I have never associated the Carolinas with cannabis, but that has all changed this year. I will spare the reader details of how all this came about, as the Carolinas are not so legally-friendly toward cannabis cultivators or consumers. However, the gist is that I was invited to experience the local offerings from the 2020 season.

Knowing these are likely the final days of illicit backwood cannabis cultivation (akin to moonshine), I couldn’t help but embrace the experience as well as document it.

The featured property is secluded, a mixture of open sun and wooded areas. The cultivator does not plant directly in the ground (although this was practiced in the past), as the plants need to be moved several times through the season. This is done mostly to avoid detection from prying eyes—both in the air and on the ground.

The plants here were grown in full sun before being moved underneath blueberry bushes for a time. They are moved again to a somewhat-open patch in the woods to finish under dappled sunlight.

These plants were all grown in soil and compost with occasional additives. This particular cultivator could certainly be called a graduate of the old school, which I can appreciate. Instead of using the latest and most-popular soil brand among cannabis growers on Instagram or the forums, this cultivator chooses the tried-and-true among multi-generational Carolina farmers—chicken manure and other farm-based inputs. Why pay for bagged inputs that have been trucked across the country and sat on shelves for months, when you can produce your own high-quality inputs for free, and even collect a few eggs in the process?

It is an unbelievably-rare treat to be able to experience homegrown cannabis from a beyond-organic property, and rarer still to experience it from a place where such activities are so frowned upon by the law. Adding to the sweetness (and admittedly my self-perceived “coolness”) of the experience was the fact that this is not simply some untended piece of wilderness with a few guerilla-grown weed plants.

There is a beautifully-harmonious theme on this property—one where permaculture techniques are used not because they are the trendiest new thing, but because they are the techniques that work.

Periodically-rotated fowl runs border garden beds and fruit trees, which are mulched with inputs from the property. The cultivation style here is polyculture to the fullest—many species that benefit human life grow and thrive here, creating an Eden-like atmosphere. Grapes, berries, and fruit trees are present among vegetable beds, herbs, and other useful plants. Most species growing here serve several purposes.

Of course, the small tribe of folks living on this property are accountable for its warm, welcoming, homey feel—what could influence the terroir of the land more than the humans who live and work there every day? The cultivation of land is a reflection of the minds of those who live there, and one can certainly feel the multi-level nourishment exuding from this place. On further consideration, I might be getting these feelings confused with that of the cornbread (made with homegrown glass gem corn, cooked with bacon fat from local, pastured hogs) in my gut, and the cannabinoids in my brain. Or are these feelings one in the same? A philosophical question more than a practical one…

Without further ado, I proudly and gratefully present the:

2020 TOBACCO ROAD CANNABIS CUP:

TERROIR OF THE CAROLINAS

Our work is clearly cut out ahead of us, as pictured at the beginning of the 2020 Tobacco Road Cup.

I present these flowers in no particular order, and will let the reader know about my favorites here and now. I thought the Long Valley Sleigh Ride was the best of the bunch, and my particular favorite to smoke. I thoroughly enjoyed the effect of the flower each time we smoked it, as it seemed to consistently yield a warm glow of well-being and positive thought. I was told this is a high ocimene variety—I will look forward to trying more ocimene-dominated plants in the future.

I was also impressed with the Romulan, and was pleasantly surprised to see Romulan from seed that actually seems like real Romulan. I believe these were bought from Romulan Jake, the son of the originator, Romulan Joe. I love the real deal Romulan—if you don’t have access to a clone, these seeds should satisfy expectations.

I also was particularly partial to my own creations, the Alpine Passionfruit and Alpine Passionfruit x OGxOGxJaro F2. Of course I am biased, but it was really sweet to see the AP so consistent, even being grown in such a different environment. The OGOGJaro cross has a very sweet and pleasant funk to it that rubbed me the right way too.

The Dream Train was quite strong, and I enjoyed the Vanilla Sleighride as well. The Blueberry Muffin was really my only disappointment—I thought it had a fairly generic aroma, and would be a stretch to call it blueberry-smelling.

That being said—virtually all the plants here display some virtues, and I enjoyed smoking all of them.

Blueberry Muffin may have been the biggest disappointment, at least for the cultivator. I have seen Blueberry samples ranging from schwaggy to extremely dank, and this one was right in the middle. The cultivator expressed it certainly was not like the Blueberry he remembered! This sample doesn’t show many true Blueberry traits, like the signature blueberry aroma (this one exhibited vague berry tones). I recommend finding clones of DJ Short’s Blueberry if that’s what you’re after—but of course, easier said than done!*

* The cultivator has since informed me that this plant too performed much better in his indoor room—”disappointment” may be going to far, as the grower went through the trouble of keeping a clone around and giving the plant a second run.

Romulan is a classic, and certainly one of my favorites. This particular Romulan was grown from seed, but exhibits everything that reminds me of classic Romulan. The aroma is there; it is piney, with notes of lemon and lime skittles, and a sweet tone that starts bordering on the edge of what I consider “haze” (possibly stemming from the alleged Korean lineage). It is awesome to see such a classic strain in such an unsuspecting place. This will definitely dent your head, as the name suggests!

Long Valley Sleigh Ride (Long Valley Royal Kush x Tropical Sleigh Ride) from Greenshock Seeds took my pick as the number one winner of the Tobacco Road Cup. It exhibits some of my favorite traits of Long Valley Royal Kush, one of my all-time favorite strains. This is really a wonderful cross and one that I wouldn’t have thought to make myself. The effect for me is something like pure well-being, and just really pleasant and easy-going. I really love this weed and hope to grow some of my own someday—a keeper for sure!

Dream Train was some of the stronger weed in the cup. A cross of Blue Dream and Trainwreck, this sample smelled like classic Trainwreck to me—spicy, some sandalwood, and lemon-lime. A joint was tasty and potent, and this weed would reliably get me red-eyed and quiet—fully occupied with my own thoughts. I have seen a fair amount of nastalgia for the old Arcata Trainwreck as of late. Smoking some Dream Train will satisfy that nastalgia.

Alpine Passionfruit aka Passionfruit Dakini x OGxOGxJaroF2

Alpine Passionfruit x OGOGJaroF2 is one of my own creations, and so I’m obviously a bit biased toward this one. I do think it has an enjoyable tropical aroma; the OGOGJaroF2 contributes something here that is like a tropical flower syrup. There is also a tone very much like the pure Alpine Passionfruit. And finally, a nose-crinkling and indescribable funk that really wraps it up for me.

Holy Black Pineapple surprised me with its potency. A three way cross of Big Sur Holy Bud, Black Garlic, and Pineapple Mazar, this weed really smacked in a joint. I vividly remember going to dinner after smoking a joint of this weed, feeling like I was in a spacesuit and reality was just moving around me. I don’t think I detected much garlic or pineapple in the aroma, but this is some strong weed for sure. A solid painkiller.

Vanilla Sleighride is a nice weed, a cross of Tropical Sleighride and Vanilla, an in-house clone of Greenshock Seeds. Floral with just a vague note of vanilla, this sample was like a less-awesome version of Long Valley Sleigh Ride for me. Nothing wrong with this one, but give me the LVSR! I wonder if I didn’t have the LVSR to compare it to, if I would have ranked it higher in my own mind.

Alpine Passionfruit F2* is one of my own creations as well. Also known as Passionfruit Dakini (until I later realized I probably unknowingly stole this name from Bodhi’s rendition of Strawberry Dakini), it tends to be pretty uniform everywhere it is grown, and here is no different. The signature acidic-floral aroma is present, and smells like it does when it’s grown anywhere.

*The grower reports that this particular cutting is outperforming everything else in his indoor garden, looking like a “gooey hashplant.”

Pineapple Mazar was one of the prettier plants of the bunch. The finished buds, and some of the remaining plant (left in the container even at my time of visiting, as seeds were ripening) were almost black—these are really anthocyanin-rich plants. The stems, foliage, and flowers all display deep purples that give it Pineapple Mazar a lovely aesthetic at the end of season.*

*The pictured flower was harvested prior to the rest of the plant, which was still alive and outside at the same time we smoked this flower. The still-living plant was completely purple and bordering on black.

After leaving this particular property, I did spend some time in cities in North Carolina—Fayetteville and Asheville to be exact. I did get to meet a fellow seed enthusiast in Asheville who was growing some beautiful OGKB (OG Kush Breath) sensimilla flowers in living soil alongside a few tents of his own seed productions.

I was somewhat astounded (the meeting and tour was somewhat impromptu) to be shown this garden, and in such a place no less—sometimes in my own narrow mind, I just assume that everybody who has this as a serious hobby has made it a priority to move somewhere with a friendlier legal climate, like say CO, CA, OR, or any number of the states that have legalized cannabis in some capacity. While I don’t think there is much of anything beautiful about people being incarcerated for this plant, there was something strangely beautiful about seeing these guys popping seeds like plant counts don’t exist, their yards and homes (down to the kitchen) full of grow tents and ganja plants, risking freedom & future in the pursuit of excellent herb.

It’s amazing to know (and to have experienced) that there is a thriving illegal cannabis scene in the Carolinas, that elite clones and seeds are making their way there, and that the local people are breeding those genetics like mad. I can’t wait to revisit the Carolinas someday with legal ganja, and certainly hope to see the local cultivators with local, acclimatized genetics.

Until that day, I will plan to look forward to the next Tobacco Road Cup.