Cannabis Basics
What Is Hash?
A cannabis concentrate, hash is kief that’s been formed into a brick using heat and pressure. Here are some tips on how to consume it, the pros and cons of choosing hash, and shopping and potency considerations.
Published on February 20, 2021 | Last updated October 25, 2024
With a history that spans thousands of years, hash, or hashish, is one of the many varieties of cannabis concentrates. The goal of producing concentrates is to isolate the cannabinoids and terpenes from the plant material (like buds and leaves) to produce a liquid or solid substance that can be inhaled or ingested. Hash consists of kief, the sticky, crystal-like substance at the head of the plant’s trichomes, which are the mushroom-shaped glands on the plant’s leaves.
Hash’s aroma and appearance depend on the cannabis plant it’s made from and the techniques used to process it. Because it contains less chlorophyll than cannabis, hash has a richer, earthier scent with fewer fresh or grassy notes. Its colour can range from light golden amber to dark brown or black and may show hints of green.
What is chlorophyll?
Chlorophyll is a natural pigment responsible for the green colour of plants, including cannabis. It plays a pivotal role in plant growth, helping transform sunlight into energy in the process of photosynthesis. In cannabis, chlorophyll contributes a grassy, potentially bitter flavour, which can be undesirable. Curing, distillation, extraction and other production methods all help remove chlorophyll from cannabis.
Different types of hash
Hash is an ancient product, and over time and around the world, people have invented various ways to produce and consume it. The types you’ll commonly find at Authorized Cannabis Stores in Ontario tend to fall into three categories.
Pressed hash
When you think of hash, you likely envision pressed hash: refined kief that’s been compacted by hand, mechanical press or heated press into a cube, a ball or strips. Heat and pressure rupture the kief’s resin glands, changing the composition from a loose, sticky powder to a solid substance. Typically, a hash brick will have a darker outer layer and lighter interior. Temple balls are a particular form of pressed hash that are rolled by hand.
Powdered hash
Powered hash is sometimes classified as kief. Both terms refer to hash that hasn’t been pressed into a solid form yet. Powdered hash is also sold as sift, dry sift and dry sieve, names that indicate that it has been — you guessed it — sifted.
Bubble hash
Bubble hash is a newer product produced by washing the trichomes from cannabis and filtering them through screens. The refined kief is then collected, dried and pressed. Instead of burning, bubble hash bubbles when flame is applied, hence the name. Bubble hash is graded on a six-star scale, and the highest quality — full-melt or six-star bubble hash — will “melt” or disappear when heated.
How is hash made?
Hash is a solventless concentrate traditionally made by scraping the sticky bits off cannabis harvesters’ hands. Some ancient methods of hash-making like this are still in use today, while others were developed in the past half-century. Here are some ways hash is commonly made for Ontario consumers.
How hash is made by hand
There are a limited number of hand-rolled hash products on the Ontario market, but making hash on your own is as simple as removing kief from a bud and rolling it into a pleasing shape. Some grinders even contain screens designed to collect the kief that falls off when you grind flower, and scrapers to collect it. Once you’ve gathered enough, roll it into a ball with your hands, and presto — you just made hash!
How hash is made by sifting
Dry sift hash is made by passing buds through a series of screens, each one finer than the last and then gathering the kief. Hash makers use brushes to pass the kief across the series of screens and into a collection container. Some Licensed Producers use specially designed tumblers fitted with screens or mesh shaker bags to achieve the same results, and some may freeze the cannabis with ice or dry ice first so the trichomes break off more easily. From there, the kief is typically pressed and heated into the desired shape.
How hash is made with ice water
Compared to other methods, straining trichomes through ice water and screens is a relatively new procedure, gaining popularity in North America in the late 1990s. This process can also be achieved using hash-washing machines. The resulting product is bubble hash.
How is hash consumed?
Unless it’s being smoked in a joint, hash requires a specific accessory for consumption, such as a pipe, bong, concentrate-specific vaporizer or dried flower vaporizer with a concentrate attachment.
Hash generally isn’t appropriate for dabbing, but highly concentrated bubble hash, labelled “full-melt” or “six-star” (the stars refer to the quality) can be. If you are new to cannabis, dabbing is not recommended — it is a complicated process that can produce strong, immediate effects, and it may increase your risk of overconsuming and experiencing negative effects.
What are the pros and cons of hash?
When vaporized or dabbed, hash offers a smoke-free option to inhaling dried cannabis flower, which can come with potential risks associated with smoking.
Because hash is a highly concentrated product, you should consume less than you would dried cannabis flower. However, the concentration also comes with the potential for overconsumption. To minimize the risk, Health Canada recommends that you start with a very small amount, especially if you are trying a new product, and wait to see how it affects your body.
While the correct dosage for you depends on many variables, such as your weight, how much food you consumed prior to consumption and your metabolic rate, try starting with a pinch (roughly the size of a dime).
What should I consider when shopping for hash?
Like all concentrates, hash differs from other forms of cannabis in that it has the potential to contain a higher concentration of cannabinoids: up to 60% tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, for example, in contrast to the potential 30% in raw cannabis. Concentrates available through the OCS that are meant to be inhaled can contain no more than 1,000 mg of THC per package.
