Crumble, sometimes called crumble wax or honeycomb wax, is a cannabis extract identified by its malleable texture that falls apart, or “crumbles,” when handled.
Unlike other weed concentrates, such as shatter, wax, budder, resin, or cannabis oils, crumble is quite versatile. Not limited to dabbing only, you can easily add it to joints, blunts, or spliffs, or sprinkle crumble over the top of marijuana buds in a bowl or pipe.
The dry, fragmented, and crumbly texture that gives this concentrate its name results from its unique production technique, which involves processing at lower temperatures for a much longer period of time than other concentrates.
While its crumbly consistency can make it harder to handle than concentrates like shatter or budder, crumble wax has a reputation for giving consumers an especially potent and tasty experience.
How to smoke crumble
Versatility is one of this concentrate’s biggest benefits, and there are several simple ways to consume crumble. In addition to dabbing it like any other marijuana concentrate, you can also easily incorporate it into other smoking techniques.
One option is to add it to joints, blunts, or spliffs. Make sure your extract is broken down into relatively small crumbles, then fill your rolling paper or wrapper with flower and sprinkle your crumble evenly across the top of the flower. Finish rolling, spark up, and smoke your crumble-enhanced joint, blunt, or spliff the same way you always do. The flower/crumble combination contains much more THC than flower alone, producing significantly heightened effects.
You can also smoke crumble out of a bong or pipe. Simply pack the bowl with flower, top it off with a bit of crumble, apply heat, and get ready for liftoff.
How to store crumble
As with any form of cannabis, properly storing crumble helps maintain its aroma, flavor, and potency, and slows down the natural degradation of the extract.
Exposure to high temperatures, moisture, oxygen, and light speeds up the degradation process, damaging THC and other cannabinoids. If this happens, you may notice your crumble become darker in color. You may also notice your crumble beginning to lose quality in terms of taste, smell, potency, and effects.
The best way to ensure the longest shelf life possible is to store crumble in an airtight, lightproof container, away from direct light and out of extreme temperatures. Glass or silicone is ideal for this.
More about crumble
Crumble is an extract, a form of cannabis concentrate produced using a solvent such as butane or CO2 in combination with heat and pressure. But unlike other concentrates, which are generally more viscous, this one is — you guessed it — dry and crumbly. In fact, it is one of the driest extracts on the market.
Brands make crumble using either dried and cured cannabis flowers, or fresh flowers that are quickly frozen at an extremely low temperature. In this case, the end product is technically classified as a type of live resin.
Crumble wax is generally light yellow in color. It typically has the consistency of dry crumbs, but can also have a honeycomb structure that easily falls apart into its more distinctive crumbly texture. Over time, it tends to change color, going from light yellow to amber.
Because it’s so crumbly and falls apart so easily, crumble wax can be a bit more difficult to handle than other extracts and concentrates. But its unique solvent purging process may leave intact a very high proportion of the original terpenes and other key compounds such as THC, producing effects that can be ultra flavorful and potent.
How to dab crumble and other cannabis concentrates
Dabbing is by far the most popular way to consume concentrates and extracts. Because concentrates are more potent than flower, dabbing is known for producing a much stronger range of effects. Additionally, because dabbing uses high temperatures to vaporize cannabis rather than burning it, the flavors and aromas you get from this method tend to be much cleaner and more robust.
Dabbing crumble follows the exact same process as any other concentrate: heat the nail, scoop some crumble onto it, and inhale the vapor. The key difference with crumble is that it’s much better to use a spoon-shaped dabber as opposed to a flat-tipped dabber. This makes it easier to scoop the crumble out of its container and get it onto the nail without any crumbles falling off.
BHO Wax
BHO wax is practically the same as BHO shatter. The primary difference in BHO shatter and wax is the final consistency. The initial soaking process is practically the same, and the overall potency (60% – 80%) is usually close to the same depending on the material used. Wax is a consistency similar to a candle or ear wax. It often has many holes in the product from the purging method. Wax is also known as budder and crumble from time to time. Regardless, the only difference from wax to shatter is its purging method. To remove butane from the wax, the wax is agitated by stirring or whipping the solvents from the oil. The final product, when adequately whipped or agitated, is what people refer to as wax.
What Determines the Quality of BHO Shatter and Wax?
When it comes to determining the quality of concentrates, there are many factors unknown to the consumer. Quality concentrates are not all about the final THC content. It comes down to the method of extraction, the solvent used, and remaining terpene content (smell or aroma). Here are some things to think about or ask when buying BHO shatter and wax from a dispensary.
- What type of material was used in the extraction?
a. Whole Plant
b. Trim
c. Buds - What is the PPM (parts per millions) or residual solvents left in the final product?
- Does it have a distinct and pungent aroma?
- Is it a stable consistency?
Dab with Caution
Cannabis concentrates are continuing to grow in popularity every year. While they are an ideal product for seasoned consumers, new consumers should ease into the dabbing game. Dabs are extremely potent and often hit above 80% THC. Be sure to start slow and do not dab too much the first few times around. Concentrates are not for everyone, and there are still many low-quality extractions done in the legal industry. For this reason, it is essential to make sure your concentrate of choice is low in residual solvents.
Get your dab and smoosh it between parchment into a patty and you should be able to pick that up. It’s gets a budder consistency and sticks better.