I finally got Piatella folks. I am very excited. Let's go check it out. But first - what actually is Piatella and why am I interested in it?
Hash Making Fascination:
I am fascinated with the hash making process. I really love how someone's been through the smarty pants thought process of extracting and isolating the loveliness from our favourite plant and how the process has been refined and improved repeatedly over the years. I have often spoken about lusting after the fine and rare hash called Piatella.
It's a truly artisan hash and the amount of care that's gone into creating it completely intrigues me. Making basic hash is easy. Making good hash is much harder. Piatella, with its detailed production methodology, is meant to be at the cutting edge of how well it's possible to make a hash and I suspect a super hard method to perfect.
The Official Piatella:
Piatella is a product name by Uncles Farm, I believe, although similar methods are used by other fancy hash makers such as LA Barz. I got told last time I mentioned the subject that for authenticity it needs to be Uncles version.
How to Make Piatella:
The process of making Piatella, in short, avoids oxidisation through avoiding contact with heat, light and air. It replaces these with lots of love and care.
Regular hash is darker due to oxidising. Piatella has avoided this which creates a different hash composition. Pretty high tech stuff going down I think we can all agree. Like, the people making this are probably in a clinical environment of brightly lit stainless steel surfaces, wearing lab coats and glasses while doing calculations on clear perspex with marker pens. This is sciencey stuff.
Fresh Frozen:
It's made with fresh frozen weed which is processed much like a frozen hash would be initially. I guess they're probably pretty fussy about the starter product and the filtering to make sure they only capture the trichomes they need to work with and not any plant material. I suspect a lot of care has been taken with the starter weed before any hash making even starts.
Freeze Dried:
The wet hash is dried in a freeze drier then wrapped and cold cured without air or heat getting to it. The upshot is the terps are meant to dissolve inwards and create a perfect solventless extract. This keeps all the strength and flavour locked in. At least according to the internet. This however is the first time I've had it for real. The question is will it live up to the hype?
It's Expensive Stuff:
The Piatella I have is Cap Junky from TheHashCollective. It was $60 for half a gram. Huge thanks to THC23 for kindly saving it for me 'til payday. That's a vendor that's working with the community right there and great service is always worth flagging up for all to see. However grateful I am for them saving it, it must of course be noted that this is really expensive stuff. It's not just champagne prices, it is the Dom Perignon. Will it have me in a fizz or leave me flat? Let's find out.
In the Pot:
It's very pretty looking stuff as you can see in the photo and it's homed in a fancy little black glass pot. It's not the nicest pot I've had from LB but we are in premium pot territory for sure It's got a fragrant floral scent laced with fresh resin. My nose and eyes tell me there is the potential for magic here.
In a Spliff:
To roll up with it's sticky but workable. I've kept it in my fridge to keep it cold and fresh. It crumbles into sort of fluffy wisps leaving my fingers a little tacky and smelling of fresh resin. Very satisfying. It's not like when you roll up with shatter and you find you've accidentally glued yourself to a packet of rizlas, a pair of scissors, two paper clips and a frying pan.
As I light up the joint I'm quickly met with thick yet light and clean clouds of fruity smoke with a slight hint of a hashy aroma set amongst a more gassy smell. In a blind test you'd know this was a form of hash as that baseline Moroccan hashy taste is in there amongst the flavour but it's not dry and pasty like with a commercial - it's much fresher.
Effects are pretty fast with it immediately making me aware of it's potency. It smokes like what it is I guess - a fantastically clean and perfectly produced cannabis extract. The effects continue to creep up as I plough through this joint. It's pretty powerful stuff but well balanced as a stone. It seems smoother than smoking a shatter extract and more akin to a wax or rosin but with a less pronounced flavour. It's probably not the strongest thing I've smoked although I must admit it is very pleasant and certainly not weak. Twas a very enjoyable if horrifically expensive joint.
In the Dab Pen
For the canna tech heads my dab pen is utillian 2. A small and basic device that's been really reliable and handy. I'll upgrade it eventually as the one thing I don't like is it's hard to clean. Other than that though it's a great little device.
Okay, it's actually pretty strong in the dab pen. Like really noticeably and immediately. I always write these reviews on the fly as I try stuff out and I had to pause a second or two there to compose myself and eat hula hoops before writing again. Two packets of BBQ Beef (suitable for vegetarians). Onwards.
While in some ways it's similar to a hash rosin in smoke and aroma, the sudden immediate stone is notable in the dab pen. In terms of exhale to headrush this is probably the fastest of anything I've smoked. My face and body feel warm seconds after dabbing it with a little europhic wave happily following - probably skipping along with flowers in its hair. So it really does have the pop and fizz of a champagne level hash with hipster overtones when you dab it.
I'm not sure it's actually stronger than my other extracts but it seems faster and a wee bit peaky. The flavour isn't as pronounced as with some extracts and it does have a hashy aroma. It's pretty smooth but not the smoothest stuff I've had through my dab pen and it definitely gives my lungs more of a tickle than my favoured extracts do.
Is it the Best Hash Ever?
Probably not. It is however really bloody good. And the effects feel markedly quicker for some reason. I'm not sure if it's the strain or the product itself or simply my imagination but that's how it felt to me. Like a rocket hash.
The Nitty Gritty:
While it's definitely a really exceptional product, it's not the god of all extracts and not least because of the cost. Perhaps it's because I'm on a budget but it's the cost that I just can't quite get to grips with.
So What Other Extracts Could You Buy for $60?
I currently have a diesel crumble wax that was $35 a gram and a apple hash rosin which was $25 a gram. So 2g's of pretty lovely and varied extract. I love both in my dab pen and for the same price as the Piatella I got four times as much product. I've not had an extract I prefer to the diesel for flavour and smoothness. While it's not the strongest I've had it's just really nice to dab and filled with flavour. I can chug along happily for ages with that stuff.
Conclusion:
I'm glad I've tried the Piatella after seeing it online and reading about it so much. Life is all about experiencing new things. While it was spendy I don't feel like I've been rinsed for the money as I'll get a fair few goes on the dab pen for the sixty bucks and it's a nice smoke. I expect I'd buy it again in the future for a special occasion - maybe. I don't feel like I'm missing out on a Rock Star stoner lifestyle by not being able to either afford or source a steady supply of it. It did feel like a treat which is exactly what I wanted but it's difficult to say it's in any way good value for the money.
Thanks:
Thanks as always for reading my topic. I hope it was informative and if not I hope it was entertaining in some way. Did it convince you to try the Piatella? Or the opposite? Have you tried it? What was yours like? I'd love to hear about what expensive treats you feel are worth spending out on in the comments. Thanks.
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