Fans of cannabis concentrates are always on the look-out for more potency and more flavor. Where shatters and isolates may fall short in the taste category, crumble waxes deliver.
What Exactly Is Crumble Wax?
Crumble wax is a weed extract made through a similar process as shatter. To create either product, processors extract cannabis resin from the plant with a solvent such as butane. During the purging steps, manufacturers apply heat and vacuum filtration to remove the solvents.
To create crumble wax, processors simply use lower heats and longer vacuum times than they would when making shatter. The result is a drier, more delicate concentrate that resembles a honeycomb. Once the fragile honeycomb breaks apart, it becomes crumble wax.
With some legal weed producers scrambling to keep up with demand, why take the extra time to craft crumble?
Heat can cause a loss of terpenes, the aromatic compounds in cannabis resin that give weed its sought-after scents and flavors. Excessive heat will evaporate or burn these delicious components from the wax, so making crumble should preserve its terpene contents.
Higher heats can also break down the plant’s various chemical compounds into carcinogens. Although few studies have looked at carcinogens in concentrates, theoretically, lower heats should minimize the chance that crumble wax will contain these cancer-causing agents.
As for potency, crumbles don’t offer anything new there. They boast roughly the same THC values as other popular concentrates.
How to Puff Crumble Wax
Like other concentrates and extracts, the most efficient way to get crumble wax into the lungs is by dabbing.
Dabbing vaporizes the wax by brief application to a hot nail. Nails will completely vaporize the crumble at higher temperatures. However, many dabbers prefer lower temperatures, which better keeps the terpenes intact, leading to a tastier experience.
If going the low-temperature route, be sure to remove any remaining oils from the nail before starting another dab. Residual oils left behind may contain toxic breakdown products.
Unlike shatters, crumble wax may be difficult to stick to a wand, an instrument used to apply the wax to a dab rig nail. If that’s the case, gently heat the wand, then dip it into the crumble. Just a wee bit of heat should be enough to slightly melt some of the crumble so it will bond to the wand long enough to transfer to the nail.
For those who prefer to roll their weed in joints or blunts, crumbles can be sprinkled across the flower prior to twisting them up. This method will jack up the joint’s potency (and harshness on the lungs), so puff with caution.
Crumble wax is an excellent way to accurately dose homemade edibles, too. Packages should list THC content on the labels. After determining how elevated you and your friends want to get, just dissolve the wax in warm cooking oil or butter when making some baked goods.
Frying with crumble wax is not recommended, as the intense heat could smoke out the wax’s good stuff before anyone takes the first bite. That may limit the range of infused dishes you can cook, but that’s just how the (cannabis) cookie crumbles.
Related:
- How to Make Awesome Bubble Hash with Your Weed
- What Is a Rosin Press and How Do You Make One for Yourself?
- What Is Hash and What Makes It So Sticky?
Follow Randy Robinson on Twitter
