The earth is erupting in a dense center of cannabis. In fact, new sources such as live resin and all kinds of BHO have hit the market for cannabis, offering both recreational and medicinal herb users a whole new way to enjoy their buds.
However, these are recent events. In this post, we take a look at one of the oldest and most types of solitary eccentric cannabis chars, made from the best buds grown in the Himalayan foothills.
WHAT IS CHARAS AND WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?
Chorus is a type of cannabis extract mixed with hashish. It is handmade and is believed to originate from the Asia region, especially India, Pakistan and Nepal. Like most cannabis extracts, it is made by producing a high-concentrated extract that separates the trichomes from the cannabis plant material. These trichomes usually form a frosty, adhesive layer on the cannabis flower, and to a lesser extent, the stems and leaves are visible.
The main difference between hashish and grasshoppers is that the last one is made from living marijuana cut, whereas the former is made using dead, dried plant material. The chars are also usually made using hand-rolling methods (which we will explore in more detail below), where the hash can be made in a variety of ways using mainly dry running, bubble bags and more.
The chars are usually sold in balls or sticks and tradition is traditionally smoked using a chillum, a particular type of pipe traditionally used by the Hindu monk (or saint). Cannabis has played an important role in spiritual and religious practice throughout the Indian subcontinent and various parts of the world. Chars play a central role, especially in many Hindu methods and practices.
Shivas (a Hindu community worshipping Shiva as Parameswara), for example, show their Lord often smoking a chillum and adding to their practice of smoking. They usually load it into chilli and before smoking, many names of Shiva worship and chant.
Charas is widely available throughout India, but their production is generally found in a handful of places like Parvati Valley and Kashmir. In these regions, cannabis plants grow freely on the foothills of the Himalayas and are often valued by straw hunters, breeders and other cannabis enthusiasts. Parvati Valley is especially famous for a particular type of chars called Malana Cream; it is appreciated for high THC content.
Kerala gold is another well-known type of chars, sometimes also called Idukki Gold. It has garnered a lot of attention since the premiere of a 2013 movie, following the story of 5 friends in search of this intense, strong concentration. Unfortunately, it’s no longer easy to find.
Chars are commonly used and produced outside of countries like Pakistan and Nepal. However, the chars from India are arguably the most famous.
HOW TO MAKE CHARAS:
Making chars is messy and requires a lot of patience, effort and weed. However, the principles behind its production are elementary, by handling a single resinous mattress, you will automatically create a solid, brownish-black residue in your hand. This is where the plant trichomes stick to your side and create a potent extract due to friction.
To make charas at home, you’ll need:
• Plant pruning flowers (with some stems) from a plant that is about 2-5 weeks away from reaching full maturity.
• A pair of hands.
Start by washing your hands and making sure they’re spotless. Stay away from overly scented soaps or lotions; instead, use a non-scented, organic hand soap if possible.
After that, take a few mango rings and gently rub them in your hand. Be careful not to apply extra forces, as you will lose resin rather than gain more. You want to be humble and patient when handling these rugs. To lift more oil, you can try to try slightly lighter flowers in the palm of your hand with your thumb.
When you roll the pods, you notice the thicker, sticky, torque-like material in the fingers of their hands. This is Chars. Once you are happy you extract enough resin from the bud, you can dispose of them and make your chars balls or sticks.
Slowly rub your hands together to form a wooden rod or ball. Remember, the slower you go, and the patience you have, the higher your chars quality. Store in a tightly wrapped plastic film to make sure your characters are not dry.
HOW TO SMOKE CHARAS
When you’re done, it’s time to enjoy the fruits of your hard work. For a more everyday experience, we recommend investing in a Chillum. Alternatively, take a piece of pasture, turn it into a slight snake, and roll yourself a nice joint with the tobacco mixture to ensure a minor, slow burn.
If you are not a fan of tobacco, you can roll your chars into a joint or fume with regular flowers. And, if you are not a fan of joints or blanks, you can mix in some bowls and smoke through regular pipes or bongs. Finally, you can print the strap into steam like other marijuana extracts.
Whenever you try a new cannabis product, it’s always best to take things easy. Best of all, you can still smoke more, but you can never smokeless. Remember, THC, and other cannabinoids have much higher amounts of regular flowers than regular flowers, such as hash and other frequent ones.
WHAT STRAINS TO USE FOR CHARAS?
You can use any strain you want to create chars. For a more traditional anti-aliasing product, we recommend an Indica strain with roots somewhere in Indica, Pakistan or surrounding areas (like some Kush varieties, for example). Most importantly, you want to make sure that you work with a highly resinous strain known to produce many trichomes.
Below we have listed some RQS strains that we believe will work well to create some powerful homemade chars. But remember, these are just suggestions; play around with other RQS varieties to see what yields the best results.
ROYAL KUSH
A powerful Kush variant that packs a very, very strong punch.
Our Royal Kush is extremely easy to grow, and thanks to being a great resin grower, we make ourselves fit for homemade chards.
NORTHERN LIGHT
Northern Light is a classic strain that is loved all over the world. Producing super strong, large yields of snowflake buds and packing a vast, indica-dominant punch, we are 100% confident that this breed can provide some very powerful chars.
Bubble KUSH
Buying the best of carefully selected subtitle, indica, and even Roderralis varieties, our Bubble Kush is proud of the dominant genetics that produces powerful results every time.
Although it may not be very trendy, we are sure that these things will create some great character regardless
