Gone are the days when there were just a few traditional methods of consuming cannabis. Now, you can choose from a full range of ways to ingest your marijuana, from smoking to vaping to edibles to concentrates and even cannabis-infused drinks. Cannabis-infused drinks are one of the consumption methods that are still growing in popularity. You can undoubtedly find cannabis-infused drinks for sale, but you can also make them yourself at home.
Understanding Marijuana Drinks
A marijuana drink is any drink that has been infused with cannabis or one of its key components, like THC or CBD. Drinks infused with cannabis function in the same way as any other edibles, but they give you another way of consuming cannabis.
How You Process the Cannabis
Your body processes marijuana drinks in the same way it does other types of edibles, doing so orally. The drink makes its way through your digestive system, and as it does so, the effects will start to take place.
Because of this, you should expect similar effects as you would with edibles, including the greater effects and delayed onset. As with edibles, the increased intensity is mostly due to your body converting the THC into 11-hydroxy-THC, which is longer-lasting and more powerful.
What to Expect
You want to avoid consuming too much of a marijuana drink at once, at least the first few times you try it, because you may easily find yourself overwhelmed.
Additionally, the timing will be somewhat similar to that of edibles. Expect to wait 30 to 90 minutes or so for the effects to take place. They will likely peak at two to three hours after you enjoy your drink and then last four to 12 hours.
Drinks Can Enhance the High
Choosing to drink your marijuana in your favorite beverage gives you the chance to enhance your high in some way, supplementing it with the effects or benefits of your drink of choice.
Tea
Many teas are known for their soothing properties or other effects, such as peppermint tea’s ability to help with digestion issues. Infusing these teas with cannabis will let you take advantage of the benefits of the tea along with the effects of the cannabis. Or you could combine cannabis with chamomile tea to feel more relaxed and sleepier.
Alcohol
Combining cannabis with alcohol enhances the psychoactive effects of marijuana, making this a popular combination. Just keep in mind that you should always start with smaller quantities the first time you try cannabis-infused alcohol because of the way alcohol and THC interact.
Coffee
On the other hand, if you infuse your coffee with cannabis, you will likely experience a high that is more stimulating.
Others Benefits of Marijuana Drinks
In addition to enhancing your high, there are plenty of other reasons for the rise in popularity of marijuana drinks, with each person having their combination of reasons.
Simple to Use
Just like edibles, many people enjoy marijuana drinks because they are easy to use. After all, you just have to drink them like you would water or any other non-THC-infused beverage. This means there is no learning curve, for instance, when learning the proper technique to smoke, vape, or dab cannabis.
Flavors
Others appreciate the delicious flavors available for marijuana drinks. After all, you can infuse any drink with marijuana, letting you enjoy any flavor you want. From your favorite cocktail to a smoothie to tea, you can choose a drink that has your preferred flavors.
Discretion
As with edibles, marijuana drinks can be discreet, since no one around you has to know what is in your beverage.
More Potent High
As mentioned earlier, because your body has to digest the drink before you can enjoy the THC in a marijuana drink, you end up reacting to the more potent 11-hydroxy-THC. Many people choose drinks (or other edibles) for this more potent high that lasts longer.
Microdosing Is Possible
Even though marijuana drinks tend to be more potent than other methods of consuming cannabis, you can easily overcome this by opting for drinks that have microdoses of THC, such as 2.5 to 5 milligrams.
How to Make Your Marijuana Drinks: The Basics
There are a few different methods of making your marijuana drinks, but it is straightforward to do yourself with cannabis butter, tinctures, and other similar products.
Use Cannabis Tinctures – The Simplest Option
If you are short on time or do not want to have to make cannabutter or syrup, then the simplest method of making a cannabis drink is to use a tincture. These are liquid-based THC-infused products that are easy to find and mix very well with drinks. Even better, they are usually sold in bottles with droppers so that you can measure your dose with ease. There are also CBD tinctures available if you want some of the cannabis effects without the psychoactive ones.
Use Cannabis Butter
Cannabis butter is an incredibly popular option, primarily because THC binds with the fat in the butter. Once you decarboxylate the cannabis and cook it into the butter, you can then incorporate this butter into any drink you want, from smoothies to tea to hot chocolate.
Of course, if you use cannabutter to make your marijuana drink, you can expect it to have at least a hint of butter in the flavor. Some people do not want that taste in their drinks, while others may not like the consistency that the butter gives the drinks.
Use Cannabis Syrup or Oil
You can also make your cannabis syrup or oil and then mix that into your drink of choice. This process also involves decarboxylating the weed to activate it. Although you will have to take the time to make the syrup yourself, this is a versatile choice that is easy to mix right into a range of drinks.
Infusing Cannabis With Wine
For those who want a marijuana drink that enhances the high, cannabis infused with wine is incredibly popular. As a bonus, the flavors also work well together.
In addition to the previously mentioned advantages of drinking marijuana beverages, red wine can help with health problems like cardiovascular disease. Wine has also been linked to relieving stress and anxiety.
How to Make It – With Tincture
The simplest way to turn your wine into an infused drink is to grab THC tincture and just mix a few drops into a glass of wine. Just remember to start with a small dose of five to 10 milligrams or so to start. Not only is THC in drinks more potent than when you smoke it, but the alcohol will enhance its effects.
How to Make It – With a “Tea Bag”
If you prefer, you can also take your favorite wine and infuse it with cannabis using a “tea bag” you make out of cannabis. Start by decarboxylating your marijuana to activate the THC. Grind up the decarboxylated cannabis and put it inside a pouch you make out of cheesecloth. If you cannot find cheesecloth, clean pantyhose also work.
Open your bottle of wine, submerge this “tea bag” fully in the container, and reseal it. Let it infuse in your refrigerator for around a day. For the best results, take the bottle out and agitate it every couple of hours. Before removing the “tea bag,” wring it out to maximize the potency of your wine.
How to Make It – Boil With Spices
For those times you are in a holiday mood, you can make spiced cannabis wine. Start by putting your wine in a large pot on the stove. Grind your weed coarsely (about 28 grams for a bottle of wine), then put it in the saucepan with the wine. Add spices of your choice, such as four cloves, one orange, 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon each of cardamom and nutmeg for a bottle of wine.
Boil the mixture, letting it stay at a rolling boil for around two hours, while keeping the lid closed. Make sure to check it regularly, so you can ensure that there is not too much evaporation. Use a cheesecloth to strain the cannabis spiced wine and enjoy it. Just keep in mind that this version will be particularly potent.
Cannabis and Wine Have Been Combined for Centuries
You may be interested to know that infusing wine with cannabis is nothing new, as people have been enjoying the two together for centuries. There is some indication that cannabis-infused wine was used for meditation and religious practices in the past.
Infusing Cannabis With Tea
As mentioned earlier, when you infuse tea with cannabis, you get to take advantage of the beneficial properties of tea, such as its antioxidants. Antioxidants bind to the body’s cannabinoid receptors, which is also how marijuana interacts with your body. Additionally, tea tends to be soothing, helping with anxiety, sleep, and relaxation, depending on the type of tea.
How to Make It
Making cannabis-infused tea can be as simple or as complicated as you want. You can take your leftover marijuana stems and steep them in boiling coconut milk, then strain it. The hot water will decarboxylate the stems for you.
Or you can use cannabis butter or a tincture to turn your favorite tea into a cannabis-infused drink. Just add a little of the butter or tincture and mix it in thoroughly.
Infusing Cannabis With Smoothies
Smoothies also lend themselves well to being infused with cannabis, thanks to the fact that you blend everything. This also lets you supplement the cannabis with the numerous nutrients you put in your smoothie, including all the antioxidants or minerals in the various ingredients.
How to Make It
Making a cannabis-infused smoothie is incredibly straightforward. Just add some tincture or cannabis butter to your mixer before you finish blending the smoothie. You can add it at the same time you add other ingredients or add it at the end once everything else is mixed and smooth. Just be sure to blend the THC in thoroughly, which your blender will certainly help with.
Infusing Cannabis With Other Drinks
The sky’s the limit when it comes to infusing cannabis with other drinks. You can add cannabis butter or a THC tincture to a milkshake, cocktail, protein shake, fruit juice, or nearly anything else. Hot chocolate and coffee are also great options. Or, if you prefer beer, you can also add some THC tincture to your favorite brew. You could also add it to soda if you want.
Many Types Are Available for Purchase
Depending on the type of drink you want to infuse with cannabis, there is also a reasonably good chance that you can buy one that already contains it. For example, there are already juices and smoothies that contain cannabis. Some of these will include THC, while others just have CBD without THC to make them legal in more areas.
You May Have to Infuse Your Alcohol
There is one caveat to the availability of cannabis-infused drinks, and that is alcohol. Depending on where you live, you may not legally be able to buy a drink that contains both alcohol and THC. Because of the way that these two enhance each other’s effects, many areas only allow for one or the other to be sold on-premises.
This was even the case in California, which is known for its liberal stance on marijuana, as of 2018. Stances are relaxing, however, so it is now easier to find cannabis-infused alcohol than it was a few years ago. Even so, this particular segment of the market is still less prevalent than other cannabis-infused drinks.
Conclusion
Marijuana drinks are a convenient, discreet, and delicious method of consuming cannabis. They let you enjoy the flavor of your drink, along with the effects of cannabis. Depending on the beverage, it may even provide benefits that enhance the effects of cannabis. You can either buy cannabis-infused drinks or make your own using THC tincture, cannabutter, or a homemade cannabis syrup.