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Ontario Cannabis Fieldnotes: How High-End Chocolate Cannabis Truffles Are Created
Todd Neault, founder of cannabis chocolatier Rosin Heads, knew he had something special when he crafted his raspberry peanut butter cup edible.
Rosin Heads uses hash rosin sourced from a fellow Ontario producer that decarboxylates bubble hash slowly at low temperatures. According to Neault, this approach enables the hash to hold on to more minor cannabinoids and terpenes, offering edibles fans an experience more akin to inhaling than to consuming conventional edibles that are made with distillate THC.
What is Hash Rosin?
Hash is a concentrated form of cannabis made by applying heat and pressure to a flower’s trichome glands.
Hash rosin is considered one of the purest forms of cannabis. It is made from bubble hash, which uses ice and water to extract trichomes from flower. Once that bubble hash is created, it is pressed and heated to produce rosin.
Hash-infused products can trigger stronger psychoactive reactions than conventional cannabis products.
The intensity and longevity of the effects produced by edible hash products depend on individual factors such as weight, sex, amount of food ingested prior to consumption and metabolic rate.
Consumption amount depends on your body’s response; try a small amount and wait at least two hours to determine any potential effects.
In fact, Neault reports that the rosin he uses has more than 7.5% terpenes after the decarboxylation (decarb) process.
“It’s a full-spectrum experience. It’s not just straight THC [as with distillate],” Neault says, explaining that both THC distillation and high-heat hash decarb processes tend to strip out the minor cannabinoids and terpenes that make each cannabis strain unique. Meanwhile, he says, the low-heat hash decarb process is better at preserving minor cannabinoids and terpenes, resulting in edibles that more closely resemble the entourage effect of inhaling cannabis flower.
It’s clear Rosin Heads is not Neault’s first rodeo.
Rosin Heads comes at a time when professional chefs and home culinary wizards alike are seeking ways to elevate the cannabis–food experience.
The idea of bringing culinary refinement to the cannabis experience is already popular in the United States, where chefs are operating exclusive dining rooms featuring elaborate, multi-course gourmet meals infused with cannabis. This idea is catching on in Canada, though is still relatively hard to find.
Neault’s decision to invest in fine hash chocolates is definitely ahead of the curve in Canada.
It’s also a calculated risk. He’s aware his edibles come at a higher price point than others on the market; all Rosin Heads chocolates currently come in single-piece packages with 10 mg of THC for $8.95 apiece. (He’s working on a new format of two pieces each at 5 mg THC, which he hopes to roll out this summer.) But, he says, “the quality speaks for itself.”
Neault exclusively uses hash rosin, a sticky, solventless paste resembling the texture of maple butter or creamed honey. He says it’s a good companion for chocolate because of the ways the terpene flavours are able to meld with the cocoa.
All of his current truffles are made with Orange Tingz hash rosin, whose citrusy nose pairs nicely with the nuts, fruits and spices Neault selects for his truffle fillings. That said, he’s got a long list of recipes to develop in the future.
Terpene flavour pairings
Ever wonder why different strains of cannabis have wildly different flavour profiles?
It’s all about the terps. Check out Todd Neault’s recommendations on flavour pairings with top terpenes:
Caryophyllene: spicy, black pepper, cloves. Pair with: pumpkin pie, carrot cake, meat
Linalool: sweet, floral, citrus. Pair with: vanilla, cream
Limonene: citrus. Pair with: strawberry shortcake, key lime pie, Greek salad
Myrcene: musky, earthy. Pair with: matcha, mango, mushroom ravioli
Terpinolene: herbal with hints of pine, citrus. Pair with: tea, pesto, Mediterranean cuisine
“When I first started this brand,” Neault explains, “the first thing I did was list all the chocolate products I wanted to make that I had recipes already developed for. I listed a column with the terpenes that would match that, and then I had three strains beside that.”
The goal was to allow some of the cannabis taste to shine through, without being so overpowering that it scared off the clientele of relatively new cannabis users.
“I spent a lot of time pairing it,” he continues. “I think I’ve hit the best of both worlds. The people that want cannabis can taste it a little bit. For the people that don’t, I’ve mastered it enough that it’s not off-putting.”
His number-one seller is the raspberry peanut butter cup — “a familiar, comforting indulgence,” says Neault. His chocolate peanut butter cup is also popular.
Other flavours include a white chocolate truffle filled with pistachio paste, which Neault says is his favourite, as well as a carrot cake truffle with notes of cinnamon and cream cheese icing.
Compared to the blockbuster success of the raspberry peanut butter cup, Neault says those two are not currently getting the same attention from the marketplace. Even so, he remains hopeful that he can change some minds with his refined take on cannabis-infused chocolate.
“The edibles consumer seems to play it safe, and that’s what I’m trying to change — you know, get people out of that comfort zone,” he says.
