Most Sought After Cannabis Brands and Strains in Ontario in 2021

It’s been an exciting year for the cannabis industry. It seems every month there are new products dropping left, right and center.  We’ve seen familiar brands dropping new products such as Broken Coast with Kush Mints and Sunset Sherbet and we’ve seen completely new brands like Coast Mountain Cannabis and Artisan Batch to name a couple.  Honestly it’s hard to keep up with all of it! So to make things easier (slightly) I’m going to do a quick rundown on some of the most searched for cannabis brands in 2021.  Stay tuned for our next article on some of our favourite new cannabis brands and strains that you should definitely consider looking into.  Quick Teaser for our NEXT BLOG POST, expect to hear about blkmkt, the loud plug, Wagners and Royal City Cannabis to name a few

Cookies

This brand is not new to the cannabis industry, but they are new to Canada. Thanks to Gage Growth Corp. (cannabis brand and operator) and NOYA Cannabis Inc. (licensed producer) who first brought this brand exclusively to Ontario (lucky us).

Cookies has its roots in San Francisco starting in 2011. It’s founders rapper and entrepreneur Berner and his grow expert Jai have successfully created one of the most well-respected, top-selling and best-known cannabis brands in the industry. What makes this brand stand out is their authentic and innovative genetics, which comes from their dedication and commitment to the brand.

But it doesn’t just stop at Cookies.  Under the Cookies portfolio includes:

● Cookies CBD which focuses on CBD forward cannabis products
● Lemonade, Cookies’ sister company specializing in sativa-leaning cannabis
products
● Minntz which is a partnership between Seed Junkies x Cookies specializing in
craft cannabis
● Collins Ave which is a partnership between Berner and rapper Rick Ross
● Grandiflora which is another partnership offering ‘exotic’ genetics and unique,
craft cannabis strains

All of which will slowly and surely be released into the Canadian cannabis industry. We’ve had the lucky opportunity here at Budders to get our hands on a few of their strains so far.  You can find their products in 3.5g and pre-roll options.

So let’s introduce a few of their products:

Cookies: Gary Payton Hybrid
THC: 18-24%
Lineage: Y-Griega x Snowman
Terpenes: Humulene, Myrcene, Pinene
Aroma: Strong gas with burnt rubber finish
Flavour: Super smooth gas
Looks: Light, frosty green buds with bright orange hairs
*Experience: Strong, heavy body feel

Cookies: Georgia Pie Hybrid
THC: 20-28%
Lineage: Gelato x Kush Mints
Terpenes: Linalool, Myrcene, Terpineol
Aroma: Peach Cobbler
Flavour: Stone Baked Fruit
Looks: Green and purple buds with striking orange hairs
*Experience: Very strong body and head high

MINNTZ: The Soap Hybrid
THC: 21-28%
Lineage: Original cultivar
Terpenes: Caryophyllene
Aroma: Soapy, with a hint of sweet cake
Flavour: Sweet aromatic
Looks: Frosty, tight-knit buds
*Experience: Potent flavour with a heady high, good for daytime

Lemonnade: Medellin Sativa
THC: 21-28%
Lineage: Original cultivar
Terpenes: Limone, Myrcene, Pinene
Aroma: Ozone, gas and funk
Flavour: Musky with a hint of gas
Looks: Deep purple and vibrant green buds
*Experience: Clear head high with light, relaxing body feel

Back 40 

"Back Forty refers to the most remote part of a farm, the place where I imagine a farmer would go to get away from the day-to-day and connect with the peace and quiet of nature” Brad Canario, Brand Director, Back Forty.

Back 40 is about getting back to nature, back to the Canadian landscape and seeking adventure, embracing the freedom of the outdoors.  What else is cannabis better for?  This brand is owned by the licensed producer Auxley (Foray, Robinsons, Dosecann and Kolab) which was ranked #1 LP for Cannabis 2.0 (vapes taking the top in sales, edibles, beverages, extracts and topicals) in 2020. No wonder they are one of the most searched brands this year.

Their shatter vapes come in 0.45g or 1g options and contain only two ingredients: cannabis distillate and botanical terpenes. Which is what gives these carts their signature flavour. They also use a circular mouth-piece which seems to prevent clogging and provide a smoother vaping experience. The Back 40 line up includes:

Sour Apple
Tart apple inhale and sweet, fruity exhale
THC: 80%
Terpenes: Limonene, Linalool, Pinene

Forbidden Fruit Indica
Earthy and citrusy
THC: 80%
Terpenes: d-Limonene, Myrcene

Kush Mint
Menthol flavoured hybrid
THC: 80%
Terpenes: Menthol, d-Limonene

Super Lemon Haze Sativa
Citrussy and floral
THC: 80%
Terpenes: d-Limonene, Terpinolene, Myrcene, Caryophyllene

This year we also saw Back 40 drop a few impressive 28 GRAM OPTIONS. Geared towards the every-day smoker and claiming to ‘provide a better experience for less’. Back 40 cannabis uses organic practices to grow their high-potent strains from Auxley’s genetics.

Wedding Pie Indica
THC: 19-26%
Lineage: Wedding Cake x Grape Pie
Flavour: Spicy and peppery
Terpenes (up tp 2.89%) : Trans-caryophyllene, Linalool, Farnesene, Limonene, alpha-bisabolol

Animal Mints Indica
THC: 18-25%
Lineage: Animal Cookies x Sinmint Cookies
Flavour: Sweet and minty
Terpenes (up to 2.32%) : Caryophyllene, Farnesene, Limonene, Linalool, Humulene

Fruity Pebbles OG Indica
THC: 18-23%
Lineage: Green Ribbon x Tahoe Alien
Flavour: Sweet and fruity
Terpenes: Terpinolene, Myrcene, Bisabool, Ocimene, Beta-Caryophyllene

Spinach

I’m not surprised Spinach has found itself on this list.  This brand was one of the first introduced at the beginning of legalization in 2018 and has continued to stay on top of the game. This year we have seen Spinach drop a number of new products; their first concentrate Diesel Honeycomb Wax, their first edibles Spinach SOURZ and FEELZ, two new 510 vape cartridges Pineapple Paradise and Atomic Sour Grapefruit, and a number of new cannabis strains.

Spinach has a solid line-up of classic strains we’ve become familiar with over the last couple years such as: Blue Dream, Diesel, Rockstar Kush, White Widow and Blueberry.

And in 2021 we have seen Spinach drop some of the best moving strains available on the OCS (looking at you GMO Cookiez).  Available in 3.5g and pre-rolls options, let’s take a look at a
few of these strains:

GMO Cookiez Indica
THC: 20-30% THC
Lineage: Chemdawg x Girl Scout Cookies
Flavour: Sweet, spicy and savoury
Terpenes: Caryophyllene, Terpinolene, Myrcene, Humulene
Atomic Sour Grapefruit Indica
THC: 22-28%
Lineage: Chemdawg x SFV OG Kush
Flavour: Sour, earthy and citrus
Terpenes: Valencene, Camphene, Guaiol, Fenchol

Pineapple Paradise Sativa (exclusive)
THC: 20-26%
Lineage: Pre-98 Bubba Kush x Sour Diesel
Flavour: Sweet, fruity and citrus
Terpenes: Myrcene, Limonene, b-Ocimene

Tangerine Twist Sativa (28g only)
THC: 20-26%
Lineage: Skunk #1 x Dead Head
Flavour: Citrusy, fruity and earthy
Terpenes: Myrcene, Linalool, Limonene, Caryophyllene

I also want to give a shout out to the Spinach SOURZ gummies. These are one of the best tasting gummies, in my opinion, available on the market right now. They are dual flavoured and vegan with a delicious sour coating. There are 3 flavours available and each pack contains:

Blueraspberry Watermelon (indica) / Strawberry Mango (sativa) - 5 gummies, 2mg THC each

Peach Orange 1:1   -   5 gummies, 2mg THC and CBD each

SHRED

Shred was launched in the summer of 2020 by Organigram (Edison Cannabis Co., Trailblazer, Big Bag O’ Buds, Indi) which feels like yesterday and 10 years ago at the same time (who can really keep track of what has happened over the last couple of years?). Anyways, SHRED has been a hit since day one. This cannabis is pre-ground whole flower that comes in a 7g pouch and 14 packs of pre-rolls (they claim no shake or stems are involved in the milling process) . It's inexpensive and consumers can’t get enough of it.

Though these bags aren’t strain specific, SHRED has geared its marketing towards the flavour and aromas of the cannabis. There are three (RIP Flower Power, it seems to have been discontinued) options in the SHRED line up which include:

Gnarberry
THC: 18-24%
Berry and fruity aromas and flavour.

Tropic Thunder
THC: 18-24%
Citrus and tropical aromas and flavour.

Funk Master
THC: 18-24%
Skunky, cheesy and gassy aromas and flavour.

Short and to the point, because I’m not trying to overwhelm you guys with information during this busy holiday season.

But be sure to check out our cannabis menu on the website to see what we have in stock by these brands. Or come into one of our cannabis stores located in Toronto, Acton and our newest location Ancaster to speak with one of our Budtenders about trying these cannabis products. Maybe you can even get a little bit of holiday shopping done for your beloved stoner.

Thanks for reading and Happy Holidays!