Article – Budget Buds
Online Cannabis Dispensary Tips: How to Shop for Budget Buds
When it comes to purchasing cannabis how do you choose what to buy?
For some, its whatever is available through our favorite or familiar sources. From your regular cannabis dealer or your favorite online dispensary or if you prefer to shop in person, your local cannabis dispensary.
With the legalization of cannabis in Canada, we’ve welcomed the golden age of cannabis where we’re spoilt with choice. Choosing your next strain can be a challenge, do you shop by price, reputation, friend’s recommendations, a budtender’s recommendation, the name of the strain, Leafly’s strain-description, strains which are known to alleviate specific symptoms? So many variables to consider when you shop for your next cannabis flower. To help you through the process, this article will guide you through cannabis ratings and we’ll focus on shopping for cannabis flower by price and examine one of our favorite online dispensary categories — Budget Buds! But before you start bargain bud shopping, it’s important to understand more about cannabis grading.
A Cannabis Grading Guide
When shopping at online dispensaries, you’ll notice that many sites use cannabis flower descriptions such as AAAA, AAA, AA or finally A. Some sites who don’t indicate grades are either known for their premium bud or low-quality bud so in order to find out, read reviews, get in touch with their customer service team to ask about particular strains or order some and test it out first hand. Note, each online dispensary might have a slightly different grading system but this is a general guide to get you started.
AAAA
“Top Shelf” cannabis flowers that are usually the best available
Pungent buds or fondly called stinky weed
Flower structure and terpene profile is accurate for the strain
Visible trichomes, “sticky icky”
Well-cured, neatly hand-trimmed
Effects are potent and accurate for the strain
AAA
Premium cannabis flowers that could be as potent as AAAA but might be lacking one or two points from above.
Might not have an accurate aroma
Bud structure might be a bit looser than AAAA
Once in a while, you’ll find AAA strains in the Budget Buds section of online dispensaries
AA
Most common grade available on the commercial and black market. Connoisseurs and regular cannabis consumers wouldn’t be 100% satisfied with this strain but for recreational users or partake socially, AA grade cannabis is ok.
Still has the trademark cannabis smell but doesn’t knock you down like AAAA or AAA flowers
Lower trichome presence
Too dry or too wet – curing process was not optimal
Lower quality flower – loose buds, strain not as accurate to the description
Great value
You’ll often find AA cannabis in the Budget Buds section of online dispensaries
A
Lower cannabinoid content
Loose buds
Strains are usually “light” when it comes to potency or they’re strains that did grow under optimal care and didn’t develop as well as they could have
Usually very affordable
Ok for those who prefer light dosages
Not many online dispensaries carry A grade cannabis but often you’ll find them in the Budget Buds section if available at all
In addition to letter categorization, there are also visual and smell tests to conduct which are related to those ratings. We highly recommend keeping a cannabis journal especially if you’re a medical cannabis consumer or if you’re a connoisseur.
Grading Cannabis 101
Flower Structure
Cannabis flowers should be dense enough that you can’t see through them but please note, some strains are naturally looser, Gelato and Malwai Gold, for example.
Also when it comes to buds, bigger isn’t always better. Some strains have naturally large buds like Sour Diesel and Super Skunk but others are naturally small like white dwarf or G14. Size isn’t an indication of quality. Another thing to consider is that very large buds are more challenging to cure due to their size, the inside of the bud may still contain moisture whereas the outside may be cured perfectly, this can lead to mold. The main takeaway when grading cannabis flower is the integrity of the flower.
Trim
Ideally trimmed buds should be mostly flower and minimal leaf, you’ll find this with AAAA and AAA cannabis flowers. Lower-grade cannabis flowers will usually not have the same care applied for the trim. You may find more leaves and stems compared to premium cannabis flowers.
Terpene Profile
This is the description of the fragrance or “the nose” of the cannabis flowers. Similar to coffee and perfume flavor profiles, cannabis terpene profiles are diverse and include, fruity, sweet, skunky, earthy, piney, musky, green, herbal, spicy, and more. What’s important when it comes to terpenes is that it influences the effects of the cannabis flower. For example, the terpene limonene which expresses itself as a citrus, lemon or orange fragrance can impart wonderful anti-anxiety, anti-depressive or even giggly feelings whereas the terpene caryophyllene which expresses with peppery, woody, or spicy notes are used to reduce inflammation, muscle spasms or soreness, and chronic pain.
Also, who doesn’t love a pungent, “stinky” weed, it’s a great indicator of the quality, potency, and terpene profile.
Potency
Now, the best part, what are the effects of your cannabis flower?
Do you feel energized and uplifted?
Relaxed and calm?
Sedated and sleepy?
Does it reduce anxiety or increase paranoia?
Do you have the munchies?
Every cannabis strain has descriptions of effects but there are so many more variables to consider, your own body and how it metabolizes a cannabis strain, your mood, hormones and within the strain, the crop, method of growing, seed distributor, genetics can all cause variations in the effects. We highly recommend keeping your own cannabis journal and recording your experience of different strains.
Those aren’t all the categories for grading weed but they’re a good start for anyone wanting to learn more about cannabis flowers
When it comes to buying cannabis, we love top quality, premium bud but over the years, we’ve discovered a secret, many online dispensaries have a discount flower section, often called Budget Buds and wow, are we ever impressed with the selection and quality that we’ve discovered over the years by shopping in the Budget Buds section.
Shopping for Budget Buds
When it comes to shopping for Budget Buds, low price doesn’t necessarily mean low quality. We’ve interviewed many online dispensaries about their Budget Buds sections. In most cases, their Budget Buds section is made up of many different strains, and the reason they’re in the Budget Buds section varies. For example, you’ll find many premium quality strains and crops in the Budget Buds section if the online dispensary is running low on stock space, if their growers have offered them bulk discounts on premium strains, many online dispensaries will feature them in their budget buds section, if trends are moving away from a particular type of strain, they may also be put in the budget buds section despite being a potent, high-quality strain, online dispensaries also noted that they include premium cannabis flowers in their Budget Buds section as a door crasher or to win over new customers. Overall, we found that yes, Budget Buds sections of many online dispensaries carry a wide variety of quality ranging from A-AAAA but if you shop regularly and speak to their customer service, you may get an amazing bargain on a premium ounce.
Finally, here’s a list of online dispensaries with our favourite Budget Buds sections:
ganjaexpress.shop (Reputable, well-known online dispensary)
serenefarms.ca (In-house grown cannabis, known for top quality)
Article – Budget Buds
Online Cannabis Dispensary Tips: How to Shop for Budget Buds
When it comes to purchasing cannabis how do you choose what to buy?
For some, its whatever is available through our favorite or familiar sources. From your regular cannabis dealer or your favorite online dispensary or if you prefer to shop in person, your local cannabis dispensary.
With the legalization of cannabis in Canada, we’ve welcomed the golden age of cannabis where we’re spoilt with choice. Choosing your next strain can be a challenge, do you shop by price, reputation, friend’s recommendations, a budtender’s recommendation, the name of the strain, Leafly’s strain-description, strains which are known to alleviate specific symptoms? So many variables to consider when you shop for your next cannabis flower. To help you through the process, this article will guide you through cannabis ratings and we’ll focus on shopping for cannabis flower by price and examine one of our favorite online dispensary categories — Budget Buds! But before you start bargain bud shopping, it’s important to understand more about cannabis grading.
A Cannabis Grading Guide
When shopping at online dispensaries, you’ll notice that many sites use cannabis flower descriptions such as AAAA, AAA, AA or finally A. Some sites who don’t indicate grades are either known for their premium bud or low-quality bud so in order to find out, read reviews, get in touch with their customer service team to ask about particular strains or order some and test it out first hand. Note, each online dispensary might have a slightly different grading system but this is a general guide to get you started.
AAAA
“Top Shelf” cannabis flowers that are usually the best available
Pungent buds or fondly called stinky weed
Flower structure and terpene profile is accurate for the strain
Visible trichomes, “sticky icky”
Well-cured, neatly hand-trimmed
Effects are potent and accurate for the strain
AAA
Premium cannabis flowers that could be as potent as AAAA but might be lacking one or two points from above.
Might not have an accurate aroma
Bud structure might be a bit looser than AAAA
Once in a while, you’ll find AAA strains in the Budget Buds section of online dispensaries
AA
Most common grade available on the commercial and black market. Connoisseurs and regular cannabis consumers wouldn’t be 100% satisfied with this strain but for recreational users or partake socially, AA grade cannabis is ok.
Still has the trademark cannabis smell but doesn’t knock you down like AAAA or AAA flowers
Lower trichome presence
Too dry or too wet – curing process was not optimal
Lower quality flower – loose buds, strain not as accurate to the description
Great value
You’ll often find AA cannabis in the Budget Buds section of online dispensaries
A
Lower cannabinoid content
Loose buds
Strains are usually “light” when it comes to potency or they’re strains that did grow under optimal care and didn’t develop as well as they could have
Usually very affordable
Ok for those who prefer light dosages
Not many online dispensaries carry A grade cannabis but often you’ll find them in the Budget Buds section if available at all
In addition to letter categorization, there are also visual and smell tests to conduct which are related to those ratings. We highly recommend keeping a cannabis journal especially if you’re a medical cannabis consumer or if you’re a connoisseur.
Grading Cannabis 101
Flower Struture
Cannabis flowers should be dense enough that you can’t see through them but please note, some strains are naturally looser, Gelato and Malwai Gold, for example.
Also when it comes to buds, bigger isn’t always better. Some strains have naturally large buds like Sour Diesel and Super Skunk but others are naturally small like white dwarf or G14. Size isn’t an indication of quality. Another thing to consider is that very large buds are more challenging to cure due to their size, the inside of the bud may still contain moisture whereas the outside may be cured perfectly, this can lead to mold. The main takeaway when grading cannabis flower is the integrity of the flower.
Trim
Ideally trimmed buds should be mostly flower and minimal leaf, you’ll find this with AAAA and AAA cannabis flowers. Lower-grade cannabis flowers will usually not have the same care applied for the trim. You may find more leaves and stems compared to premium cannabis flowers.
Terpene Profile
This is the description of the fragrance or “the nose” of the cannabis flowers. Similar to coffee and perfume flavor profiles, cannabis terpene profiles are diverse and include, fruity, sweet, skunky, earthy, piney, musky, green, herbal, spicy, and more. What’s important when it comes to terpenes is that it influences the effects of the cannabis flower. For example, the terpene limonene which expresses itself as a citrus, lemon or orange fragrance can impart wonderful anti-anxiety, anti-depressive or even giggly feelings whereas the terpene caryophyllene which expresses with peppery, woody, or spicy notes are used to reduce inflammation, muscle spasms or soreness, and chronic pain.
Also, who doesn’t love a pungent, “stinky” weed, it’s a great indicator of the quality, potency, and terpene profile.
Potency
Now, the best part, what are the effects of your cannabis flower?
Do you feel energized and uplifted?
Relaxed and calm?
Sedated and sleepy?
Does it reduce anxiety or increase paranoia?
Do you have the munchies?
Every cannabis strain has descriptions of effects but there are so many more variables to consider, your own body and how it metabolizes a cannabis strain, your mood, hormones and within the strain, the crop, method of growing, seed distributor, genetics can all cause variations in the effects. We highly recommend keeping your own cannabis journal and recording your experience of different strains.
Those aren’t all the categories for grading weed but they’re a good start for anyone wanting to learn more about cannabis flowers
When it comes to buying cannabis, we love top quality, premium bud but over the years, we’ve discovered a secret, many online dispensaries have a discount flower section, often called Budget Buds and wow, are we ever impressed with the selection and quality that we’ve discovered over the years by shopping in the Budget Buds section.
Shopping for Budget Buds
When it comes to shopping for Budget Buds, low price doesn’t necessarily mean low quality. We’ve interviewed many online dispensaries about their Budget Buds sections. In most cases, their Budget Buds section is made up of many different strains, and the reason they’re in the Budget Buds section varies. For example, you’ll find many premium quality strains and crops in the Budget Buds section if the online dispensary is running low on stock space, if their growers have offered them bulk discounts on premium strains, many online dispensaries will feature them in their budget buds section, if trends are moving away from a particular type of strain, they may also be put in the budget buds section despite being a potent, high-quality strain, online dispensaries also noted that they include premium cannabis flowers in their Budget Buds section as a door crasher or to win over new customers. Overall, we found that yes, Budget Buds sections of many online dispensaries carry a wide variety of quality ranging from A-AAAA but if you shop regularly and speak to their customer service, you may get an amazing bargain on a premium ounce.
Finally, here’s a list of online dispensaries with our favourite Budget Buds sections:
ganjaexpress.shop (Reputable, well-known online dispensary)
serenefarms.ca (In-house grown cannabis, known for top quality)
cheapweed.ca (Long-time Canadian online dispensary)