Cannabis concentrates have been around as long as the cannabis plant with the original concentrate being hash. Hash shares several close cousins including Kief and Bubble Hash. Kief is produced by separating the trichromes from the cannabis plant and is the starting material for a hash. Hash is then made from compressing Kief under pressure. Bubble hash is very similar to Kief and gets its name from the bubbles that form when smoked and for the screen bubble bags used in its creation process. In that process the trichromes are separated by freezing them so they will separate from the cannabis plant.
The new era of concentrates sees products such as Shatter, Rosin and Distillate, each with their own distinct properties. Shatter gets its name from its glass like appearance and texture, it is a highly concentrated collection of the plants essential oils which have been separated using a solvent such as CO2 or Hexane. Rosin is created when either cannabis buds or a concentrate such as Kief are placed on heated plates which are then compressed forcing the plants essential oils out the side of the press. Both Shatter and Rosin are considered full spectrum concentrates comprised of many different cannabinoids and terpenes. Distillate has taken out all the other plant waxes, oils and terpenes and leaves behind only the THC cannabinoid.
