Cannabis byproducts come in many forms, textures, and THC potency. The most THC-rich cannabis products are cannabis isolates (99% purity) and then cannabis concentrates (some cannabis concentrates up to 80% of THC). THCA diamonds are used to describe what we know as cannabis isolates or crystalline THCA.
Crystalline THCA or THCA diamonds, are refined from extracted cannabis oil. Cannabis “diamonds” are made of THC in its acidic form, which means that you will not get high unless you heat them (decarboxylate it). When you heat them, they will transform from THCA to THC. When this heating process is done, you will inhale a cannabis product with a very high THC-concentration.
How Are They Made?
Crystalline THCA can reach a purity of 99.9% of THCA. In short, they are the purest THCA form on the market. For instance, a THC-rich cannabis bud usually contains approximately 25% of THC, concentrates anywhere between 70 and 90% and diamond or crystalline THCA up to 99.9%.
Crystalline THCA or THCA diamonds are way more complicated to make than cannabis concentrates. The extraction process needs to be done in a lab by certified professionals and obviously, with extensive safety features. In other words, this is not a process that you can easily made in the garage of your house.
The process to make crystalline THCA involves the following phases:
Phase 1: The first process consists of extracting hash oil using methods such as cold-press extraction methods. This process will extract THCA.
Phase 2: Second step consists of getting rid of waxes and fats. The winterization process.
Phase 3: Soak the winterized cannabis oil in a methanol liquid. After that, a rotary evaporator (or rotovap) is used to remove the methanol.
Phase 4: The oil is washed in pentane to remove any remaining plant material. Then a rotary evaporator is used again.
Phase 5: The chromatography machine puts pressure into the oil that it will transform the oil into a crystalline form.
Phase 6: The crystals need to dry for approximately two weeks.
Are THCA Diamonds Better than Other Cannabis Concentrates?
It depends what you are looking for. If you are looking for the purest form of THCA, then THCA diamonds are for you. Nonetheless, THCA diamonds are not recommended for cannabis newbies. As it is very pure, THCA is highly psychoactive. In other words, you will experience a very intense high. On the other hand, THCA diamonds are pure THCA with no other compounds such as terpenes that provide unique flavors and effects associated with health benefits.
THCA diamonds are excellent if you want to experience a psychedelic experience. If you are a newbie, THCA diamonds are not the best option for you. Crystalline cannabis is very psychoactive and if you are not ready for a very intense THC high, then you might experience episodes of paranoia. In short, this cannabis concentrates are suitable for experienced cannabis users.
In addition, you need to consider the prices of crystalline cannabis. As the extraction process is more complicated and time-consuming, crystalline cannabis is more expensive than cannabis buds or hash oils. For example, live resins have a retail price of $40 to $60 per gram whereas crystalline cannabis has a retail prices of approximately $100.
Originally published at https://www.getispire.com on December 4, 2020.
