One of the richest and most potent forms of cannabis you can consume. Live resin is an ultra-high-quality type of BHO (butane hash oil), a concentrate that uses flash-frozen cannabis. It's way more interesting and complex than it sounds, and that's what we are about to get into. The only "danger" in live resin is the extraction process.

What is Live Resin?

One of the the richest and most potent forms of cannabis you can consume. Live resin is an ultra-high-quality type of BHO (butane hash oil), a concentrate that uses flash-frozen cannabis. It's way more interesting and complex than it sounds, and that's what we are about to get into. The only "danger" in live resin is the extraction process.

What about the dangers in eating live resin concentrates? Can you eat it? Absolutely! Live resin is in many yummy gummies and even some fast-acting edibles, too!

Live resin just became a thing in 2013

Thanks to "Kind Bill", William Fenger, who had a been working on a live resin concentrate for a few years before hooking up with "Giddy Up", Jason Emo in 2013. They took a major problem, which is the fact that 50% of cannabis terpenes are lost during the plants dry curing time, and created a solution.

The successful production of a live resin batch that smelled and tasted perfect took the guys very little time once they discovered that skipping the curing process is the golden ticket. Typically once a cannabis plant is ripe and ready to harvest, branches are cut down and go through a curing process that enriches the taste and smell of the cannabis before being extracted.

With live resin, instead of being hung out to dry for several days, the cannabis plant is cut down and immediately put into dry ice or liquid nitrogen for a day or two. Now, all those terpenes that are typically lost will stay in tact and be present during the extraction process.

How is Live Resin Made?

Harvest and flash-freeze

The whole start of the production begins with freshly harvested cannabis flower. Again, in order to make it a "live" product, it is immediately flash-frozen. There are a few different ways to freeze cannabis flower, but the most common technique is by "cryogenic extraction", or liquid nitrogen.

Prep the equipment

The equipment needed to produce live resin uses a closed-loop extraction system. This fancy way of manufacturing live resin makes it more consistent in eliminating plant matter that isn't needed, like chlorophyll, and dangerous solvents.

Introduce solvents

The process from here is pretty similar to any other solvent-based extraction method. Using a very low-temp hydrocarbon solvent like butane, ethanol, or propane to wash/separate the trichomes from the flower.

Collect solvent mixture

Once all of the trichomes, cannabinoids, and flavonoids from the plant are dissolved into the solvent, there is the last and most crucial step.

Purge solvent

Now we are left with a soupy goop of liquid cannabis goodness thanks to the solvents. But, those solvents are 100% of the problem at this point. Butane and ethanol are the last things we want to putting in our body regardless if it's through smoking or eating. This is your "danger" in live resin. The solvents need to be extracted from the extract...

In order to remove solvents from live resin, a vacuum oven is used. It removes the air inside the oven and then the solvents are evaporated at a low temperature to preserve the terpenes in the concentrate.

Collect and store live resin

Then voila! A fresh batch of live resin is made. This finished cannabis concentrate is then sealed, packaged, and shipped to your local dispensary.

Terpene Benefits of Frozen Cannabis

This is what makes the resin "live", because it freezes and conserves the monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes, the culprits to how cannabis gets its flavor. Monoterpenes emit a faint, fresh smell and consist of smaller terpenes such as myrcene, limonene, terpinolene, and linalool. Sesquiterpenes are responsible for giving cannabis its strong, heavy scent due to their larger molecules. Caryophyllene and humulene are examples of sesquiterpenes.

When marijuana is freshly harvested, it contains higher levels of monoterpenes compared to sesquiterpenes. As the curing process takes place, the smaller monoterpenes evaporate first, resulting in a final product with a higher concentration of sesquiterpenes in its terpene profile.

Live resin products have been found to contain 2% more monoterpenes, making them smell fresher compared to products that have undergone the curing process. Research from High Times also indicates that live resin contains 11% less sesquiterpenes by weight compared to non-live resin products.

Live Resin vs. Other Cannabis Concentrates

Live resin vs. cured resin

Starting off with the basics, cured resin is what the industry refers to as the sticky film that cakes up your bowl and fingers after handling fresh flower. It's just plain ol' cannabis flower turned to concentrate with solvents.

So, remember how live resin skips the whole curing process? Instead of drying the harvested flower for up to 10 days, known as "curing", the flower is frozen for a couple of days, giving it the "live" title. Cured resin tends to have a different flavor profile because of the loss of terpenes and flavonoids during the drying period.

Live resin vs. live rosin

Both are concentrates made from extracting cannabinoids from frozen cannabis plants. But, the major difference here is the use of solvents. Live rosin is solventless and doesn't go through any sort of "washing" process. Typically made by high heat and hydraulic pressure, live rosin tends to be less potent. Because of the use of solvents, live resin contains a massive range of cannabinoids and terpenes that you won't get from the heat and pressure used for live rosin.

Live resin vs. distillate

When you want an ultra-high potent concentrate, these are the first two that might come to mind. Distillates are a highly refined concentrate that goes through a process called fractional distillation. This isolates specific cannabinoids and results in a product that is predominantly THC or CBD. You will definitely not get the diverse, rich, and complex flavors of those juicy terpenes with a distillate.

Live resin vs. shatter vs. wax

Your three very common concentrates that are potent, flavorful, and perfect for dabbing, vaping, and infusing. The differences all lie in their consistency and appearance. Shatter is a brittle, glass-like concentrate. Wax is a soft, crumbly concentrate. Both are extracted from cured cannabis flower and are not as sticky or thick as molasses like live resin.

How to Consume Live Resin

Dabbing

Dabbing live resin is a simple process. Just like with any other concentrate, you heat up the nail in your dab rig and allow it to cool slightly. After that, you can place a small amount of live resin on the nail. Once it's on the nail, it will turn into vapor, which you can then inhale.

You have to take advantage of the hottest deals on live resin concentrates at JARS!

Vaping with a dab pen or cart

If you like to keep your concentrated products in one place, consider trying out vaping with live resin. You can purchase live resin cartridges at your local dispensary, which can be connected to a battery just like a cannabis oil cartridge. After attaching the cartridge, simply turn on your vape pen and start enjoying the experience.

Check out our selection of live resin vape carts and disposables!

Topping off

Is your flower lacking a bit of punch? You might want to think about infusing some live resin into your joint or bowl. Adding a small amount of concentrate can enhance the taste, scent, and strength of your next smoking experience. Keep in mind that burning can affect the terpenes, so while live resin won't be as intense when smoked compared to vaping or dabbing, it can still add a little extra kick to your session.

Safety and Storage

Is live resin dangerous to consume?

In short, live resin is safe to consume, but its production process can be dangerous. Why? Live resin is made using solvents, which can be explosive, requiring careful extraction and purging processes. While there are ways to make your own concentrates like RSO, live resin is best kept to being made by the pros. 

We are all about safety and encourage you to check a product's lab results through its certificate of analysis (COA). All cannabis products must pass tests for harmful substances like heavy metals, mold, mildew, and residual solvents.

Regulated cannabis products from legal dispensaries are the best choice to ensure your safety. To be a player on the safe side, get your live resin products at your local JARS dispensary.

How to store live resin

As with any cannabis product you have to remember, it is no longer a plant. Heat and sunlight are your main worries here. With live resin, using a silicone container with a secure lid will keep out light, heat, and moisture. All of these will either dry out the live resin or make it less potent.

It's super important that you don't get handsy with your live resin concentrates. Along with the fact that it's super sticky, the dirt and oil on your skin can effect the consistency of your live resin. There are plenty of tools available to dose out your concentrates without using your hands.