The LA Cannabis Scene

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I have been consuming cannabis for most of my life, however once I moved to Los Angeles over 10 year ago I think I tumbled into the mecca of Cannabis.In 1996 California and  Los Angeles residents passed Prop 215 (Read more here) which allowed certain medically qualified residents to legally purchase or donate for medical cannabis up to a certain amount without the fear of arrest and/or prosecution. Fast forward over 20 years later in 2017  California residents passed Prop 64 (read more here) which allowed for adult 21+ recreational purchases and usage (even though you cannot consume in public and in hotels, but you can on our tour). 

Cannabis has always been a "Hush" type of community and with prop 64 being passed it has opened the door for corporate opportunity, but also massive regulation which has added a very aggressive sales tax and quite a few cities and counties saying "No" to cannabis . Los Angeles is one of the cities in the Greater Los Angeles Area to say "Yes" to Cannabis Here is a list of other cities.

Here is my experience over the last year as it has been great and interesting:

​The Dispensaries 
There are different dispensaries and what I have found is that the area and/or neighborhood you are in will generally dictate your experience so choose wisely. For example the Valley usually has the best prices and some pretty decent cannabis and there are several options which usually benefits the customer, prior to Prop 64 you can get an eighth of some premium for $30, some of that still applies for medical patients (If you need a rDr. recommendation please click here). South LA, East LA and Korea Town usually  will have the cheapest options because of cheaper rent and more competition.West Hollywood, Venice Marina Del Rey and will generally be more expensive because of their locations.  Now you can enter a dispensary with either you state issued ID which will get you recreational prices and a different tax rate. There are some major players in the Cannabis game like Jungle Boys who have very exclusive and exotic strains, and have (2) locations and several options like a live press so that you can make your own sauce. There can be a long wait at times (at Original Location) , but they also have a expedited line if you already know what you want. Another major player in the Los Angeles is MedMen who has (6) Los Angeles area dispensaries and (1) in Orange County. This is a very "State of the Art" dispensary resembling an Apple store, a very helpful staff and several options available. Please know there are several others that we love and some that we have not visited just yet. So please comeback for more as we will review more.

Events
One of the best kept secrets of Cannabis in LA is the events, which are happening daily. Sessions or "Sesh" for short are private meetings and or get together that "medical" patients are invited to attend. These events allow you to purchase medical cannabis from vendors directly which is usually way cheaper then the dispensaries. Sesh's are invite only and you will need your Dr.'s recommendation with you. Instagram is a great place to look for sessions and get invloved, just search "Sesh" under people and there you go...One other option is attend events put on by Grass Fed LA  Events  who puts on monthly events throughout the city which include education, dining, and more. I attended an event that was all about Terpene profiles of cannabis, it was amazing and hosted by Kristen Yoder of Soil to the Oil (someone you really should follow plus she has an amazing podcast click here to listen) . Eventbrite sometimes will offer tickets to events usually more on the business side of cannabis, but a valuable resource nonetheless. 

Parting words
Just do your research and be willing to listen to the locals as they can save you time and money as LA is a very large market and everything is not as advertised and there is a lot of "bammer" and "overpriced" cannabis out there. Book a tour save yourself the hassle. 
Stay tuned for more updates 

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