‘Berry UW’ especially they said is super strong, and a little goes a long way. And the ‘Lemon Sweat,’ people say it’s really tasty, more of a head stone.”
Wahl said he’s growing more of the two strains, along with focusing on a few others for larger cultivation cycles that will be available at New Vansterdam in the near future.
Other growers in the state’s legal market also are focusing down on more specific strains after initially growing a more wide variety. Monkey Grass Farms in Wenatchee, for instance, is looking at focusing on the “Pineapple Kush,” “Bubba Kush” and “Secret Recipe” strains, among others, said Katey Cooper, who works for the company.
“There are certain plants that do better outdoors than indoors, and we’re experimenting with several to see which ones work best,” Cooper said. “We’re starting to narrow our focus now.”
As for the “Lemon Sweat” and “Berry UW” strains, Wahl said the quality will only improve from here.
During the first growth cycle and release, he learned a lot about what sort of light and nutrients the plants like. He can use that knowledge to make the strains more potent or flavorful for marijuana smokers, he said.
“It’s just really exciting,” Wahl said. “The plants are beautiful.”
