Marijuana Strain Review: Goin' With the Flo at La Conte's Clone Bar

With a thirty-day guarantee on its clones and thirty-plus to choose from, La Conte’s Clone Bar and Dispensary on Washington Street has become a go-to for some basement growers. Its younger sister at 105 East Seventh Avenue, which started out as a medical dispensary, hasn’t gained the same notoriety — but now that it also caters to the recreational crowd, I decided to stop in.

The retail strain selection was sparse. The handful of strains that were available looked vibrant, but few had the stank to match. An exception was the Flo, a classic strain I’ve noticed on other dispensary menus. Its complex aroma intrigued me enough that I bought a gram for $12 (bring your childproof bag or it’ll cost more).

A child of Purple Thai and Afghani, Flo is a sativa-dominant hybrid that traces its lineage back to the mid-’90s. Its trademark streaks of violet and energetic high have ensured its place in history, but Flo lacks the sexy name and hype of strains like Birthday Cake Kush or Platinum Girl Scout Cookies. Today, the name “Flo” more commonly conjures car-insurance commercials, yet the strain has remained highly respected in the pot community for nearly twenty years. I was excited to find out why.


La Conte’s version was a terpene blender: Ripe smells of citrus, soil and sugar candy leaped out, with subtle, spicy notes lingering at the end. Streaks of purple zigzagged through the dense buds, and the trichomes were icy enough to make Gucci Mane jealous. But when I smoked some with coffee early in the morning on my day off, I was underwhelmed by Flo’s flavors; I tasted nothing but java.

Flo immediately brought out the sunshine, however. Suddenly upbeat and ready to enjoy my day, I took a bike ride to Chick-fil-A for more self-indulgence. A few hits from the pipe later on didn’t showcase much more flavor, but the same outgoing high assured me that caffeine had played only a minor role in my earlier buzz. Flo imparts an energetic, talkative high that would be great for a park sesh with some friends. But don’t try to multi-task on it: My brain was a one-way road the whole time.

Strain Gang is our weekly critique of a cannabis strain at a recreational store. For MMJ reviews, go to westword.com/news. Have a suggestion for a strain review? Send it to [email protected].