In the past year, Mass spent more than $220 million on pre-rolls, up from less than $70 million in the prior 12-month period
We’re going to be talking about prerolls quite a bit around here.
Whether you like it or not.
Sure, we tend to go for dabs, with hefty sides of edibles. And when it comes to joints, we usually twist our own.
That’s largely out of habit, but also due to silly prejudices against prerolls and to some degree a cost factor. Call us snobs, but $20-plus for a spliff that has a chance of canoeing just seems sorta steep, however heavenly infused, rolled, and dipped in dank dust a product may be.
But with retail prices dropping and companies spinning up solid ideas with creative twists—and in some cases collectible packaging—even longtime DIYers may start checking out the extensive selections of prerolls on sale at most shops. And they won’t be alone …
Numbers wise, in the past year, Mass spent about $222.5 million on raw pre-rolls (“raw” as in uninfused, a separate category from infused pre-rolls), up from less than $70 million in the prior 12-month period.
All things considered, this is a trend worth watching, no matter how many joints we have to smoke to keep up. For now, here’s a quick and terpy survey of some clever preroll presentations on our radar.
Lil’ Jay’s
These baby numbers from Bud’s Goods are a home run, the cannabis clown car of packaged prerolls to go. No matter how many tins we tear through, it never ceases to amaze us how they squeeze 10 of these shorties into such a wee little can (totalling 3.5 grams). Whereas at first I felt that it was sort of silly to buy joints with nearly half the real estate occupied by a filter—in one sense, joints with less weed than some roaches in the ashtrays of more wasteful smokers—these Jay’s ultimately got me to lift my boycott. They hit clean, do the trick, and as with all things from the Bud’s shop come in packaging so darn impressive you will want to keep the tin after the weed runs out.
Dogwalkers Mini Dogs
A leader in this space to the point that many people have come to generically refer to shorty joints as “dogwalkers” (since they take about as long to smoke as it might take you to walk pooch around the block), this popular product from multi-state operator Green Thumb Industries is comparable to the aforementioned Lil’ Jay’s in that you’re likely to be satisfied even if you otherwise know how to roll your own. With consistently tasty anonymous strains, the five-pack (.35 grams each totalling 1.75 grams) is a great convenience play, and as a bonus GTI supports animal rescue organizations with a share of the profits.
Nature’s Heritage Five-Pack
Though less heavily branded than some of the other packs in this space, Nature’s Heritage prerolls should be on your radar, as the hard plastic foldout case and flower inside always seems to satisfy our goal of getting super stoned without coughing. At a half-gram apiece, they also hit a little longer than some of the aforementioned sticks. And for occasions that call for a little more oomph, Nature’s Heritage also offers tins of infused joints with a ratio of 75% cured flower to 25% solventless bubble hash.
Trailstix Slack-Pack
This one is a show stopper, hands down one of the most eye-catching products on the Mass market to date with the flower power to match. Think we are exaggerating? Just break one of these boxes out at a party, strike a match on the side of the box, light one of the seven half-gram prerolls and watch the crowd react. We also like the way that these are spun like cigarettes; there’s nothing wrong with a cone that is twisted at the end, but the straight-leg format and exposed leaf makes for big and even puffs from start to finish. Inside the ones we grabbed was a Gushers hybrid that got us ripe with a clean and heady high that neither energized nor exhausted. A solid strain for sure, but let’s face it, you’re copping this one for the package. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
No. 9 Sun Flower Collection Five-Pack
We have frequently picked up products from the No. 9 Sun Flower Collection since visiting the Coastal Cultivars outdoor grow in Wareham earlier this year, and are excited about their approach to the preroll space, not to mention the cases they’re using which are perfect for the breast pocket or purse and coolly open like a coffin. Serious heads and collector types will appreciate the changing varieties too, with options ranging from five-packs of .8 gram Poundcake puffs to .5 gram five-packs of Hella Jelly and Early Lemon Berry that came on the market more recently.
Little Steven Party Mambo
One of the big knocks on prerolls is that with many brands you don’t know what’s inside the wrap. We feel that’s fine in the event that they deliver, but if you are a serious connoisseur, then you’re probably looking for this latest offering from Little Steven’s Underground Apothecary, which has a Party Mambo five-pack of hand-rolled joints filled with Chemdog’s Smash Hits cut of White Runtz (Gelato x Zkittlez) from Canna Provisions. These won’t be particularly easy to find and won’t last on shelves for long, but are worth hunting down for the “sugar fruit and cereal creaminess.”
