Bubbleman: VAC RT #26
Questions for Bubbleman:
How’d you come up in the cannabis field?
HARD TO SAY, BUT I GUESS MY PASSION DROVE ME TOWARDS IT. FIRST MY PASSION OF SMOKING IT , GREW AND GREW AND GREW. I WAS TAKING IT MUCH FURTHER THAN ANY OF MY CLOSE FRIENDS. IT GOT TO THE POINT WHERE SMOKING AND HANGING WITH FRIENDS TOOK OVER MY LIFE.. EVENTUALLY MY FRIENDS AND I REALIZED WE SHOULD BECOME ACTIVISTS BECAUSE WE WEREN’T ALLOWED TO HAVE IT, SMOKE IT, GROW IT. WE STARTED AS HEMP ACTIVISTS AS WE WERE LOCATED IN MANITOBA WHERE HEMP COULD AND WOULD GROW EXTREMELY WELL. MY PARTNERS ALL APPROACHED OUR MINISTER OF HEALTH AND AGRICULTURE , AND ASKED WHAT WAS KEEPING US FROM GROWING IT. EVENTUALLY AFTER OUR FIRST YEAR WE WOULD GET A LICENSE TO GROW AN EXPERIMENTAL 5 ACRE CROP. ( FIRST ONE IN OVER 73 YEARS IN OUR PROVINCE)
What drew you into the hash world?
THE CEILING THE CANNABIS WAS GIVING ME , LIKE I MENTIONED ABOVE, I WAS SMOKING AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT. OUNCE PLUS A DAY EASY. ONE I GOT TO BC AND STARTED SELLING LARGE AMOUNTS OF CANNABIS , IE HUNDREDS OF LBS PER WEEK. THE FREE CANNABIS WAS FLOWING SO FAST, THAT I COULD BARELY GET HIGH OFF IT ANYMORE. I HAD PLAYED A LITTLE BIT WITH SIFTING IN MANITOBA PRE 95, BUT BY 96 IN BC, I WAS REALLY STARTING TO LOOK AT IT. I WOULD SEE HASH FROM LEBANON, AND AFGHANISTAN ROLL THRU VANCOUVER, AND THAT PEAKED MY INTEREST, BUT SOMEONE OF IT WAS NO STRONGER THAN THE FLOWER I HAD. SO EVENTUALLY I GOT INTO DRY SIFTING FAIRLY DEEP> I HAD MET ROB CLARKE IN 95 THANKS TO A GOOD FRIEND HILARY BLACK. I FIRST MET HIM AT MY HOUSE AND THEN EVENTUALLY IN AMSTERDAM. THE SIFT HE WAS SMOKING WOULD MELT INTO A LIQUID AND HE WOULD SAY ‘ IF IT DON’T BUBBLE IT AIN’T WORTH THE TROUBLE’ ( THIS WOULD LATER BECOME MY COMPANY SLOGAN AND I WOULD FIND OUT IT WAS ACTUALLY SKUNKMAN SAM WHO COINED THE TERM )
Can you give us some insight into the cannabis realm from your POV in Canada?
THE CANNABIS REALM IN CANADA IS A BIG COMPLEX. FIRST ITS COMPROMISED OF TWO PARTS, MEDICAL AND RECREATIONAL. MEDICAL IS OF COURSE HOW IT GOT THRU THE DOOR, WE’VE HAD MEDICAL CANNABIS IN CANADA SINCE EARLY 2000.YOU COULD GET A LICENSE TO GROW IT YOURSELF FOR A SOLID DECADE AND A HALF BEFORE COMPANIES GOT INVOLVED PRODUCING CANNABIS FOR MEDICAL PURPOSES. A LOT OF COMPANIES FOCUSED ATTENTION ON IT, AND FOR A WHILE IT GOT BETTER. HOWEVER WHEN RECREATIONAL SHOWED UP IN 2017 EVERYTHING CHANGED, AND COMPANIES THAT WERE GROWING FOR MEDICAL STARTED GROWING FOR RECREATIONAL. PATIENTS STARTING GETTING LEFT OUT . ONE EXAMPLE IF YOU WANTED TO SELL TO A PROVINCE YOU HAD TO HAVE ENOUGH TO MAKE SURE THE PROVINCE COULD BUY IT AND YOU COULD EVEN RESTOCK IT. THAT WAS RECREATIONAL. FOR MEDICAL THEY HAD NO SUCH RULE, YOU COULD SELL SMALLER LOTS WITHOUT HAVING ANY LEFT TO REFILL. THIS LEFT PATIENTS OUT IN THE RAIN. AS IF YOU FOUND A CULTIVAR THAT WORKED, IT COULD BE A VERY SMALL BATCH THAT DIDN’T SHOW UP FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS AGAIN OR EVER.
What’s it like using your mail system legally? Like, that’s some straight-up Mr/ Roger’s neighborhood shit, Canada.
IT'S PRETTY COOL TO HAVE CANNABIS SHOW UP IN THE MAIL. IT ALSO CREATED A SPACE WHERE I COULD GIFT CANNABIS TO FRIENDS AND SEND IT IN THE MAIL LEGALLY. YOU GET USE TO IT PRETTY FAST THOUGH, AND THE NOVELTY WEARS OFF SOON.
From your perspective, what are some of the pros and cons of a legal market?
THE PRO’’S CERTAINLY ARE NO GUNS IN OUR FACES, NO COPS ARRESTING US, NO FAMILY SERVICES TAKING OUR CHILDREN. ETC. THIS IS HUGE . I CANNOT SAY THIS LOUD ENOUGH. THAT BEING SAID OF COURSE THE REGULATIONS ARE INTENSE AND THE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE WHO CAME TO CANNABIS JUST FOR A JOB THAT REALLY HAVE ZERO INTEREST IN CANNABIS, AND CERTAINLY ARE NOT FIGHTING FOR CANNABIS. THESE PEOPLE SLOW THINGS DOWN A GREAT DEAL. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE DRINKING A WHISKY AT THE END OF THE NIGHT, NOT SMOKING A JOINT. THEY STILL HAVE PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS STEEPED IN PROHIBITION PROPAGANDA , ABOUT CANNABIS AND ITS USERS. SO WE STILL HAVE A LITTLE FIGHT ON OUR HANDS
Keeping quality in the game, what are some products that excite you: What are some you are wary of?
WELL I LOVE THE IDEA OF CREATING AN UNADULTERATED CANNABINOID HIGH FOR FOLKS. THAT IS PURE FULL MELT BUBBLE HASH, DRY SIFT AND OR ROSIN ( FROM FLOWER SIFT OR BUBBLE) . THAT BEING SAID WE HAVE A HAZEL HASH JOINT WE SELL AT EMBARK THAT IS PURE HASH, NO PAPER, NO GLUE. ALTHOUGH THE HASH IS MEDIUM GRADE, THE NOVELTY OF THE PRODUCT IS AWESOME AND PULLING FOLKS AWAY FROM THE PRE ROLLED JOINT MARKET INTO A PURE HASH JOINT, IS ALSO UNIQUE. NO RIG, NO PAPERS, NO CARP CAP AND BANGER, NO BLOW TORCH, NO ANYTHING NEEDED OTHER THAN A LIGHTER AND YOUR SMOKING HASH.
What is the ceiling of the most expensive joint… if there is one?
JOINTS ARE THE MOST POPULAR PRODUCT IN CANADA, BUT WE JUST MADE IT LEGAL TO MIX CATEGORIES. WHAT I MEAN BY THAT IS THAT CANNABIS A CATEGORY 1 PRODUCT AND HASH AND CONCENTRATES OILS ETC, ARE CATEGORY II PRODUCTS. UP UNTIL VERY VERY RECENTLY IN CANADA YOU WERE NOT ALLOWED TO MIX THESE TWO PRODUCTS TOGETHER.. NOW THAT WE CAN I AM SURE WE WILL SEE SOME SIFT AND BUBBLE JOINTS ETC, BUT I AM NOT SURE HOW FAR WE WILL GO. RULES IN CANADA FOR EXTRACTS IS IT CANNOT GO OVER 1000MG’S OF THCA
Legends. Can you lift the veil for us a little bit?
LEGENDS OF HASH IS A DINNER I STARTED ALMOST 20 YEARS AGO IN AMSTERDAM WITH MY GOOD FRIENDS SKUNKMAN SAM AND MICHAEL RICH ( RIP MICHAEL) IT WAS ALWAYS A SPECIAL EVENING THAT WAS ABOUT SMOKING AND ENJOYING HASH WITH HASHISH AFICIONADOS . NO CAMERAS WERE ALLOWED, NO FILMING NO PROMOTING THRU SOCIAL MEDIA. IT WAS JUST ABOUT GETTING TOGETHER WITH AN AMAZING GROUP OF FRIENDS AND SMOKING. IT EVENTUALLY TURNED INTO A SMALL COMPETITION TO SEE WHO HAD THE BEST HASH OF THE EVENING. THIS REALLY ATTRACTED PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY LOVE TO COMPETE AND WIN. FAST FORWARD TO A FEW MONTHS AGO ADDISON DEMOURA FROM STEEP HILL FORMERLY AND CURRENTLY WITH 800 LB MANTRA , IS PUTTING ON LEGENDS WITH MY SUPPORT IN LA ON OCTOBER 24TH. STILL PRIVATE AND INVITE ONLY, WE ARE HOPING TO GROW THE EVENT IN CALIFORNIA SO MORE PEOPLE CAN GET TO EXPERIENCE IT WITHOUT AFFECTING THE INTEGRITY OF THE ORIGINAL EVENT. IT'S GOING TO BE A CHALLENGE
