“Aroma, Taste and Flavor Lead the Way at Puffin Farms” in CannabisNow
Gassy and pungent or fruity and sweet, dank herb can really offer the senses a scintillating experience. But when it comes to the reason why certain cannabis cultivars smell and taste the way they do, the truth is in the terpenes.
Terpenes are a diverse group of compounds produced by a variety of plants. Thousands of terpenes are found in nature, but there appear to be a select number present in cannabis, where they also play a huge part in the varying effects each unique strain offers.
Puffin Farms — a Washington-based, Clean Green Certified, sungrown, adult-use cannabis company about to enter their seventh grow season — takes terps seriously.
“We only select strains [to cultivate] that have fragrant terpene profiles,” said Jade Stefano, co-founder and CEO of Puffin Farms.
Also a board-certified naturopathic physician, Stefano insists the team personally tests any potential cultivars prior to agreeing to produce them.
“We have to love how the aroma comes across, as well as how it tastes when we smoke it,” she said.
The company also works to preserve the robust terpene profiles of the strains they grow, gaining a fan base for their wide product catalogue, which includes bud, rosin, bubble hash, “trifecta” joints dipped in CO2 oil and rolled in kief or bubble hash, and their patented EVFO (short for extra virgin flower oil) concentrate.
“Our focus has been on terpenes ever since Puffin was started,” Director of Extracts Jeff Wilhoit said. “They’re the number one thing we strive to keep in their natural state. They’re just as important as cannabinoids to modulate your high.”
