No one wants to smoke schwag weed. True cannasseurs know it’s all about that dank kush.

A lot of people think that the higher the THC content, the better the quality of weed. That’s not entirely accurate. It doesn’t tell you the full story when it comes to judging the quality of marijuana.

Like a fine wine, top-shelf weed exhibits certain characteristics that let you know about its quality, even before you smoke it. Everyone enjoys different smells and tastes. So, like wine, a strain you think is great may not be what someone else enjoys.

Those differences are caused by terpenes. Terpenes are aromatic compounds found in all plants which dictate the way they smell and, as a result, taste. For cannabis, they play a major role in the experience you’ll have when you smoke the bud.

But how do you know what the terpenes are? Let’s break it down, and give you some other pointers to help you make sure the cannabis you’re buying is high quality.

Aroma

The first thing you should always do is take a good whiff of the weed.

If the nug smells weak and like hay, that means something went wrong during cultivation or processing. Avoid smoking that kinda weed.

High-quality marijuana will have an obvious, strong weed aroma. If the bud smells strong, it means there’s pronounced terpene in it.

Cannabis can have a multitude of different aromas, from sweet to citrusy, earthy, smoky, floral, woody, and beyond. Breathe deeply and think about whether you enjoy the smell or not. If you like the smell, chances are incredibly high that you’ll enjoy the taste when you smoke it.

While any quality marijuana will get the job done, choosing a strain that has a terpene profile that really appeals to you will take your experience to the next level. As you try different strains, note the differences in smells and tastes compared to your experiences, and you’ll likely see your individual preference.

Appearance

The next most important aspect in evaluating the quality of marijuana is its appearance. Let’s break down each of the different things you should be examining when you’re looking at a flower.

Color: Just about everyone associates the color green with marijuana, and for good reason! Green base hues are an indication that the flower is high quality. However, the buds can be accented by other vibrant colors like orange, pink, purple, and blue.

If you find a flower that’s brown, avoid it at all costs. Brown buds indicate that something is wrong with it — like disease, pests or overripeness — and it shouldn’t be consumed.

Crystals: Tiny crystals that make a bud shimmer and sparkle are a beautiful sight. These miniscule, frosty structures are trichomes — resin glands that contain the oh-so-important terpenes and cannabinoids (THC). If you see a lot of trichome crystals on the flower, there’s a higher potential potency.

The trichome crystals have three main colors: clear, milky white, and amber. If the crystals are clear then the bud was harvested too early. If they’re milky white — with tinges of amber — then it was harvested right on time. If the crystals are fully amber, it was harvested late.

Hair: If the flower has many fine, wispy, orange hairs spiraling out in every direction, it’s a good sign.

These are called pistils, and they act as a tube for pollination of the flower. A nug that has been well pollinated will have a lot of orange pistils all over.

If the pistils are white then the bud was immature at harvest. If they are dark brown or hard to see, then the bud was harvested too late and is old.

Trim: When a bud is harvested it will contain leaves which need to be trimmed off before it can be used. If a bud looks like it’s been sloppily trimmed or there are a lot of fan leaves, it’s been poorly trimmed.

Hand trimming is far superior to machine trimming when it comes to processing a nug. The trichome crystals on a bud are incredibly fragile, and machine harvesting tends to knock them off. The human touch of hand trimming means more of those delicate trichomes will stay on the bud… and that means a better high.

Structure: The structure of the bud says a lot about the care that was put into its cultivation.

Generally, buds from indica strains should be dense and tightly packed. Sativa buds will look a lot more fluffed out and lighter. You’ll also find more pistils covering a sativa bud. A hybrid strain will have qualities of both indica and sativa, so it will look somewhere in between the two.

No matter what, though, there should be no airy gaps between individual bud structures and you shouldn’t be able to see stems.

Seeds / Stems: For the most part, stems and seeds are bad. Remember how Afroman sang about taking out the seeds and stems? Yeah, his weed likely wasn’t very good, but marijuana has come a long way in the last 20 years!

The only use for seeds is to produce your own plant. Seeds can explode when exposed to heat, which can wreck the flavor or completely destroy your pipe. When a lot of seeds are on the bud, it means that most of the plant’s energy production is going to forming the seeds. That means less active psychoactive compounds, leading to a low-quality bud.

Stems hold the bud structure together, so it’s important to have a few on the flower. However, stems add nothing of value to the process when smoked, which is why you’ll need to pick them out after grinding. Too many stems on a bud add pointless weight to the overall flower.

Cure / Moisture Content

When a bud has been cured properly, it will have the right amount of moisture content to keep it fresh and help it smoke right.

Squeeze a bud lightly to test its moisture content. It’s been cured properly if it feels slightly spongy and springs back into shape.

If the bud crumbles apart when you squeeze it, then it’s too dry and will burn up too quickly if you try to smoke it.

If it doesn’t spring back into shape, then it’s likely too wet. Storing bud that’s too wet could potentially grow mold and mildew, which can make you ill if you smoke it.

Buds should also be slightly sticky, from the resins in those trichome crystals. Your fingers should have a light residue on them after squeezing the bud. This indicates that the trichomes weren’t dried out too much during the curing process.

Our knowledgeable cannsultants at Prosper are ready to help everyone learn more about high-quality marijuana including the most common terpenes are and how they can effect you. Stop in soon to find answers to all of your burning cannabis questions!