Why does weed lose it’s smell over time?

[salmon]

All drying techniques will affect volatiles and cause their decomposition into phytadienes, etc. Lyophyllization generally has a significant effect also and consistently fails to preserve entire volatile profile of fresh buds. On occasion, total volatiles are not changed but, as a rule, freeze drying generally changes the relative concentrations of volatile compounds, usually failing to preserve the volatiles that give growing buds their unique aroma. There is no practical method to preserve the original profile of these volatiles, which is why cured weed never smells as gorgeous as live weed.

~S

 

[Grow Up]

Terpene profiles are different between outdoor and indoor grown plants of from the same line. The reason for the altered terpene profile in outdoor grown plants is probably a phytochrome-mediated response. Something to think about if terpenes are important to you.

 

[YarraSparra]

Learn from the masters of industry: hops (Cannabaceae), a relative of cannabis, and a primary component of beer is roast dried in a just few hours to preserve essential oil content. Slow-cure drying cannabis is based in custom and tradition but IMO makes no logical sense. If you’ve ever been to the Budweiser Brewery in St. Louis you see how highly sophisticated the beer industry is. It was what I imagined an R&D facility for NASA would look like. Medical cannabis is in it’s infancy by comparison. Do not slow cure your buds if you want to preserve your hard earned cannabinoids.

YS

 

[Rosenberg]

I agree but you dont want to use high temps. Keep it under 85 degrees F. Monoterpenes will rapidly volatilize at higher temps.

 

[YarraSparra]

Yes, I'm not suggesting people mirror the methods used in the brew industry, but that slow-cure results in a net loss of cannabinoids and volatiles.

YS

 

[Fire Bean]

Sorry, but I fail to see how retaining volatile terpenes is of any way relevant to getting - to put it bluntly - high, other than purely for pleasure of taste of the whole ‘smoking experience’. My oil extracts work a treat and sometimes (depending on batch) border on psychedelic.

 

[monkeymun]

Awesome that someone else brought that up. The ingredients in cannabis suspected of contributing to the synergistic pharmacological effects include the main constituents of the essential oil – the monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. The precursor of cannabinoid biosynthesis geranyl pyrophosphate (GPP) also reacts with a range of other structures to produce the monoterpenes. These are a very diverse chemical group, which includes cyclic and acyclic structures. They are relatively volatile and the main source of essence within the essential oil. In addition to the ‘true’ monoterpenes (C10H16) there are also a series of increasingly more oxidized families within the group. These include the alcohols (e.g. linalool C10H18O), ethers (e.g. 1,8-cineole C10H18O), esters (e.g. bornyl acetate C12H20O2), aldehydes (e.g. citral C10H16O) and ketones (e.g. pulegone C10H16O). All of these were amongst fifty eight monoterpenes identified in cannabis in a detailed study, and these were accompanied by thirty eight sesquiterpenes. The latter are reported to be formed from a dominant precursor farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP). Both FPP and GPP are derived from isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP). The cannabinoids, sesquiterpenes and monoterpenes therefore all share a common precursor in IPP. As with the monoterpenes, the true sesquiterpenes (C15H24) are also accompanied by series of more oxidized related structures. Higher molecular weight terpenes are also present, the next group within the ‘terpenoid skeleton family’ being the diterpenes. These are not volatile and not generally considered active constituents of an essential oil. The only significant example in cannabis is phytol which is a precursor and catabolite of chlorophyll and tocopherol Vitamin E, both of which are abundant in cannabis. Phytol has been shown to exhibit antispasmodic activity and to elevate the neurotransmitter GABA levels in central nervous system . It too, may contribute to the pharmacological properties of cannabis based medicines. If you’re interested in reading up more on this check out this paper too.

So in a nutshell, the volatiles are incredibly important for a number of reasons.

 

[salmon]

Excellent post.

@Fire Bean
I'll just add that terpenes appear to influence the psychoactivity of cannabis, and may account for the differences in subjective experience that consumers attribute to different strains. The specific effects of individual terpenes are poorly understood. Nonetheless, there may be the possibility of terpene profiling being used to verify the cultivar - and therefore the experience. Therefore, retaining volatile terpenes is of obvious relevance to getting high.

~S

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

Learn from the masters of industry: hops (Cannabaceae), a relative of cannabis, and a primary component of beer is roast dried in a just few hours to preserve essential oil content. Slow-cure drying cannabis is based in custom and tradition but IMO makes no logical sense. If you’ve ever been to the Budweiser Brewery in St. Louis you see how highly sophisticated the beer industry is. It was what I imagined an R&D facility for NASA would look like. Medical cannabis is in it’s infancy by comparison. Do not slow cure your buds if you want to preserve your hard earned cannabinoids.

YS

The "masters of the industry", IMO, are the people who've been doin this for longer than a lot of folks here have been alive. You compare hops to cannabis and the drying process involved as if they are the same, but fail to realize that hops aren't incinerated and inhaled into the lungs. MGG

 

[YarraSparra]

The "masters of the industry", IMO, are the people who've been doin this for longer than a lot of folks here have been alive. You compare hops to cannabis and the drying process involved as if they are the same, but fail to realize that hops aren't incinerated and inhaled into the lungs. MGG

Is cannabis supposed to be incinerated Green? Any cannabinoids that are incinerated are destroyed. The act of smoking is to volatilize cannabinoids so that those aerosols can enter the blood stream though the lungs. I beg to differ with your reasoning. Roasting hops is done to preserve flavour interpreted via our olfactory senses, and curing weed is for the same purpose. But perhaps you have a different view on this...interesting.

YS

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

@YarraSparra I'm sure you already know this but of course you always have to try to make yourself out to sound smarter than anyone else. I'm talking about the end result. If you smoke herb then yes, its incenerated then inhaled in the your lungs unless your vaping which, for me, does not offer the same effect. Hops aren't smoked that I know of, but I'm sure with your brilliant mind and vast knowledge of science you could attempt to make is as such lol. Tell ya what, you keep smoking your non-flushed, flash dried and rehydrated crumbles and I'll keep smoking my dankness. Sounds good to me. :D MGG

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

Yes, I'm not suggesting people mirror the methods used in the brew industry, but that slow-cure results in a net loss of cannabinoids and volatiles.

YS

Sounds to me that's exactly what youre doing. MGG

 

[cephalopoda]

mgg whats up with the attitude? comes across as ur the one trying 2 sound smart. i dont understand half of what he says either but surely no reason 2 say that. we should be encouraging peeps for their input particularly if some effort’s been put in, not scaring them away.

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

mgg whats up with the attitude? comes across as ur the one trying 2 sound smart. i dont understand half of what he says either but surely no reason 2 say that. we should be encouraging peeps for their input particularly if some effort’s been put in, not scaring them away.

So disagreeing with someone is sacring them away lol? This has been an ongoing discussion and he is still here.

This is a fuckin forum. A place to talk about ideas and discuss those ideas whether you agree or not. I've shown no disrespect to anyone in this discussion. When I hear someone recommend to feed plants right up until the minute they're chopped...then fast dry til the herb crumbles...then rehydrate it, I'll call bullshit everytime. MGG

 

[cephalopoda]

So disagreeing with someone is sacring them away lol? This has been an ongoing discussion and he is still here.

This is a fuckin forum. A place to talk about ideas and discuss those ideas whether you agree or not. I've shown no disrespect to anyone in this discussion. When I hear someone recommend to feed plants right up until the minute they're chopped...then fast dry til the herb crumbles...then rehydrate it, I'll call bullshit everytime. MGG

u can disagree with someone without being a dick about it. from an outsiders perspective, u are being both an ass and intentionally disrespectful. if ur not tryin 2 b, then maybe u should think about the way u phrase things.

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

u can disagree with someone without being a dick about it. from an outsiders perspective, u are being both an ass and intentionally disrespectful. if ur not tryin 2 b, then maybe u should think about the way u phrase things.

Well TBH I really don't give a shit what your perspective is concerning this. Not everybody is all diplomatic and so eloquently spoken here on the forums...just as in real life. I understand some have lead a sheltered life. Some of use that have had much different experiences than you put their feelings and ideas out differently. Be it more bluntly or less diplomatically doesn't really matter, far from disrespect. Youre just trying to chime in and stir the fuckin pot with out even trying to add to the convo. Fuck you man.

If I disagree with something I'll say so. If I think something is BS then I'll say so. That's not being disrespectful. However taking the pussy way out and going along with it would not only be a disrespect, to yourself, but a detriment to the forums. I guess in your perfect lil world everybody should hold hands by the campfire and sing Koombaya while we watch fuckin unicorns fart out rainbow colored farts but that's not my reality...never has been.

I haven't disrespected anyone until now. Go put your big big boy/girl pants on and come back when a four letter word doesn't hurt your delicate sensibilities. MGG

 

[cephalopoda]

lol as i said, ur being an ass. clearly u do care what my opinion is or u wouldn't b flyin off the handle like a surly child. grow up dude and get a grip on urself. u obviously have a vastly inflated sense of self. :rolleyes:

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

Do you have anything to add to this topic or are you just trying to stir shit up? I'll ask an ever burning Q these days here at the farm....DO YOU EVEN GROW BRO? :D

 

[neverbreak]

@YarraSparra I'm sure you already know this but of course you always have to try to make yourself out to sound smarter than anyone else. I'm talking about the end result. If you smoke herb then yes, its incenerated then inhaled in the your lungs unless your vaping which, for me, does not offer the same effect. Hops aren't smoked that I know of, but I'm sure with your brilliant mind and vast knowledge of science you could attempt to make is as such lol. Tell ya what, you keep smoking your non-flushed, flash dried and rehydrated crumbles and I'll keep smoking my dankness. Sounds good to me. :D MGG

sorry bro but y man is right. if u incinerated weed ya would never actually get high. the flash point of thc is by definition incineration and incinerated thc ain't thc anymore if ya get me. but the molecule stays intact when it's in vapor form. as air gets sucked back through a joint heat from the ember vaporizes the oil before it gets burnt. but something like a third or more thc is still burned anyway which is one reason i vapor. so curious how a vaporizer is giving u worse results. what temps do ya have it at? volcano?

neverbreak

 

[Mr_GreenGenes]

When you put herb in a pipe and put a lighter to it you're incinerating it. Can we agree on that lol?

As far as the Vap...I don't guess "worse" results, just not the same effect. I need a heavy narcotic stone for my medical problems and the vape, regardless of strain, always gives me a much lighter, head high. I start the vape around 275 and go up to 350-360f. I have a vape pen that I use for concentrates when we go out and it works ok. But again the effects are not nearly as profound as they are when I hit a dab with a torch or even top a bowl of green with a lil dab. Not a big deal....I only got it when I came down with the Flu last Winter and couldn't smoke. MGG