MARCH 2018
HIGH STAKES Investing in cannabis market could prove to be ultimate gamble
WILL U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL SESSIONS' TERMINATION OF COLE MEMO IMPACT YOUR ACCESS? JUST DESSERTS: A REVIEW OF THE SWEETEST CANNABIS IN NEVADA EMERGE: IMPACT + MUSIC MAKES DEBUT IN LAS VEGAS
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from the editor
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Contributing Writers: Justin Alexander, Derek Connor, chef Celena Esquer, Richard Gubbe, Deanna Rilling
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2018 got off to a rather inauspicious start for the cannabis industry when U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole Memo on January 4. The role of the Cole memo was to afford certain protections to the cannabis industry in states that have legalized marijuana. You can read about both its origins and potential impact on cannabis access in “Cole Memo Confusion” penned by local attorney Derek Connors on page 32. I bring this up because although Sessions is intent on bringing a chill to the industry and hinder access to cannabis, there is a federal lawsuit which could change that. On February 14, Manhattan Federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein heard arguments for a July 2017 lawsuit in which several medical marijuana users sued the federal government for access to cannabis. The lawsuit has a variety of plaintiffs that include Alexis Bortell, a 12-year-old girl with epilepsy, who successfully uses whole-plant cannabis to treat her seizures, and seven-year-old Jagger Cotte, who has Leigh's Disease and has been able to prolong his life by more than two years by using THCconcentrated medical marijuana. The heart of the plaintiffs’ case is the claim that the federal ban on cannabis violates the U.S. Constitution. Under the 1970 Controlled Substances Act, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug, meaning that it is considered to have a high potential for abuse and no medical use. The plaintiffs’ lead attorney Michael Hiller made short order of cannabis’ lack of medical value by introducing the medical conditions of his clients. Hiller made such a convincing case that Judge Hellerstein commented on it during the hearing.
“Your clients are living proof of the medical applications of marijuana,” Hellerstein said. “I have to take the plausible allegations in your complaint as true. How could anyone say that your clients’ lives have not been saved by marijuana? How can anyone say that your clients’ pain and suffering has not been alleviated by marijuana? You can’t, right?” Although Judge Hellerstein didn’t doubt medical marijuana’s potential, he had reservations about whether the lawsuit could proceed on legal grounds. He concluded that he will have to consider whether he has the power to change cannabis’ Schedule I status and that plaintiffs may have to pursue Schedule I changes through the appropriate government agency, which is the Drug Enforcement Agency. While this case is being decided, one point that should not be overlooked comes in the form of U.S. Patent No. 6,630,507, which Hiller cited to reporters following the hearing. Granted in 2003 to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the patent covers the potential use of non-psychoactive cannabinoids to protect the brain from damage or degeneration caused by certain diseases, such as cirrhosis. In the case of No. 6,630,507, National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers discovered that non-psychoactive compounds in cannabis may have antioxidant properties that could be beneficial in the treatment of certain neurological diseases. It’s an astounding piece of hypocrisy, but as Dean Bortell, Alexis’ father, told Forbes after the hearing: “Kids are growing up seeing this hypocrisy...But we're going to get it done.”
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ENROLL IN CLASSES NOW The Nevada Dispensary Association offers comprehensive training options for registered agents and those looking to work in the industry. We are currently offering online training for the following courses ($75 each): Registered Agent Training Marketing and Advertising Regulations Packaging and Labeling Visitor Access and Obtaining an Agent Card The NDA will also host frequent, live training courses taught by industry experts. Each training presents valuable tools for current and future Nevada dispensary agents seeking to increase their industry knowledge. Certificates of completion available for each class. CBD (Sales and In Use Production) and New Testing Regulations by Kara Cronkhite, REHS, MPH. March 13 (Free) Delivery Protocols, Distribution regulations, and Common Deficiencies by Amanda Connor, Esq. March 13 ($75) Product/Premises Liability by Danielle Tarmu, Esq. March 28 at 10 a.m. ($75)
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JUST DESSERTS! Enjoy a taste of the sweetest cannabis in Nevada By Justin Alexander
P
atients as well as recreational users are finding themselves in consensus with Scottish journalist B.C. Forbes who famously said: “Work is the meat of life, pleasure the dessert.” The world of cannabis is increasingly turning to dessert flavor profiles as they develop new strains. It’s a win-win with the obvious upside of less calories in combination with therapeutic benefits. In fact, reaching for a dessert strain at the end of the day satisfies not only a palate-craving after-dinner sweetness, but also a mind and body ready to unwind. Nevada’s cultivations and dispensaries are taking notice of users’ desire to end their day on a sweet note. “Many patients and consumers have told us that they now prefer cannabis over cocktails, so I would definitely say that dessert style strains are becoming more popular in consumers’ evening routines,” notes Jillian Nelson, operations manager for Evergreen Organix.
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KYND CANNABIS COMPANY’S JAWA PIE Anything with pie in the name has a lot to live up to and Kynd’s Jawa Pie does not disappoint. Expect the cool refreshing flavor of mint and the tang of citrus combined with a crunchy mouthfeel and gassy scent from a few hits of Kynd’s Jawa Pie. Take a few joyous whiffs after it is ground up and soak in the delicious smell emanating from its terpene profile of myrcene (16 mg), limonene (3.3 mg) and pinene (2.5 mg). It is sublimely euphoric for an indica and the perfect go-to for total body relaxation. Made from Ocean Grown Seeds, which develops high-quality cannabis genetics, Jawa Pie has been handcrafted by artisan breeders. A blend between Key Lime Pie and Alien Rift, Jawa Pie flowers between 50 and 60 days and yields frosty, chunky buds that give great “bag appeal,” says Mike Rognier, director of cultivation at Tahoe-Reno Botanicals. “Dessert strains have been around for a long time—Strawberry Cough being one of the first I can remember. It’s all about the flavors and experiencing unique tastes.” Just like a dessert, this strain is for the end of day with a sedation factor that weighs you down to the couch like a sugar-shocking culinary finale. Much like its sweet counterpart, feel a boost from muted stress, anxiety and pain with 25.33 percent THC and 23.19 percent CBD. “[Jawa Pie] is best in a joint or a bong. I have trouble trying to stop smelling it,” Rognier says. “Real connoisseurs will treat [these types of strains] like a dessert or after-dinner drink.”
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THE GROVE'S BLUEBERRY APPLICATOR Like a decadent topping to finish off that sweet ending you can’t just take one puff of, The Grove’s Blueberry applicator adds a little something extra to your smoking regime. The blueberry applicator is a small plastic syringe used to dab, to smear on joints, or drop in a bowl. Blueberry, a strain developed by DJ Short from the landrace genetics he collected during his travels, is legendary on its own but becomes extra delightful in this concentrated form. “There are times that I’ll smoke Blueberry and it takes the place of a slice of blueberry pie,” says Margaux Hansberry, account executive at The Grove. “I don’t think that one can fully replace the other, but they do accentuate each other well. The Blueberry oil can be used to infuse blueberry dessert as it’s fully pre-activated, meaning we’ve already applied heat in the decarboxylation process to transform the THC-A into fully bioavailable Delta-9-THC.”
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Herby and spicy, the strain has high levels of tasty terpenes that include myrcene (16.4 mg), caryophyllene (13.7 mg), and linalool (13.1 mg). The effects from 706 mg of D9THC, 16.9 mg of CBG, 14.86 mg of CBC, and 8.24 mg of CBD offer a reduction in anxiety and anti-inflammation that can be felt throughout the body and mind. “Inhale after a low temp dab and feel the relaxation melt your body,” Hansberry instructs. “Keeping me alert and balanced, the Blueberry is great for a restorative yoga class or relaxing in a nice warm bath after a long day.” This is one dessert you will keep craving, long after your sweet tooth has been momentarily quenched.
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Based on its name alone, people are drawn to the fun vibe that conjures up whimsical memories of carefree days when they think of Animal Cookies. As catchy and as inviting as it sounds, Medizin’s Animal Cookies strain is a cross between Girl Scout Cookies and Fire OG. “I see new customers to cannabis choosing these [dessert] strains as a first choice,” says David Farris, Medizin’s director of marketing. Smoking Animal Cookies induces feelings of relaxation, yet has a balance that gives users the ability to maintain a clear mind. The buds are as colorful as their namesake -- frosty with tips of purple. The flavor is everything one would want from a dessert strain -- sweet, sour, earthy and pungent with a pretty even terpene profile of B-caryophyllene (2.17 mg), B-myrcene (2.46 mg), limonene (2.79 mg), and linalool (2.63 mg). Best for those who are experienced with cannabis, this strain is potent—killing pain and tackling insomnia with 22.05 percent THC and minimal amounts of CBD and CBN. “Animal Cookies is great for a late evening high after dinner,” Farris advises. “This strain will allow you to wind down and relax but also enhance your mood before going to sleep.”
CITY TREES’ BANANA KUSH DISPOSABLE VAPE PEN Imagine sucking on a Banana Runts candy and that’s almost the exact flavor you will get when smoking Banana Kush— without the unneeded sugar, of course, and with
the benefit of a terpene profile that includes pinene (4.4 mg), myrcene (4.2 mg) and limonene (12.6 mg). “While some say Banana Kush is Ghost OG crossed with Skunk Haze, our Banana Kush is a strain profile recreated using isolated terpenes and THC distillate. We use test results as our "recipe" and have created a mouthwatering blend of natural terpenes and distilled THC,” explains Don Decatur, director of operations, City Trees, maker of Banana Kush disposable vape pen. “I think the names of the strains have now been specifically marketed to take advantage of people’s fondness for sweets,” points out Decatur of the dessert weed trend and how it is growing in popularity throughout the cannabis industry. Satisfying those with a sweet tooth and those who need mental relief (testing at 66.73 percent THC and 0.29 percent CBN), the indica-dominant Banana Kush is euphoric and mellow—evoking the sunny, rich nature of the fruit for which it was named. Doing double duty, it can be used to curb cravings of many different kinds.
Experience the Difference.
GRAPE STOMPER BY DEEP ROOTS HARVEST There is something so right yet so wrong about grape soda. Many of us give it up as adults— moving on to a new kind of grape drink. Something you won’t want to give up is Grape Stomper, a hybrid strain with an impressive pedigree—a cross between Purple Elephant and Chemdawg Sour Diesel—and a delicious berry smell with a taste that’s comprised of B-caryophyllene (0.87 mg), B-myrcene (6.03 mg), limonene (1.01 mg), B-pinene (0.31 mg), and ocimene (0.46 mg). The sugary, even smoke first comes on as a tingle that moves from head to toe and then fades away into a relaxed and uplifted vibe. Socially, this is a flower that can be used when you need to interact with other people because it offers an “all smiles” high. Visually, this is a beautiful flower with an exotic, pointy look. It’s best suited for a midday pick-me-up as it will give you a kick in the energy department with 18.83 percent THC, expanding the mind and keeping the gears moving.
CANNABIOTIX’S CHERRY PIE There’s nothing quite as sweet and fragrant as the essence of fresh baked Cherry Pie. Warrant certainly gave it a wink and a nod when they released their song of the same name in 1990 with lyrics of: “She's my cherry pie, cool drink of water such a sweet surprise, tastes so good make a grown man cry, sweet cherry pie, oh yeah.” Cannabiotix plays to those feelings and
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sensations with a strain that embodies all its namesake’s confectionary qualities. “We call it "the Cherry Pie goodbye," because it's like you take a few hits, and you're literally on your way to a long nap,” says TJ Burinski, head cultivator at Cannabiotix. “It's one of those strains that gives the perfect example of how THC percentage is not everything because compared to some of our others it will not test as high in potential Delta-9-THC, but I would put it up against our strongest in terms of actual effect.” At 22.49 percent THC, the high comes on in minutes and stays for a couple of hours leaving you happy and relaxed. Floral buds with a dark purple hue, these sappy nugs are every experienced smoker’s dream, meaning extremely strong in all the right ways with a terpene mix of limonene (1.4 mg), myrcene (24.0 mg), linalool (2.2 mg), pinene (2.7 mg), and caryophyllene (4.5 mg). This one will make you smile and you most likely won’t even know why. Anxiety melts away into a haze. Great for those who don’t want to wait for their high and for those who love an after-dinner treat while remaining alert and conversational.
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This vape tastes remarkably like ripe, sweet blackberry pie. An indica cross between Afghani and Blackberry, you will recognize this oil’s sweet berry flavor as the perfect palate-engager after dinner. “Given the indica heritage of the strain, people use it to both satisfy their sweet tooth and for a relaxing high at the end of a long day,” says Jillian Nelson, operations manager for Evergreen Organix. “Many patients and consumers have told us that they now prefer cannabis over cocktails, so I would definitely say that dessert-style strains are becoming more popular in consumers’ evening routines.” Patients turn to Blackberry Kush for the relief of high pain levels thanks to its strong body effects resulting from 28.98 percent THC and 2.34 percent CBN. This medicine takes patients on a relaxation journey with its long lasting sweet earthy smoke and a terpene profile of limonene (27.79 mg), B-myrcene (13.83 mg) and B-caryophyllene (12.11 mg). It’s great for giving you meditation vibes and the door to that blissful state between being awake and a dreamland filled with visions of sugar plums.
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Cooking Cannabis MEDITERRANEAN FLATBREAD
by chef Celena Esquer, a.k.a. the Blaz’n Chef, .cannabisfreshfoods.com
MEDITERRANEAN FLATBREAD RECIPE INGREDIENTS: 1¼ cup all-purpose flour ½ tsp. of salt 4 Tbsp. of olive oil 1 package instant yeast ½ cup of water at temperature of 110° to 120° degrees Fahrenheit
INSTRUCTIONS: In a food processor add flour, olive oil, salt, and yeast. Mix for 30 seconds, before you add water. Make sure it is at an appropriate temperature for your choice of yeast. Add water and mix the dough for one minute. Remove dough and form a perfect ball, cover the ball with a towel for 15 to 30 minutes. Cut into two equal portions and make two dough balls then cover with towel again, let rest for 10 minutes. Add flour to rolling station and roll out dough into an oval shape, don’t overwork dough. Be sure to heat ungreased cast iron pan for 5 to 10 minutes before cooking flatbread. The pan needs to be nice and hot. Once your dough is rolled out, place it onto an ungreased cast iron heated pan and cook dough on each side for 1 to 2 minutes or until dough is cooked. Wrap flatbread in a towel until ready to put the sauce on it. Yields 2 flatbreads. Please remember when cooking with medicinal cannabis you are cooking with a medicine and the medicine amount and portions of the food ingested should always be taken into consideration. Always start out with small portions or doses and wait 30 minutes to an hour before eating any additional portions of food that has been medicated.
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INGREDIENTS: 2 Tbsp. of CBD coconut oil 3 medium diced tomatoes 3 chopped garlic cloves ¼ cup of water 1 tsp. of paprika 1 tsp. of oregano
1 tsp. of onion powder ½ tsp. of ground cumin ½ tsp. of fennel ½ tsp. of chili flakes 2 Tbsp. of tomato paste salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS: In a pan, heat coconut oil on a low to medium flame. Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and garlic then sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add rest of ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes or until it has a nice sauce consistency. When done add to blender and blend into sauce and set aside.
FLATBREAD PREPARATION For this flatbread I like to top it with my favorite toppings, but you can add whatever you love on your own flatbread. One flatbread feeds two. Add as many toppings as you like, here are some suggestions: • fresh spinach • fresh basil • sliced tomatoes • grated mozzarella cheese • mozzarella chunks • shredded parmesan • grated parmesan • 2 Tbsp. of cannabis olive oil
INSTRUCTIONS: Preheat oven to 375° degrees Fahrenheit. Place foil on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Place 1 flatbread on the baking pan and add 2 Tbsp. of cannabis oil with a brush, be sure to spread evenly for equal dosage. Next, evenly add Mediterranean Sauce you prepared over your whole flatbread followed by shredded mozzarella cheese and shredded parmesan. Top flatbread with spinach then sliced tomatoes. In between tomatoes add mozzarella chunks, finally sprinkle with grated parmesan and thin slices of basil and bake at 375° degrees Fahrenheit for 15 to 20 minutes or to your preference. Feel free to serve with a favorite salad. Enjoy!
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Poppy
Cuco
CupcakKe
Madame Gandhi
THIS ONE’S FOR THE ADVENTURERS Emerge: Impact + Music debuts in Las Vegas next month By Deanna Rilling
Get ready to discover some of your favorite new artists and inspiring speakers with a fresh experience arriving on the city’s music scene. Introducing Emerge, the brainchild of Rehan Choudhry, best known for bringing Life is Beautiful to Downtown Las Vegas. The inaugural “Impact + Music” will take place on and near the Las Vegas Strip April 6-8 for a carefully curated experience showcasing first-rate rising talent and innovating talks the music world will be buzzing about. “We’re not quite a festival because we’re not built in a large, empty field the way you would normally picture a music festival, but we’re not quite a conference in a stuffy, corporate environment either,” says Emerge founder Choudhry. “What we wanted to do was build a hybrid experience where we could bring in young, passionate music fans in the same room with the music industry and a whole
series of people who are actively trying to make the world a better place through some interesting social progress. The goal is ultimately to create a high-energy, fun, yet incredibly insightful experience that’s really diverse in nature.” Unlike events such as South by Southwest that has thousands of bands for an undertaking that can be difficult to navigate, Emerge focuses on approximately 70 artists who Choudhry says will be the next breakouts on the music scene. In addition to the music, Emerge also exists to create a diverse learning opportunity where a wide range of audiences can hear intriguing speeches and network with industry insiders. While Choudhry’s previous foray, Life is Beautiful, focused on big headliners, Emerge highlights niche spaces and a more intimate experience. “Where Life is Beautiful is on one end of the spectrum of mainstream popularity, Emerge is very much for the type of person who feels like taking some
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risks and wants to be on the cutting edge of both music and ideas,” says Choudhry. “This event is far more for discovery, whereas Life is Beautiful is very much a way to celebrate the music, food and art that you have been a champion of for many years.” Emerge also took a non-traditional approach to booking artists. “We wanted to build a model that we can replicate year after year and give us credibility for being a curator of emerging talent,” Choudhry says. “So, what we did was create a proprietary system where we started with a list of industry tastemakers who had a lot of credibility in identifying the next big artist.” From respected industry agents to the owner of the Brooklyn Bowl, Emerge has a wide range of people skilled in identifying talent early in their careers. “We put a list of 30 people together and they submitted lists of artists who they felt were the next breaking acts, and then we took that long list and we put it through a data algorithm of sorts that we developed with Spotify.” With this proprietary algorithm, the Emerge team identified artists on the rise who have yet to break into the mainstream. “We're even seeing a few artists grow beyond what our ranking system would be to accept them,” says Choudhry. So far, Emerge has landed artists who are making waves in their own ways like Hurray for the Riff Raff, Poppy,
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Waxahatchee, CupcakKe, and Cuco, while also attracting more-established rockers such as OK Go, who will be putting a new twist on the usual set by performing live along to their storied viral music videos. Choudry notes that Emerge’s speaker sessions will also be a highlight for attendees. He is most looking forward to Madame Gandhi, MIA’s drummer and women’s rights activist, as well as Dylan Marron from the “Conversations With People Who Hate Me” series. Choudhry explains that Emerge uses the concept of “blended showcases” where both musical performances and speaking/learning content are built into them. “You could go to a music showcase that's hyper-focused on hip-hop and EDM artists can be speaking at it, or you could go to the showcase called ‘Speaking Truth to Power’ and it features a bunch of artists who have more of a punk-rock edge or attitude to them or a little more anti-establishment to them, and that one could have more of an impact storyline,” says Choudhry. Another dynamic showcase on the Emerge agenda is “Speed-Dating with God,” moderated by singer/songwriter Jill Sobule it will involve a panel of musicians who each identify with a particular religion. The panel will open a dialogue about the role religion plays for them in promoting love and unity in a connected planet, as opposed to using religion as a source of divisive conflict. Additional topics at Emerge will focus on the LGBTQ community, women’s rights, personal identity, and resistance. Though the venues for Emerge are inside casinos such as Harrah’s Showroom and The Linq Theater, plus the freestanding Brooklyn Bowl, Choudhry explains that once attendees step inside the rooms they’ll know immediately they’re part of the Emerge program. “It's just a different experience. Festivals are really exciting…but some people just can't be outside or they aren't interested in being outside standing on concrete or grass for 12 hours a day in the sun,” he says. “The good thing here is the entire event's gonna take place in venues that we're all familiar with. They have air condition, they have seats, there are bars that already exist. They have plenty of resources great for parties. It's just a fundamentally different entertainment experience than what I think most festivalgoers are used to.” If you’re a music fan that’s constantly in search of the next big thing, plus want to hear insightful takes on society and the world, add Emerge to your calendar. “What I tell everybody is ‘you're gonna know these names next year and the year after,’” says Choudhry. “They're going to be very recognizable. I mean, this is your chance to experience them before that happens!” For more information and to purchase tickets, visit emergelv.com.
UFC fighter Nate Diaz smokes a CBD vape pen during a post-fight press conference on August 20, 2016.
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Selling High Investing in cannabis market could prove to be ultimate gamble By Richard S. Gubbe
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lways the risktaker, living on the edge and enjoying the rush. Heck, making Nevada my home twice proves that. But there are few who make it as professional poker players or as sports bettors. The money this scribe earned was marginal, save for winning a few football contests. While wagering on baseball and playing hold ‘em was exhilarating, the attraction grew repetitive, win, lose, win, lose, win – never enough. The gambling capital of the world has crossbred a gambler hybrid if you will, combining the allure of wagering with another form of gambling: the stock market, brought to life on a PC or phone nearest you. The first foray into the stock adrenaline rush occurred during the real estate boon. The lure of the stock market was very becoming for this low-level player. After jumping right into the NYSE, robust profits came easily. “Shoulda made a living at it” came to mind. Money flowed before and after the great crash, selling before the house of cards known as the New York Stock Exchange fell over and then picking what stocks would recover out of the garbage. Not rocket science, only modest research and a tad bit of common sense led to scoring thousands with only hundreds invested at the outset. After seemingly easy profits, the market grew more difficult. The idea of getting Richard Gubbe rich had vanished. Then came legal weed and the notion this was the golden ticket. Alas, the Ultimate Gaming Experience was born. Manna from heaven was falling when Colorado and Washington legalized marijuana, but few shared the secret while earning unbelievable success. The kind where the investment was $200 and the reward was $30,000. The secret is no longer, but is it too late to get in? Never. Asking about pot stocks drew responses from friends who invest such as: “Are you nuts?” and “A risky venture at best” was the polite brushoff. Talking to brokers gave the feeling that pot stocks were the minor leagues left to day traders, not serious investors. Research, asking questions and common sense said otherwise. The first question was: What publicly traded corporations own a piece of Nevada’s cannabis market? Answer, none. Only Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs) were involved due to that fact that publicly traded corporations were breaking federal law if they went anywhere near THC or CBD. The LLCs that formed for the Great Pot Rush were made up of a conglomerate of rich people who thought the gold rush came from selling Acapulco Gold. While searching for answers, the web turned up mostly Canadian companies with ties to cultivation, research and development, grow equipment and consulting. American corporations could advise on investments and real estate deals or offer legal advice, even dabble in paraphernalia. But no weed.
The next step was to examine Canadian companies that grew cannabis and hemp, manufactured oil, and dabbled in R&D. The market was flush with penny stocks, doubling down on the risk factor. The healthiest seem to be those involved in bio-ceuticals or pharmaceuticals, most with ties to grow facilities. Many have recently reported an influx of investment cash while others were buying up smaller companies, applying or receiving patents, or expanding in some form or another.
Dad Would Be Proud Pot stocks combine the thrill of the Harry Potter ride at Universal Studios and the new ride at New York-New York casino in Vegas with playing craps and roulette as the ultimate drug that could prove to be quite profitable. Playing table games where the odds near 20 percent against isn’t wise, but placing money in marijuana appears to be a quicker path to fortune. The risk of investing in American stocks is even higher due to the whole marijuana-is-illegal drawback. If that changes, a serious surge could occur. Until then, the risks include a general sell-off or bad financial news in the United States and the unpredictability of the White House can affect all stocks. The other risk, of course, is if the company one invested in crashes and burns. Stocks are up 29,000 percent if the right one was purchased when the first rush began. There are now close to 400 companies publicly traded in the United States or Canada that have a stake in the cannabis industry, whether it be from grow operations, research, grow supplies, investment advice, real estate, synthetic research and development, legal counsel and paraphernalia. Hundreds of stocks that qualify can be AgTech, biotechnology, consumption devices, cultivation and retail, hemp products, investments and finance, real estate, and technology. There are 13 different exchanges that host trading for cannabis stocks, many of them low-cost, over-thecounter offerings. While most of these “penny stocks” are traded on different markets in Canada and the United States, most are available for day trading accounts such as E*Trade, Merrill Lynch and the recently merged Scottrade/Ameritrade. Don’t expect any guidance from the local branch manager. They could care less about penny stocks.
Correction, My @$$ Canada’s pot stocks have exceeded $22 billion but reported losses during the recent week of hell (Feb. 5-9 for those not following along) were estimated at $7 billion, which have almost been recovered. The fun lies in watching a modest investment bloom into something big -- such as when a two-cent stock turns into a $10 bonanza. The downside is watching the market crash from having a healthy unemployment rate driving interest rates upward.
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Rollercoaster rides can be terrifying as seen when the price of borrowing money and paying higher wages cost the Dow dearly in a Black Friday week as part of the worst sell-off in history. Watching numbers turn from green to red in a heartbeat was and is frightful. When buying more than 3,000 shares at .20, all losses are magnified. The market surge gave way to the reality that pot stocks are a longterm investment that wasn’t going to be a cakewalk. The advice from everywhere was don’t panic. Since then, the numbers have been friendly again. For now.
How to Buy a Pot Stock
Want to get in? Not on the ground floor, but still early in what could be the fastest-growing industry in the world. A little knowledge of how the market works and what the consumer likes is helpful, so is an eye to the future and linking pot to the medical world. The most crucial part is, of course, cultivation. In Canada, that means indoor grows that dwarf those in Nevada. The next measuring stick is product development and research. Another is distribution. The fourth is a desire to come to America where corporations can’t grow marijuana. The fifth comes with acquisitions and announcements of added capital from outside investments into the market.
The Cultivators Canada can export pot to 29 countries. With Israel holding off on exports thanks to pressure by the Trump administration, that leaves Canada as the only country smart enough to see that foreign trade can be profitable. If that trend continues, Canadian stock becomes more stable with plenty of global expansion possibilities. More and more countries are making cannabis legal. The Netherlands, with its giant tourism draw of cannabis to Amsterdam, must get flower from somewhere. Some believe the shipping containers nearby often double as grow houses. It matters not where it comes from, only that it tests out as advertised and needs to be replenished constantly.
Patents, Patents, Patents When a company has skin in the game, in this case the drive to create valuable medicine made from cannabis or hemp, then there is more potential to hit the mother lode. Companies seeking or those that own patents are able to create a special product. This could be followed by new formulas and patents to end or maintain illnesses.
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Pharmaceutical Potential If and when Big Pharma gets involved, the potential for $100-a-share stocks rises and profits soar. There are numerous Canadian companies taking part in “drug trials� of cannabis products. The potential to become the new era of Big Pharma needs to overcome a lack of lobbying power from the cannabis industry. That could change, leaving the door open to the same greed and expansion in cannabis as happened to large American medical pharma stocks that trade at big dollars.
The Political Landscape There are two obstacles that face American companies. There is the obvious flaw that the stuff is still classified as a Schedule I drug. The second? There are few banking options open to securing a safe transaction landscape. Up in the Great White North, Canadian companies recently came under scrutiny from the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) when reviewing the policy about cannabis companies listed on Canadian exchanges that have interests in the states. This came in early January after U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions spewed his negative rhetoric about the evils of cannabis that sent cold shivers on both sides of the border when he rescinded the Cole Memo. The uncertainty left companies with U.S. ties faced with being delisted from Canadian exchanges. CSA released new guidance on the issue, which expanded the amount of disclosure U.S.-exposed cannabis companies need to give, but left everything else largely unchanged. Let the games continue. If the United States Senate or House ever let a bill reach the floor and the White House, the floodgates could open. Now there is fear for investors who are afraid of losing everything if the Justice Department were to mount a crackdown on all cannabis-friendly states. With many analysts touting that cannabis companies are the fastest-growing industry and that they show unlimited growth for future jobs and tax base contributions, making cannabis illegal would blow a lot of revenue and send the black market business soaring.
The Canadian Invasion
Canadian cannabis and CBD stocks can be found primarily on three exchanges as well as being sold over the counter (OTC). They can change exchanges when acquisitions occur. Some have had trading suspended for brief periods while expansions and acquisitions were announced. Symbols are often changing as big fish often eat little fish.
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The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) has seen leaders of the cannabis industry join its listing and offer investors a new avenue into cannabis ventures. These include massive license producers (LPs) expanding their product and brands overseas. With 29 legal countries and no competition, look for more growth activity (no pun intended). TSXV Cannabis Stocks, previously known as the Canadian Venture Exchange, is the sibling listing of the larger Toronto Stock Exchange and offers a variety of cannabis-related businesses from growers to biotech companies. CSE, the Canadian Securities Exchange, offers investors a variety of cannabis-related companies seeking growth. CSE offers Canadian companies an option to seek business possibilities in the U.S., as long as it manages to disclose all its risks properly to shareholders. In the U.S., NASDAC does carry Canadian company GW Pharmaceuticals (GWPH). GW is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing therapeutics from proprietary cannabinoid products. The company's lead product candidate is Epidiolex, a liquid plant-derived (CBD), but they also offer Sativex (nabiximols), which is a synthetic used for the treatment of spasticity due to multiple sclerosis. Translation, both synthetics and CBD are involved, which is why GW is more of a pharma company than a cannabis firm. The stock reflects the pharma side, trading at $124-$130 after a 52week high of $143 and low of $92. One market analyst predicted a cap of $160, but that’s a lot of money to invest for the possibility of a 20 percent return. In contrast, Puff Ventures went from .20 to $1.85 over the last year as a paraphernalia company. As you take in all of this investment advice and begin to do research, keep a couple of things in mind. Be wary of those ads luring newbies into five stocks that are set to blow up. Most of them already have. Do the homework and find listings on a legitimate site and get information from a day trading account. Just don’t ask a broker for advice. Instead, use good pot sense and maybe smoke a limonene strain to gain focus before buying.
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ONES TO WATCH The Nevada Connection These are a few Canadian stocks with ties to Nevada. Perhaps the most daring affiliation came with CLS Holdings’ purchase of Oasis dispensary in Las Vegas. This came after Canadian companies were cleared to absorb American interests. CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH), is engaged in developing a method of extracting cannabinoids from cannabis plants and converting the resulting cannabinoid extracts into concentrates for pharmaceutical delivery. The company intends to license its extraction methods and processes to others. CLS went from .02 to .94 in a year, but sold for .77 in mid-February after the “correction.” MPX Bioceutical, formerly Canadian Bioceutical Corp, produces nutraceutical products intended for the treatment of chronic medical conditions. MPX goes where existing treatments fail to meet the needs of patients or where consumers prefer herbal and plant-based medicines out of concern for the side effects associated with modern pharmaceutical medicines. Nevada State Senator Tick Segerblom told elevate last fall he was considering a board seat and the Nevada Independent reported recently Segerblom indeed took one of seven seats. MPX operates in Arizona, Nevada, Maryland and Massachusetts. The company bought Greenmart of Nevada for $19 million. Greenmart is a cannabis cultivation and production facility located in North Las Vegas. MPX intends to acquire more companies engaged in medical marijuana dispensaries, production and cultivation businesses in the United States. MPX stock went from .22 cents to .99 in months and went to .62 in mid-Feb. following the recent purge. Grow Generation Corp. went from $1.50 to more than $8 in two months. Grow Generation operates retail hydroponic and organic specialty gardening retail outlets. The company started a chain of eight retail hydroponic/gardening stores located in Colorado and California in 2015. A store also opened in Nevada to support the burgeoning market here. The company is engaged in the development of a branded e-commerce portal at GrowGeneration.com. The company's stores offer supplies including hydroponic equipment, soil, lighting, plant nutrients and products used by professional growers. The target market segments include home growers of organic vegetable and fruits, those with small farms, home gardens, restaurants and do-ityourselfers as well as cannabis-related markets for dispensaries, cultivators and caregivers. Terra Tech Corp. went from .13 cents to .62 in a short time, now holding around .30 cents. Terra Tech is a cannabis-focused agriculture company with hydroponic produce and cannabis products. Through its subsidiary, GrowOp Technology Ltd., Terra Tech is also a retail seller of locally grown hydroponic produce,
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herbs and floral products through its subsidiary, Edible Garden Corp. TT Corp has medical marijuana cultivation, production and dispensary facilities in Nevada through MediFarm, which produces and sells a line of cannabis flower. The hydroponic produce segment consists of Edible Garden's operations.
CREAM OF CANADA Canopy Growth is the largest Canadian marijuana stocks company, having been the first cannabis organization to surpass the $1 billion market cap. Canopy holds producers Tweed and Bedrocan under its umbrella and is engaged in producing and selling marijuana in the Canadian medical market and the new recreational market. Tweed is a licensed producer of medical marijuana with 168,000 square feet of its Smiths Falls facility producing and selling approximately 3,540 kilograms of medical marijuana per year. Tweed's builtout production capacity includes 10 climate-controlled indoor growing rooms. Bedrocan focuses on medical-grade cannabis with a more than 52,000-square-foot production facility in Toronto that includes more than 30 vegetative and growing rooms, and three dispensing rooms. Canopy regularly announces new deals and partnerships with international emerging markets and hit a high of $35.88 in January from a
52-week low of $4.89, a jump of more than seven times if you got it early. The great stock “correction” sent the stock down to the high teens, but stability has ensued in the low 20s. Cannabis Wheaton Income (TSXV:CBW) is a fairly new entrant to the Canadian cannabis sector. Cannabis Wheaton was formed to provide funding for facility expansions, operations, and initial construction. In return, the company gets minority equity interests and a percentage of the cultivation. Stock went from .52 to $2.70 in a couple months and has fallen below $1.40. Aphria (TSX:APH) is also licensed under ACMPR, Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes regulatory agency, much like Canadian marijuana stocks. Aphria allows for natural growing conditions to produce safe medical cannabis products and made its strategic entrance to the U.S. cannabis market through Liberty Health Sciences, entering the medical market in Florida. Aphria Inc., formerly Black Sparrow Capital Corp., produces and sells medical marijuana through retail sales and wholesale channels. The company's retail sales are primarily sold through an online store, as well as telephone orders. Aphria also dabbles in the research,
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THIS IS A MARIJUANA PRODUCT. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. FOR USE ONLY BY ADULTS 21 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER
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development and commercial production of cannabis oil. Aphria went from $4 to nearly $20 in the past six months, it’s now hovering near $13. Aurora Cannabis (OTC: ACBFF) went up from .0001 to hit $12 in less than a year. Aurora Cannabis Inc, formerly Prescient Mining Corp, is a Canada-based company producing and distributing medical cannabis. Aurora’s principal market is patients who use medical cannabis in Canada while also offering patient counseling and outreach services that include direct delivery to patients through its online shop and mobile application. The early rush has passed with shares now north of $9. PotNetwork Holding, Inc. (OTCMKTS: POTN), is a top name in the CBD industry offering a broad range of hemp-derived products. The company expects the growth rate will be nearly 53 percent in coming years. The holding company owns both Diamond CBD and First Venture Capital. First Venture was established for the research and development of hemp-based products that include CBD oil, supplements for pets, vaporizers and edibles. While the CBD market has expanded rapidly, CBD and hemp stocks have not. POTN trades around .50 a share. Freedom Leaf, Inc. is a media-based company focused on being the national and international news source for the cannabis/industrial hemp industry. The company, through its online and print media channels, is engaged in dissemination of current legislation and legal news, arts and entertainment. FL provides consulting services to companies in the industry and incubates other companies in the cannabis industry. The company's magazine, The Good News in Marijuana Reform, reports on arts, fashion and lifestyle. A stock that first sold at .0265 and climbed to .010 before leaping to over .47 in a month. Tetra Bio Pharma Inc. is engaged in the development of bio pharmaceuticals and natural health products containing cannabis and other medicinal plant-based elements. Its stock rose from .33 to $1.41 in a year. The company is focused on combining traditional methods of medicinal cannabis use with the supporting scientific validation and safety data required for inclusion into the existing bio pharma industry. The company objective is to bring natural medical marijuana to the market along with a number of other products targeting chronic pain, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety, among others. Tetra’s goal is to become the first biopharmaceutical company in the world to get a smokable dried cannabis product approved as a prescription drug
by Health Canada, the FDA, and other regulatory agencies around the world. The Supreme Cannabis Company (TSXV:SL) Located in Ontario, the company’s federally approved medical marijuana company, 7ACRES, cultivates medical marijuana on a greenhouse cost basis. Along with 24 other companies, Supreme received its federal license in March 2016. In October the company announced its partner 7ACRES obtained Health Canada approvals in order to start cultivation in its recently completed 30,000-square-foot flowering rooms. Axim AXIM Biotechnologies, Inc., formerly Axim International, Inc., is a biotechnology company engaged in the treatment of pain, spasticity, anxiety and other medical disorders with the application of cannabinoidbased products. It is focused on research, development and production of pharmaceutical, nutriceutical and cosmetic products. It is engaged in the business of research, development and production of alternative and renewable sources of energy, such as high caloric content fuels produced from industrial hemp. Now at $6, the stock yoyos between $4 and $16.
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OP-ED
RESPECT NEVADA’S RIGHT TO REGULATE MARIJUANA By U.S. Congresswoman Jacky Rosen (NV-03)
I
n 2016, Nevada became the fifth state to legalize cannabis for recreational purposes, joining Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska. Like the majority of Nevada voters, I supported Question 2. Since legalizing recreational cannabis, our state has seen millions of dollars in tax revenue, and hundreds of businesses have created over 6,000 good-paying jobs in the state. That’s why I was deeply disappointed when the Trump Administration and U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the decision to rescind the Cole Memo earlier this year, ending an Obama-era policy that effectively allowed states to legalize and regulate marijuana. This decision is an insult to Nevada voters, an affront to states’ rights, and a threat to our local economy. Local changes in marijuana policy in recent years have helped our local economy grow and resulted in countless medical benefits for Nevadans suffering from PTSD, cancer, and other illnesses. States should have the right to make their own decisions regarding marijuana regulation. Since joining Congress, I’ve acted to protect the will of Nevada voters. Following Sessions' decision to rescind the Cole Memo, I joined colleagues from both parties to urge the White House to reverse this decision. Earlier this year, I co-sponsored the bipartisan Respect State Marijuana Laws Act, a bill that would end federal prosecution for
cannabis businesses operating legally in Nevada. Last year, I co-sponsored an amendment in the 2018 appropriations bill that would stop the U.S. Department of Justice from prosecuting individuals who comply with their states’ medical marijuana laws. I also supported a separate bipartisan amendment to prohibit federal funds from being used to penalize financial institutions that serve legal marijuana businesses. Nevadans made it clear at the ballot box in 2016 that we support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes. I will continue to be active on this issue, because our decision should stand. This federal overreach by President Trump’s Department of Justice will create uncertainty, confusion, and it will ultimately hurt Nevadans. I’m committed to fighting against this Administration’s misguided decision because it’s the right thing to do for my constituents and it will allow our state’s vibrant economy to diversify and grow.
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Cole Memo Confusion Attorney General Jeff Sessions termination of federal memo leaves many unanswered questions for Nevada’s cannabis industry By Derek Connor, Connor & Connor
After apparently solving every other pressing issue at a federal criminal level, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has officially rescinded the “Cole Memo,” which was largely credited with allowing the marijuana industry to flourish in states like Nevada where marijuana is legal pursuant to state law. So, what exactly was the Cole Memo and what does Sessions’ action have to do with Nevada’s marijuana industry going forward? The Cole Memo was a memorandum distributed to all U.S. Attorneys by Deputy Attorney General James Cole on August 29, 2013. The Cole Memo was not binding legal authority; it did not legalize marijuana at a federal level but simply provided guidance to federal prosecutors in states where marijuana is legal. The Cole Memo provided eight priorities for the enforcement of federal marijuana laws including: • Preventing the distribution of marijuana to minors; • Preventing revenue from the sale of marijuana from going to criminal gangs and cartels; • Preventing the diversion of marijuana from states where it is legal under state law to other states; • Preventing state-authorized marijuana activity from being used as a cover or pretext for the trafficking of other illegal drugs or other illegal activity; • Preventing violence and the use of firearms in the cultivation and distribution of marijuana; • Preventing drugged driving and the exacerbation of other adverse public health consequences associated with marijuana use; • Preventing the growing of marijuana on public lands; • Preventing the possession of marijuana on federal property. The Cole Memo presumed that states would enact strict regulatory schemes to ensure that the above listed activities were curtailed. By and large, most U.S. Attorneys adhered to the terms of the Cole Memo and prosecution of state legal marijuana entrepreneurs and customers was relatively rare so long as businesses adhered to the terms of the Cole Memo. While it did not change marijuana’s status under federal law, the Cole Memo was arguably the first major step by a federal agency to relax its marijuana policy. Sessions’ decision to tear up the Cole Memo sent shockwaves through the marijuana industry and has left many wondering whether they will be facing criminal prosecution. So, what does the rescission of the Cole Memo mean for Nevada’s cannabis industry moving forward? The short answer is that we really don’t know. In the near term, it will most likely be business as usual; long-term is anybody’s guess. We can be certain of a few things though: the cultivation, possession, and distribution of marijuana (and products derived therefrom) remains illegal pursuant to United States federal law. Under federal law, marijuana is just as illegal as it was before, during and after the Cole Memo. Nevada state law cannot trump (no pun intended) state law when the two are in conflict pursuant to the supremacy clause in the United States Constitution (see, U.S. Const. art. VI, cl. II). Until marijuana is legalized at a federal level, the threat of criminal prosecution (among other legal ramifications) remains for anybody that produces, sells or uses marijuana.
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We also know that the individual U.S. Attorneys have a lot of prosecutorial discretion in their districts. Consequently, even with the Cole Memo’s demise, U.S. Attorneys in states where marijuana is legal could continue to take a hands-off approach. Of course, the opposite is also true. So, what is Nevada’s U.S. Attorney likely to do? Well, we don’t really know because we don’t have a permanent U.S. Attorney in place right now. With the change in the presidential administration, many U.S. Attorneys either resigned, were requested to resign, or were fired by the incoming Trump administration. Nevada’s longtime U.S. Attorney, Daniel Bogden, who was originally appointed by President G.W. Bush (and reappointed by President Obama), was asked to resign during the transition to the new Trump administration.1 In March 2017, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre took Bogden’s place in the interim. Then on January 3, 2018, Attorney General Sessions appointed a federal prosecutor out of Texas, Dayle Elieson, to act as the interim U.S. Attorney for Nevada.2 Elieson has prosecuted cases in both state and federal court; she received her J.D. from Brigham Young University and her B.A. in English from University of Texas at Austin. Some local news outlets saw Elieson’s appointment as a slap in the face to Nevada’s Republican Senator Dean Heller because traditionally, the Justice Department has worked with home-state senators within the president’s party to locate a candidate for presidential appointment and confirmation by the Senate.3 It is unclear what actions Elieson will take with regard to marijuana enforcement during her tenure in Nevada, but if she chooses to pursue criminal prosecution against marijuana entrepreneurs, there is very little that can be done to stop her. It should be noted however, that Elieson is currently serving in an interim capacity pursuant to Sessions’ authority and full-time appointments are subject to Senate approval. We don’t know if Elieson will be the nominee for the permanent U.S. Attorney for Nevada or if someone else will be nominated. Moving forward, most marijuana entrepreneurs and consumers will likely take a wait and see approach. Until there is guidance from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Nevada, it is likely to be business as usual at state legal marijuana establishments. We can hope that the U.S. Attorney will not deviate greatly from her predecessor’s enforcement policies. Nevada voters have unquestionably made their decision regarding marijuana law and we can hope that the U.S. Attorney will respect the will of the people and focus enforcement policies on other more serious crimes in our community. If any good has come out of Sessions’ actions, it has at least started conversations regarding marijuana decriminalization at a federal level. Several bills have been put forward, some by
Nevada legislators, to protect our cannabis industry and to reform marijuana at a federal level (see page 29). Until we have true reform of our federal marijuana laws, the threat of criminal prosecution will remain in place, no matter how many memos are issued or discarded during the changing administrations. Sources:
1 Reno Gazette Journal article: http://www.rgj.com/story/news/
politics/2017/03/13/us-attorney-nevada-gone-after-mass-resignationrequest/99145454/ on March 13, 2017.
2 Department of Justice memo: https://www.justice.gov/usao-nv/pr/attorney-
general-jeff-sessions-appoints-dayle-elieson-interim-united-states-attorney on January 8, 2018.
3 Las Vegas Review-Journal article: https://www.reviewjournal.com/local/ local-nevada/choice-of-texan-as-nevada-us-attorney-breaks-from-tradition/ on January 5, 2018.
If you have questions about how Sessions’ decision will impact you, please contact us at 702. 750.9139 or visit www.connorpllc.com.
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DISPENSARY MAP A Guide to Cannabis in Southern Nevada
RENO
PECOS RD
JONES BLVD
HIG SO 15 HL UTH AN ER DS N PK WY
PEBBLE RD
CACTUS AVE
WY
K EP OS .T R HENDERSON S MUNICIPAL AIRPORT
16a
215
GE SUNRSIDPKWY HEIGHT
16b
LAUGHLIN
D BLV PARADISE RD
AS VEG LAS Y RACETRACK RD
PKW AD
MARYLAND PKWY
WES
L RD RIA
UST IND
HIG
29b
6TH ST
COMMERCE ST MAIN ST 3RD ST
VE
TER
NA
RANCHO DR
AVE
ND
RD
HENDERSON
12b
VD
E ME
PECOS RD
SANDHILL RD
SET
WARM SPRINGS RD
31b
18 AVE
BL
LAK
BERMUDA RD
DECATUR BLVD
SILVERADO RANCH BLVD
8b
WINDMILL LN
DESERT INN RD
SAM BOYD STADIUM
SUN
WIGWAM PKWY
OD
WY
AMO
E DI
BLU
SUNSET COUNTY PARK
WO
RH
5a
D ND R
515
4c
DE
WINDMILL LN
LLY
33
KAREN AVE
UL
7
HO
RUSSELL RD SUNSET RD
SAHARA AVE
E TWAIN
FLAMINGO RD EASTERN AVE
MCCARRAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
215
WARM SPRINGS RD
HLA
22
GIBSON RD
30b
OAKEY BLVD
8a 13 24 ST. LOUIS AVE
GREEN DISTRICT
STEPHANIE ST
15
25
DESERT INN RD
23a
NELLIS BLVD
18
LAS VEGAS TROPICANA AVE
14
LAMB BLVD
PECOS RD
N ST
STR THE
4c
1
4a
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SUNSET RD
23a
17
SAHARA AVE
11
PKWY
RUSSELL RD
10
GREEN VALLEY
34
24
MARYLAND PKWY
TROPICANA AVE
13
CHARLESTON BLVD
8a
3 20
SAHARA AVE 15
MAI
15
8c 29a
4a
LVD
17
9 28
JONES BLVD
RAINBOW BLVD
BUFFALO DR
DESERT INN RD
OAKEY BLVD
OWENS AVE
IP
1
4b
FLAMINGO RD
32b 5b 3 20
AS B
SAHARA AVE
NELLIS BLVD
RD
LOS EE CAMINO AL NORTE / MLK
LAKE MEAD BLVD
19
5b
32b
CHARLESTON BLVD
BONANZA RD
VEG
DURANGO DR
FT APACHE RD
TOWN CENTER DR
HUALAPAI WAY
31a
2
RTH NO LVD NELLIS B AS AIR FORCE VEG LAS BASE
WASHINGTON AVE
27
CHARLESTON BLVD
PAHRUMP
5c
MARYLAND PKWY
95
ALTA DR
30a
23b
WASHINGTON AVE
215
160
SIMMONS ST
VEGAS DR
WY
26
N 5TH
DECATUR BLVD
RAINBOW BLVD
BUFFALO DR
BLVD
PK
159
NORTH LAS VEGAS AIRPORT
CAREY AVE
21
CRAIG RD
32a
LAS
LIN
15
NORTH LAS VEGAS
LAS VEGAS BLVD SOUTH
ER
WASHBURN RD
DECATUR BLVD
MM
MESQUITE
CENTENNIAL PKWY
DR
SU
ANN RD
HO NC RA
ALEXANDER RD
CHEYENNE AVE
12a
JONES BLVD
DURANGO DR
GRAND CANYON DR
LONE MOUNTAIN RD
LAKE ME AD
6
215
95
HORIZON RIDGE PKWY
HORIZON DR
515
BOULDER CITY
10
1. Acres Cannabis acrescannabis.com 2320 Western Ave Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.399.4200
8b. Essence Cannabis Dispensary essencevegas.com 4300 E Sunset Rd Ste #A3 Henderson, NV 89014 702.978.7687
17. Nevada Wellness Center nvwellnessctr.com 3200 S Valley View Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.470.2077
28. The Apothecary Shoppe theapothecaryshoppe.com 4240 W Flamingo Rd Ste #100 Las Vegas, NV 89103 702.740.4372
2. Apothecarium apothecariumlv.com 7885 W Sahara Ave Las Vegas, NV 89117 702.778.7987
8c. Essence Cannabis Dispensary essencevegas.com 5765 W Tropicana Ave Las Vegas, NV 89103 702.500.1714
18. NuLeaf www.nuleafnv.com 430 E Twain Ave Las Vegas, NV 89169 702.297.5323
29a. The Dispensary thedispensarynv.com 5347 S Decatur Blvd Ste #100 Las Vegas, NV 89118 702.476.0420
3. Blackjack Collective blackjackcollective.com 1860 Western Ave Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.545.0026
9. Exhale Nevada www.exhalenevada.com 4310 W Flamingo Rd Las Vegas, NV 89103 702.447.1250
19. NuWu Cannabis Marketplace Nuwucannabis.com 1235 Paiute Circle Las Vegas, NV 89106 702.844.2707
29b. The Dispensary thedispensarynv.com 50 N Gibson Rd Ste #170 Henderson, NV 89104 702.476.0420
4a. Blüm LetsBlum.com 1921 Western Ave Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.718.Blum
10. Inyo Fine Cannabis Dispensary inyolasvegas.com 2520 S Maryland Pkwy Ste #2 Las Vegas, NV 89109 702.707.8888
20. Oasis Medical Cannabis oasismedicalcannabis.com 1800 S Industrial Rd Ste #180 Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.420.2405
30a. The Grove TheGroveNV.com 1541 E Basin Ave Pahrump, NV 89048 775.556.0100
4b. Blüm LetsBlum.com 3650 S Decatur Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89103 702.627.Blum
11. Jardin jardincannabis.com 2900 E Desert Inn Rd Ste #102 Las Vegas, NV 89121 702.331.6511
21. Panacea Quality Cannabis lvpanacea.com 4235 Arctic Spring Ave Las Vegas, NV 89115 702.405.8597
30b. The Grove TheGroveNV.com 4647 Swenson St Las Vegas, NV 89119 702.463.5777
4c. Blüm LetsBlum.com 1130 E Desert Inn Rd Las Vegas, NV 89109 702.536.Blum
12a. Jenny’s Dispensary Jennysdispensary.com 5530 N Decatur Blvd North Las Vegas, NV 89030 702.718.0420
22. Pisos Dispensary pisoslv.com 4110 S Maryland Pkwy Ste #1 Las Vegas, NV 89119 702.367.9333
31a. The Source thesourcenv.com 2550 S Rainbow Blvd Ste #8 Las Vegas, NV 89146 702.708.2000
5a. CANOPI canopi.com 6540 Blue Diamond Rd Las Vegas, NV 89139 702.420.7338
12b. Jenny’s Dispensary Jennysdispensary.com 10420 S Eastern Ave Henderson, NV 89052 702.718.0420
23a. Reef Dispensaries reefdispensaries.com 3400 Western Ave Las Vegas, NV 89109 702.475.6520
31b. The Source thesourcenv.com 9480 S Eastern Ave Ste #185 Henderson, NV 89123 702.708.2222
5b. CANOPI canopi.com 1324 S 3rd St Las Vegas, NV 89104 702.420.2902
13. Las Vegas ReLeaf lasvegasreleaf.com 2244 Paradise Rd Las Vegas, NV 89104 702.209.2400
23b. Reef Dispensaries reefdispensaries.com 1366 W Cheyenne Ave North Las Vegas, NV 89030 702.410.8032
32a. Thrive Cannabis Markeplace thrivenevada.com 2755 W Cheyenne Ave Ste #103 North Las Vegas, NV 89032 702.776.4144
5c. CANOPI canopi.com 2113 Las Vegas Blvd North North Las Vegas, NV 89030 702.420.2113
14. Medizin medizinlv.com 4850 W Sunset Rd Ste #130 Las Vegas, NV 89118 702.206.1313
24. Sahara Wellness 420sahara.com 420 E Sahara Ave Las Vegas, NV 89104 702.478.5533
32b.Thrive Cannabis Marketplace thrivenevada.com 1112 S Commerce St. Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.776.4144
6. Deep Roots Harvest deeprootsharvest.com 195 Willis Carrier Canyon Mesquite, NV 89034 702.345.2854
15. MMJ America mmjamerica.com 4660 S Decatur Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89109 702.565.9333
25. Shango Las Vegas goshango.com 4380 Boulder Highway Las Vegas, NV 89121 702.444.4824
33. Top Notch THC topnotchthc.com 5630 Stephanie St Las Vegas, NV 89122 702.418.0420
7. Euphoria Wellness euphoriawellnessnv.com 7780 S Jones Blvd Ste #105 Las Vegas, NV 89139 702.960.7200
16a. Nevada Made Marijuana nevadamademarijuana.com 3195 St. Rose Pkwy Ste #212 Henderson, NV 89052 702.737.7777
26. ShowGrow showgrowlv.com 4850 S Fort Apache Rd Ste #100 Las Vegas, NV 89147 702.227.0511
34. Zen Leaf zenleafvegas.com 9120 W Post Rd Ste #103 Las Vegas, NV 89148 702.462.6706
8a. Essence Cannabis Dispensary essencevegas.com 2307 S Las Vegas Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89104 702.978.7591
16b. Nevada Made Marijuana nevadamademarijuana.com 1975 S Casino Dr Laughlin, NV 89029 702.737.7777
27. Silver Sage Wellness sswlv.com 4626 W Charleston Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89102 702.802.3757
Cannabiotix products are sold here
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NOW AVAILABLE
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GIVE YOUR BELLA,
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Elevating the Conversation
T
with Oren Cohen, founder of Terpene Experts
erpene Experts founder and CEO Oren Cohen is a classically trained chef and accomplished e-liquid formulator turned olfactory artist and terpene flavorist. His deep passion for fine food, fine wine and fine cannabis have merged to allow him to create a bespoke concentrate terpene profiling business. Through the utilization of food-grade terpenes, Cohen’s proprietary process and attention to subtle nuances helps him to precisely recreate cannabis strain profiles across the terpene spectrum.
A self-proclaimed wine geek and classically trained chef, how did you find your way to cannabis? This whole path has been by default and not by design. I always knew I had an olfactory gift and I didn’t quite know what to do with it. I could always easily pick apart food. When I smelled wine, I would be able to tell you what grape it was; if it was late harvest; if it was ancient oak -- I could smell things other people couldn’t smell. Upon further exposure to that, I got into industrial chemistry and formulating cosmetics, personal care products, which then led me to formulating e-liquid for electronic cigarettes. That allowed me to integrate both sides, i.e. my olfactory sensibilities and the science side, and I realized that my formations were quite different from my contemporaries. I would use my nose exclusively when formulating and most of my formulations would have 15 to 20 ingredients versus the two to three most people were using. People took note of that and I was approached by a cannabis company that saw what I was doing and wanted me to recreate some product they were selling that somebody else was providing terpenes for. It just kind of naturally blossomed from there. You can take any strain, smell it, and determine its terpene profile accurately...how did you fine tune this talent? I think the key for myself and anyone else who wants to do this is to gain a mastery and understanding of all your ingredients, i.e. familiarize yourself with as many terpenes and aromatic compounds as possible so you can understand how to integrate them to execute your vision. That was my learning process. Understanding when you smell a gassy accord in Sour D that it is these six terpenes working together that create that aroma of gas and that building these lines of context in your brain and having a love for it is essential. When did you establish Terpene Experts? I have been at it the better part of two years now. I’m a lot of people’s best-kept secret. I don’t discuss who my clients are. I can tell you they are big and that I terp a lot of distillate. I
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offer flavoring expertise and development services equivalent to 200,000 carts per month. In a nutshell, what does Terpene Experts do? We create strain faithful and eclectic and creative terpene blends with art as our focus and backed by science. We have off-the-shelf distillate flavoring and we also do custom blends, consulting and tailormade, bespoke product for people who want to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. There are hundreds of terpenes, do you think there are more that have yet to be discovered? Definitely. People aren’t really digging too deep when they are doing these tests. They are maybe testing for 30 or so of them from what I have seen. If I smell something that isn’t in those 30 terpenes, I am going to put it in. I don’t really care what a lab report tells me, I am going to put it in because it’s going to smell correct. They are organic compounds so there’s tons of stuff going on there. We should be inspired by nature, but we shouldn’t be held captive by nature. How can brands create taste consistency across multiple jurisdictions? Terpenes are the absolute only way to achieve that consistently. Anyone who is processing oil, if they are doing it even two-thirds of the way properly, is going to end up with a relatively neutral palate and a decent potency. The only way that I see a way for brand consistency and repeatability is with proper terpene formulations. That’s what’s going to give your brand its identity after your marketing and packaging. You can’t taste type, and you can’t taste the box. You are going to taste the product. That’s really, in my opinion, the only way to do it. I believe it to be more repeatable and more consistent with food-grade plant-derived terpenes than with a terpene fraction. To read our entire interview with Oren Cohen, visit elevatenv. com/Elevating_the_Conversation.
KEY LIME PIE HYBRID
Award Winning Flowers & Concentrates Based in CA and NV
@ C A N N A B I OT I X @ C A N N A B I OT I X _ N V
KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. FOR USE ONLY BY ADULTS, 21 YEARS OF AGE AND OLDER.