Why Colorado Tokers Love Monkey Berries

Holiday stress gets more real with age, and cannabis has become increasingly helpful in dealing with travel, cooking, work deadlines and shopping. Having the right strain at 5 p.m. can make all the difference during a trip to the mall or an evening of family flight booking. The wrong one, however, can make a boring task seem like an unscalable mountain full of yawns, munchies and shiny distractions.

Relaxing the mind while keeping the body spry and critical thinking afloat is more attainable for high-tolerance users, but even I can be flattened by a few hits of strong Grape Cream Cake or White Truffle. That after-work toke is the most important session of the day this time of year, so I rarely try something new or stray from my current lineup of Chimera, Party Animal and good ol' Sour Diesel. Yet I was out of all three and didn't have enough time to drive across town before having to sit through a choir recital last week. Monkey Berries would have to do.

A hybrid of Strawberries & Cream and Grease Monkey, Monkey Berries has a reputation for cooling down the body without freezing the mind. Anything more sedating would have put me to sleep during ninety minutes of classic Christmas carols and church songs; Monkey Berries had to toe the line of euphoria without creating puffy, sleepy eyes. And if it could make me enjoy "Here We Come A-Wassailing" for a millisecond, all the merrier.

Monkey Berries performed its duty to high acclaim for recitals and many evenings afterward. Not only did my attention span and stiff back appreciate the daytime-leaning high, but the effects never snowballed into dazed confusion, and the tea-like flavor is intriguing to new tastebuds. I hope to see more rosin makers take on the strain, because this ape has all-star potential in a dab rig.

Looks: Bright in nearly every aspect, Monkey Berries has lime-green calyxes, a shiny coat of trichomes and orange-apricot pistils.

Smell: An earthy, rubbery layer clearly states its skunky intention, but Monkey Berries has a smooth mixture of sweets and herbs. The aroma is fruity and nutty, with surprise hints of butter, licorice and mint. It reminds me of everything from dried apricots and trail mix to an apple-laced mojito.

Flavor: Monkey Berries' flavor is effective at mirroring the aroma, with sugary, acidic hints of apples and stone fruit and a buttery back end. Although the fennel-like sweetness and nutty qualities don't cross over quite as strongly, probably thanks to a thick skunky blanket, it's still a tasty smoke.

Effects: Focus and creativity remain relatively high after a few hits of Monkey Berries. A warming sensation quickly takes over my limbs, but I always feel more loose than tired. If not for strong bouts of the munchies and a light comedown, Monkey Berries would be a fine all-day strain. As it is, however, an easygoing high and mostly full gas tank are perfect for slowly winding down the day while still tackling the to-do list.

Where to find it: Monkey Berries has recently been spotted at 1136 Yuma, Berkeley Dispensary, Boulder Wellness Center, Callie's Cannabis Shoppe, Canna City, the Center, Cherry Peak, Colorado Harvest Company, Complete Releaf, Cookies, Doc's Apothecary, Eclipse Cannabis Co., Frost Exotic, Golden Meds, Green Dragon, the Green Solution, Green Valley Dispensary, Green RiNo, Helping Hands, the Health Center, High West Cannabis, Life Flower Dispensary, Lightshade, the Lodge, Lowell Gardens, Lucy Sky, Mana Supply Co., Nature's Medicine, Park Hill Gardens, Peak MJ, Reefer Madness, Rocky Mountain Cannabis, Rocky Road, Silver Stem Fine Cannabis, Social Cannabis, Space Station Dispensary, Spark Dispensary, Trenchtown and Twin Peaks Dispensary.

Bonsai Cultivation and LoCol Love are the two main cultivations supplying dispensaries with Monkey Berries flower, while
Chronic Creations, Green Dot Labs, Harmony Extracts and Haze all make various extracted versions of the strain.

Is there a strain you’d like to see profiled? Email [email protected].