You might have heard of kief, but not be entirely sure what it is or what to do with it. If this is the case, then keep reading as we’ll cover exactly what kief is, and how you can use it to have an even better experience with your cannabis. In fact, you might even have a bunch of kief at home and not even know it.
On the other hand, if you know all about what kief is, check out our list of the best ways to use it to elevate your high!
WHAT IS KIEF?
Kief is the name for the trichomes of cannabis once they have dried and fallen off the plant. Trichomes are resinous glands that are very high in THC, CBD, and terpenes, and have major psychoactive effects.
Kief looks like a fine powder and collects in the bottom of grinders. It is high in both cannabinoids, which provide the high along with the pain-relief benefits, and terpenes, which are flavor compounds. They work together to make weed a great experience! (See our guide on the difference between cannabinoids and terpenes to learn more)
Collecting Kief
The easiest way to collect kief for personal use is to have a grinder with a kief compartment. All of the fine powder produced when you grind cannabis falls into a separate compartment, and there you have your kief.
It can take a few weeks to a couple of months to build up a good supply, depending on how much you smoke.
If you’re wanting to collect kief on a larger scale, you can look into silk screens with a mesh between 75 and 125 microns. Then rub the bud against the screens to separate the kief from the bigger pieces of plant matter.
How To Store Kief
Like whole bud, kief can expire and lose its potency over time. That’s why it’s very important to store kief in a cool dark place without too much exposure to air.
If your grinder has a kief compartment, that’s a good place to store it. Otherwise, store your kief in an airtight container and put it in a drawer or cupboard where it won’t see much sunlight.
USES OF KIEF
Here are some of our favorite ways to enjoy kief:
Crowning The Bowl
The easiest way to use kief is to add some to your flower when you are packing a pipe or a bong. Don’t mix it in, but rather put it on top. Then we recommend burning your bowl in sections to avoid wasting kief.
There’s nothing like smoking a bong enhanced with kief and watching a good movie!
Moon Rocks
One of the best ways to use kief is to make moon rocks. These are buds dipped in weed concentrate and then rolled in kief. They have very high potency, often over 50% THC. Sprinkle pieces on top of your bowl for a high that is out of this world.
Supercharge A Joint
You can also add kief to your next joint to increase the high you’ll get. Make sure to distribute the kief evenly throughout the joint so it burns well. Kief burns fast and unevenly, which is why we don’t recommend smoking kief on its own. You can but it won’t be as pleasant as a kief-laced joint.
Add To Cannabutter
You normally use whole weed flower when making cannabutter, but you can boost the potency by adding some kief into the mix.
If you’re adding kief, you want to add it to your bud before decarboxylation – the process where you heat cannabis to turn inactive THC into psychoactive THC. When you’re smoking weed, decarboxylation happens when you light it, but for edibles, you have to do the process separately.
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF KIEF
The key health benefit of kief comes from its high potency. Because kief can contain up to 50% THC, it is an excellent way to get enough THC to feel the benefits of pain relief.
People with chronic pain often want the relief of cannabis without having to consume a lot. So, adding kief to weed boosts its effectiveness when it comes to helping with conditions like cancer, chronic pain, MS, and nausea.
Because kief can also be used in edibles, people can get high amounts of THC without even having to smoke at all.
High concentration of THC is very important when it comes to medical marijuana usage. This is especially true in states that limit the volume of cannabis products you can purchase, making potency crucial.
KIEF VS. HASH
People often mix up kief and hash, and sometimes the words are used interchangeably. However, kief and hash are two different things. Hash is also called hashish and is one of the oldest concentrated forms of marijuana.
It is made by processing the trichomes of the marijuana plant into a brick. You can make your own hash from kief, but it can require some solvents and additives.
Hashish can be traced back to as early as 1000 AD in parts of the Middle East. Hash was even used for medical purposes in the late 19th century including in Europe. It was used as an anesthetic and a pain reliever before it was made illegal by the UN in 1961.
CONCLUSION
To sum it all up, learning about kief is an important part of any smoker’s cannabis journey. Whether you’re looking for powerful pain relief, or a way to beat your tolerance, kief is a great choice. And you properly already have some just sitting in your grinder.
To fully experience the wonders of cannabis, head over to Embarc to see our selection of products at world-class dispensaries around California.
