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Ask a Stoner: Are There Different Grades of Rosin?

There are several types of rosin, with the differences depending on starting material, extraction techniques and the equipment used in the process.
Image: Stoner smoking a joint
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Dear Stoner: Are there different grades of rosin? If so, how would I tell while shopping?
Hash for Dummies

Dear Hash for Dummies:
There are many types of rosin, with differences in quality largely depending on starting material, extraction techniques and the equipment used in the process. The original tier of rosin is made from cured flower, but extractors have come a long way since then. Now we have live rosin made by freezing the plants immediately upon harvest, turning those plants into water hash, and then extracting creamy, tasty rosin from said water hash.
click to enlarge Fresh-pressed hash rosin from cannabis flower
The original tier of rosin is made from cured flower, but extractors have come a long way.
Jacqueline Collins
Hot- and cold-curing techniques (the temperature in the extraction process) can produce different types of rosin, but this is mostly based on preference. The size of holes in micron bags — filtered bags used for pulling trichomes from cannabis to make water hash — also play a big part in the quality of rosin. Flower-derived rosin has a specific range of micron bags to use, while the best ice-water rosin generally relies on 73- and 90-micron holes, but is usually made with a wide range of bags for a full-spectrum result. Don't be afraid to ask a budtender for help, or to reach out to an extractor on Instagram. They love to chat with customers.

Send questions to [email protected].