Hot Tokes From the Big Apple
The NY Grower's Cup, city view seshes, and more glimpses into the New York weed scene.
One of my favorite things in life is exploring cannabis cultures of all kinds.
Checking out local dispensaries, trying regional brands and products I can’t get in Cali, and getting a feel for what growers and breeders are up to allows me to experience legalization in various forms. I get to connect with my fellow stoners in different parts of the country and see firsthand how they incorporate the plant into their lives.
Curosity truly is the reason why I’m here.
When I headed to The New York Grower’s Cup last month to rep my employer, I was surprised to learn the event was in its 3rd year. New York City is my birthplace and lived there for a brief time during my 30s, so I consider it my second home. Funnily enough, it was the first place I saw someone receive in-home weed home delivery during an Edward Fortyhands party at a friend’s Lower East Side apartment sometime around 2007-8. So innovative! Since then a lot has changed: in 2021 the Empire State legalized cannabis for adult use, and the rollout has reportedly been hampered by lawsuits, missteps, and a thriving illicit market. As frustrating as this is, it’s not only a reminder that cannabis prohibition won’t end with the flip of a switch. We’re also experiencing history in the making.
To me, this is a privilege.
I was immediate struck by how dank the city was. Everywhere I went, from Long Island City to Union Square to Fort Greene to Murray Hill (Upper East Side, not so much), it smelled like weed..and freedom. People were puffing in subway stations, in front of hotels and office buildings, and in full view of the cops.
The Grower’s Cup kicked off Friday the 13th with a networking event at 420-friendly co-work and event space in Chelsea called Worknroll. Jazz played in the background as guests mingled between two main rooms — the first centered around a picnic table-length dab station, and the other spotlighting a handful of sponsors holding court at branded tables. A centerpiece displayed the trophies that would be handed out at the following day’s award show. Hand-crafted by The GAK Crew, these spectacular art pieces were truly a sight to behold.
The largely male audience — typical to grower events, in my experience — was chatty and enthusiastic, exchanging handshakes, hugs, and jars of each other’s flower to show off, catch a whiff, and get rolling. I love sticking my nose in a batch of fresh herb and was fascinated by what I was smelling: savory-sweet florals and funky fuel notes I’m not sure I’ve encountered in California where candy gas still reigns supreme. With cultivation licenses hard to come by in this market, legacy growers are holding things down and clearly taking their R&D very seriously. In fact, some of the yummiest aromatic moments that night came from jars of smooth, shimmering hash which, if this event was any indication, New Yorkers seem to be super into.
The awards show and reception Saturday the 14th was held at The Warsaw, a Polish commnunity center and concert venue in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. I embraced the surreality of acquiring both pierogies and a professionally-rolled fatty whilst honoring east coast cultivation excellence in a room filled with hundreds of weed lovers. It just felt like a really cool night out. Everyone in attendance got a robust goody bag containing all kinds of fun stuff, including 3 samples from Cup entrants and a program detailing the names and photos of nugs across the 5 judging categories: Gas, Sour, Haze, Sweet, and Exotic/Rare. The awards were handed out swiftly and though speeches were short, each winner received tons of love from the audience. If there’s one trait typical to every weed scene I’ve encountered, it’s mad appreciation for the grower.
Smokin’ From the Rooftops
The cold that I caught just days before in Las Vegas during MJBizCon had reached the coughing phase by the time I landed in NYC. That plus the chilly winter temps made smoking rougher than usual.
Fortunately, I’m no quitter.
Lunch plans with a friend in Brooklyn put me just up the street from The Travel Agency’s Flatbush location. I’d discover later that The Travel Agency is BIPOC-founded, hires folks who were formerly-incarated, and proudly includes women-, BIPOC-, and LGBTQIA-owned brands on its shelves. As if that weren’t wonderful enough the place had a spacious, gallery-style layout with small sections throughout offering education on everything from consumption methods to terpene profiles to the plant itself. Customers could choose between placing their orders via the electronic menu or with the assistance of a warm, friendly budtender hanging in the vicinity to answer questions.
“What pre-rolls are you really into right now?”, I asked, and the budtender pointed out options from Ruby Farms, a sungrown cannabis brand out of the Hudson Valley, NY. A customer within earshot vouched for the suggestion, which felt like a sign, so I decided to buy their Sour Tangie and, one of my all-time favorites, Blue Dream. And since I’m at the age where a full night’s sleep is hard to come by, I also snagged some Blue Raspberry “Mellow” gummies from the brand Off hours.
A few days later while visiting with another good friend in my old neighborhood of Park Slope, I checked out Makawana, Brooklyn’s first Black women-owned legal dispensary. It’s easy to feel at home here, and not just because an entire section of the place is furnished with couches, an old school TV, and framed photos on the wall. The staff was very welcoming and even though I’d already stocked up on pre-rolls for the week, I posed the same question to my budtender: what are you into? At her suggestion I opted for Rolling Green’s Guava Jam and a Makawana lighter, then left my mark on their community wall on the way out.
From the pre-rolls I purchased, to the goody bags samples and nugs randomly handed to me at the Cup, everything I tried was tasty and got me high which is always a great thing. I noticed a lightness to the euphoria, especially with the Sour Tangie and Gauva Jam pre-rolls; the vibes were sparkly and present. Sleep is pretty elusive in general for me, but the gummies helped me get in a few good hours a night. Temps in the 30s eliminated the possibility of a Central Park sesh, but I also prefer a relaxed, quiet spot when enjoying a smoke. The Universe came through to provide me rooftop settings instead. Getting high while enjoying in full view of the Empire State Building from my friend’s Murray Hill apartment was pretty decadent.
And for me to have essentially stumbled into two BIPOC-owned cannabis retail stores with minimal effort — not even a Google search — feels very encouraging. I’m excited to see where New York takes things. And I will be back.
Happy New Year, and thank you to everyone reading and subscribing to my newsletter! Let’s see where this goes, shall we?