:best buds

The SQDC sells cannabis-infused soft drinks — no really, they do.

This episode of Best Buds is going to be about exactly that: trying out beverages with a small amount of THC (and sometimes CBD) in the mix, and seeing if they can produce an even remotely similar experience to those of edibles and regular old flowers.

Ultimately, these beverages did a decent job of giving me a slight pick-me-up when I was coming down from being high while smoking. If you’re looking for something to allow your high to catch a second wind, these might just do the job. As such, I tried three beverages by three different companies, all with distinct flavours and varying end results. Here’s how they stacked up.

HOUSEPLANT GRAPEFRUIT

Admittedly, I’m not much of a sparkling water person in the best of times (apologies to all you Perrier stans out there). However, any weed product with Seth Rogen’s name attached to it is going to pique my interest — he is, after all, one of my dream celebrity joint-sharing partners. Sold by Houseplant, a company Rogen and close friend/longtime collaborator Evan Goldberg started together, this attempt at cannabisinfused grapefruit sparkling water is a decent one, but nonetheless leaves certain elements to be desired. Mainly, the fizziness and wateriness overpowers the grapefruit flavour itself. That said, it definitely creates a decent high despite there being only 2.5 mg of THC involved. Seth, if you’re reading this: good first effort, but cranking up the flavour and fruitiness would push it over the top. 7/10

LITTLE VICTORY SPARKLING BLOOD ORANGE

Now we’re talking! This cannabis beverage, sold by Belleville, ON-based company

Truss, has a blood orange flavour that packs a LOT more punch, and the same amount of THC (2.5 mg). I decided to give it a spin while watching the new Woodstock

’99 documentary from HBO. Long story short: I’m glad I was only eight in 1999, and therefore couldn’t go. My GOD it looked like a disaster wrapped in a catastrophe, burning in a dumpster fire. Actually, the massive bonfires during the final night’s riots were a pitch-perfect metaphor for that entire weekend. Also, the late ’90s were a more embarrassing time than I remembered. In any case, the beverage itself tastes delicious and goes down smoothly. 8.5/10

MOLLO 5

The design for this one looks endearingly like an indigo-coloured take on the Red Stripe bottle. Unsurprisingly, it tastes more or less like a non-alcoholic beer, since it contains noticeable amounts of both hops and malted barley. But don’t let its appearance fool you: it packs twice as much THC (5 mg) as the previous two beverages, AND brings 5 mg worth of CBD along with it. The taste itself is nothing to write home about, but I take a few sips of it and I feel VERY lifted while walking to the dep to buy some munchies. It also doesn’t take too long to kick in, instead hitting hard during the onset before gradually coming down a little too quickly. All in all, a good beverage for getting a relaxing buzz, but one that lacks staying power once you’ve dived in. 6.5/10e