What is the difference between live resin, rosin and distillate?
Live resin, rosin and distillate differ in process and in what is left in the jar. Rosin uses heat and pressure with no solvent, and live resin is pulled out with a solvent. Distillate is described as a highly concentrated Δ9-THC extract with most terpenes and other constituents removed. When a product name leaves the method unclear, ask us at the counter.
Rosin, live resin and distillate compared
| Rosin | Live resin | Distillate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it is made | Mechanical compression with heat and pressure | Solvent-based extraction | Described by what is left in it, with most terpenes and other constituents removed |
| Solvent in the process | None, solventless | Yes, solvent-based | Check the product or ask us |
| Terpenes, as described | Varies by product | Described as full-spectrum, with little scientific evidence on fresh-plant terpenes | Most terpenes and other constituents removed |
| Price and THC value | Check the live menu | Check the live menu | Check the live menu |
| Where to look | Concentrates aisle | Concentrates aisle | Concentrates aisle |
How each one is made
Rosin. A paper in the peer-reviewed literature calls rosin a solventless extract obtained through mechanical compression using heat and pressure. Another describes rosin tech as a method that applies moderate heat and constant pressure on marijuana flowers. Solventless work can also start from fresh frozen flowers as feedstock for trichome extracts.
Live resin. Researchers list butane hash oil, wax, live resin and shatter as solvent-based concentrates, while hash and bubble oil are water-based solventless concentrates. One paper describes live resin as a full-spectrum extraction preserving the source plant's cannabinoid and terpene profile. A separate content analysis found little scientific evidence that live resin preserves the terpenes and flavors of the fresh cannabis plant, so judge a live resin by the product in front of you and not by the word "live".
Distillate. The same paper that describes live resin calls distillate a highly concentrated Δ9-THC extract with most terpenes and other constituents removed. A terpene name on a distillate product does not settle where those terpenes came from, because a separate review says some concentrates preserve naturally occurring cannabinoids and terpenes while others consist mainly of purified Δ9-THC reconstituted with commercial terpene blends.
If aroma is why you are shopping, our guide to cannabis terpenes explains what those compounds are. Shopping for a vape instead? See our cartridge versus disposable comparison.
How Connecticut's statute words it
Connecticut's cannabis statute treats any form of concentration extracted from cannabis as a cannabis concentrate, and it names extracts, oils, tinctures, shatter and waxes as examples. It defines extract as the preparation, compounding, conversion or processing of cannabis to produce a cannabis concentrate. So the legal word tells you a product is a concentrate and not how it was made.
Oregon's cannabis regulator draws a line the Connecticut text does not. It classes an extraction as a concentrate when the process is mechanical, and as an extract when it uses a hydrocarbon based solvent like butane, hexane or propane. That is Oregon's rule, not ours.
Shopping concentrates on our live menu
Open the concentrates aisle page, where the product list shows live items from the menu of the store you have selected, with a switch to the other store. We prioritize products from licensed Connecticut cultivators and processors.
Online ordering takes orders at any hour on both live menus. Delivery from Derby goes into scheduled slots, and checkout confirms each address. Our delivery page lists the 14 towns Derby serves, and you can read how it works on the delivery page. Hartford is pickup only: order on the Hartford live menu and collect at our Hartford store. For delivery, start on the Derby live menu.
On a concentrate package, expect the two DCP-issued label symbols, which mark that the package contains THC and that it is not safe or legal for anyone under twenty-one. A concentrate above thirty percent total THC must also carry a high-potency warning. Our walkthrough on how to read a Connecticut cannabis label shows where each sits, and you can call us at 860-420-BUDS (2837) before you order.
Questions about concentrates
What does dabbing mean?
Dabbing is smoking or vaporizing highly concentrated oils or extracts, the kind also called wax or shatter, according to NIDA. That is NIDA's wording, and a product's own package and listing say which kind of concentrate it is. To see what the store you have selected stocks, open our concentrates aisle.
What does solventless mean?
It means no solvent was used in the process. Rosin is a solventless extract obtained through mechanical compression using heat and pressure, and researchers also list hash and bubble oil as water-based solventless concentrates. Live resin sits on the other side of that split, with butane hash oil, wax and shatter among the solvent-based concentrates.
Is live resin the same as distillate?
No. Live resin is a solvent-based extraction that one paper describes as preserving the source plant's cannabinoid and terpene profile, while distillate is described as a highly concentrated Δ9-THC extract with most terpenes and other constituents removed. Check the product listing or ask us which one you are holding.
How much concentrate can I carry?
For adults 21 and older, the possession limit is one and one-half ounces of cannabis plant material on their person. Under the possession statute, one and one-half ounces of plant material equals seven and one-half grams of concentrate, or other cannabis products with up to seven hundred fifty milligrams of THC.
Does Hi! People deliver concentrates?
Yes, from the Derby store: orders go into scheduled slots, and checkout confirms each address. Our delivery page lists the 14 towns Derby serves. Hartford is pickup only, so a Hartford order is collected at the store. Our concentrates aisle shows live items from the store you have selected.
Who can buy concentrates at Hi! People?
Adults 21 and older. DCP lists both Hi! People stores as cannabis retailers serving adults 21 and older, so the age rule is the same at either counter. Online ordering takes orders at any hour, and you collect the order at the counter in Derby or Hartford, or choose scheduled delivery from Derby.
