Cocktail WhispererPLEASE WELCOME to the LEAF
Legendary “Cocktail Whisperer” and “Cannabis Whisperer” and famed mixologist WARREN BOBROW
With weed stories, NYC club stories, and the do’s and don’ts of creating your own finest cannabis cocktails
This Wed High Noon PST (3pm EST) with our smokin’ Host CHIP Z’NUFF
on the Monsters of Rock channel on Dash Radio – https://dashradio.com/monstersofrock
Much more to come on THE LEAF!! You ain’t seen nuthin yet!!
https://ganjly.com/12-thoughtful-and-one-of-a-kind-cannabis-gift-ideas-for-valentines/
Warren Bobrow is a chef, mixologist, and a 6-time published author. He came up with a recipe book called Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails, and Tonics – The Art of Spirited Drinks and Buzz-worthy libations. This book is amazing and has a collection of 75 unique drink recipes including coffee, tea, lemonade, and milk-based beverages. In this book, Warren will also teach you how to de-carb cannabis in the correct way to release its full psychoactive effects. Get it for your loved one for $15.
July 22, 2022 Published by SDZ News
Nota por Hernán Panessi publicada originalmente en El Planteo. Más artículos por El Planteo en High Times en Español.
Síguenos en Instagram (@El.Planteo) y Twitter (@ElPlanteo).
Warren Bobrow tenía apenas 5 años cuando probó un cóctel por primera vez. Fue una copita de jerez mezclada con ginger-ale y una aceituna salada en Barcelona, España, junto a sus padres. “Recuerdo que hacía mucho calor y la cualidad refrescante de la bebida ‘para niños’ se me ha quedado grabada en el cerebro hasta el día de hoy”, cuenta el mixólogo, chef y escritor conocido por Cocktail Whisperer y autor de Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails & Tonics: The Art of Spirited Drinks and Buzz-Worthy Libations.El libro de tragos con THC de Warren Bobrow
El recuerdo de esa bebida se convirtió en una compleja, insólita e inesperada introducción a la mixología. “Aunque estuviera hecho para un niño, seguía siendo un cóctel”, apunta Bobrow.
Y, en su vida, una cosa llevó a la otra: fue lavaplatos, estudió en la escuela culinaria, se convirtió en chef, trabajó en restaurantes de todo tipo, se volvió un reputado barman y hasta fue nominado a los Spirited Awards – Tales of the Cocktail Fundation, reconocidos premios de la industria. Escribió seis libros de mixología y cientos de artículos en revistas de todo el mundo. “Ha sido una vida muy ocupada”.
Contenido relacionado: Todo lo que Necesitas Saber sobre la Cerveza de Cáñamo
Así las cosas, esa “vida ocupada” está ungida en el juego, en las pruebas y en la innovación. Pero, curiosamente, sostiene sus decisiones profesionales en base a cierta simplicidad. “Un cóctel bien mezclado no debería tener una plétora de ingredientes dispares”, reconoce.
En ese sentido, desde sus 16 años que empezó a investigar en el mundo del cannabis en las bebidas. Y aquel puntapié inicial también estuvo sujeto a una especie de carambola: de adolescente, compró unos brownies de faso horribles en el Washington Square Park de Nueva York. Llegó a su casa, los pasó por la licuadora, les tiró encima un montón de licor de chocolate y helado de chocolate. Y… ¡Boom!
“Estaba con unos amigos y quedamos muy drogados y borrachos”.
En su momento, cuando escribió su primer libro, Apothecary Cocktails: Restorative Drinks from Yesterday and Today, publicado en el año 2013, su editor de aquel entonces no le permitió incluir temáticas cannábicas.
Con el tiempo, esa tendencia se fue revirtiendo y el cannabis fue tomando un lugar más preponderante en su bibliografía.
Pero su vínculo con el cannabis no se dio en su etapa investigativa, sino que tiene una ligazón atávica: su abuelo tenía una botánica en la que fabricaba productos farmacéuticos. “No eran más que aceites de serpiente, pero yo siento que hay una correlación”, confiesa.
Entre los cócteles con cannabis más populares se yergue el Mezzrole, que se vende exclusivamente en California, Estados Unidos.
¿Qué es el Mezzrole? Una combinación de pequeñas limas del Caribe francés en un puré, mezclado con un toque de vinagre japonés en una versión ácida y herbácea. Una base de jarabe de jengibre muy picante de Pickett’s oriundo de Denver, Colorado. “El mejor concentrado de cerveza de jengibre del mundo, y he probado muchos durante mi investigación”, señala.
Contenido relacionado: Conocé ‘La Casa Grande’, el Restaurante Cannábico Más Mágico de El Bolsón
El cóctel sigue con una base de Agricole de 100 grados, una creación artesanal de nanotecnología de THC. Eso incluye unos 10 miligramos de THC, de una cepa llamada Hippie Crasher.
“Es un trago realmente revolucionario y repleto de terpenos”, confiesa.
A la sazón, el Mezzrole es una creación de Bobrow cuyo objetivo es dejar re loco a sus bebedores. “No quedás destruido, pero no es muy diferente a la versión social de fumar un porro. Eso sí, sin el molesto humo que anuncia tu presencia”, asegura el mixólogo.
Y continúa: “Quería construir un cóctel de THC que te permitiera llevar adelante todas las interacciones sociales de la planta sin condenarte al ostracismo social de los no fumadores. Estoy ofreciendo la experiencia completa del cannabis en un cóctel bien construido, que realmente huele como una flor de cannabis bien curada”.
Entre los tragos con cannabis más arriesgados aparece el que hizo durante su aparición en Viceland. “Me pidieron que hiciera un cóctel de CBD/THC que pudieran sentir”.
Allí, envalentonado por la sugerencia de la producción, mezcló una botella de whisky bourbon puro de barril con una porción de zumo de naranja asada, pomelo rubí con amargo de angostura y refresco italiano de naranja. Además, le agregó unos 250 mg de THC y CBD.
“Se encendieron un poco”, bromea Warren.
Inminentemente, su libro Apothecary Cocktails está por llegar a su quinta reimpresión.
Sin embargo, no todas son buenas noticias para Bobrow: “La parte mala es que me incluyeron en la lista negra de la industria del licor, por lo que hubo una gran animosidad y miedo hacia mí. Injustamente, la verdad. Pero ese fue una especie de final para mi carrera. Aunque, en abstracto, no fue lo que acabó con mi carrera”.
¿¡Cómo!? ¿Warren Bobrow se retiró de las barras?
“Tuve que hacerlo por mi salud. Engordé mucho trabajando como embajador de marcas de bebidas alcohólicas artesanales fuera de los establecimientos y como juez de ron para el Ministerio del Ron y el Rum XP. Mi trabajo consistía en emborrachar a la gente con los mejores licores del mundo, con las recetas de mis libros y la experiencia que me proporcionaba el hecho de trabajar para Chris James en el Ryland Inn como ayudante de bar”, devela.
Contenido relacionado: Alimentación, Cannabis y Paranoia con Narda Lepes
“¡No es un trabajo fácil!”, tira, entre chistes, a sus 61 años.
En la actualidad, Warren dirige la empresa productora de Klaus, una bebida ready-to-drink infusionada en cannabis, y despunta el vicio de la divulgación escribiendo con regularidad para las revistas Skunk, Cannabis Cactus y Different Leaf.
—La primera vez que bebiste un trago con cannabis fue durante aquella anécdota que contaste en la que tenías unos 16 años. Ahora bien, ¿cuándo fue la última?
—Mmmhhh… La última vez fue la otra noche. La experiencia fue, justamente, con Klauss, mi bebida. No quería beber ninguna de las aguas carbonatadas con sabor a caramelo, ni los jarabes. Son demasiado dulces, no me gustan. Por eso mi bebida no es dulce, ni mucho menos: es ácida y bien equilibrada.
Mientras tanto, el universo de la coctelería profesional mira con cierto recelo el mundo del cannabis. Es que, por estos días, el consumo de THC mezclado con bebidas alcohólicas es ilegal en Estados Unidos (a excepción de California). Por eso, sus tragos no están disponibles en los bares norteamericanos.
Contenido relacionado: Cocinar con Marihuana: una Guía para Principiantes
Entre sus próximas creaciones, Bobrow planea hacer una nueva versión del clásico Zombie, un cóctel compuesto por diversos tipos de brandy y ron mezclados con diversos tipos de jugos frutales. El cóctel contará con detalles provenientes de una cepa sativa que “hará que quieras bailar bossa nova”.
En su caso, el famoso mixólogo consume cannabis de manera medicinal porque padece de glaucoma y la marihuana le “preserva la visión”. Asimismo, reconoce que le gusta “estar re loco” porque le hace “sentir inspiración” y le permite escribir, abrir el cerebro y, según afirma, desbloquear su tercer ojo. “Por varios motivos, el cannabis forma parte de mi vida”.
The post Conocé a Warren Bobrow, el Famoso Mixólogo Norteamericano que Hace Tragos con THC appeared first on High Times.
I used to live up in Maine for several years. It’s where I fell in love with the seacoast, fish that smacked of the ocean- freshly plucked from the sea. Oysters when I could afford them were not like the ones I’d tasted around the country. These were fresh, without being shipped fresh. Back in the 1980s when I lived in Maine it was a very different place. Sure, we all smoked weed, but it was not legal yet. And if you should get caught with some, the penalty was unkind and inappropriate at best. But as I remember, the quality was amazing. Certainly not like the gassy strains I was accustomed to smoking in New York City, or the fruit salad strains out West. These terroir-driven farms were all over and each had their own history. I can only imagine the quality today, given the legality of the plant in Maine. That’s where talented cooks like Zack Squier come into the picture. He is a classically trained chef, that is for certain. And with his love for the plant, he has unleashed the benefits of good ingredients, simply prepared with love into a format that includes solventless THC. I’d say that’s a win/win for those of us who value quality over just getting stoned.
With that said, may I please introduce Zack Squier… Cannabis Flavorist and Alchemist.
Please tell me about yourself. Where are you from? Where’s home now? Why Maine?
I’m Zack Squier, Founder & Chef of Squier’s Specialty Edibles. I was born in York, Maine before moving to Sierra Nevada, where I grew up until entering high school. I moved back to the east coast in 2006 and have been living here since. I fell in love with Maine as a young adult, moving to Kittery at the age of 23, before making my way up to Portland where I currently live and where my company is based.
I chose to stay in Maine because I love the overall vibe here, Portland especially. It’s the perfect place for me and has what a big city offers, just fun-sized. The food is on another level, with a killer music scene and top-tier cannabis culture to boot.
Another reason I love Maine is the community. Everyone is proud to be from Maine and it’s for a good reason. From the beautiful summers on the ocean to the cozy winter season in the woods, the tranquil state offers everything I look for in a place. I’m happy to call Maine my home.
Where did you go to learn about culinary arts? Why cannabis? Who taught you?
I began working in restaurants when I was 13, washing dishes at a short-order breakfast joint on the weekends. From then on, I continued down the industry path, working in numerous restaurants under great chefs, learning as much as I could while having as much fun as possible (maybe a little too much fun). I gradually made my way up the ranks from dishwasher, to fry cook, grill cook, sous chef, to executive chef, eventually opening a restaurant, Umami, I was part owner of in Northwood, New Hampshire.
The restaurant industry is also where I was first introduced to cannabis. Smoking behind the dumpsters with the older line cooks and getting into trouble. At that time, cannabis wasn’t as accepted and mainstream as it is today. To be honest, I didn’t really start taking cooking seriously until I was around 20 years old and around that same time is when I began to realize how special and misunderstood the plant was. Whether people used cannabis for the numerous mental or physical benefits or just to let loose, it was fascinating to me. I was inspired to explore all the different ways it could be consumed and played with, creating infusions, and experimenting. I knew whatever I was going to do in life, I wanted it to involve the magic of food and cannabis.
Tell me about your company. What do you do?
At Squier’s Specialty Edibles we specialize in cannabis-infused drink mixers and beverages. What sets us apart from other edible-focused companies is that our ingredients are our main priority. We make our products from scratch with 100% real fruit, organic blue agave, fresh squeezed citrus, and solventless hash rosin.
Being a chef, I didn’t like how I had to compromise my everyday eating habits if I wanted to consume an edible. I desired to provide people with a product that had just as much passion and integrity into the food ingredients as the cannabis used. It made zero sense to me why companies take cannabis – that growers and extractors spent months carefully producing and curating – and infuse it into terrible food ingredients, pumped with artificial flavors and food coloring. It doesn’t do the plant justice and that’s where we strived to do things differently.
Working in the restaurant industry for many years, I witnessed firsthand how bad alcohol abuse can get and how it can negatively affect people’s lives. I myself had my troubles with it. We’re offering people an alcohol-free alternative, whether they are sober from booze and want to consume an adult beverage, or if someone just doesn’t want to deal with a horrible hangover the next day. An ideal option for those following a “Cali Sober” lifestyle, our cannabis-infused mixers are made for every canna-consumer as you can customize your dose by adding a little or a lot: micro to macro.
Do you have any ideas for cocktails with your product?
We regularly release delicious recipes and always showcase unique ways to use Squire’s product. We design our elixirs to be able to easily add your preferred dose into sparkling or still water, but we encourage people to get creative with them. They can also be baked and cooked with, allowing you to enhance any dish.
Whether that be a craft canna-cocktail, an infusion into a homemade ice cream, baking into a batch of brownies, infusing a sauce for wings, or simply adding a tablespoon to your nightly tea before bed. The possibilities are endless! Use in any recipe that could use a little fruit “punch”.
What is your passion?
My passion is food – I love creating it, sharing it, and eating it. Food has been a constant for me and legitimately what my life has revolved around for almost two decades. Food is life and it ties directly into beverages. When I think about why I love working in the food and beverage industry, it’s because of the way it brings people together. No matter our differences, we all eat and drink. Every culture has different cuisines, dishes, and techniques. It’s truly fascinating and you can never stop learning!
Cannabis and food are similar in this manner. They both have a beautiful way of uniting us, whether it’s a joint being passed around in a circle of strangers or sitting down to enjoy a meal cooked with loved ones. By combining two of my passions, food, and cannabis, I’ve truly found my purpose, which is to create a product that helps others and connects the community.
Follow on social media: https://www.instagram.com/squiersedibles/ – https://www.squiersedibles.com/
@DjManindabag
Boston, MA (January 24, 2023) – Leading Massachusetts cannabis retailer and wholesaler Rev Brands is partnering with El Blunto, America’s top blunt producer, to bring their one-of-a-kind cannabis products to the Massachusetts market. El Blunto implements an evolution of historic cigar-making tradition that borrows age-old techniques from master cigar rollers to create products of the highest caliber with the highest level of finishing.
“National expansion and product accessibility has been a fundamental part of our growth strategy at El Blunto and an integral part of our success,” said Q. Ladraa, CEO and founder of Albert Einstone’s, El Blunto’s parent company. “We are delighted to be partnering with Rev Clinics, which is the number one distributor in Massachusetts and has a glowing reputation for being a standard-bearer in product quality and customer service.”
El Blunto’s line of cannabis products uses top-shelf, indoor premium quality flower that is broken down by hand, never ground, to ensure maximum terpene preservation, highest potency, and longest burn time. They are then hand-rolled in a 100% tobacco-free wrap made from all-natural fibers and sealed with El Blunto’s in-house cigar glue to guarantee a clean and superior product.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with El Blunto to introduce this incredible brand to the Massachusetts market,” said Tom Schneider, Chief Marketing Officer of Rev Brands. “The uniqueness and superb quality of these glass-tipped, whole flower blunts are what has us most excited about the partnership, and we look forward to sharing it with our customers and retail partners alike.”
The partnership will launch with ‘El Blunto Gold,’ which will be available as a single 1.75g blunt for $30 at all three Revolutionary Clinics medical dispensaries in Cambridge and Somerville and at leading dispensaries throughout Massachusetts.
Rev Brands and El Blunto plan to roll out additional products including El Blunto’s mini blunts and mini-blunt packs (El Bluntito and El Bluntito 4-packs respectively) and their ‘Rose Gold’ (infused with melty ice-water hash) and ‘Platinum’ (infused with premium THCa diamonds) line-ups in the coming months. To learn more, visit www.revbrands.org.
ABOUT REV BRANDS
Founded in 2018, Rev Brands is a leading cannabis manufacturer and wholesale operator exclusive to Massachusetts. Rev Brands is committed to delivering greater reliability from seed through service with a focus on quality and variety in its product lines. Rev Brands is guided by customer feedback to meet the demand for novel products and searches for the most unique and viable strains to deliver high-quality products throughout dispensaries in Massachusetts. Revolutionary Farms, its grow facility in Fitchburg, is the largest and most high-tech in the state with more than thirty-five grow rooms. The facility supplies over 150 retail establishments with sought-after products and flower. Rev Brands employs more than 250 employees across its manufacturing and wholesale operations and proudly supports the local industry by using local vendors and donating time and money to community causes. To learn more, visit https://revbrands.org/ or follow along on social at @rev_clinics.
ABOUT EL BLUNTO
El Blunto is a California-based cannabis brand that offers ‘The World’s Finest Cannabis Experience’. Born from a passion for craftsmanship and quality, El Blunto is an evolution of the historic cigar-making tradition. Borrowing age-old techniques from master cigar rollers, we create products of the highest caliber with the highest level of finishing. Product design and development is approached like a true science, ensuring customers get the same, phenomenal experience every single time. The El Blunto lineup includes El Blunto (cannabis cigar), El Bluntito (mini-blunts), El Jointo and El Jointito (joints and mini-joints), as well as pouches of full-flower and Roll Your Own Blunt Kits. El Blunto products are available in 1000+ dispensaries across the United States. El Blunto is a subsidiary of Albert Einstone’s. For more information, visit www.alberteinstones.com.
Five questions with “Red House” and the Van Brunt Cannabis Company
Warren Bobrow: I’ve been a member of the CSA for a couple of months now. Please let me share with you some of what I learned from the experience so far.
Tasting Notes:
The Crème de la Chem is all about pine, gas, and snipped garlic chives. I want to decarb some of this luxurious cannabis in my Ardent and whip the toasty, activated craft cannabis into my favorite cream cheese mashed potatoes- 3 cups boiled Yukon Golds, a cup of high-fat butter, ½ cup of cream cheese, and those beforementioned chives. Of course, freshly ground pepper and salt to taste. Whip in the decarbed cannabis at the end and eat up. Pro-tip: always use a fork when making mashed potatoes. And get down that nice ceramic bowl from your grandmom’s house to make your mashed potatoes. Take your time, there’s no rush. Wash this down with a Belgian Kriek Ale or a glass of iced buttermilk. Deliciousness.
Warren Bobrow: Please tell me about yourself. Where are you from? How did you discover NYC?
Red House: I moved to Brooklyn from Richmond, Va. in Dec ’08. NYC had always been on my mind.
My father is from NY, my sis went to med school here too. She was holding the door for me, and I would have come much earlier but I was always happy where I was.
My only regret in coming to NYC was not moving sooner than I did. As I outgrew RVA almost ended up in Asheville, NC, and Philly a couple of times. Working in the restaurant industry, NYC was the obvious choice.
Warren Bobrow: What are you working on right now? What makes you different than your peers?
Red House: Just beginning the CSA, it’s a side project to Van Brunt, and being on a monthly schedule it’s at its own pace. In addition to getting Van Brunt up and running, developing the CSA, I’m involved with some projects more focused on hospitality.
I have strong connections to the restaurant industry and the idea of high-end consumption lounges and canna-friendly restaurants in NYC is exciting. None of this 420 stoner vibe, but something Sam Sifton would write about.
What makes the CSA different though is the socialist model. It’s not even close to how the traditional cannabis market works. Cannabis has been going by capitalistic business values forever and ever. This is operated more like a traditional CSA farm or co-op.
Warren Bobrow: What is your favorite strain right now? Who taught you the craft?
Red House: Impossible to choose. Always loved Durban Poison, anything with some pine I’m always interested in. Citrusy/hazy sativas are a go-to also… I think Cherry Ghostenade from King Greens is a recent favorite.
I taught myself to grow cannabis through lots of reading and lurking on the net. It’s all really easy, knowledge is key. My initial interest in plant life, that credit has to go to Mom. She grew up on a farm in PA, so learning how to grow peas and carrots as a kid and take care of houseplants and all that, yeah that was the foundation. Once you understand plants’ basic nature, cannabis is easy.
Warren Bobrow: Tell me a little more about the CSA? How do you get involved?
Red House: The CSA (community-supported agriculture) model fits best because I don’t intend to ever be in the flower market, not even wholesale. I just enjoy growing and want the excess flower to have a home. Edibles, white label, and private label, are the main focus for Van Brunt. The garden being a cooperative keeps my time more available to work more on that. Some of the members are excited to learn about growing or just want to get involved and hands-on. That’s great, bc I just want to grow. We attend industry events to meet people and talk memberships. Planning meetups and trim parties for members in the future too. So, there’s a community aspect to the plan which is always welcome. No work or time given is required with membership, that’s optional and shares are offered in exchange for time spent “in the garden” … The value is great for people who use flower on the regular and like lots of variety, supporting their local economy and cleanly grown flower. Going to be including edibles or pantry items infused with the trim and kief of the harvests with the shares from time to time as well as including other local producers. January, we have Kings Greens joining us with some Bushwick-grown Huckleberry in addition to Orange Haze and Grapewalker Kush strains from mine. Contact on instagram @ van.brunt.nyc or email: VanBruntCSA@gmail.com for more information.
Warren Bobrow: What is your passion?
Red House: I’m a music lover first and have appreciation for all peoples’ creative talents. I would never do that professionally over concern music may become too much like work. Was very lucky to work in the right spots while I was young. Was drawn to food as a profession and that’s easily 2nd or 3rd to music as my first passion. Worked in a bunch of high-end joints for years and years and I’m into the discipline, detail, and refinement but need a more relaxed space to work. Really dig on classics done right. Not fancy high-end soignée, just done right. Modern takes and trends are fun but dishes that have been popular for hundreds of years are popular for a reason. Doing a dish entirely in its truest traditional sense is one of the things I love most. You know how ppl are sometimes looking for the “most authentic” or “traditional” thing? I’m kinda like that. I want the most basic bitch Al Pastor taco. but when everything about it is just right. Talking fresh tortillas, a real adobo, and all that. That’s something I will gush all over.
***I’m proud to belong to the CSA and taste these marvelous herbs, grown with care and love in New York! WB***
Follow on Instagram: @van.brunt.nyc
Feature Photo Courtesy: Red House
Morristown businessman Matthew Rosenhaus grew rich selling Geritol in the 1950s and 60s, marketing it as a curative tonic for people with “iron-poor tired blood.”
“It was snake oil,” his grandson, Warren Bobrow, recalls today. Yet Bobrow still embraces the family’s entrepreneurial spirit. He’s trying to forge his own legacy by manufacturing a cannabis-infused beverage that, unlike Geritol, delivers precisely what it advertises: good flavor and a good buzz.
Sold in bottles and served by the spoonful, Geritol was hawked shamelessly from coast to coast with a relentless ad campaign that sponsored “The Lawrence Welk Show,” among other 20th-century TV hits.
“It was ethyl alcohol, caramel colorings and flavorings,” said Bobrow, 61, who grew up in Morris Township. “All it was was whiskey. It didn’t even have vitamins in the early days. And it was sold in every pharmacy in the United States, if not the world.”
In 1972, a Geritol TV ad campaign also coined the cringe-worthy tagline, “My wife, I think I’ll keep her,” which was mocked by the growing feminist movement of the time.
“It made my grandfather a pretty successful guy until the government sued them,” Bobrow said. Rosenhaus at one point was the largest individual shareholder of filmmaker Columbia Pictures Industries and also served on the board of Nabisco Inc.
Geritol is now manufactured as a vitamin supplement by Meda Consumer Healthcare of Georgia, but it’s no longer a staple of U.S. medicine cabinets as it was for decades.
The formula worked for years until the Federal Trade Commission derailed the gravy train. In 1973, the agency imposed what was then the largest fine in its history, accusing Geritol of “false and misleading claims” and leading to the company’s decline.
Bobrow, a graduate of the Morristown-Beard School, would eventually grow estranged from his family. So he carved his own niche in the spirits industry as a brand ambassador known as “The Cocktail Whisperer.” He has authored six mixology books including “Apothecary Cocktails: Restorative Drinks from Yesterday and Today.”
A subsequent book, “Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails and Tonics,” put him on a new professional path: formulating, manufacturing and distributing his own concoctions to ride the wave of marijuana legalization across the U.S. Last year, he introduced Mezzrole, the first in a planned line of “Klaus”-brand beverages. They’re sold exclusively in California’s legal cannabis market.
The drink is a variation on a rum-based cocktail known as a ti’punch. But the “punch” of the rum has been replaced by 10 milligrams of infused cannabis resin in each 8-ounce can, from an “Indica-leaning hybrid” strain of marijuana known as “Hippie Crasher.”
The Mezzrole formula, like a ti’punch, is non-carbonated and flavored with French lime puree, rice vinegar and a ginger beer syrup Boborow substitutes for rum: “When you leave out the rum, you need something to give it a little spice and backbone, because it’s extra hot and spicy,” he said.
A July review on the “Good Spirits” blog described the drink as “tropical and vibrant,” noting it contains only 16 calories per can and is “alcohol-free, so no need to worry about mixing booze with your buzz.”
A ” first-of-its-kind product,” Klaus is likely to “transform the way you think about cannabis-infused beverages,” it said.
Indica strains of cannabis are known for increasing relaxation and reducing insomnia, often referred to as a “body high.” A Sativa “head high” is said to increase creativity and focus while reducing stress and anxiety. Hybrids contain elements of both.
“It’s not overwhelming. It’s a nice calm, no stronger than having a craft cocktail,” said Bobrow, who writes for three cannabis-industry magazines and recently attended the annual MJBizCon convention in Las Vegas with 35,000 other industry insiders. “What it does is offer a little deeper depth and balance to the experience of a craft cocktail, without the alcohol.”
That’s important to Bobrow. While he’s a recognized mixology expert, he quit drinking distilled spirits in 2018 “because it was killing me.” Addiction was not the issue, he said, but rather his need to drink frequently while working as a brand ambassador.
“I’ve lost two shoe sizes and 100 pounds since then,” he said.
Bobrow smoked his first joint at age 12 and his taste for weed led to his wealthy family disowning him.
“My mom gave me Geritol Jr. every morning before school,” he recalled with a touch of irony. “It was 20% alcohol.”
Now 61, Bobrow said cannabis has helped him find balance. He acknowledges others may disagree with his preference for pot over alcohol.
“They would be wrong,” he said.
Medical experts may disagree, but Bobrow, who recently moved to Mendham, asserts cannabis “is not intoxicating, is not habit-forming, is not incapacitating and you don’t have a hangover the next day.”
He’s hoping for national distribution, but so far, only California has cleared Mezzrole for sale. New Jersey laws on recreational cannabis prohibit products in edible or drinking form. There’s talk of liberalizing the state’s rules, “but it will take a while,” Bobrow said.
Initial sales of Mezzrole were strong, but they’ve slowed as Bobrow moves to a new distributor and makes plans to expand the product line.
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In California, his business model includes retail sales, but Bobrow expects the bulk of his future distribution will be “direct to consumer” through his website. A can of Mezzrole currently sells for $12 retail, or $40 for a four-pack. The website teases future varieties of Klaus cannabis cocktails, including “Bosphorus” and “1851 Zombie.”
Each has a flavor as colorful as its name. Bosphorus promises a “trip to sunny, sultry Istanbul, not Constantinople” with traces of bergamot (a citrus fruit), apricot and a touch of mirin (Japanese rice vinegar). Meanwhile, 1851 Zombie is “a lovable combination of sour leading into sweet becoming everything naughty” with three cannabis strains in place of rum.
Bobrow chose the name Mezzrole as a homage to Mezz Mezzrow, a musician and the notorious pot “connection” for jazz legend Louis Armstrong, who was well-known for his love of weed.
“He brought tons of Mexican cannabis up from south of the border during the Jazz Era and was very much a favored individual in Detroit and Chicago and New York,” Bobrow said. “A well-rolled cannabis cigarette was known as a ‘mezzrole.'”
William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com
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BY KIRK MILLER / APRIL 20, 2022 6:25 AM
The worlds of THC and alcohol haven’t really crossed over, and to be honest, that’s probably for the best. Not all potentially buzzy experiences need to or should be intertwined.
But if you take away booze from that crossover while keeping the idea of mixology in place, suddenly the small but growing industry of bartender-friendly, cannabinoid-infused “spirits” and mixers makes more sense.
We’ve covered this meeting-of-minds before, although not specifically related to THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis. First there’s Flyers, a line of alcohol-free sparkling cannabis cocktails with full-spectrum CBD distillates that are crafted, in part, by award-winning mixologist Ivy Mix. Then there’s The Pathfinder Hemp & Root, a non-alcoholic “spirit” fermented and distilled from hemp; two of the three founders have extensive liquor brand experience, and the mixer works nicely in both boozy and non-boozy drinks.
When I spoke with the founders of those drinks brands, they all suggested that THC-infused variations were on the way.
One that’s already here? MXXN (pronounced “moon”). The BIPOC-founded brand claims to be the spirit industry’s first 1:1 non-alcoholic and THC-infused replacement for gin, tequila and bourbon. The company is led by Darnell Smith, a booze industry vet with over 15 years of experience at Diageo, Pernod Ricard and Bacardi.
“I was working in the spirits industry in product innovation and found myself drinking more than I cared to due to the nature of the profession,” Smith tells InsideHook. “I was looking for a way to cut back on alcohol but still take part in the social aspects associated with drinking and cocktail culture. And I had been a consumer of cannabis for chronic pain after 15 years as a football player and would make my own tinctures at home, so I started bringing the tinctures out to social events, ordering a tonic and lime and putting a few drops in. My wife encouraged me to find a way to bring the tincture and tonic idea to the public in some capacity.”
MXXN’s website offers variations on well-known cocktails, although the proportions are interesting, given the idea that you’re getting about 6 mg of THC per 1.5 oz pour — an Old Fashioned riff, for example, suggests a very small .75 oz measurement of MXXN’s Kentucky Oak, as opposed to a standard 2 oz pour if you were using a regular bourbon.
Review: The Pathfinder Is a Non-Alcoholic Spirit That Shines in Boozy Drinks
We were recently able to try MXXN Jalisco Agave (the drink is available in California and direct-to-consumer in a few markets). It’s a cloudy, straw-colored liquid with grassy and floral notes. On the palate, it’s soft but also spicy and with a pronounced salinity — it’s not offensive on its own, but it feels much better suited for a cocktail. I turned my initial small pour into a very nice Paloma alternative, which lacked the usual alcohol “kick” but maintained the essence of agave and heightened the grapefruit notes (while also a touch of spice).
I’m not alone in my thoughts on how the product mixes. “When we started MXXN, we were trying to emulate the tastes of spirits in standalone form,” explains Smith, who also notes that bartenders were consistently giving feedback during the product’s formulation. “But we found it to be extremely difficult to find a substitute for the specific flavor and profile ethanol provides in that form, so we pivoted a bit to create a product that emulates the base flavor profiles of these spirits when mixed in a cocktail with other ingredients.”https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca-Ypv9Ma0X/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=12
The recipe wasn’t an easy process. In the brand’s early stages, the technology wasn’t there to get the THC evenly distributed throughout the base formula (“Which for dosing reasons was an obvious problem,” Smith notes). They eventually utilized nanoemulsion technology from Vertosa to solve that problem, but the company also had to finalize the flavor profile and make the product shelf-stable, which proved more difficult to do without alcohol while still utilizing natural ingredients.
In the end, Smith thinks products like MXXN will appeal to the health-conscious (and non-boozy drinkers), but also believes they offer real potential to unite the worlds of drinks and cannabis.
“We’re not here to completely replace your booze or how you consume it,” he says. “We’re here to provide a new experience and evolve cocktail culture.”
Klaus takes a different approach. And that involves a gnome.
Just launched, Klaus is a ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail in a can, albeit with a “10 mg terpene-forward cannabis emulsion per drink” as opposed to a boozy ABV. These were crafted by popular mixologist Warren Bobrow, who credits…well, I’ll have him explain.
“The inspiration for my product, funnily enough, was my drinking gnome named Klaus,” says Bobrow. “Klaus traveled the world with me in my prior career in liquor sales. He also came with me to competitions where I served as a rum judge for both the Ministry of Rum and the Florida-based Rum XP.” (That association explains the launch of Klaus with Mezzrole, a take on the classic Ti’ Punch.)
As Bobrow remembers, he was signing copies of his drinks guide Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails at the Pharmacy Museum when noticed an exhibit named “Cannabis in the Early Apothecary,” which led to an idea for his next book, Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails and Tonics. And the success of that book led to the idea of creating a canned, THC-infused cocktail.
(Yes, but the actual gnome influence? “To me, Klaus is much more than just a German drinking gnome. He represents goodness, kindness and the amalgamation of my life experiences. Sure, he loves to drink, but he’s recently switched over to my refreshing infused mocktails.”)
For Bobrow, it was not an issue emphasizing the cannabis aspects of his drink. “The ‘craft’ in craft cocktails isn’t always about the liquor. It’s the balance of the ingredients,” he says. “My Mezzrole cocktail — named for Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet’s friend and cannabis dealer, Mezz Mezzrow — has no alcohol, but it’s terpene-forward. It smells like a perfectly cured cannabis bud and provides consumers with a lovely, relaxing, talkative yet grounded feeling.” (It’s apparently also great for sleep. We’ll have samples soon to review.) https://www.instagram.com/p/CZ2ObaFDuqb/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=12
Unlike some of his peers, Bobrow feels THC is a versatile and somewhat enviable ingredient to work into mixed drinks.
“It can be flavored with terpenes as an adjunct to the other fine ingredients in a craft cocktail, or it can be flavorless and woven into a seltzer,” he says. “To me, the process is not challenging because cannabis possesses terroir. The plant embodies the taste of the place it was grown, like wine, except there are perhaps even more terpenes in cannabis than wine.”
As for serving suggestions, Klaus’s drinks — which will soon include a riff on the Tiki classic Zombie — only have 16 calories and 0.6 grams of sugar per can; each of those 8 oz cans features 10 mg THC, which Bobrow estimates is perfect for two drinks and a nice mental middle ground. “We’re somewhere between a microdose and the opposite end where the effects are a little too strong.”
Even if their approaches (and taste profiles) differ, Bobrow and Smith share a similar audience expectation: health-conscious, social, open to a “buzz” but wanting to feel better in the next morning.
“Many folks in my former world of liquor struggle with alcohol, and several have already reached out to tell me how much this beverage means to them,” says Bobrow. “Alcohol and cannabis provide different experiences. I feel out of control when drinking liquor, and I think a lot of people can relate. But I’m not here to preach. I’m here to make the world’s best craft cannabis libations and raise the bar.”
https://www.insidehook.com/article/booze/mixology-cannabis-thc-spirits-klaus-mxxn/amp
Introducing the first ten inaugural inductees into our Leaf Magazine Cannabis Edibles Hall of Fame honoring lasting contributions to the world of marijuana-infused foods. These pioneers and legends changed the way we consume weed, from brownies to beverages and beyond. Send your nominations for future inclusion to dan@leafmagazines.com.
Author, chef, mixologist and “Cannabis Alchemist” Warren Bobrow got his start in the alcohol industry, having studied food writing at New School University and the French Culinary Institute. He’s also written multiple books, including “Apothecary Cocktails, Whiskey Cocktails, Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails” and “The Craft Cocktail Compendium.” His 2016 book, “Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails & Tonics: The Art of Spirited Drinks & Buzz-Worthy Libations,” introduced the mainstream to marijuana-infused liquid beverages – now an entire segment of the legal weed industry. In fact, he’s also the co-founder and CEO of Klaus (@drinkklaus), creating terpene-forward craft Cannabis cocktails for the marijuana marketplace.