Medicinal Cannabis Cartridges | AusCannaReviews

My first experience with cannabis cartridges was about seven years ago. I went to a dispensary with a friend who was already sold on the awesomeness of cartridges and was trying to get me to jump on board the train. After much debate with the budtender, we left with two cartridges of Platinum Girl Scout Cookies.

While my friend couldn’t get enough and loved how it kept him feeling “cruisey”, I hated it and deeply regretted my decision not to buy the ounce of Platinum Girl Scout Cookies when I had the chance. Why? The cartridge had a very chemical artificial taste but worse of all it gave me a wicked headache.

Not much has changed in seven years.

I’ve tried a handful of cartridges on the Australian medicinal market and so far every single one of them has given me a headache. It’s not beneficial to anyone if I write the same negative review over and over again until I find a cartridge that agrees with me. Because let’s get real, it might never happen! But rest assured, when/if I do find a cartridge that works for me I’ll be sure to let you know.

Instead, this is a basic overview of the different types of medicinal cannabis cartridges currently available and some of the pros and cons (beyond flavour and headache triggering) I observed while using them over the last few weeks.

Photo by Jeff W on Unsplash

Medicinal cannabis cartridges contain concentrates that on average are two to three times stronger than flowers. There are three types of medicinal cannabis cartridges:

Distillate - Starts with plants that have already been dried and cured. Usually uses CO2 or ethanol to extract oils from the plant under high temperatures and pressures. The oil is then run through a distillation apparatus where it is heated again until the chemicals evaporate leaving just the oil. Distillation allows a particular cannabinoid to be isolated, most commonly THC or CBD. Because this process strips all the non-cannabinoid plant material, terpenes and flavonoids are commonly reintroduced for flavour and effect.

Live Resin - Starts with fresh plants that are flash-frozen preserving the plant’s cannabinoids and terpenes and is a full spectrum product. Butane is a commonly used solvent during the extraction process which is done at cold temperatures because of the thawed plant’s high water content. Sometimes live resin cartridges can also be formulated with cannabinoid distillate.

Live Rosin - Same as with live resin, it starts with fresh plants that are flash-frozen with the goal of preserving as many cannabinoids and terpenes as possible making it a full spectrum product. Live rosin is created in two steps. The first step involves an ice-water extraction process to create bubble hash. The bubble hash is then pressed using heat and pressure in a rosin press. The biggest advantage to live rosin is that it’s solventless and should not contain additives, hydrocarbon residues, or fillers.

Photo by Clear Cannabis on Unsplash

Medicinal cannabis cartridges are discreet, portable, and virtually odourless and while I’ve heard a lot of stories about them leaking I haven’t had any issues. However, they tend to get clogged within the first few days of use, even though I always put the cap back on and store them upright.

There is no '“session” with a cartridge it’s always loaded and ready to go. A one-gram cartridge contains approximately 200 three-second pulls and because I use mine very sparingly the battery lasts about eight to nine days, unlike my Mighty+ which doesn’t last a full day.

The effects of cartridges come on fairly hard and fast but they’re also fleeting. Is this because I always had my temperature set to the lowest setting? I’m not sure but it did make me wonder if I was missing out on some of the possible medicinal effects. (I keep my temps low because it lessens the intensity of my headaches.)

Photo by Louis Hansel on Unsplash

Cannabis for me has always been about mental health. I’ve had the same ritual for almost 30 years and there’s something very cathartic about the process of touching my flower, breaking it up, feeling its stickiness on my fingers, and basking in the aromas drifting up my nose in anticipation of what’s to come. All these sensory cues allow my mind to start letting go well before I’ve had my first inhalation.

I’m a flower girl, always have been and probably always will be, mainly because you can’t get those same sensory cues from staring at a viscous substance in a glass tube.

This substack aims to provide anecdotal information from my personal experiences in hopes it will lead to meaningful conversations between my readers and their healthcare professionals about medicinal cannabis.

I have no formal training in medicine or science. This article does not constitute medical advice.