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Vaporizers in Amsterdam

Besides smoking, vaporizing is a popular way to consume cannabis in Amsterdam coffeeshops. With a device called a vaporizer you can heat up weed and sometimes hashish, to a specific temperature at which the active ingredients in cannabis evaporate. This temperature (229c) is well below the point of combustion, keeping the weed from igniting.

In short, a vaporizer more-or-less  ‘steams’ your weed as opposed to burning it. Thus, when vaporizing the active ingredients, no smoke is created. People who do not smoke may still ”vape”.

In the Netherlands, some coffeeshops have in-house vaporizers which are offered as a free service, if you purchase something from the weed counter.

Over the years a number of smaller, hand held vaporizers were developed that make it possible to vape’ out and about. These devices are usually USB charged. While some versions are made specifically for dry herbs, other models allow for the use of concentrates like wax, shatter and honey oil.

Vaporizing is arguably less damaging than regular smoking, producing less second hand smoke, and it is a preferred method for medical cannabis users.

Dabbing is the act of applying heat to a cannabis concentrate, most often by way of a dab-rig, a device much like a conventional bong or water pipe, but equipped with a special nail to hold the substance. There are different terms for what is smoked, including wax, earwax, dab, shatter, butter, glass and honey oil.

There are two main kinds of oil based on how they are made, Butane Hash Oil BHO, and Alcohol Hash Oil AHO. Both methods help to extract the desired concentrate.

The dabbing substances can have a very high THC content and are rich in terpenes and terpenoids, organic compounds which help amplify the aromas and flavors.

The ability to isolate specific chemicals, such as CBD and THC, when produced, make dabs and oils favored by medicinal marijuana patients. Highly concentrated forms of CBD (a substance with many health benefits but without the ‘high’ produced by THC) for example, are created by these same methods of extraction.

Due to the strict regulations in Dutch coffeeshops, and the fact that cannabis oil is a scheduled substance in the Netherlands, you cannot purchase extracts and concentrates that contain THC.