As California prepares to introduce legal recreational marijuana use, businesses are popping up all over looking put their own twist on enjoying the long-outlawed drug.
California has been well known as the source of some of the country’s best wine – and now one intrepid company has found a way to combine this famous export with cannabis.
From January, Rebel Coast Winery will be selling the world’s very first marijuana-infused white wine, which is alcohol free and will give drinkers a high rather than get them drunk.
Ready to go: California’s Rebel Coast Winery has produced a new alcohol-free sauvignon blanc that has been infused with THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.
Hands up: The wine contains four milligrams of THC per serving, infused after the alcohol is removed
The altered sauvignon blanc will contain four milligrams of THC per serving – not particularly strong – and takes around 15 minutes for the drinker to feel the effects.
‘After one glass you won’t be thinking your couch is a hippo with short legs or anything. Our goal is not to kill you after you’ve had a few glasses,’ the brand explains on the website.
‘The goal is to get giggly and naked with someone. We set out to mimic the experience you’d find with traditional wine; a couple glasses will put most people in a great place.’
Aside from combining the wine-drinking experience with the high of marijuana, the wine’s lack of alcohol also means that it is hangover-free.
‘Winemakers have been making infused wine for years, but no one developed a reliable method to remove the alcohol and infuse it with cannabis’ active ingredients in a way that wasn’t impacting the quality of the wine,’ said Rebel Coast co-founder, Alex Howe in a press release.
Final product: The nose of the wine is described as ‘a mixture of ‘cannabis, lemongrass, lavender, and citrus,’ and the taste as ‘high acid, with bright citrus, and a crisp clean finish’
Next steps: The wine will be available from January 2018 for $60 a bottle, but is only available to be shipped to California-based residents and dispensaries
The wine is made using grapes grown in Sonoma County and fermented in the traditional ways of winemaking.
The alcohol is removed and each bottle has 16 milligrams of THC infused, along with terpenes, fragrant oils that would enhance the cannabis aroma of the wine.
The nose of the wine is described on the website as a mixture of ‘cannabis, lemongrass, lavender, and citrus,’ while the taste carries less of the cannabis flavor, described as ‘high acid, with bright citrus, and a crisp clean finish.’
The wine costs $60 per bottle, but is currently only available to be shipped within California from January 2018, thanks to the passing of Proposition 64.
However, there are plans for expanding the products to include Cannabidiol-infused wines as well as to extend shipping to other states with legal recreational marijuana use.
