Consumers are more interested than ever in the quality of their products. Much like how the foodie culture has tuned us into the finer things on our plate, the cannabis market in all its variety is creating more sophisticated and discerning consumers.
Cannabis connoisseurs and the canna-curious alike want to know what goes into cultivating the most satisfying weed. In an industry that is becoming more democratized every day, with hundreds of producers to choose from and most Canadians able to grow their own at home, customers want to know what they’re paying for.
Top Leaf is striving to show the world what sets the experience of top-end cannabis so high above the average. With meticulous research and development, they’re helping to develop the science of high-performance growing practices—not in terms of quick and easy profit, but with regards to creating the ultimate luxurious experience for the refined cannabis consumer.
What should you look for in premium cannabis flower?
Each cultivar (or strain) is like a different animal. They each require their own fine-tuned treatment to express the magic in their genes, so the optimization process is multiplied by each cultivar.
To ensure you’re getting the best possible flower, use your senses. Pay close attention to the bud’s visual appeal, such as the trichome coating (resin crystals), the deep, sometimes variegated colour, and the fullness of the bud.
There should be very little stem and smooth, sugared leaves, and a nice, dense feeling for the size of the bud. Also, notice how it smokes; you want a clean, distinct flavour, with white ash that burns well overtime. When you hit that goldmine of a beautiful, flavourful flower that produces a silky-smooth mouthful of full-body bliss, you’ll understand exactly what premium cannabis is all about.
How do producers deliver top-notch legal bud?
It’s true that the legal market is constrained by reams of regulations controlling almost every aspect of cannabis production, but for licensed producers willing to go the extra mile (or ten), there’s still room to stand out.
At Top Leaf’s small-batch growing and processing facilities, they systematically test all the variables that affect what their plants eventually produce. It’s not a quick or easy task, and definitely not the most direct route to profit. A lot of companies just aren’t able to put in this level of process engineering, but Top Leaf is betting that when consumers experience the difference their obsession makes, they’ll become believers in the results.
From the composition of light and nutrients to special techniques used to prune and trim, every choice they make in growing and processing impacts the flavour, potency, and experience you get when you light up their bud. And managing all those details isn’t all it takes to master fine weed. Each cultivar (or strain) is like a different animal. They each require their own fine-tuned treatment to express the magic in their genes, so the optimization process is multiplied by each cultivar.
So, what really differentiates premium cannabis?
Budding desire
The Top Leaf team is devoted to gourmet weed. As a company, they want to produce the most satisfying hits that can be had, and they aren’t afraid to take the long way to success. Knowing that you get out what you put in, they have a proud history of bringing vibrant cultivars and unique flavour profiles to market.
Top Leaf’s strains, like Strawberry Cream, Jager OG, and Four-Star General, come from their vast library of outstanding genetics, including some award-winning proprietary cultivars. Each strain’s growing medium, nutrient formulations, and cultivation times are then customized to max out its most prized flavours and effects.
Ultimately, this culmination of experience, experimentation, and precision results in the smooth tasting, clean burning cannabis that turns consumers into aficionados for life.
Beauty in the details
The trim and curing of the bud can impact the final experience as much as the growing conditions, and it takes some artistry to do it right.
Once plants are grown to their highest potential, Top Leaf turns its eye to processing. The trim and curing of the bud can impact the final experience as much as the growing conditions, and it takes some artistry to do it right.
Premium cultivars produce larger cola buds, and Top Leaf harvesters gather the most opulent of these from higher parts of the plant. These ‘top leaves’ tend to be better quality and produce a more luxurious smoke than those lower on the stem. The most well-kept flowers boast a rich coating of trichome crystals, swelling with powerful cannabinoids and delicious terpenes.
A premium trim job really showcases the beauty of the flower. Top Leaf prunes and trims by hand to ensure fewer leaves and stem material are left on, so you get the maximum yield of each strain’s special profile. After harvest, they slow cure each flower to fully release the natural flavours from the plant’s glistening resins.
Top Leaf is obsessed with bringing out the best in their plants. Led by horticulturalists and backed by scientific innovation, they’ve got everything you want behind your bud: brains, beauty, and passion for the perfect smoke.
“We’re always striving to improve and learn what works best with each and every cultivar,” says Jay Anthony, VP of Cultivation. With their bone-deep devotion to enhancing every aspect of cannabis bliss, there’s no doubt that this premium cultivator will continue to grow above the crowd.
Top Leaf products are grown in Alberta and will be available for purchase in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario by the end of the year. Plans are in place for a nationwide expansion.
