Lansterdam in Review

Four dank products from Lansing’s newest pot shop

Noble Road bakes up great pot cookies inside old Roma Bakery

Posted

The Botanical Co. opened its doors for recreational and medical sales last month near the Capital Region International Airport. And though the family-owned business has yet to harvest its own crops, that hasn’t stopped them from stocking great cannabis products.

High Life Farms — Royal Apple Cider Chocolate Bar

Price — $22

THC content — 27.3%

The recreational cannabis industry has come a long way since the days of cooking up pot brownies in my college apartment. This seasonal chocolate produce a quick-hitting, dreamy sort of high, and was also packed with flavor and high-quality ingredients. I’d probably snack on this chocolate bar with or without its THC.

Research also shows that chocolate (unlike gummies) may create comparatively longer lasting effects. Anandamide, a lipid found in chocolate, is a nearly chemically identical cousin to THC. When the two team up, research shows it can inhibit the breakdown of cannabinoids, causing them to stay in the system longer with enhanced effects. Sounds like solid stoner science to me.

Noble Road — Chocolate Chip Cookies

Price — $21

THC content — 100 mg

Tears flowed across Lansing when Roma Bakery & Deli announced its closure last September. But even after Sostine and Filomena Casticiano left the building, their old ovens inside appear to have been kept to good use as the cannabis processing headquarters of the Noble Road Co. 

I started with the basics: Ten bite-sized chocolate chip cookies each packed with 10 mg of THC. 

It didn’t take long for the high to kick in, even after eating a big breakfast beforehand. Try drinking a milkshake before a few cookies.

Redemption Cannabis  — Goo Berry

Price — $60/3.5g/prerolls

THC content — 19.8%

Redemption Cannabis is about more than just selling dank weed. The company is also focused on righting decades of wrongs caused by cannabis prohibition, with 10% of all revenues heading back to those harmed by the war on cannabis with either legal or financial support.

CEO Ryan Basore, who with six others were known as the Okemos 7, was sentenced to federal prison in 2009 for charges related to serving as a marijuana caregiver. Redemption Cannabis is his comeback story — and a chance to give back to others who have been pinched over pot. 

These prerolled joints were the perfect choice for some after-dinner relaxation. I put on a documentary about serial killers, but had to switch to something more light-hearted that required (far) less attention.

Redemption Cannabis  — Willie’s Escape Cake Diamonds

Price — $70/1g

THC content — 81.2%

It’s not all flowers for Redemption Cannabis. Basore’s brand is also churning out some of the most impressive cannabis concentrates available in Michigan. Exhibit A: Willie’s Escape Cake.

These crystalline THCA diamonds are the perfect way to add a little extra kick to your standard smoke sesh. Escape Cake is a proprietary strain from Redemption that produces strong body effects with a sweet cake-like flavor. As diamonds, much of that dessert flavor is unnoticeable.

Still, a few pieces in a dab rig are guaranteed to ignite the senses and leave you giggling — and coughing. Diamonds, in my experiences, are best enjoyed in tandem with joints to create that terpene-rich “entourage” effect in which various cannabinoids team up to provide a richer high.

The Botanical Co.

3535 Capitol City Blvd. Lansing

(517) 679-1170, thebotanical.co

Kyle Kaminski is a City Pulse staff writer and cannabis enthusiast who has been smoking marijuana just about every day for the last decade. Every week, Kaminski samples some of the best cannabis products available in Greater Lansing, gets real high and writes about them. 

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here




Connect with us