If you live in Colorado or Washington, let’s face it: You’ve got it made when it comes to weed. So does California. These are states where it’s easiest to get your hands on your favorite kind of green.
Strains, edibles, oils, and other cannabis products abound at legal pot shops or medical marijuana dispensaries. It takes little effort to enroll as a patient in each of these states, a fact that makes even more cannabis delicacies available to consumers – at a better price, too.
If you live anywhere else, though, you have a much steeper hill to climb. Pot may be decriminalized in 16 states, and MMJ may be allowed in 23, but that doesn’t mean you have a great selection, or an easy time getting the drug. And what is available isn’t always as good as it could be.
So here, in order, are the five best strains that you can actually get on the black market. We’re not encouraging anyone to break the law, but we know most people don’t get their weed the sanctioned way. Ahem.
1. Mr. Nice Guy
This isn’t the world’s most potent bud, but it’s a black-market staple, usually pretty easy to find. It’s a sativa strain, and it’s great for daytime toking.
Mr. Nice Guy smells like fruit, and it has a smooth taste. It’s the kind of weed you could find almost anywhere, and it’s usually pretty cheap. If this is the best you can do on any given day, be glad you found this versatile strain.
2. Sour Diesel
Another regular on the black market, Sour Diesel packs a whallop. A hybrid strain, it delivers a one-two punch: first a couchlock indica high, followed by a heady sativa effect about half an hour after toking.
This is particularly potent bud, though the THC levels aren’t as high as the kind of pot you can find where it’s legal. The taste and aroma are both fruity, with a dank, earthy smell when fresh bud is broken.
3. Strawberry Cough
This great strain usually comes around every once in a while. Buy it when you can: It’s relatively potent, it tastes like strawberries, and it produces a hacking cough to complete the experience.
The strawberry flavor and aroma are a big part of what makes this strain so good. It’s distinct, even from other strawberry strains, and it produces a thick, aromatic smoke. The cough may be annoying, but at least it proves you’re toking right.
The high of this sativa strain is even better: potent, active, and heady. It’s one of the stronger strains you’ll find on the black market.
4. Northern Lights
This indica-sativa hybrid is a classic on the black market. It’s strong, the euphoria lasts, and it produces a top-shelf body high like no other.
Northern Lights gives off a skunky plant-like aroma and produces an earthy, slightly fruity taste. You really can’t go wrong with this stuff. Even if it’s poorly grown, it’s still usually better than most other black market strains.
5. Blue Dream
Blue Dream is a California original and a great strain regardless of where you get it. But it’s also not terribly hard to find on the black market because it’s so highly regarded and because it’s been around for a long time.
The strain provides a smooth, woody flavor while giving off a similar smell. And it can hit hard with a strong, bubbly sativa high, mostly in the head. Just how hard will depend on how well it was grown, but it’s usually quite potent.
These may not be the best strains marijuana has to offer, but they’re much better than nothing – and when you buy on the black market, you have to take the best you can get. If you can scrounge up any of these five winners, you’re in for a good time.