In this episode, Matt looks at how to add hemp seeds to your daily diet with help from Ministry of Hemp’s video producer Jessica St. Cyr and writer Elijah Pickering.

Then Matt and his wife Kacie head to one of Omaha’s favorite cocktail bars, Herbe Sainte, for CBD cocktails prepared with care and style by Bar Manager Austin Elsberry.

We want to hear from you too. Send us your questions and you might hear them answered on future shows! Send us your written questions to us on Twitter, Facebook, email matt@ministryofhemp.com, or call us and leave a message at 402-819-6417.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes or your favorite podcast app.

Read more articles on hemp food and drink:

• Hemp for breakfast
• How To Make Your Own Hemp Milk
• CBD Drinks & Cocktails

Below you’ll find the full written transcript of episode #2.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

Matt: 00:04 Hey this is Matt with the Ministry of Hemp podcast welcoming you to episode two.

Matt: 00:10 Now today you might notice I sound a little bit different because we’re going to be talking about hemp in food. So it only seems right to maybe start this show in my kitchen. And that’s where we are.

Matt: 00:21 I’m here with my sous chef, a little black pug named Mable and we are making a hemp scramble for breakfast. It’s Sunday morning, super cold outside and I’m putting off shoveling. So why not make a protein packed scramble with some CBD goodness, to get the day started?

Matt: 00:39 So we’re starting with a shallot. If you don’t know what a shallot is, a shallot is like an onion, times two. They’re amazing. They’re purple. I’m going to use half of one because I’m only making food for me today. Although, this little pug tends to get a little bit every time too.

Matt: 00:54 From there, got some spinach that we’re going to chop up. This is a scramble so we’ve got some fresh, washed spinach. I’ve got some green onions. And I’m just going to rough chop this spinach. Do sort of a rough chop on the shallots as well. I like having big pieces of shallots in there.

Matt: 01:20 Always wash your spinach. Even if you wash it when you first bought it, wash it again. It’s just a safe thing to do.

Matt: 01:26 From there, I’m going to crack our eggs. Using three of them. Crack your egg on a flat surface, that’s going to prevent you from getting shells into your scrambled eggs.

Matt: 01:42 And then another little trick I learned back when I was working in a hotel. You know how hotel eggs are always yellow and fluffy and huge? The trick is fat. So we are going to add just about a tablespoon of sour cream into our eggs. And then from there, we’re going to whip them up real good. And this is an important step because not only are we whipping the sour cream into the eggs, whipping air into the eggs too. And that’s what’s going to make them fluffy.

Matt: 02:17 Get them good and whipped. The sour cream isn’t going to completely break down in there, but you will see it start to mix with the eggs real well. Just about ready here. I’m going to put a pinch of salt directly into the eggs.

Matt: 02:42 And now we’re going to get into the action. So now, we head over to the stove. And this is where the hemp oil comes in. If you’re making eggs traditionally, you need butter. I’m using one tablespoon of melted butter. I’ve got my pan on the heat, just about medium. You don’t want to go too hot.

Matt: 02:59 And because I am using full spectrum hemp oil, this one is from Populum, and it’s got a little bit of orange zest to it. But I don’t think that’s going cause any issues here.

Matt: 03:12 I am going ahead, and use half a dropper and combine it with my melted butter.

Matt: 03:21 And because the two are oils, the CBD oil’s going to join with the fat, cling to it nicely. From there, as soon as our pan is warm enough, shallots go in first. You want to make sure your pan is hot, but not too hot. We’re trying to cook the eggs, not overcook the eggs, right?

Matt: 03:41 Then I’m really getting little bit of that orange coming off of that CBD oil. Really nice as it heats up.

Matt: 03:46 Now you will want to be careful. I think the orange in this one is light enough that it’s not going to make a big issue, but you might not want to do anything too heavily flavored. Maybe even a neutral flavored one.

Matt: 03:55 Let’s go. Shallots in the pan. And as you can hear, not a screaming sizzle. Just a nice soft sizzle. Shallots are going to cook faster than onions. Keep that in mind. And they will brown up on you. So I’m going to go another tiny little sprinkle of salt in the shallots, because that helps pull the liquid out of them with the heat. Get some flavor on there.

Matt: 04:28 Now while those soften up, like I was telling you, we’re going to talk about hemp and food today. And just sort of explain some easy ways that you can add hemp to your daily diet.

Matt: 04:37 I got to thinking about this after our first episode when Kit, from Ministry of Hemp, posted something about hummus in a grocery store. And it was CBD infused hummus which, cool. I’m really glad that CBD is being infused into foods but the problem with this one is there was only three milligrams of CBD in the entire container. Now I’m not going to call out any companies, but that seems by no means a dosage that’s going to do anything, for anyone.

Matt: 05:06 But you know what it will do? It will raise the price of that hummus. This is the thing. As CBD’s introduced into our foods, we need to be conscious of how that is happening. Now, the scramble that I’m making right now? I know exactly what I’ve put into it. I know that I can trust Populum, I’ve dealt with them before. I know it’s a CBD oil I like. And I know that I am putting an amount in that will have an effect on me.

Matt: 05:27 So read your labels. We don’t need CBD to turn into another organic farming kick where we right a word on a package and suddenly we can sell eggs and vegetables and grains for five times the price. That’s not going to help anybody.

Matt: 05:43 So what we’re going to talk about today is way that you can easily incorporate hemp into your meals.

Matt: 05:51 Know what you’re putting in there and know that you’re doing yourself a favor, not just paying extra. In go the eggs.

Matt: 06:01 And the rule for scrambled eggs is done in the pan, over done on the plate. So I’m going to cook mine just a little runny. I introduced them first and I just let them sit. From there, my spinach is going to go in. And again, I’m just going to let it mellow here for a second while the eggs start to come together.

Matt: 06:23 Today on the show we are going to talk to Jessica, one of our videographers, and she is going to tell us how to make hemp milk at home. Then I’m going to talk to another one of our writers, Elijah, who’s written some great stuff about hemp seeds and the way you can use that in your food. And then from there, my wife Cassie and I are going to go to the bar, try some hemp cocktails with a good friend of mine. It’s all happening here on the second episode of The Ministry of Hemp podcast.

Matt: 06:48 But first, just like that, I have got a hemp infused scramble with shallots and fresh spinach. Of course, no eggs are any good without a little bit of fresh cracked, black pepper. And now it’s time for breakfast.

Matt: 07:16 Okay. Breakfast is over. I’m feeling the effects of the CBD, which is good because I’m an old man and I hurt my back shoveling yesterday. Yea winter.

Matt: 07:24 In this episode we’re really going to focus on two different ways to introduce hemp into our meal. And that is hemp oil, CBD, which we just talked about in scramble. And hemp seeds, or hemp hearts, which are the whole seed itself. Both of which are available most places and completely legal right now. Now the good news is the FDA passed some, well didn’t pass legislation but started talking about how they want to pass legislation soon. And I’ll get to that in a further episode when we talk about legality, efficacy and what’s coming.

Matt: 07:56 But in this episode, we’re going to focus on what you can get your hands on right now. Hemp seed and hemp oil. And let’s get started and learn to make some hemp milk with a little help from Ministry of Hemp’s very own videographer, Jessica St. Cyr who is going to teach us how to make hemp milk.

Matt: 08:17 So Jessica, I watched a video of you just the other day and you made hemp milk. This is something that I have not encountered. I’ve seen oat milk, I’ve seen almond milk, like we’re not supposed to drink it because it’s bad for the environment, I guess. And like soy milk is on its way out now as well because it curdles in your coffee and it’s gross. You know?

Jessica: 08:39 I’ve never liked soy milk.

Matt: 08:40 See, I like soy milk! I actually grew to like it. But I can’t put it in my coffee. And I need just a little something. So I’ve switched to like this oat milk, I don’t even know if it’s milk technically at this point. But it’s an oat beverage. And it doesn’t seem to curdle. And it tastes pretty good.

Matt: 08:55 Tell me about hemp milk. What’s the difference? Why should I change to hemp milk?

Jessica: 09:00 Honestly, that’s really hard to answer. I like a variety of different kinds of milk. I think because hemp milk in itself is full of omega-3’s and omega-6’s and lots of good vitamins and minerals and it’s just really easy to make at home.

Jessica: 09:17 You can make it with two ingredients and in like, two minutes.

Matt: 09:23 And what are the ingredients? How does that work?

Jessica: 09:24 You just need some hemp hearts. So the hulled hemp seeds and some water. And just a little bit of salt. If you want it to be sweet, you can have sweetener. But really you just need hemp hearts and water.

Matt: 09:41 Okay. And hemp hearts are technically hulled hemp seeds, right?

Jessica: 09:46 Yes.

Matt: 09:47 Okay because when I first saw the thing I was like, hemp milk? And I went to culinary school for four years. I was a chef and what not. And my head went straight to, she’s going to put leaves into a blender with something and make milk out of it. How is it not green? You know?

Jessica: 10:00 Yeah.

Matt: 10:00 Which is just idiotic I guess.

Jessica: 10:06 You can get them unhulled, but you just have to soak them.

Matt: 10:10 Got it.

Jessica: 10:10 Like beans, you know?

Matt: 10:13 Fair enough. And do you strain the milk afterwards? Is it gritty?

Jessica: 10:19 You can strain it if you prefer a smoother beverage. It’s not necessary. When you don’t strain it there’s a tiny bit of sediment at the bottom. I, personally, don’t mind it. It really just comes down to a personal preference.

Matt: 10:34 Sure.

Jessica: 10:35 I don’t mind it. Sometimes I do, you know I don’t want a gritty kind of milk. It’s really not that bad but you can strain it through a cheese cloth or nut milk bag if you want.

Matt: 10:47 And it’s full of like protein and you said Omega-3, fatty acids. I mean obviously you’re not going to get calcium from this. It’s not going to do that.

Jessica: 10:57 Yeah, no. But it does have a lot of things that other seed and nut milk do not have. The hemp seed itself is the only natural seed that makes linoleic acid. I think that’s how you say it.

Matt: 11:10 I think you pronounced it really well. I’ve tried to say it several times, and I did it as lo-lana-nano-lite.

Jessica: 11:16 But because it’s naturally producing, it’s a really good source of all of those really important things that we all need.

Matt: 11:27 And again, we’re not over-watering almond trees to make almond milk and using up aquifers. And we’re not over processing soy beans and growing too much soy. Like, hemp is plentiful. It grows really easy and the seeds, I assume, are probably pretty cheap.

Jessica: 11:43 Yeah. It’s honestly a really sustainable option. I feel like it’s definitely a much better option for the environment than some other types of nut milks. You know, like almond milk, I actually didn’t know that and now I’m going to go look into it, after I’ve talked to you.

Matt: 12:00 Oh yeah. Okay. Well here, I’ll teach you something. I drank almond milk for a while. And I had a buddy that was actually, that lived out in California and railed against almond farming and almond milk. Because, it takes a crap load of almonds to make almond milk. And almond trees use a ton of water and they’re growing them in California where there’s a lot of drought and water issues. And so very rich farms are using all the water for almonds and almond milk. And the almond people are like, “No, no, no, that’s not true!” But it absolutely is!

Matt: 12:34 So I won’t say don’t drink it-

Jessica: 12:39 Wow, that’s crazy!

Matt: 12:39 Yeah it’s not great for the environment and it’s not as renewable as you think either, you know?

Jessica: 12:43 Yeah. I do not drink almond milk and I will not start.

Matt: 12:47 Okay. I’m not judging you if you do. And I admit, I put a little bit of almond milk in my coffee this morning because we didn’t have soy at work. So. I’m ready to switch to hemp milk though!

Matt: 12:55 Okay. So you said that hemp milk is actually pretty expensive

Matt: 13:00 And making it’s pretty cheap. How much is a gallon of hemp milk if I go to Trader Joe’s?

Jessica: 13:04 I’ve never seen it in a gallon, but you know the little cardboard containers that the nut milks come in, different brands I’ve seen it for even $5.

Matt: 13:14 Oh, wow.

Jessica: 13:15 Which is crazy, right?

Matt: 13:17 Yeah.

Jessica: 13:18 That’s so expensive. And I mean, for a cup of hemp milk with one cup of the hemp hearts. So, seems a lot more economical for sure.

Matt: 13:32 Yeah. This goes back to part of the theme of this episode where I’m doing hemp in food and hemp in drinks. And it seems like, we could be right on the edge of creating another organic fad, where we start putting organic on food and it just magically becomes more expensive. And people start to think badly about organic farming and organic foods, which they shouldn’t. But, the marketing of it can easily take something … Like, you and I saw that article about the hummus that has 13 milligrams-

Jessica: 14:05 Three milligrams-

Matt: 14:06 Yeah, something-

Jessica: 14:06 … or something.

Matt: 14:07 … ridiculous. And I guarantee, that hummus cost seven or eight bucks because they say, “Yeah, we waved CBD over it,” or whatever. And I worry about that, in a situation like this, especially when you said, two, three ingredients, four, if you wanna season it, and they literally cost nothing. So, it’s something to watch for and worry about, really at this point, especially when we’re trying to encourage this.

Jessica: 14:28 I mean, that is something that happens with every industry, and I don’t think it’s ever gonna stop happening. I mean, everything has … it’s like the buzzword right now, hemp, or CBD, so people are just trying to turn a profit because of capitalism.

Matt: 14:49 Exactly. Yeah. I mean, like CBD water and whatnot. And it’s like, you can get Aquafina-

Jessica: 14:54 CBD water.

Matt: 14:54 … which is already overpriced like tap water from London basically. And you add a little CBD to it, and I mean, a trace amount that doesn’t do anything and, “We can sell that same six pack for $10.” It’s scary, but-

Jessica: 15:10 I think that’s where, just the education really comes in to really research what you’re buying.

Matt: 15:18 Yes.

Jessica: 15:19 Even if it’s just a little search, do something. Don’t just pay a bunch of money for something.

Matt: 15:25 No, absolutely. Especially when you can make it at home and it is so easy. And again, there’s a great video on ministryofhemp.com, and you can see Jessica whipping it up and it’s literally nothing. It takes, maybe, 30 seconds to do it all, and maybe another minute if you wanna strain it. Why not just make it at home?

Jessica: 15:43 Yeah. It’s super easy. And honestly, take it from me, when it comes to making things at home … I have my groceries delivered to me. I am not a cooker. This is seriously so easy.

Matt: 15:57 The term cooker gives it away, right? Jessica, you have been wonderful. Thank you-

Jessica: 16:03 I’m not in the-

Matt: 16:04 … so much.

Jessica: 16:06 Thanks for having me.

Matt: 16:06 Yeah. This was great. I really appreciate it. You can find Jessica’s recipe and process for making hemp milk right over at ministryofhemp.com. And guys, it really is easy. Next up, I sat down with Elijah Pickering, who also writes for ministryofhemp.com. He writes about food for the site. And Elijah had some other ideas of what you could do with those hemp seeds. Speaking of which, I found hemp seeds right here in Omaha, Nebraska at Whole Foods, but then I found them a little cheaper at Trader Joe’s, too. So, why do I want hemp in my diet? What is the benefit of having hemp in a daily or weekly diet?

Elijah: 17:03 So, the benefit of having hemp is not only does it have the nutritional, it’s a super food basically. It’s extremely high in plant-based protein. It has anti-inflammatory qualities. And it just has a myriad of different things as well. And the easiest thing with it too is how I incorporate it into foods, which I’m sure we’re gonna get into in a little bit. But yeah, it’s extremely nutrient-dense, it’s easy to incorporate into your foods, and it’s fairly available to find as well.

Matt: 17:40 And pretty inexpensive, as far as I can tell, too. If you’re buying hemp hearts, which are called hemp seeds, they’re not expensive at all. And you can do all kinds of stuff with them.

Elijah: 17:49 Not really, yeah. If you go to Myer in the baking section is where the hemp hearts are, I usually get hemp hearts, flax seed, and chia seeds, and they’re each what, two and a half, $3, and they last you a long time as well.

Matt: 18:05 And you treat the hemp hearts the same way that you sort of treat the flax and the chia, in the same type usage?

Elijah: 18:11 Mm-hmm. What I usually do is I mix all three. So, it’s like a super grain type mixture that I can just sprinkle on anything. Yeah. I mean, you just use it the same way you would use sesame seeds, sprinkling on top of salads, on top of rice bowls. I put it in my protein smoothies and things like that.

Matt: 18:32 So, you’re basically adding protein. You’re adding a ton of fiber, really good for you. And then, you’re adding all manner of anti-inflammatories. What was the other? Lina, I can never say it, linoleic, linoloic acid, is that right?

Elijah: 18:47 No.

Matt: 18:52 I can’t remember it.

Elijah: 18:52 Yeah, I can’t remember that either. And it also has all that essential amino acids as well that your body doesn’t produce, so that’s really important to get into those as well. The main part is, it’s extremely good for you. It’s extremely nutritious. And the only thing it can do is help you. Yeah.

Matt: 19:12 Sure. So, take me through it. Let’s start with breakfast, for example. I wanna introduce hemp into my breakfast, what am I doing?

Elijah: 19:19 So, if you want to put it in your breakfast, for me, I don’t start eating until 2:00 PM, ’cause I do intermittent fasting. But, if you were to do it into breakfast, something that I eat a lot is oatmeal, right? That’s something that people eat for breakfast. So, you just make your normal oatmeal. Try to use good oatmeal, good milk, put good things in it, lots of fruits. I’ll take the hemp hearts and I’ll put those just right on top, directly.

Matt: 19:48 Just directly on top? Is it gonna add crunch? Do they soften up at all? I mean, what’s it like in your mouth?

Elijah: 19:53 It adds a little bit of a nuttiness taste, but it depends on how much you put on. I really put probably, a tablespoon and a half worth of hemp hearts on top of my oatmeal. And I put brown sugar, blueberries, strawberries in it too, so it’s like a mixture.

Matt: 20:14 That sounds great.

Elijah: 20:15 So, yeah, it blends right into it.

Matt: 20:20 So, just directly on top though? You’re not worrying about heating it up with the water or anything like the steel cut oats, for example, you wanna soften those up.

Elijah: 20:26 Nope.

Matt: 20:26 This just goes right on top like grape nuts almost?

Elijah: 20:29 Yeah, yep.

Matt: 20:29 Cool.

Elijah: 20:30 Sprinkle it right on top.

Matt: 20:31 So, I would assume you could do the same thing with, say, a salad for lunch? I mean, just sprinkle it right on top and you’ll add-

Elijah: 20:38 That’s exactly what I do. Yep.

Matt: 20:39 … add some texture-

Elijah: 20:40 That’s what I like, too. Yep, adds texture. I’ll just get my three greens mix. I’ll cook up a thing of salmon, ’cause I really like Salmon-

Matt: 20:53 I do, too.

Elijah: 20:54 … put that there. I put almonds there for the fat in them, then I’ll put the hemp hearts, then I’ll put my dressing, and then, sometimes I put a little bit of hot sauce just to add a little zing to it as well. So, it’s super easy. I mean, I’m in college, so-

Matt: 21:13 And so, you’re poor?

Elijah: 21:13 … I’m not … Yeah, I’m not always motivated to do meal prepping and do that every day, so salads are super easy, oatmeal’s super easy.

Matt: 21:25 Sure. Speaking of salmon, I’m thinking, if you took your salmon and then you did a mustard rub on it, and then encrusted it with hemp seeds and seared those on there, you would add an amazing crunch to it.

Elijah: 21:38 That would be awesome, actually. Yeah.

Matt: 21:40 That would be fantastic. I was just gonna say, what should we do for dinner? There it is.

Elijah: 21:45 I mean, that could work. I mean, my favorite part of the fish … Also, I mean, a little biased ’cause I come from the Philippians, so I’ve been eating a lot of fish all my life is the crunchy skin, that’s my favorite part.

Matt: 21:56 Yeah, man. Absolutely. Definitely. I’m gonna have to try that on salmon, that sounds wonderful. So now, I saw you had some articles about protein shakes and whatnot. You had one about milk, and I actually talked to Jessica and she went through making hemp milk with me. When you’re doing it in a protein shake, are you literally just buzzing it up?

Elijah: 22:15 Yeah. I just put it right on there just like when I put it on my oatmeals and things, so it’s the same exact thing.

Matt: 22:22 And it’s adding protein just like if you were adding walnuts, or flax, or anything else to it but actually, probably cheaper. And since it comes from hemp, a little better for the environment, too.

Elijah: 22:34 Yep. And I also have a … My mom actually bought me this hemp protein thing she got from the store and it’s like a protein powder but it’s from hemp.

Matt: 22:46 Really?

Elijah: 22:47 So, it’s all plant-based protein, so-

Matt: 22:49 That’s fantastic.

Elijah: 22:50 … I’ve been using that.

Matt: 22:51 So, as far as baking, you would do it the same way? Just introduce it directly into your flour, like if you were making muffins or making bread or something like that? You can literally just introduce the hemp seeds or the hearts, if you will, into the flour and bake as normal and you’ve got a seeded bread with plant protein in it instead of just wheat proteins?

Elijah: 23:11 Mm-hmm. You could do that. And then, also, if you have hemp milk on hand, anything that needs milk, you can use that and that’s already incorporated into it. And heart hemp milk, excuse me, is actually really good. I prefer it over almond milk, which is what I usually get.

Matt: 23:27 I’ve gotta try it. See, I live in Nebraska and there’s not a lot of hemp stuff here yet. So, I’m gonna make some hemp milk. I’m really interested.

Elijah: 23:34 Yeah, it is really good. I put a little … I remember when I made it, I made it with some pitted dates that were crushed up and some really nice Brazilian honey that I have, and it was really good. And it was just like a slight sweetness to it, and then you’re getting that nuttiness with the hemp hearts as well. And it’s just like a nice clean milk, too. It’s not zero percent fat milk, but it’s like 2% really, it’s a little bit thinner and not thick.

Matt: 24:05 But, it’s also a plant-based protein fat you’re getting. You’re not getting dairy fats?

Elijah: 24:11 Nope. Yep. It’s straight from the plant, no cow. It did not come from a cow.

Matt: 24:16 Yeah. They’re not milking hemp milk out of cows, huh?

Elijah: 24:19 No.

Matt: 24:20 So, what is your favorite thing to eat with hemp, to introduce hemp into if you had to pick one thing?

Elijah: 24:28 Well, one of my favorite things is, I already mentioned it, is oatmeal. I eat oatmeal pretty much every day. It’s an extremely … I mean, oatmeal within itself, I mentioned it in one of my past articles, in terms of the grain of it is again, also highly nutrient-dense, lots of carbohydrates, lots of protein, and lots of calories for a small amount as well. So, I mean, eating that pretty much every day is the best for me. And really, the best use of it is something that you’ll actually use every day.

Matt: 25:05 Sure. Sure.

Elijah: 25:06 For me, that’s the best hemp or that’s the best CBD product or that’s the best hemp product for anyone is which ever one you’re gonna use every day consistently.

Matt: 25:16 Yeah. Don’t fret over it, just make it as easy as possible, so you can introduce it into your daily routine.

Elijah: 25:24 I mean, really it’s the lowest effort thing you can do. You’re sprinkling hemp hearts over it-

Matt: 25:29 Totally.

Elijah: 25:30 … on top of something. If you can’t do that, then I don’t know what to say there.

Matt: 25:35 Yeah, you shouldn’t be cooking anything. Well, I tell you what, next time I’m in Michigan I’m gonna come by and I’m gonna sear up some salmon with some hemp for you and we’ll have a meal. How’s that sound?

Elijah: 25:42 Let’s do it. My roommate-

Matt: 25:43 I’ll treat you.

Elijah: 25:44 … and I-

Matt: 25:44 I’ll take care of you. Eli, thanks for your time, man. This was great. I really appreciate the info.

Elijah: 25:50 Okay, yeah. Thank you. Thanks for having me on, Matt.

Matt: 25:53 Yeah.

Matt: 26:02 You can check out Ellijah’s work at ministryofhemp.com and find all kind of delicious recipes including his amazing and super health oatmeal.

Matt: 26:11 Right now why don’t we switch gears back to CBD. Folks I think it’s time for some cocktails.

Matt: 26:22 There’s some great videos on ministryofhemp.com and plenty of other sites too that show bartenders, I’m not gonna use the word mixologist ’cause I kinda can’t stand it, making drinks with CBD, infusing it into their drinks. And not just for flavor, for a whole different cocktail experience. Now I’d grab my wife who went kicking and screaming I’m sure you can imagine down to a bar called Herbe Sainte where a good friend of ours, Austin, treated us to some CBD infused cocktails.

Austin: 26:51 Hi, my name’s Austin Elsberry. I’m the bar manager here at Herbe Sainte. So yeah, I run the bar program here, come up with the cocktail menu.

Matt: 26:59 And you’re gonna be helping us with some CBD infused cocktails.

Austin: 27:03 Yes I am.

Matt: 27:04 Can you give us a brief description of the cocktails that we taste?

Austin: 27:07 All right first cocktail up today is going to be one that’s on our menu right now called 75 Problems. Every menu that we’ve put put so far I’ve always got some sort of French 75 inspired variant on there.

Matt: 27:19 Gotcha and a little Jay-Z inspiration.

Austin: 27:21 Yes indeed. The full title of this one, 75 Problems but Gin Ain’t One. This is a tequila based French 75 style drink. Tequila, some Tattersall blueberry liqueur, lime juice, a little bit of Ancho Reyes which is an ancho chile liqueur as well.

Matt: 27:40 Oh my.

Austin: 27:40 Gives it a nice little darkness in there, a hint of spice.

Matt: 27:46 And now we’ve got a lemon-lime CBD that is made by Savage. It is their essentials. And then we’ve also got a Populum full spectrum hemp oil. Which one would you recommend for this first one?

Austin: 28:01 For this drink I’m gonna go with the full spectrum. Having tasted them both I think that orange oil in there is gonna work really nicely with this darker blueberry ancho chile thing going on.

Matt: 28:13 Cool. Let’s do it.

Austin: 28:15 Absolutely here we go.

Matt: 28:15 Whip it up, walk us through it.

Austin: 28:16 This is a cocktail that I’ve got the liquor in it already batched so I just have to pour one thing instead of three or four. Just a little bit of lime juice, we tried it with more and I had to back it way down because it was just a little too tart.

Matt: 28:31 Gotcha.

Austin: 28:31 And so here gonna do maybe a third of a dropper of the oil. Ends up being about seven or eight drops. See how this turns out.

Matt: 28:43 I should mention my wife Casey is here tasting with me.

Austin: 28:46 Hi Casey.

Casey: 28:46 Hi.

Austin: 28:52 All right so shaken that in a tin over ice. Strain it out into a champagne flute.

Casey: 29:01 Oh that’s fancy.

Austin: 29:01 In true French 75 style.

Matt: 29:03 Of course. It’s bright red.

Austin: 29:09 Yeah that blueberry liqueur is really vibrant. And then we’re topping that one with just a little bit of sparkling wine, whatever you like.

Matt: 29:17 And what did you use here?

Austin: 29:18 I’ve got, well known to bartenders everywhere, Wycliff. It’s a brut California sparkling wine. Just floating a lime wheel in the cocktail.

Matt: 29:29 I should say that it is shaved razor thin.

Casey: 29:31 Yeah. I was gonna say that’s the thinnest lime I’ve even seen.

Austin: 29:33 I did those this morning.

Matt: 29:35 Oh man, I was gonna say, who’s the poor jerk that has to do that? It’s you.

Austin: 29:37 Yep, it’s me.

Casey: 29:38 Oh that’s beautiful.

Austin: 29:40 The curse of having a relatively steady hand. And this is lovely, I can actually see the oil in the drink.

Matt: 29:46 Oh really?

Austin: 29:48 Because I shook the cocktail, whips it around in there …

Matt: 29:52 Is that around the rim basically, is that where that …

Austin: 29:54 Yeah, actually if you look in there, over the top, you can see those little bubbles around the edge of the lime, outside of it.

Matt: 30:01 Oh yeah.

Casey: 30:01 Oh yeah, that’s cool.

Austin: 30:03 It almost looks like a little bit of-

Casey: 30:05 It looks like olive oil.

Austin: 30:05 … really fine edible glitter or something.

Matt: 30:07 Really, it does, it’s really pretty. Ladies first.

Casey: 30:09 Yeah, for sure. I like that little bit of science there. Yeah, that’s super delicious.

Matt: 30:16 Oh hell. Yeah, that tastes like you’re doing yourself a favor for breakfast right there.

Casey: 30:21 That’s a great brunch drink for sure.

Matt: 30:22 Oh my God, that’s lovely. Well done sir. And you’re right, it does look so pretty as the oil catches the light. Look at that.

Casey: 30:30 Kinda reminds me when you finish a dish and you put olive oil on top-

Austin: 30:34 Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. For some reason I thought it might be oily feel in your mouth, but not at all.

Matt: 30:41 Yeah, and that’s what I was wondering about to see if that would come through. What is the title of our next drink?

Austin: 30:46 The next drink is Spelling Contest. I had this on one of our summer menus a year or two ago, I can’t remember, two years ago, summer. I was playing around just trying to make some syrups and I was like I want to do something herbal. Let’s make a sage syrup. What do I want to do with that? I need a rye cocktail, I need a rye whiskey cocktail. With this one, nice light, refreshing rye cocktail with that little bit of herbal from the sage syrup. So what we’ve go here, and I’m actually building this one from scratch since it hasn’t been on the menu in a while. I’ve got an ounce and a half of Old Overholt rye. Then half an ounce each of lime juice, Aperol-

Casey: 31:28 Oh I love Aperol.

Matt: 31:28 I do too.

Casey: 31:31 Underrated in my opinion.

Matt: 31:31 You’re a big Aperol spritz girl.

Casey: 31:31 I love Aperol spritzers.

Austin: 31:33 And then half an ounce of a sage syrup.

Casey: 31:42 Oh yum, I love sage too.

Austin: 31:45 And to this one I’m gonna do … which one is this?

Matt: 31:48 That’s the Savage.

Austin: 31:49 Then the Savage lemon-lime. Same deal, using about a third to a half of a dropper.

Matt: 31:58 So about eight drops.

Austin: 31:59 About eight drops.

Casey: 32:02 I feel like that was 12 but whatever you guys. I’m just kidding, I’m kidding.

Austin: 32:04 It’s gonna be fun. We’re just gonna have a great time.

Matt: 32:10 That’s the good thing about CBD, it’s just gonna mellow us out a little bit.

Casey: 32:10 Yeah, sit here, all my aches and pains will go away. And get drunk.

Austin: 32:16 And once again this is a shaken cocktail.

Matt: 32:17 Got the one handed shake.

Austin: 32:24 All right.

Casey: 32:26 That’s beautiful too. Both of these have been really pretty colors. Just not that that’s important at all.

Matt: 32:32 You get the sheen of the oil all along the top. It’s really pretty.

Austin: 32:36 Yeah, that’s one of the great things about shaking the cocktail. If you want it to be effervescent and aromatic, that’s one of the reasons why you shake a cocktail because those ice cubes whip all those tiny air bubbles into the drink. And as they rise to the surface and pop on the surface, all these little micro-bubbles, they carry that aroma up to you.

Matt: 32:54 Right and I would assume just like an egg white, here you’re dealing with an oil. You want to break that up as much as you can and infuse it into the cocktail. The ice, the wet shake, just tear that up.

Austin: 33:03 Yep, absolutely.

Casey: 33:04 Well, I dove in and that’s delicious. I think that one is unreal ’cause you get a little bit of that …

Matt: 33:13 There’s no trace-

Casey: 33:15 Citrus, yeah.

Matt: 33:15 … of rye whiskey.

Casey: 33:17 No.

Matt: 33:17 I would not know.

Casey: 33:19 No, you get that … yeah

Matt: 33:20 If you told me this was a non-alcoholic health tonic, I would say can we pour some alcohol in it.

Austin: 33:28 Jokes on you, fair amount of booze is in there already.

Matt: 33:31 That is delicious. That’s absolutely delicious.

Austin: 33:32 Thank you.

Matt: 33:33 And the lemon-lime, yeah, just sort of sets off a little bit of the citrus.

Casey: 33:37 It’s sweet.

Matt: 33:39 I don’t know if it’s ’cause it’s an oil and it’s not juice but it’s not bitter.

Austin: 33:43 It’s not bitter and it’s not overly bright.

Matt: 33:46 It’s not [inaudible 00:33:47]

Austin: 33:49 This Savage lemon-lime brings sort of a citrus but not in a syrup-y way, kind of round way.

Matt: 33:56 It’s totally different, yeah.

Austin: 33:57 I can only describe it as round.

Matt: 33:58 Yeah, that’s what I was gonna say, not mouth coating or anything but you get a citrus around your whole mouth as opposed to when you just get lime juice you get citrus right on the front of your tongue.

Austin: 34:07 Yep, and then your jaw goes uh.

Matt: 34:09 Yeah, that thing in the back of your teeth happens. Not at all here though. It’s really nice, it’s really rounded. I think we’ll sit here and we’ll enjoy these for a little bit and then we’ll check back in and see how we feel at the end of the cocktails.

Casey: 34:22 I already feel good.

Matt: 34:24 Yeah, it’s not like a drunk, it’s more like a …

Casey: 34:27 It’s not a high either. It’s like my body just is like ah.

Matt: 34:31 Nice kinda relaxed sort of.

Casey: 34:34 My body just feels very, again, lightweight is the only word I can keep coming up with. All my muscle pain or soreness or tension is done, like I’m on a cloud, I’m sitting on a cloud.

Matt: 34:46 I should mention we had a massive snow storm and we shoveled snow and then Casey went and taught aerobics. So her body is tired. I’m old and sore because I had to shovel snow. But yeah, I feel pretty good.

Casey: 34:57 Yeah, and my body feels really good.

Matt: 34:57 I feel pretty good.

Casey: 34:57 And my body usually doesn’t because I hurt it so much. But yeah, this is kind of nice.

Matt: 35:03 So CBD cocktails. Yay or nay? You’re into it?

Casey: 35:07 Yes, I am into it. I’m into it on a limited basis though.

Matt: 35:12 Yeah, I agree.

Casey: 35:13 I’m into it, especially when they enhance the flavor like these ones did, with his cocktails.

Matt: 35:17 Definitely.

Casey: 35:17 That was really cool.

Matt: 35:19 Austin thanks so much for your time. You were great man.

Austin: 35:21 Hey thank you very much, thanks for coming down.

Matt: 35:22 I appreciate it.

Casey: 35:23 I was great too, thank you.

Austin: 35:24 Thanks Casey.

Casey: 35:24 Yeah, thanks guys.

Matt: 35:29 Huge thanks to our friends at Herbe Sainte down at Aksarben in Omaha, Nebraska. If you’re ever in town, you should definitely swing through. Their Cajun food is wonderful. I highly suggest the jambalaya. We will have a link to their site in the show notes so you can check out their menu and their other cocktails. And I hope the next time you mix up a cocktail at home, you might think about adding a little CBD oil, see what happens.

Matt: 35:52 That about does it for this episode but I hope you guys learned some quick and easy ways to add both hemp seeds and CBD into your diet with things that are readily available everywhere right now. And of course, I want to hear from you guys. How are you already incorporating hemp into your diet? You can leave us a message on our Google Voice line at 402-819-6417 and tell us all about it. You can use that same phone number to ask any questions you’d like answered. Later on in the future I foresee having whole segments where we just take your questions and somebody smarter than me is gonna answer them. I promise you that. You can always reach out to us at @ministryofhemp on Twitter or \ministryofhemp on Facebook and drop your questions there too. Or you can email me your questions to matt@ministryofhemp.com. As always you’ll be able to find a full transcript of the show attached to the notes, for the hearing impaired. And I want to say a huge thanks to everybody that reached out after the first episode and told me what you thought and how much you dug the show. And it really does do us a huge favor if you go to iTunes and write a short review. It really helps the show and it helps us get our message out to other people who want to learn about hemp.

Matt: 37:18 Thanks for listening to the Ministry of Hemp and we’ll see you in a couple weeks for episode three. In the meantime, take care of yourself, take care of others and make good decisions will you? This is Matt Baum Ministry of Hemp podcast.

Click on the link below to download the full transcript of Episode 2:

• Ministry of Hemp Podcast Episode 2 Transcript PDF

The post Here’s How & Why I Add Hemp Seeds To Every Meal Today! appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

With CBD’s popularity exploding, we’ve also noticed the trend where CBD is being added and infused in a lot of different applications. In a sense, it’s getting added to anything and everything.

So the Ministry of Hemp team decided to gather up all the different types of CBD products we can find on the market today. We know this isn’t an all-encompassing list, but it’s a good start. While we tried to come up with an all-encompassing list, we aren’t endorsing the efficacy of these products in any way — we just wanted to document all the different places you can find cannabidiol today.

Note: Know of any other cool/new CBD products? Our team will keep adding to this list, so if you know of any other types of CBD products, please email us at info@ministryofhemp.com.

CBD Products List: Categories

• Supplements
• Edibles
• Body Care
• Smoking
• Drinks
• Pets

CBD Supplements

1. Tinctures (Drops)

As you know, tinctures — often also called drops — are the most common form of CBD on the market today. There’s literally hundreds of brands, and you can find shop for tinctures online or even at many natural grocery stores. Tinctures are taken orally (under the tongue) and are known to be one of the most effective ways for the body to absorb CBD. 

Lot of brands offer some form of flavored tinctures, but some brands offer “natural” unflavored options. To those who are taking CBD for the first time, the unflavored versions could really be a turnoff. But some people enjoy the earthy flavors of some tinctures.

There are obviously too many brands for us to call out on this list, so we’d recommend you do your own research online or read our best CBD oil recommendation.

2. Inhaler

We first learned about CBD inhalers at a hemp conference in 2018. A brand called CBD Luxe was showcasing them at their booth. When asked about the benefits of using an inhaler, its co-owner, William Spilo, said “we want to give precision dosing so the consumer knows exactly how much they’re getting every time. We’re also providing a comfortable, safe delivery system.”

While CBD inhalers aren’t that common at this time, we could see this type of application becoming more relevant for people who are using CBD to target specific health conditions.

3. Nasal spray

A few months ago, we saw a local channel in Madison, Wisconsin report about a doctor who created a CBD nasal spray. According to Dr. Fred Melius, “Nasal delivery of medications is kind of a hot thing right now. In the pharmaceutical industry, there’s a race to market to get things delivered nasally because it can be so effective in the brain.”

4. Green superfood supplement

With CBD known for its anti-inflammatory and neuroprotectant properties, it’s only natural to combine that with other superfoods! We’ve found superfood supplements that combine hemp extract with daily greens, probiotics, and omegas. 

We’re not sure how it’ll taste, but definitely worth checking out for your daily nutrition!

5. Post workout recovery drink

Athletes ranging from golfers, boxers, to MMA fighters have recently come out to embrace CBD as a post-workout recovery supplement. We’ve seen Bubba Watson endorse CBD, and even 3X WBO Champion Terence Crawford implement CBD to his routine. Adding CBD to a post-workout recovery drink is a natural way of using CBD for active recovery.

6. Patch

We first encountered CBD patches when we saw Mary’s Nutritional’s CBD patch at a cannabis dispensary. Using a transdermal topical absorption, the patch is promoted as a convenient, long lasting way to absorb CBD.

7. Suppositories

For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, a suppository is just another way to deliver a drug. It’s typically a small, round or cone-shaped object that you put in your body, often into your bottom. We found a CBD suppository brand, called Foria, that infuses broad-spectrum CBD with Organic Cocoa Butter. Why take CBD via a suppository? 

In general, suppositories can make it easier to take medicine that you can’t swallow or that your stomach or intestines wouldn’t absorb well. They can also be a great way for some people to ease cramps and balance other symptoms of their menstrual cycle.

8. Capsules/softgels

Capsules are obviously one of the simplest ways to take a supplement (in general). That’s obviously the case with CBD. CBD capsules and softgels are increasingly popular as people add CBD to their daily supplement regimen. Softgels are also a great way to take CBD as it typically has no other fillers, so you find a really simple ingredient list. It’s also easy to take a precise dose.

9. Shatter (Isolates)

CBD isolates (shatter) are the most refined and pure state of CBD you can find. It’s the final form of CBD after it’s been processed from the cannabis extracts. It comes in the form of powder or resin.

This shatter can be used in multiple ways – 

• Add it to foods
• Mix it with liquids 
• Dab it
• Vape it
• Use it to fill your own capsules

CBD Edibles

10. Chocolates

Who doesn’t love an excuse to eat chocolate!? Chocolate alone can help reduce stress and cacao contains Anandamide, also known as the ‘bliss chemical’) and Anandamide inhibitors. These inhibitors boost and potentiate the effects of other cannabinoids such as CBD. As if you needed more reasons to get yourself a chocolatey sweet snack.

11. Hard candies

Hard candies aren’t just what you get from grandma’s candy dish anymore, now you can get them infused with the popular cannabinoid cannabidiol! I personally love hard candies. They last a long time and since you are sucking on them, the CBD has more time to pass through the mucosa lining in your mouth, which means your body is absorbing more CBD than if you were to chew and swallow it.

12. Gummies

The OG infused treat. Cannabis infused gummies have been a go-to for quite some time. They are chewy, sweet, and perfect to carry around with you for a quick & discreet dose. We’re well known for our love of CBD gummies around here, so you’ll find reviews of several favorites on our site. Nowadays, you can easily find vegan and gluten free gummies, as well as more conventional bears, in both sweet and sour varieties.

13. Lollipop

A CBD infused lollipop just might be the best way to get your daily dose. Since lollipops spend more time in your mouth, the bioavailability is higher than other kinds of edibles, just like when you let a tincture soak into your mouth a bit before swallowing.

14. Mac & Cheese

What’s more comforting than a warm bowl of noodles with delicious melted cheese? Mac & cheese with added CBD! Whether you make your own or buy one that already has added CBD, you’ll be sure to enjoy this soul warming dish.

15. Hummus

Hummus is one of our favorite snacks, but hummus with CBD!? With only 13mg of CBD in the entire package, you’re not going to be getting much of a dose, but if you eat 5 of them you might feel relaxed (and very full).

16. Jelly Beans

When we think of jelly beans the first thing that comes to mind is Jelly Belly. The sweet confection made a name for itself, and the creator of the infamous jelly beans has dipped his toes into the world of CBD infused jelly beans. Who doesn’t love a chewy, fruity, sugary snack? As long as they don’t come in the bean boozled flavors like lawn clippings or canned dog food.

17. Honey

Honey is one of our favorite sweeteners. It’s perfect in everything from coffee to oatmeal and even by itself. Even if you take CBD tincture every day, microdosing additional CBD can help a lot. Incorporating small amounts of CBD into food and drinks can be a great way to get steady amounts.

18. Cheese Puffs

All of your favorite childhood snacks, now with CBD! Move over Cheetos, Weetos is here and it’s packed with 300mg of CBD. We’ve all been known to munch on some cheesy puffs from time to time in the Ministry of Hemp offices. When you want a cheesy and salty snack, we think you’d be better off with CBD puffs than that big tub of generic cheesy regret from the grocery store.

19. Cereal

The breakfast of champions (or if you’re like us, the late night snack you shouldn’t have had)! Who knew breakfast could be so chill? You can get pretty much anything infused with CBD these days and cereal is no exception. Now all we need is CBD infused milk. Has anyone done that yet? You’re welcome for that billion dollar idea.

20. Mustard

Ahh, mustard. Several members of the Ministry team live in Texas, and mustard seems to be the official condiment of Texas. All the hamburgers come with mustard, of course. Luckily for all you mustard lovers out there, you can now get your condiments infused with cannabidiol, though you might have to eat an entire bottle to get a significant dose. One mustard with a side of burger, coming right up! Up next: CBD-infused ranch dressing?

21. Gum

The snack that keeps on giving, until it loses its flavor and feels like you’re just chewing on a piece of rubber, anyway. One of the cool things about CBD infused gum is that since you aren’t ingesting it and it doesn’t have to pass through the digestive system, the bioavailability is on par with tinctures. If you want a discreet way to take your CBD (and freshen your breath), an infused gum might be a good option for you!

22. Olive oil

Olive oil is something we use almost every day. A great base for salad dressings, necessary when making mediterranean dishes, and perfect with some salt & pepper for bread dipping. Cannabis infused olive oil is a great way to incorporate CBD into your daily meals and snacks.

23. Coconut oil

Coconut oil is one of our favorite oils! You can cook with it, add it to your coffee, and it’s even great for your hair. The possibilities are endless. What’s better than plain coconut oil? The kind that’s infused with CBD, of course! While we probably won’t coat our heads in an infused coconut oil (that would be one pricy hair mask), we will add it to our coffee!

24. Popcorn

We discovered this unique combination of snackable with supplement at the Hemp Industries Association Conference one year. Holisticorn combines CBD oil with turmeric, bringing two beneficial compounds together in one tasty and healthy treat. Just be careful not to overcook; no one likes that burnt popcorn smell!

25. Peanut Butter

We first encountered CBD-infused peanut butter as a product for dogs, but it turns out they’ve made this for people too. Both four-legged and two-legged animals enjoy snacking on peanut butter by the spoonful, so it seems like a natural combination. Since cannabinoids bind to fats, you should be able to make your own CBD peanut butter, too. Just use a double-boiler, the same as you might for making CBD-infused butter or oil.

CBD Body Care

26. Intimate lube

Surprisingly, sex & CBD have only begun to explore their relationship. There’s still only a few CBD intimacy products on the market, mostly body oil or lube. It’s fun to try these products out and let the CBD ease your body into pleasure and relaxation.

27. Massage oil

We’ve never regretted getting a massage. Adding CBD to massages is a cool way to blend therapeutic or sensual touch with the relief of cannabidiol. According to the Mayo Clinic, “Studies of the benefits of massage demonstrate that it is an effective treatment for reducing stress, pain and muscle tension.” Seems like the perfect compliment to CBD! We encourage all our readers to do what’s best for YOU, which is why it’s so cool that there are such a variety of ways to use CBD. 

28. Bath bombs & soaks

Our Sales Assistant Drew recently became a big fan of taking baths, and she can’t stop singing the praises of CBD bath bombs and soaks. And good news, “taking baths yields several positive results including improving mood, decreasing stress, promoting better sleep, and relieving muscle pain,” cardiologist Dr. Edo Paz of K Health told Bustle. While many baths soaks include Epsom salts for sore muscles and scents that help to relax the mind, the hemp industry is taking the bathing experience to the next level! Drew tells us CBD infused soaks and bombs are amazing for a post workout soak. They’re also great for easing cramps and any physical soreness. Hemp brands are taking extra care in curating their products to produce affordable luxury and a spa like atmosphere for the home. You too could feel transported to another time and place soaking in a hemp milk bath, lulled into a peaceful state of mind by subtle scents. 

29. Face oil (Serum)

We’ve started seeing more make-up and skincare products on the market. While hemp oil is great for skin care, adding CBD could help reduce skin inflammation too. We’ll see if research backs up these benefits in time.

30. Lotion

Lotions are a nice way to soothe joint pain while also moisturizing. CBD lotions feel great after a post workout shower, as they both soothe the skin and our sore muscles.

31. Hand cream

Do you have dry cuticles, signs of carpal tunnel, and need a work break? Might want to take a CBD hand cream break, then! We’ve enjoyed hand cream for sore fingers and wrist pain after a day of computer work.

32. Balm

CBD creams are good when you have time to kick back and really let the relief soak in. We love CBD balm for knee, joint, and back pain. Many are mixed with things like arnica, rosemary, and menthol, which have all been shown as common pain relievers for sore muscles. It’s great to see CBD products working to compliment other plant remedies. 

33. Face mask

To complete a CBD spa day, we suggest any choice of CBD face mask. When we tried one as a team, we felt refreshed and revitalized – just like the package promised.

34. Eye serum

Surprisingly, we’ve started to see many different eye serum options. Eye serums are often used for puffy eyes, moisturizer, and as part of an overall skin care routine. The addition of CBD may help with any inflammation around the eyes. 

35. Body scrub

Exfoliation is essential for bodycare. It can improve circulation and remove dead skin cells. Adding CBD to a scrub may be soothing for ingrown hairs and razor bumps. Also, a wonderful pre-wax skin treatment. 

36. Face moisturizers

There’s no shortage of options for CBD face moisturizer, brands combining oils and creams with the benefits of hemp oil and CBD oil. We can imagine this might be soothing for folks with red or itchy skin, as well as good for general skin health. 

37. Beard balm

Many beard lovers swear by beard oil and bead balms to keep their facial hair in good condition. Oiling hair is a common practice, and the added CBD can help target redness, inflammation and itchiness many people experience from shaving or beard grooming.

38. Deodorant

We recently ran into some CBD deodorants at a local TJ Maxx. We’re just hoping this doesn’t leave us smelling hempy.

Smoking CBD

39. Vaping

Vapes are one of the easiest ways to get a CBD supplement any time of the day. It’s quick, subtle, and cost-efficient. We use it while sitting in traffic, at the office, park, anywhere we need a little relief. Many users report it’s great for headaches, soreness, and anxiety. It’s faster than waiting for the oil to soak in under my tongue, and goes through the lungs, making it easier for my body to absorb. Vapes come in many forms, sizes, colors, and can be disposable or rechargeable. While there have been some serious health concerns around vapes recently, most of the problems seem to arise from black market products rather than quality brands.

40. Flowers (Joints)

The first time we saw and smelled a CBD Joint we were amazed. The aroma is exactly like…well you know, the other stuff. This makes us think about how ridiculous it is to legalize cannabis plants cannabinoid by the cannabinoid. But, we digress… what’s cool about CBD hemp flower is that it is the best way to get CBD to our bodies! It has the highest bioavailability. So far we’ve tried smoking it in a joint and glass pipe, and it was extremely relaxing. Some of our staff have enjoyed the no-hassle pre-rolls and also the fun of breaking apart the flower ourselves and sprinkling it into a pipe while sitting on the porch. Hemp flower leaves us feeling light, happy, and at ease. And we didn’t feel high.  You can even use hemp flower to make DIY CBD oil.

CBD Drinks

41. Seltzer (Sparkling water)

LaCroix and all its competitors have really taken the beverage industry by storm. CBD-infused seltzers are joining the hype. We’ve found several brands, such as Recess and our office favorite, Queen City Hemp. They make great mixers for CBD cocktails too.

42. Soda (or “Pop”, “Coke” – whatever your region calls it)

Similar to seltzers, there’s also carbonated CBD sodas. Pretty similar to seltzers, honestly.

43. Coffee

More and more coffee shops are popping up that’s infusing CBD into their coffee. Some coffee just drop in some CBD oil into the hot coffee before serving. But other roasters are adding CBD oil directly into the roasting process, when the beans can absorb them. To be sure, we’re not 100% sure how caffeine mixes with CBD. But some people report it reduces the jitters.

44. Beer

Ever heard of HPA? Hemp Pale Ale. First introduced by New Belgium, hemp-infused beers are spreading around the country. While regulations prevent them from being very widespread, you can also find a few CBD-infused alcoholic beverages. Across the pond, Wee Hemp Spirits CBD Liquor is available throughout the UK.

45. Energy drink

CBD is supposed to help you relax and take the edge off things. Add that to energy drinks? Not sure how that’s supposed to mix. In theory, it could be a great combination … or a terrible one? Let us know in the comments.

46. Water

There are now quite a few brands that offer CBD water, using CBD isolates to mask any real hemp-y flavor. This makes it simple to take CBD directly, or of course you can add it to other recipes easily.

47. Tea

Now CBD-infused teas are pretty interesting. Teas are great for relaxation, especially to start off the day in the right mood or to end the day with some meditation. CBD infusion here makes a lot of sense to us.

48. K-Cups

Just another way of getting your CBD coffee. Easier and more portable, although we wish there was less waste.

49. Cocktails

Infusing CBD to a variety of cocktails is a big hit in a lot of high end bars. Especially if you use a flavored CBD oil, this can be a great addition to your evening drink. How good it mixes and how it actually tastes will probably depend a lot on your mixologist. In some cases, that hemp flavor can blend wonderfully with the right ingredients.

CBD Pet Products

50. Pet Oil (Pet Tincture)

We’ve found the top use cases for CBD oil for pets to be for anxiety-related or for arthritis issues. When it comes to anxiety, many pets suffer from storm or separation anxiety. Also, as pets grow older, they often suffer from inflammation related joint issues. 

The two most common ways to give CBD to your pets are as drops (oil) or with CBD-infused treats. With pet tinctures, you could try to administer it directly into their mouth, but as you can imagine, that’s often hard. So we’ve found the easiest way is to sprinkle some CBD oil on their food. They often love the extra oil on top of their food. 

51. Pet Treats

Pet treats are just a more fun way to share CBD with your pets. Similar to human capsules, it’s also easier to give exact dosage of CBD. For instance, if you buy a bag that has exactly 5mg of CBD per treat, you’ll know how much exactly you’re giving your pup. It also makes it easier to give smaller doses on the spot, such as before a car ride.

52. Pet Topicals

Just as with humans, we’ve seen some topical products meant to ease soreness and inflammation in our pets. Especially as our companions age, these can be appealing options for furry friends that develop arthritis or stiffness.

* Editors Drew De Los Santos, Kit O’Connell contributed in the curation of this article.

The post 52 CBD Products On The Market appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

Keep those summer vibes going longer with this delicious CBD spritzer recipe, featuring muddled raspberries and fresh mint.

These late summer afternoons can be so relaxing as we move into fall. Raspberries are in full ripeness and the mint has been growing strong all year.

There’s no better way to enjoy all of these things and feel better with CBD (or even CBG, CBN, etc) at the same time. Some research suggests even the smell of mint can promote alertness and well-being. Here’s a yummy spritzer recipe you can easily make at home.

Thanks to Healist Naturals for creating this video with us!

Raspberry Mint CBD Summer Spritzer

Prep time: 5 minutes

Servings: 1 serving

Ingredients

• 1 can flavored, carbonated water
• Healist Naturals Calm Drops (or other CBD oil)
• 6-10 fresh raspberries
• 4-6 fresh mint leaves
• 1 tablespoon agave syrup
• ice

Directions

• In a small bowl with the back of a spoon muddle the raspberries
• Measure and add in CBD oil
• Tear up mint leaves, add those
• Pour in agave syrup
• Mix
• Pour into a tall drink glass
• Add carbonated water on top, stir
• Add ice, maybe a little more water, stir
• Garnish with a tiny bit of mint on top and enjoy!

The post CBD Spritzer Recipe: Muddled Raspberry Mint CBD Summer Spritzer appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

First up on this episode of the Ministry of Hemp podcast, Matt talks about the importance of wearing masks in public as the Covid 19 outbreak continues to spread and where you can find hemp fabric masks.

Then Matt has a conversation with the Mike and Paul Harney the co-vice-presidents of Harney & Sons Tea. This decades-old tea company added The Hemp Division product line in 2018, infusing tea with CBD and hemp leaves. They’ve also begun growing their own hemp.

Matt also mentions our recent roundup of the 6 best CBD bath products, (which would be perfect to combine with a hot cup of CBD tea).

About Harney & Sons & The Hemp Division

In 2018, brothers Michael and Paul Harney embarked on a mission: create an all-new, extraordinary fusion of fine tea and premium CBD. Fueled by their 30+ years of combined tea experience, they decided to do it from the roots up and worked with hemp farmers to plant 7000 hemp plants on the Harney & Sons headquarters in Millerton, NY forming their new sister company: The Hemp Division.

You’ve Got Hemp Questions? We’ve Got Hemp Answers!

Send us your hemp questions and you might hear them answered on one of our Hemp Q&A episodes. Send your written questions to us on Twitter, Facebook, matt@ministryofhemp.com, or call us and leave a message at 402-819-6417. Keep in mind, this phone number is for hemp questions only and any other inquiries for the Ministry of Hemp should be sent to info@ministryofhemp.com

Subscribe to the Show!

Be sure to subscribe to the Ministry of Hemp podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Podbay, Stitcher, Pocketcasts, Google Play or your favorite podcast app. If you like what your hear leave us a review or star rating. It’s a quick and easy way to help get this show to others looking for Hemp information and please, share this episode on your own social media!

Become an MOH Insider and Help Spread the Good Word of Hemp!

If you believe hemp can change the world then help us spread the word! Become a Ministry of Hemp Insider when you donate any amount on our Patreon page. You’ll be the first to hear about everything going on with our special newsletter plus exclusive Patron content including blogs, podcast extras and more. Visit the Ministry of Hemp on Patreon and become an Insider now!

A Cuppa CBD Tea: Complete episode transcript

Below you’ll find the complete transcript of episode 46 of the Ministry of Hemp Podcast, “CBD Tea”:

Matt Baum:
I’m Matt Baum and this is the Ministry of Hemp podcast, brought to you by ministryofhemp.com, America’s leading advocate for hemp and hemp education.

Matt Baum:
Welcome back to the Ministry of Hemp podcast. Today on the show, I am going to talk to Mike and Paul Harney of Harney & Sons Tea Company. They’re a family owned tea company that travels the world to find amazing blends of tea, using several different herbs and spices. And recently they moved in the realm of hemp and have started incorporating hemp into their tea lines in several different products. They are currently growing their own hemp and doing it right. So stick around for that. But first I want to talk about masks for a minute.

Talking about COVID-19 and hemp masks

Matt Baum:
This summer has been one of the strangest ones I can remember in my life. I’m a comic book nerd, and I also host a podcast called The Two Headed Nerd Comic Book Podcast. So normally at this time I would be going to blockbuster, summer comic book nerd movies, and attending comic book conventions. But all of that is on hold because of COVID-19. And as much as a lot of people want us to return to normalcy, they’re still a problem, a huge problem. And one of the best things that we can be doing right now is wearing a mask in public to prevent further spread of COVID-19.

Matt Baum:
Now you’re saying, “Matt, what does this have to do with hemp?” That part is coming. But first I just want to stress the fact that yes, there was some conflicting information at first from the CDC. And we weren’t really sure if masks helped or not. We quickly learned more about the disease. And now we know wearing a mask absolutely helps. This is not a political statement and do not make it political because that’s not what this is about. We now know that wearing a mask absolutely reduces the chances of both you catching and spreading COVID-19. So do the responsible thing and wear a mask when in public.

Matt Baum:
What does this have to do with hemp? I’m glad you asked. There are people making hemp masks, 100% organic hemp masks out there, and I’ll have a link to a story that we have on ministryofhemp.com all about it. It’s a great way to both support hemp farmers and do the responsible thing as a citizen, not as a political statement, but as a citizen that cares about other American citizens and help stop the spread of COVID-19. If you’re wearing any kind of mask, you’re doing the right thing, but if you’re a hemp advocate like me, and if you’re listening to the show, you probably are, buying a hemp fabric mask is a great way to support hemp farmers, hemp fabric producers, and make a statement that you’re not only doing your best to take care of those around you, but you’re also making a conscious decision to support responsibly grown hemp as an alternative to cotton, polyester and plastics that go into other fabrics.

Matt Baum:
The truth is until we have a vaccination, we’re going to be living with this and wearing a mask is the easiest and simplest and most effective way that you can make a difference while we wait for a vaccine for this horrible disease.

Growing hemp in Connecticut & New York

Matt Baum:
My conversation today is with Mike and Paul Harney of Harney & Sons Tea Company. And full disclosure here, we already did this interview once and something happened with my computer and I ended up losing the whole interview, so we had to do it again. And we’re going to joke about it during the interview. So I just figured why not come out and let you guys know? Stuff happens, right? I had a great time talking to these guys and you’ll hear it. We laugh through pretty much the whole thing. I caught up with them both after a day where they had been planting more hemp on their mother’s property in Connecticut. And that’s where we start off talking. They were a riot to talk to. And I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I did talking to them. Here’s my conversation with Mike and Paul Harney.

Matt Baum:
So today you were at mom’s place in Connecticut from what I understand, with a backhoe tearing up some soil that has not been turned over for 100,000 years.

Paul Harney:
Yes we were. It was a little… I don’t think technically, it’s hard pan. I don’t know what it is.

Mike Harney:
It doesn’t look like anything because it was a doctor’s house, so it wasn’t probably a working farm back in the day. I mean, maybe it was, but in 1830 the doctor started to assemble it. So it’s in the middle of town, so a doctor, lawyer, whatever. It was a bookstore when my parents bought it.

Matt Baum:
Okay. How much land does she have out there?

Paul Harney:
Yeah, I think this part of it is about an acre. I mean, she’s probably got three acres in it.

Matt Baum:
Okay. And she said, “Yeah, my boys are getting into hemp for their tea company.”

Paul Harney:
Why not?

Matt Baum:
“They can absolutely plant here and see what happens.”

Mike Harney:
We have a New York license and we also have the processing license. So I said, “Well, why don’t we get a Connecticut license? Sort of a CYA.” Right?

Matt Baum:
Fair enough. Was it easier or was it harder or the same as getting the New York license?

Paul Harney:
I’d say it was more work, yeah. I had to go get fingerprinted.

Matt Baum:
Oh, you’re kidding me.

Paul Harney:
And New York State is pretty mellow.

Matt Baum:
So they want to make sure you’re not a felon or something before you grow hemp?

Mike Harney:
That’s right, yeah. They had to go down to central headquarters for the state and give my left you-know-what. But it was a little bit more work. They say Massachusets are the biggest pains. We have a friend that, I guess he qualifies as a former employee, that when they came in time for harvest, they came out and looked. He only had seven plants, he had to test each plant separately.

Matt Baum:
Seven of them?

Mike Harney:
Yeah, seven plants. He went, “This is crazy.”

Matt Baum:
So if you had 700…

Mike Harney:
Yeah, that’s what I mean. So you can go like…

Paul Harney:
I don’t know what they did, if you did have seven…

Mike Harney:
We had 7,000 last year, so I mean, we were like…

Matt Baum:
Good lord.

Mike Harney:
State of New York is a little bit more mellow, we’ll see how it works out this year.

Matt Baum:
So how many plants are we planting in mom’s place?

Paul Harney:
We’re going to only plant about 350.

Matt Baum:
Okay. And it’s going to be the same species that you’re growing in New York right now?

Paul Harney:
Painted Lady.

Mike Harney:
Yep. Yep.

Matt Baum:
Painted Lady.

Mike Harney:
And with the state, we had to commit over there. That’s the other thing that’s more complicated. But we’re thinking maybe getting more plants, so then we’ve got to work the bureaucracy a little bit.

Matt Baum:
So when they say, “Well, we need to know what kind of you’re planting,” and you look at them and you say, “Painted Lady,” do they have a dog faced reaction? Or do they go, “Oh yeah. Okay,” and just write it down?

Mike Harney:
Basically. No, we had to send in the seed bag.

Matt Baum:
Really? Are they testing it?

Mike Harney:
And the bag has to be approved. So I just remembered that, so that’s what we have to get set while we get the seed bag and it’s got to have a little stamp on it from, been approved by somebody.

Matt Baum:
What are they going to do with the seed bag? Do they literally just want to see the stamp? Are they putting the seeds under a microscope?

Mike Harney:
Yeah, every state, I mean, federal rules are the same, right?

Matt Baum:
Right.

Mike Harney:
But every state interprets them a little bit differently.

Matt Baum:
Yep.

Mike Harney:
And that’s the way Connecticut as interpreted. We just heard how Massachusetts interpreted, and then New York State sort of interpreted, it’s like old school.

Matt Baum:
Good lord. So you’ve got 350 there. How many plants are you growing right now in New York?

Paul Harney:
A little over a like 2,800, I think.

Matt Baum:
And all of this goes to the hemp division?

Paul Harney:
Yep.

Getting into CBD tea with Harney & Sons

Matt Baum:
And so, tell me about that. Let’s start real quick. I’m going to act like we didn’t already have this talk and I’m surprised and I don’t know anything about you, but I’ll edit this part out, obviously. Tell me about how this starts. Let’s start with Harney & Sons, the tea company. This is old school…

Mike Harney:
We can start with Harney & Sons.

Matt Baum:
Old school family tea company. Everybody on the about page has the same last name, I couldn’t help but notice.

Mike Harney:
Well, we’re from Appalachia.

Matt Baum:
You used that joke on me last time too, and it still works. I like it.

Mike Harney:
Did I use that the last time?

Paul Harney:
Yes, you did.

Matt Baum:
Yeah, it still works.

Mike Harney:
Well, that’s good then. That’s good.

Matt Baum:
You know what? I’m going to leave all this in, so they know that we talked before and we’re friendly now, because it sounds like this is an even better interview as far as I’m concerned.

Mike Harney:
There you go. So yeah, I use the same joke.

Paul Harney:
You did.

Matt Baum:
How old is the tea company? How long have you guys been around?

Mike Harney:
Oh, our father started it in that 1883? No, 1983.

Matt Baum:
I was like, you’re not that old. I can see you.

Mike Harney:
And then he got me to come in after a couple of years and he got Paul to come in a couple of years later. Paul was a Marine officer. So he saluted Paul, my baby brother. And then we started, we’ve been doing tea and we still continue to do tea. It does pay for the lights above us and the computer screen to work and all that sort of stuff.

Matt Baum:
There you go.

Mike Harney:
But 2018, we started the hemp division.

Paul Harney:
Yep.

Matt Baum:
So what makes two guys that are firmly entrenched in the tea business, and from what I can tell kind of kicking ass, what makes you decide, well, we need to branch out, we want to mess with this hemp stuff? Where did that come in?

Paul Harney:
Well, we had a suggestion from a family friend that had been saying, “Hey, CBD is something maybe you guys should think about.” And that was in the summer of 2018. And the first license that was available in the state of New York was for growing. And we’re sort of in a farming area.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Paul Harney:
And so, there’s a fallow field as part of our land here. [crosstalk 00:10:41]

Matt Baum:
You can’t grow tea there, obviously.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, and you can’t grow tea, so it was appealing to… We go to origin, we go all over the world and see.

Mike Harney:
What do you mean by origin?

Paul Harney:
Where tea is grown, tea plantations, all that sort of stuff. So we go to these places and this was a chance for us to bring the origin home.

Matt Baum:
Fair enough.

Mike Harney:
Right in our hands. We go from the roots up.

Learning to grow hemp for CBD tea

Matt Baum:
How does it go from traveling all over, looking at these leaves, understanding tea mixes and stuff like that to growing your own hemp? You just threw it in the ground and went for it or did you watch a YouTube video?

Paul Harney:
We threw it in the ground and went for it, yeah. We didn’t know a lot.

Mike Harney:
We did ask somebody. Yeah, we asked somebody who knew a little bit more than us, but I think she was only one page ahead of us, frankly. And it was an expensive textbook, just like in college.

Matt Baum:
Of course. An expensive one page anyway.

Mike Harney:
Yes, yes, yes.

Matt Baum:
But sometimes that’s good too.

Mike Harney:
So we did that and we learned a lot. We learned a lot. I mean, I think we said we planted it all in one day, so that was a hot day in July. July 8th.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, that was early July. And I think we have about, on a shift, somewhere around 150, 160 people. Plus my mother who’s…

Matt Baum:
And you just grabbed him and said, “Everybody out, we’re planting. Let’s go. Put on your gloves. Hope you didn’t wear nice clothes today.”

Paul Harney:
Everybody went out there and popped some in the ground. And I think we didn’t even start early. We started at 10:00 and I think by 6:00 PM we were done.

Matt Baum:
So why July?

Mike Harney:
You had your daughter.

Paul Harney:
I did. My three year old daughter, so she’s out there this year. She was two then, so now she’s three. And my 13 year old son, they’ve been hitting it every day.

Matt Baum:
New York has more favorable child labor laws too, is what you’re saying?

Paul Harney:
Yes.

Matt Baum:
That’s great. That’s excellent. We could use those here.

Mike Harney:
The local law, the law that they could affect them.

Paul Harney:
Right, yes.

Matt Baum:
I’m from Nebraska…

Paul Harney:
But she wasn’t good, Mike. She really just sits around and talks to people and I think she was putting in the little, what type of tea plant or what type of hemp plant it is.

Mike Harney:
She puts in the card, she puts in the stick.

Matt Baum:
Oh, that’s an important job though. I mean, come on.

Paul Harney:
That’s why we’ve got some of these little brains doing it.

The challenges of growing hemp

Matt Baum:
There you go. Now I’m from Nebraska. I’m not a farmer, but it seems like July is awfully late to plant. Why July?

Mike Harney:
Well, as we said, the lady was one page ahead of us.

Matt Baum:
Gotcha.

Mike Harney:
It was that perfect.

Paul Harney:
It was not really. We weren’t farmers either, but we had identified, we asked that same question.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Mike Harney:
But there was no easy, well, it’s a difficult business, this hemp growing stuff. It’s hard. The idea is that you’ve got to get the plant. You’ve got to grow the plant, so you’ve got to put the money down for the seed. This is a little bit like a Nebraska story.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Mike Harney:
And then you don’t get paid for that stuff for actually a year, year and a half later, so money is tight. So it’s a difficult business.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, she had actually grown it from seed, all the plants.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Paul Harney:
So we had to wait until…

Mike Harney:
She had a get the money to buy the seed, and it’s a buck a seed or whatever, which turns out, it doesn’t sound like a lot, but if you’re getting 30,000 plants, you’ve got to have the scratch for that.

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Paul Harney:
And then you’ve got to grow.

Matt Baum:
And then you’ve got to have room to grow them and get them going before you can drop them in the ground.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Mike Harney:
All that.

Paul Harney:
Before you can get them in the ground. So yeah, last year we were a little further behind this year.

Matt Baum:
So this year, much better?

Paul Harney:
This year, much better. Absolutely.

Matt Baum:
We learned.

Paul Harney:
We learned a little bit. We spread them out a little bit more so we’re growing a little less plants, but we’re hoping that…

Mike Harney:
Better production.

Paul Harney:
We’re going to get a little better production out of it.

Matt Baum:
Did you get them from the same place or did you say, “No, we’re not using that. We’re going to use something else for this”?

Paul Harney:
No, we went somewhere else.

Matt Baum:
Okay. But the same species, like the same type?

Mike Harney:
Different species.

Paul Harney:
Different species too.

Mike Harney:
Last year, it was Cherry Wine. This year, you’ve got that Painted Lady.

Matt Baum:
Okay. So tell me…

Mike Harney:
That’s from San Francisco, I’m not sure what.

Matt Baum:
Why do we make that choice? Is that better for the tea? Or is that better for the CBD? Or both?

Mike Harney:
Or neither?

Matt Baum:
Or neither?

Paul Harney:
Mostly, it’s more related to what’s going to grow the best up here.

Matt Baum:
Okay. That makes sense.

Mike Harney:
We had a fungus problem last year. Not a fungus problem, a mold. No, fungus problem. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
Fungus?

Mike Harney:
Yeah, fungus. In our toenails. But what happened was it came in off the woods. And so, we got it from a place that was dryer in our opinion. So there was a guy that just got in the business in Connecticut, so he’s less than 10 miles from here. So we think he’s acclimated, he’s chosen plants that are correct. We don’t know that fact, that’s why I said neither. We’re not sure if we got it better yet. It sounds good. Everything sounds good when you’re putting it in the ground.

Matt Baum:
Of course. So it’s growing now, though? You can look out and be like, “God, I feel like we’re getting somewhere.” Or are you like, “Oh, God”?

Paul Harney:
It’s about this high. So it’s about 12 inches high at the moment.

Mike Harney:
Not quite knee-high before the 4th of July, but we’re getting there.

Matt Baum:
Fair enough. And hopefully you’re going to, what? We’re talking September, October, you harvest?

Mike Harney:
September. We’re hoping we’re getting it out two weeks earlier because we got it out a bit late last year.

Paul Harney:
We got it out in Halloween.

Matt Baum:
That’s late.

Paul Harney:
And then you struggle because it doesn’t dry off after the frost, it’s colder.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. Definitely.

Paul Harney:
Just have to really struggle with the bud and stuff.

Mike Harney:
And then the other thing is with the plants we’ve got, supposedly won’t go hot because you always have to be careful that it doesn’t get much THC.

Matt Baum:
Of course.

Mike Harney:
Because the US government, that’s one thing they do watch, is the 0.3%.

Creating The Hemp Division’s CBD tea

Matt Baum:
So last year, obviously you brought in hemp from other places to infuse. Let’s talk about that.

Mike Harney:
In the beginning, yeah.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, we made the bottles out of that. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
So what kind of products…

Paul Harney:
Yeah, we started…

Matt Baum:
I’m sorry, what kind of…

Paul Harney:
We started with a CBD, with an isolate.

Matt Baum:
Okay.

Paul Harney:
Was how we started last year. In 2018, after we’d gotten our processing license, that’s where we started, was buying an isolate. And then, we’ve gone from there into more broad spectrum with the terpenes. And then, what we’ve done since we had our own product was we’ve actually turned it into hemp tea, processed it, decarboxylated it and blended it into different blends.

Mike Harney:
So right now, we’ve got people up there who are taking the stuff that we did last October, and we have big bags, white bags of them, and they’re just going through and getting rid of the riff-raff. And then that’s what Paul says we’re going to use that stuff in the tea bags. So we have three different options, right? You’ve got the bottles with the isolate.

Paul Harney:
Yeah. So we have bottles, we have sparkling waters, the Spark.

Matt Baum:
Love those. Yeah.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, and then we have some tea tins that are packed in sachets, and some of those have CBD powder in them and then some of them are just blends with the hemp tea.

Mike Harney:
Where did we send the isolate to, Paul?

Paul Harney:
Colorado.

Mike Harney:
Did you see it? Did you wave to it as it went by in Nebraska?

Matt Baum:
I didn’t see it. I’m sure it came by. I may have been asleep or not paying attention, but normally I would notice that stuff, yeah.

Mike Harney:
It went by there. It went by your house, of course.

Matt Baum:
I’m right on the interstate, usually just waving at trucks.

Mike Harney:
All right. Just checking.

Matt Baum:
So next year, now that you’re growing this, the idea is we’re going to use our hemp?

Mike Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
And you’re going add-

Paul Harney:
We are using our extraction and our hemp now.

Matt Baum:
Oh, okay.

Paul Harney:
But yeah, the idea is that going forward, it’s that we are covering it from the roots up, so to speak.

Matt Baum:
Right. Control every aspect of it.

Paul Harney:
Control every aspect.

Mike Harney:
Almost every aspect.

The process of making CBD tea

Paul Harney:
The idea is to really try to use the same level of skill we use to blend teas to ensure that we to get the proper dose, all this sort of stuff, into the products.

Matt Baum:
Someone else is doing the extraction though?

Paul Harney:
Right, yeah. Someone else.

Mike Harney:
He’s out in Colorado, so maybe you’ll catch him on the way back.

Matt Baum:
Yeah, maybe. I’ll watch for him. So when they do this extraction and they send it back to you, are you guaranteed, and I’m sorry, I know nothing about this, but is it the type of thing, like say you’re making your sparkling water drink, where we know if we put X amount in this vat that it’s going to become sparkling water, it will be so many milligrams of CBD per can basically?

Paul Harney:
Right, right.

Mike Harney:
They’re doing the concentrate, right? They’re not making the product. You’re making the product.

Paul Harney:
We make the product. All they’re doing is they’re doing the extraction.

Mike Harney:
And emulsification.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
Right. And they basically give me something that’s…

Mike Harney:
But it’s oil and it won’t go into water. So we’ve got to do the magic, the secret sauce, in Colorado.

Paul Harney:
And then it won’t stabilize either if you just put the oil in the water.

Matt Baum:
Okay. To boil it down, I mean, to a ridiculous metaphor, you add a 1/4 cup of this to a gallon of this and there you go. You know what you’ve got.

Paul Harney:
Pretty much.

Mike Harney:
That’s right, now.

Matt Baum:
So with the teas themselves you’re using a powder, you said, to infuse those?

Paul Harney:
So we’re using a powder as well as we’re using the hemp leaf. The hemp leaf doesn’t give off…

Mike Harney:
The hemp flower.

Paul Harney:
The flower when you brew it, though you get an effect, it does not give you…

Matt Baum:
Much lighter, I’m sure.

Paul Harney:
The CBD number.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Paul Harney:
Due to water solubility and stuff like that. So generally, we add in some powder with the leaf to give it a solid number, but it’s very effective.

Matt Baum:
So what’s the leaf do to the flavor? What’s that taste like?

Paul Harney:
Tastes a little happy.

Mike Harney:
Like marijuana.

Matt Baum:
I would guess. I like that flavor, I kind of look for it in certain, like when people send me CBD oils and whatnot.

Paul Harney:
Sure.

Matt Baum:
I’m fine with ones that are flavored and I understand not everybody’s looking for that, but I feel like the flavor itself is very interesting and adds something to it. And maybe that’s from a lot of practice of trying other types of cannabis perhaps, I don’t know.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, you remember.

Matt Baum:
I would think that could be a turnoff for some people in tea. Is that something you try to hide?

Paul Harney:
Yeah, we’ve got them both, where you can find it, where you do taste it, and then others, you don’t taste it at all.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Paul Harney:
We have one that’s called Center and that one is based a little bit off of our Hot Cinnamon Spice tea, which tastes like an old red hot candy.

Matt Baum:
So tell me about that one real quick. It’s like you’re using more of the stuff to give it the red hot flavor and just a little bit of the hemp leaves?

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Mike Harney:
Yeah. And the hemp, with a lighter dose, you really don’t taste it.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Mike Harney:
You can taste a little bit, but it’s not strong like you’re talking about.

Matt Baum:
And obviously-

Paul Harney:
There are ones that are stronger, but that’s certainly the one where we just took one of our great blends…

Creating different CBD tea blends

Mike Harney:
And then you also came up with some other stuff, right?

Paul Harney:
We did. We did.

Mike Harney:
What have you got? Moringa?

Paul Harney:
We got one with moringa, yeah, it called a Deep Sleep.

Matt Baum:
I don’t know what moringa is. What is moringa?

Paul Harney:
Moringa’s a herb.

Matt Baum:
Okay.

Paul Harney:
So that’s an herb and it provides a little balance. So some of them, like we have another one that’s called Focus and that one has a yerba mate, which is a caffeinated leaf. Yaupon, which is the only caffeinated leaf grown in the US, and guayusa and some mint.

Mike Harney:
From Ecuador.

Paul Harney:
Yeah. So that particular blend is actually pretty high in caffeine.

Matt Baum:
That sounds amazing.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, but when added with a little CBD, it gives you, that’s what we call Focus.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. Because you’re riding the wave instead of vibrating.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, exactly. And it is, people like that one a lot. Sleep is certainly a calm, Sleep.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Paul Harney:
These sort of things that are somewhat lifted even more.

Mike Harney:
But Focus is good because it elevates you without taking you up over the top.

Matt Baum:
Yeah. I had a guy send me some CBD-infused coffee and I drink coffee like it’s going out of style, like I like a fricking need it. And I couldn’t get to that point where my eyes felt like they were boiling. And I was almost like, “Is something wrong?” And I was like, “No, I feel normal. This is what I’m supposed to feel like. I’m awake.”

Mike Harney:
That’s what normal looks like.

Matt Baum:
Yeah, I’m focused and I don’t feel like I’m going to pass through a wall because I’m vibrating too fast.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
That’s cool. So as far as that flavor profile goes, do you treat it the same way that you would treat any other herb that you’ve worked with?

Paul Harney:
Absolutely. I mean, I think that’s one of the advantages that we have, is that we’re used to dealing with a lot of crazy herbs. Kava’s another crazy herb that mellows you out.

Mike Harney:
What about chaga?

Paul Harney:
Ashwagandha and chaga mushrooms, so we’re used to dealing with a lot of-

Mike Harney:
We’re not too used to it, though.

Paul Harney:
Barely into it.

Mike Harney:
Not too used to it, no.

Matt Baum:
Well, sure.

Mike Harney:
Well, we’re used to it.

Paul Harney:
We’re sort of used to it now.

Matt Baum:
Sort of used to it. That’s what I like to hear of my professionals, “I’m sort of good at this. Don’t worry.”

Paul Harney:
It’s a work in progress.

Expanding into herbal wellness

Mike Harney:
Well, no. I mean, that’s because as a tea company, mostly it was just tea, but in the last year or two Paul’s been pushing us more and more into wellness, so you have to say if it’s hemp bud in there, that’s part of the wellness concept.

Matt Baum:
Right. Tell me about the wellness concept. Where did that come from? You were a Marine and you decided, you know what?

Mike Harney:
Yeah, you must have gotten tired of the softer stuff.

Paul Harney:
That’s it, yeah.

Matt Baum:
I fought for freedom and now I want to fight to detox.

Paul Harney:
Well, mushrooms obviously are… Neurotropics are a really big thing right now.

Mike Harney:
Adapto.

Paul Harney:
And adaptogenic, yeah. Absolutely. So there’s a wide variety of herbs, ashwagandha, all this sort of stuff that people are using and blending to mellow you out, take a little of the edge off and all that sort of good stuff. And we started, as we had these hemp products coming out, then we started adding a few more traditional wellness products that helped…

Matt Baum:
It was a gateway drug, if you will.

Mike Harney:
And during this COVID period here, you know what I mean?

Paul Harney:
It became particularly of use.

Mike Harney:
Well, wellness, everybody’s jumped…

Paul Harney:
Everybody’s like, “Look, probably. Probably, I need it.”

Matt Baum:
It turns out hemp is a gateway drug. There we go. They were right.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, that’s correct.

Mike Harney:
After hemp, it becomes chaga.

Paul Harney:
That’s right.

Matt Baum:
Next thing you know, you’re chewing on yerba mate leaves.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, it’s crazy.

Matt Baum:
Strung out somewhere, shaking on caffeine.

Paul Harney:
Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Matt Baum:
So where did the wellness thing come from though? Where did you find that day? Is it just something you heard about and said we should try it? Or was it something that you experienced in your life?

Mike Harney:
These all have been considered a wellness beverage.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Mike Harney:
And we’ve done other things, chamomile to help you sleep in the old days.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
I mean, I guess that makes sense.

Mike Harney:
And peppermint for the upset stomach. So then my brother here, Paul, he looks at that side more than me. So Paul.

Paul Harney:
Well, no, the base was already there.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Paul Harney:
And you know, green tea is obviously a very healthy product for you.

Mike Harney:
And well known.

Paul Harney:
And well known. We just didn’t, I think we didn’t play on it very far. And then, as hemp matured a little bit, and we had more of these products, last year was a little different because we had the powder and that was the first year of this.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Mike Harney:
Making a name for ourselves, yeah.

Paul Harney:
But then, once we had the hemp to really start blending in these things, then it was like, “Hey, maybe we need some chaga in there with that.

Matt Baum:
It was just the next logical thing, basically?

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Mike Harney:
Logical.

Paul Harney:
Well, it was relatively logical.

Mike Harney:
I don’t know if it was completely logical, but…

Matt Baum:
I love you guys because you both do this Columbo thing where you’re like, “I mean, I’m just, I don’t really know,” but you totally know. You guys do, okay?

Mike Harney:
You’ve got to be telling us the truth then.

Looking forward to the harvest

Matt Baum:
So tell me about, you’re going to harvest next, hopefully early October.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
You had mentioned that you were going to do stuff with every aspect of the plant, like you’re going to try grounding up the roots and stuff.

Paul Harney:
We are. We had some roots this year. We did not get very far, but obviously, roots is considered also a very medicinal piece of the plant.

Matt Baum:
Right.

Paul Harney:
And it’s something we tried to get to last year, but roots obviously need to be cleaned quite well if you’re going to try to use them later on.

Matt Baum:
Of course.

Paul Harney:
So that was a bridge too far. So this year, we hopefully will get there and dry them out and grind it into something, and see if we can figure out a use for it.

Matt Baum:
See what it does, basically?

Paul Harney:
Yeah. It’s been fun. It’s been a great project and we’re definitely enthusiastic about it. And we’re fully involved in all aspects of it. We’re out there planting ourselves and all that sort of stuff, so it’s been a fun ride so far.

Mike Harney:
Actually, we just did a video we’ll have to send to you where it’s a planting from last week.

Matt Baum:
Oh yeah, please. I’ll add that to the post. Definitely.

Mike Harney:
But yeah, so you’ll find that fun.

Matt Baum:
That’d be a riot, yeah.

Mike Harney:
Paul, I know you’ve got it.

Matt Baum:
Definitely. That’d be…

Mike Harney:
It’s got Paul. It’s got a little surprise thing with Paul in there. I don’t want to ruin it for you.

Matt Baum:
It’s family friendly though, right?

Paul Harney:
We don’t want to ruin it for you. You’re going to have to watch the video.

Matt Baum:
This podcast is PG-13, so as long as it’s family friendly.

Mike Harney:
And you’re going to do a TikTok, right, Paul?

Paul Harney:
Yeah, we’ve got a TikTok. Everybody’s got a TikTok going. We can’t get mad, just get our TikTok going.

Matt Baum:
Sure. You and all the K-pop kids, right?

Mike Harney:
That’s it, man.

Matt Baum:
So real quick, and I’m sorry if I’m dwelling on this root thing too much, are there other tea plants out there where you literally take the leaves and grind up the root to add to tea?

Mike Harney:
Not for tea because it’s a perennial.

Paul Harney:
Right.

Matt Baum:
Oh, because it’s going to come back.

Mike Harney:
You don’t want to get rid of it. Yeah, next year’s crop.

Matt Baum:
That makes sense.

Mike Harney:
You just want a handful.

Paul Harney:
But ginger, right? Ginger’s certainly…

Matt Baum:
Sure.

Mike Harney:
But you don’t use the top of ginger to my knowledge. I mean, I don’t know. You’re from Wisconsin, so you would know more about it. I don’t know.

Matt Baum:
I don’t think you do. I think really, it’s just ginger root.

Paul Harney:
Yeah.

Matt Baum:
Like ginseng is the same thing. They really don’t use the plant for anything.

Mike Harney:
Yeah. So that’s what I mean. So we’re going to find that out. But I mean…

Paul Harney:
We’ll report back, man.

Matt Baum:
Yeah.

Mike Harney:
Bill will report back.

Matt Baum:
I’m real curious about that. That sounds really interesting.

Mike Harney:
A crop report, we’ll give you a crop report.

Paul Harney:
Rather than a crap.

The future of The Hemp Division’s CBD teas

Matt Baum:
What’s the plan going forward for the hemp division? What comes next?

Paul Harney:
That’s the plan is, to get this harvest through and to see what sort of other products we can come up with, but we’ve got a couple more sleep teas coming out. And we’ve got one called Boom. It’s got a little chocolate and coconut in it for you.

Matt Baum:
Oh, that sounds nice.

Paul Harney:
That’s a nice one. Mike came up with the name, he’s a namer.

Matt Baum:
Dumb question. How do you do the chocolate without it melting?

Mike Harney:
That’s what I said, yeah.

Paul Harney:
I don’t know.

Mike Harney:
Paul, you came up with it.

Paul Harney:
You came up with the name.

Matt Baum:
I’m not a tea guy, so I have no clue.

Mike Harney:
I’m a tea guy, I have no clue.

Matt Baum:
We put some chocolate in the bag and it melts into you tea.

Paul Harney:
That’s it. That’s pretty much it.

Matt Baum:
Really?

Paul Harney:
You put one of those Hershey kisses in there, that’s it.

Matt Baum:
Yeah, sure. Guys, thank you so much. It’s been great. I appreciate your time.

Paul Harney:
Right, Matt. That’s great.

Mike Harney:
Thanks, Matt.

Matt Baum:
And this time it’s going to work. It’s going to work, we’ve got it.

Mike Harney:
We’re with you, buddy.

Matt Baum:
And if not, I’ll fly out and make it worth your time.

Paul Harney:
There you go.

Mike Harney:
You can help plant.

Matt Baum:
That sounds good.

Mike Harney:
We’ll get you that video.

Matt Baum:
Excellent.

Final thoughts from Matt

Matt Baum:
As always, there will be links to Harney & Sons Tea Company in the show notes for this episode. Also, at Ministry of Hemp, we believe that an accessible world is a better world for all, so you can find a complete written transcript of this episode there too.

Matt Baum:
I just want to say a huge thanks again to Mike and Paul for being so easy and fun to talk to, and thank you to you for downloading this show, and I hope you’re enjoying it. And if you’ve got questions, criticisms, or maybe a subject you want to hear about call me. 402-819-6417, that is the Ministry of Hemp Google Voice line and you can leave a message there. Ask any question you would like and I will answer it on this show. Typically, I do that with help from Kit O’Connell, he is the editor in chief of ministryofhemp.com. And I’ve been poking and prodding my buddy, Drew to come on one of these Q&A shows too, so I bet we’re going to get her on next time as well, but we love to answer your questions. Please give us a call. And if you don’t want to call, email me directly, matt@ministryofhemp.com. That’s M-A-T-T. I’m not cool enough to spell it with one T.

Matt Baum:
Speaking of ministryofhemp.com, get over there right now and you can check out an article we have up on CBD bath products. It’s our Six Best CBD Bath Bombs and Soaks. These are super popular and they are an amazing way to relax after a stressful day. You drop the bath bomb in hot water, the CBD releases into the water, you get in and you soak it in. It is wonderful. Like I mentioned in the beginning of the show, there will also be links to the story about hemp masks and where you can get those. And if that’s not enough, you can find us at all your favorite social media sites, \ministryofhemp, @MinistryofHemp.

Matt Baum:
And if you really want to make a difference and help us out, go check us out at patreon\ministryofhemp and become a Ministry of Hemp insider. You will get access to podcast extras, to early articles, to bonus articles that don’t even make it to the site. And this week’s extra is actually going to be a video extra. We talked about it in the interview that I had with the Harney brothers. It’s them planting and it is a pretty hilarious video, but it’s also cool just to see how grass roots this organization is. So please head over to Patreon and become a Ministry of Hemp insider. I cannot stress how much it helps us in spreading the good word of hemp.

Matt Baum:
But that’s it, we’re done here. I’ve got to get out of here and I like to end the show the same way every time by saying remember to take care of yourself, take care of others and make good decisions, will you? This is Matt Baum with the Ministry of Hemp, signing off.

The post A Cuppa CBD Tea? We Meet Mike And Paul Harney Of Harney & Sons Tea appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

In this episode of the Ministry of Hemp Podcast, our host Matt talks about the 2020 Summer Olympics allowing athletes to use CBD. Then, Matt sits down with Laurel Angelica Myers, COO at Prima, for a discussion about the science behind their new powdered CBD supplement. This episode is part of our Women in Hemp series.

Our reviewer Drew enjoyed trying Prima’s “Brain Fuel” Elixir, a powdered CBD drink mix, and one of three similar elixirs they offer. Check it out if you’re intrigued after listening to this podcast.

Send us your feedback

We want to hear from you too. Send us your questions and you might hear them answered on future shows like this one! Send us your written questions to us on Twitter, Facebook, email matt@wordpress-559906-1802377.cloudwaysapps.com, or call us and leave a message at 402-819-6417.

Keep in mind, this phone number is for hemp questions only and any other inquiries for the Ministry of Hemp should be sent to info@wordpress-559906-1802377.cloudwaysapps.com

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With your help, we will be able to keep making our podcast and produce even more great articles with the science and information about hemp and CBD you’ve come to trust from us.

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Powdered CBD supplements: Complete episode transcript

Below you will find the full written transcript of this episode:

Matt Baum:

Real quick before we get started, I just want to thank everybody that has been downloading, and responding and supporting this show. I can’t tell you what it means to me. And there’s a new way to support the Ministry of Hemp Podcast and Ministry of Hemp. Head to patreon.com\ministryofhemp where you can become a monthly supporter of the show, helping us fight the good fight. I’ll tell you more about it in the middle of this episode, but thanks again to everybody, and check us out on patreon.com.

Matt Baum:

I’m Matt Baum and this is the Ministry of Hemp podcast brought to you by ministryofhemp.com, America’s leading advocate for hemp and hemp education. We talk a lot about CBD here on the show, and adding CBD to your daily regimen can be tough, not because it’s… Well, yeah. I guess it can be hard to find, but the good news is you can go to sites like ministryofhemp.com, check our top brands and find great places to get high quality CBD. The tough part can be understanding how to take it.

Matt Baum:

Different labels say different things. They have milligrams on them. They have percentages of CBD. If it’s an oil, can I put it on food? Should I put it under my tongue? If it’s a pill, how many do I take? What do I need? It can all be really confusing. But one of the products we’re going to talk about today is taking a lot of that confusion out of it, and just allowing you to pour a powdered version into a drink. Which is really cool if you’re an athlete or just somebody that goes to the gym and doesn’t enjoy being sore afterwards.

Matt Baum:

Today on the show, I’m going to sit down with Laurel Angelica Myers. She’s the co-founder and CEO of Prima. Prima is a fantastic example of a transparent company that is doing it right. They’re one of our top brands and they’ve got a whole line of amazing CBD related products, one of which is a new powdered supplement that you just add to your coffee, or your water or just about anything else you’re drinking. It’s very cool and I’m excited for you guys to hear about it. But first, speaking of athletes, let’s talk about the Olympics for a minute.

CBD at the Olympics

Matt Baum:

If you live in the Midwest like I do, it’s February and you’re currently freezing. Summer probably seems like it’s a whole year away. But it’s coming, and so are the summer Olympics. And along with the Olympics come some changes to the world anti-doping regulations. Most notably they have dropped CBD from their no-no list, so athletes can now look to CBD for benefits in relaxation and anxiety when both competing and training.

Matt Baum:

You may remember back in episode 18, shameless plug for my own show, when I was talking about Megan Rapinoe, the US women’s soccer star that started a CBD company with her sister. She’s been pushing very hard along with a lot of other athletes to get professional sports to also allow CBD usage, and so far the response hasn’t been great. But seeing the Olympics, specifically the world anti-doping agency who is famous for banning athletes that have used chemicals that are by no means performance enhancing. This is huge news and a gigantic step for CBD becoming a legitimate part of athletes training regimens.

Matt Baum:

I’m not saying the MLB, NFL, NHL and everybody else is just going to change their tune overnight. But news like this definitely makes it harder for them to keep CBD on their banned substance list. So don’t be surprised if you see US Olympians applying CBD topicals to sore muscles, or adding supplements and tinctures to their sports drinks. And really it’s only a matter of time until professional athletes like golfer, Bubba Watson, who signed his own CBD endorsement deal, is using CBD on the links to ease that anxiety on that three foot putt. Sadly, it’s going to take a little more than CBD to help with my own golf game. But what can you do? And now my conversation with Laurel Angelica Myers. Why don’t we start off with a definition of the word bioavailability?

Bioavailability & powdered CBD

Laurel Myers:

Sure. So bioavailability is the rate at which your body can access and absorb something into the body system.

Matt Baum:

Okay. And I’m asking you to start with that because it’s one of the most important things when we’re dealing with any type of CBD. Prima has a new product that is basically a powder that you can pour into your coffee or your water, and get your CBD supplement. What’s the science behind this? How is this working? Because from my experience I’ve seen CBD bonded with MCT oil, or bonded with other fats and placed in sugars. How’s it working in a dry form like this?

Laurel Myers:

That’s a great question. So I’m going to take a step back and explain some of these steps before we get to the dry powder form.

Matt Baum:

Perfect.

Laurel Myers:

But as you noted, bioavailability is really important because if you don’t have good bioavailability on an ingredient, your body’s not going to be able to absorb as much of it to be as effective as possible. You could have a beautiful expensive ingredient, but if it’s not optimized, then in many ways it’s a waste of money, right? It’s going in your body one end, out the other.

Matt Baum:

Right.

Laurel Myers:

So when thinking about how to solve that problem, because there’s a lot of different ways to solve it, you’ll see a lot of [inaudible 00:05:54] solutions and oil. And what that does is it helps break down the CBD molecules into smaller sizes, so that by making it smaller, it’s easier to absorb. But that’s only one part of the process. Just the fat encapsulation itself won’t help. Think of it like oil and water, right? Your body is 90% water. When you make a salad dressing and you put down the vinegar, which is water-based and then the oil, what happens?

Matt Baum:

Separates?

Laurel Myers:

They do not mix, right? They don’t play nice, they separate. And then what happens when you actually mix the dressing together through this agitation, it’s what you call emulsification. And that’s the most important step in making something bioavailable, is you have to create this suspension of emulsification that essentially tricks your body into thinking it’s water.

Matt Baum:

Right.

Laurel Myers:

Essentially what you do is you find a molecule that, one side of it loves water, and the other side of it loves oil, and it then becomes essentially the middleman that takes those two things and binds them together. So all of that is done in a liquid. Right? So you’re blending this into liquid form, and then what makes it into a powder is simply a drying process. Right? And the reason that we did that is because it’s extremely shelf stable. It’s much more flexible because you can mix it into a variety of different things, and it’s much easier to dose that way. Because you can have single serving individual packets, which we found is really important for people who are living busy lifestyles.

Matt Baum:

Right.

Laurel Myers:

People want the convenience and the ease of, I know I want exactly this much and I want it at this time. You can throw one in your bag when you’re traveling on the plane, or one before bed. If you don’t have it in some type of an easy measurable format, it’s one more layer of complexity.

Matt Baum:

Sure. I know I’ve been using it in the mornings when using the Goto, and then recently… I’ve really liked it by the way, and I ran out of that recently, so I switched to the Brain Fuel before I go to work. And I’ve definitely found… I’ve also taken tinctures, I’ve taken lots of different CBD. I’ve definitely found that the way this hits me is a little different than in a tincture. Is that because of the delivery process, because of the dried powder aspect of it?

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. It’s not necessarily the dryness of the powder. It’s around that the micro encapsulation system that’s actually delivering the molecules to your body. So we could’ve done it in a liquid, we could’ve done it in a powder. For us that’s really around what was going to be the most convenient from a consumer standpoint, but it’s around that encapsulation process. Which is the most important piece. And what that means is you are feeling the effects and the benefits almost immediately. It’s pretty rapid in how quickly you’ll be able to feel that.

Matt Baum:

Yeah. I’ve been doing it with water because I have a bad habit of just drinking coffee in the morning and I’m trying to drink more water. So this is-

Laurel Myers:

I feel you.

Matt Baum:

This has encouraged that.

Laurel Myers:

It’s probably the thing that I’m worst at in life.

Matt Baum:

Yeah, I know. And it’s terrible. It’s like, but I’m not thirsty at all, I’ve had 15 cups of coffee. Not great for you.

Laurel Myers:

Exactly. Exactly.

Creating Prima’s powdered CBD mixes

Matt Baum:

How did you guys choose the flavors that you’re using in these? Because I’ve noticed… I mean, I guess whenever you see a powder that you add to a beverage, you expect fruit or lemon/lime or something like this. These aren’t like that at all. They’re very… I’m trying to… Earthy, I guess is the way that I would put it. They’re light and reserved. Why did you guys choose those kinds of flavors?

Laurel Myers:

Well, I’ll give you a really easy logical answer. Because that’s the flavor of the herbs that we’re combining with the hemp extract to deliver the benefits.

Matt Baum:

That makes perfect sense.

Laurel Myers:

So what we did, one of the core fundamental parts of our product line isn’t just the broad spectrum hemp CBD, but it’s looking at other synergistic botanicals that you can pair with the CBD, to really elevate and amplify the benefit you’re trying to deliver. So when you look at something like sleep, right, combining chamomile, hops, valerian, passionflower, these things that are really going to help induce that state of calm, the feeling of the heavy eyelids to help ease you into sleep.

Laurel Myers:

And when you compare it with the adaptogens and nootropics that are in Brain Fuel, we’ve got ashwagandha, rhodiola, those are things that are really going to help drive a lot of that blood flow to your brain, and give you that really energized, focused feeling. A lot of those herbs and botanicals have inherent flavors in and of themselves. So specifically the Brain Fuel, it does taste very earthy is a good description. And almost has like a nutty component. I like to equate it to a red tea.

Matt Baum:

Yeah, I was just going to say it. It’s has a tea aspect definitely.

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. Yeah. It pairs really well with nut milks and even cocoa has some notes of [inaudible 00:10:50] in there, which I think is interesting. But what we did is we did add some bitterness blockers using a natural mushroom extract, because a lot of these herbs can taste very, very, no pun intended, dirty. Literally like dirt.

Matt Baum:

Definitely. Like that same kind of flavor that people experience when they taste cilantro. I love the flavor, but there are people that taste it and they get that dirt flavor in their mouth.

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. So what we’ve done is we’ve really embraced the natural flavor of the herbs but we’ve tried to balance it out to make it a bit more palatable, and really help round it out. It’s not a flavored beverage. It’s not like a berry flavored boost that you add to your drink. It’s an herbal mix, and we intentionally didn’t include any sweeteners, so there’s no stevia, there’s no sugar, there’s none of that in there. Because we wanted it to be extremely helpful and also really flexible and versatile. Right? Not everybody wants that experience when they’re looking for a healthful beverage.

Matt Baum:

Can I ask, is the process that you’re doing to the herbs, like the first ones you named was the sleepy time one, is that process similar to what you do to the CBD?

Laurel Myers:

No, it’s a little bit different. So a lot of the herbs we’re taking as pure herb extract, and a lot of them don’t have the same bioavailability challenges that CBD does. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a CBD extract, but it comes out almost as a really, really thick, crystallized honey.

Matt Baum:

Really?

Laurel Myers:

So it’s very difficult. Yeah, it’s pretty wild. It’s really viscous. It’s very oily, very different than a lot of these other herbal extracts, which are often already in powder form as the raw extract itself.

Matt Baum:

Interesting. And are you using the same CBD that you’re using in this dry product in other Prima products? Is it the same exact stuff?

Laurel Myers:

Yeah, it is. It is. We have a single origin source up in Oregon, and we control our supply chain and it’s absolutely the same that we use across our whole portfolio. That being said, it is going to vary as an agricultural crop product from lot to lot. So you may have one harvest of hemp that has a different terpene profile than another harvest of hemp. So there is some natural variability within each of those batches of the hemp extract, and that’s just due to its natural nature. And we’re not working with an isolate. An isolate would be just the CBD molecule. We’re working with a broad spectrum extract that includes turpines and flavanoids and some of the other fatty acids. And because of that there’s a bit more variability to it.

Matt Baum:

Okay. And when you add other herbs and whatnot in there, you’re getting even fuller spectrum if you will, I guess.

Laurel Myers:

Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Matt Baum:

Now this might be a stupid question. Does adding it to a hot liquid versus a cold liquid make any difference?

Laurel Myers:

Not particularly, but just as with herbal teas, you don’t want to add it to boiling, boiling water. Right? That’s going to have a fairly bitter flavor and it’s going to compromise the quality of some of the ingredients. Like with a green tea, you’re not supposed to pour piping hot boiling water. You let it cool for a minute and then pour it on top. But that doesn’t really make a huge impact. It’s just going to make more of an impact on the flavor profile and the robustness of it.

Support the Ministry of Hemp on Patreon

Matt Baum:

Let’s take a quick break to hear from Ministry of Hemp, editor in chief Kit O’Connell to tell you about our new Ministry of Hemp Patreon kit. Take it away.

Kit O’Connell:

Hi, this is Kit O’Connell. I’m the editor in chief of Ministry of Hemp. I hope you’re enjoying the Ministry of Hemp podcast and the articles we’ve been publishing recently. But today I want to talk to you about the newest way that you can support what we do. So we’re launching a Patreon at patrion.com/ministryofhemp. And this Patreon will help our readers and fans contribute to what we do. With your help we will be able to make our podcast and produce even more great articles about science and information about hemp and CBD. We’ll publish more recipes and more guides. We’ll be able to work with more journalists, chefs, and authors of all kinds.

Kit O’Connell:

Not only that, but by joining our Patreon you’ll become a Hemp Insider. We’re launching a special newsletter just for our Patreons. Each month we’ll work with experts and advocates and other industry professionals to give you an inside look at hemp and offer you ways to help the return of our favorite plant nationwide. To get access to this new newsletter you can donate any amount on our Patreon, even as low as $3 a month. For a few dollars more we’ll send you some Ministry of Hemp stickers, and even samples of our favorite CBD products. If you join before February 15th at $25 or more, we’ll give you a Ministry of Hemp t-shirt as well. So if you love hemp and the work that we’re doing at the Ministry of Hemp, I hope you’ll support us. You can join at patrion.com/ministryofhemp. That’s P-A-T-R-E-O-N dot com slash ministry of hemp, which is all one word. Thanks.

Standing out in the CBD industry

Matt Baum:

Laura, I want to thank you for being so upfront about the process and whatnot. A lot of people may have said, well, that’s company secrets or whatever. I was thinking about how you said we didn’t make this berry flavored. You could have made this taste like Kool-Aid, but in keeping that herbal flavor, it feels more real, I guess. I don’t know. That might sound silly. But I also very much like that I know exactly how much CBD I’m getting. What was the decision there?

Laurel Myers:

Part of it is that there’s so many options out there, and it’s really hard to know who to trust in the CBD space. There’s no shortage of brands. There’s no shortage of products. This is why you’re doing what you’re doing, right? You guys sit here and you vet and you review, to help customers find the right choices for them. I would say, for us, it’s everything [inaudible 00:16:44]. The entire design and experience of the product. Is this doing what it needs to do? Is this actually working?

Laurel Myers:

And actually working starts with, where’s my ingredient coming from? Is it high quality? Is it extracted in a quality and standardized way? Is that ingredient then optimized in a product that’s going to get me what I want? Because how you get the CBD onto your skin for example, is going to be different than what you want it to do when you’re taking it orally. And you want to make sure that it’s really optimized for both of those experiences, whether you’re looking to balance your skin because you’re dealing with some skin redness or other skin challenges, or because you’re feeling a little bit crazy with your day to day stress and your body needs a breath of fresh air.

Matt Baum:

Right.

Laurel Myers:

Two very different things. And I think one of the things that we do really differently is our science and our science led approach. All of our products are doctor formulated. So it’s not just, do we know how to make a quality product? But we’re working with doctors on looking at the ingredients, looking at the effect we’re trying have. And the problem we’re trying to solve, and making sure that we are using really efficacious plant-based botanicals to help drive that impact. So, it’s not marketing, it’s certainly backed by science. It’s the standards we use, right? It’s not just the standard we have for hemp, but our entire formula.

Laurel Myers:

Is it a clean formula? Is it free of neurotoxins and carcinogens, and all of these things? We actually have standards that are stricter than the EU. Which is something that’s really important to note because in the US we don’t have fantastic standards, certainly around cosmetics and the topical category. The US has only banned somewhere between 10 and 15 chemicals for use in personal care. The EU has banned over 1500. We have a list of over 3000 ingredients we won’t use in any of our topical products.

Matt Baum:

That’s amazing.

Laurel Myers:

And we’re very passionate about that. So it’s not just the CBD and the source of the CBD, and the quality and the efficacy of the design, but the overall safety and quality of the total product. And at the end of the day, is it something that customers need? How is it solving a problem for me? One of the challenges that we certainly feel with the tincture space is people don’t know how to take it. They’re already confused by CBD. They don’t know what it does, what it doesn’t do, how to take it, and now you’re giving them a product that is also confusing on top of that.

Laurel Myers:

How do I take this oil? Do I put it in my coffee, do I swallow it? Do I put it under my tongue? How much do I take? It’s really confusing and that additional confusion means people are probably not going to take it correctly, and then they’re not going to get the benefit, and then they’re not going to believe that CBD works, which is a big problem. So by solving the format, that does a huge, huge service to changing people’s perception on what a powerful ingredient this can be, when taken in the right way, in a way that’s easy for them.

Matt Baum:

Is that where the idea for this started initially, with the whole idea of just how can we take a single shot of CBD, tell someone exactly what is in there and make it super easy to deliver? Is that where this came from?

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. I think it was a big pain point that we saw that we ourselves as consumers, and a lot of the people that we knew, were feeling super confused. And I watched how people were using them and they weren’t using them correctly, and it was a really big challenge. And I heard a lot of people say, “Oh, CBD doesn’t work for me.” And then when you start to dig a little bit and understand why, there are so many ways where it could go south and not work for that person. And so one of our big goals is how do we make this easy? How do we make this something that is portable? I can take it on the go, I can put it in just about anything.

Matt Baum:

That’s what I really like.

Laurel Myers:

Yeah, it’s a really nice experience, right? The Goto, what I love about it, is it basically has a very light, almost cucumber type flavor and that’s just the flavor of the hemp itself. That’s all you’re tasting. And it’s so benign, you can put it in your water, you can put it in your coffee, put it in anything, and it’s so convenient.

Matt Baum:

Yeah, it really is.

Laurel Myers:

And I think that convenience without sacrificing efficacy is really where the root of this is. And I think having also just the single serve, have it on the go. I have three in my purse at anytime, some in my desk, some at home in my kitchen, they are wherever I’m going to be and they’re perfect.

Matt Baum:

Yeah. Definitely. I will say I was skeptical at first, just because I hadn’t seen a CBD product delivered like this. And when they showed up at my house, it’s like, well, let’s just try it. And it was shortly before the holidays and lo and behold, on new year’s day, I found myself a little hung over. And so I started the day with the Goto as I have, and put it right in my water and sucked down a pint of water, and I have to say, 30 minutes later I did not feel bad at all. And it’s in something that I didn’t notice. Maybe on a day to day basis… I noticed, okay, yeah, I feel pretty good. This is all right.

Bioavailability of CBD drink mixes

Matt Baum:

But I didn’t notice it until I had a correction take place basically. And it shocked me. I really liked it and I’ve been enjoying that aspect of, I know exactly what I’m getting, whether I’m dropping in my coffee or I’m dropping it in the water that I’m trying to drink in the mornings. I think it’s fairly brilliant. You had said earlier that it hits you very quickly. What is the difference between… obviously other than it’s administered, you know exactly what you’re getting, but what is the difference between taking a tincture of the same amount, and taking a dry product like this? Will the effects last longer? Shorter? What’s that like?

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. It’s not necessarily about the duration, it’s about, I think, two pieces here. How quickly but also how much, right? So if you’re talking about 10 milligrams of A and 10 milligrams of B, they’re not always created equal. So 10 milligrams of an oil, let’s say you end up absorbing two to 8% of that versus 10 milligrams of an optimized powder, it’s going to be far, far greater. So I think there’s a few different pieces here. And to answer your question regarding a tincture, it depends how you take it. If you put it in your food, or in your coffee, then it’s going to take probably, I don’t know, let’s call it an hour to really go through your digestive system and make its way. But at that point it’s getting fairly degraded by your digestive system as well, and your body’s processing it in a different way.

Laurel Myers:

Again, because it’s oil as opposed to something that is water soluble. Whereas something that is water soluble is going to move through your body more quickly and get to where it needs to go more quickly. Now, certainly the tinctures that go underneath your tongue, the idea there is that it’s much rapid absorbing because it’s actually not going through your stomach. It’s going through your cell membranes in your mouth, but not everybody takes it that way. And even when you do do that, doing that with an oil versus something that’s been prepared in a different type of solution format, is going to have different levels of bioavailability and optimization.

Matt Baum:

Sure. You’re also still swallowing a lot of it at that point too. Not all of it is absorbed.

Laurel Myers:

Yeah. And I will say, look, the science here is still being done every single day. There was a study done probably about two years ago that was looking at the oral absorption. When I say oral, I mean you ingest it, versus oral mucosal, think under the tongue tincture of CBD, and which one is actually more beneficial. Forget bioavailability per se. But those two different delivery systems. And that particular study found that actually the oral format seemed to show greater promise than the tincture. But that was just one study.

Laurel Myers:

At the end of the day, what we know right now is that science is looking at this, studies are being done. People want to understand, and what we know also are people’s experiences. Are they having a positive experience with this? Is this bringing what they want to their wellness routine? And I think for us we’re just thrilled because people love our stick pack. People rave about them. I think one of my favorite quotes is that it felt like my body took a breath of fresh air. And I thought that was really beautiful because it does describe that intangible experience that CBD can bring of regaining some of that balance that you didn’t even know wasn’t there in the first place, until you get it back.

Matt Baum:

Definitely. I’ve got to say you guys made a fan out of me and this is not an infomercial. This is just a podcast. In fact I’m going to beg you guys to send me some more of the Goto because I love it.

Laurel Myers:

I can do that. I can do that.

Getting to know Laurel Angelica Myers

Matt Baum:

That would be great. We’ve been talking about this product the whole time. Laurel, what is your background? Where did the CEO of Prima come from?

Laurel Myers:

Great question. I am a lifelong learner. I am curious about all things and never really sleep. I’m also a huge skeptic, so I will say, when I was first looking at this space, I was like, I don’t know, CBD seems like snake oil. This seems like a whole lot of hogwash. I don’t know if there’s a [inaudible 00:26:08] there. And I definitely had my pretty skeptical glasses on as I was looking at this when I first heard about this, maybe three or four years ago. And then as I started to do the research and learn about the endocannabinoid system and learn about how it works, it was a pretty big moment of awakening for me.

Laurel Myers:

One, because I had no idea my body had this massive system. [crosstalk 00:26:31] all these things and I thought, wow, I’m really neglecting it. And also overtaxing it on a daily basis. And I don’t know, for me, I’ve always been drawn to science. It’s very fascinating, but I am an operational thinker, at the end of the day. I spent the last seven years before founding Prima at the Honest Company overseeing the brand portfolio strategy and product development there. So I’ve developed personal care products, dietary supplements, diapers, wipes, make up, you name it. I’ve got a fairly robust background in consumer product development.

Matt Baum:

Impressive.

Laurel Myers:

That’s where that comes from. And you just learn by doing and asking lots of questions, and learning by getting your hands dirty.

Matt Baum:

Yeah. Getting your feet wet. Yeah.

Laurel Myers:

I didn’t want to go into bypassing the liver and membrane absorption. Because I’m also not a scientist by background. I know this because I work with scientists but that’s certainly… I’m not a chemist, I’m not a doctor, I’m not those things. But I know how to surround myself with really smart people who do, and who teach me and inform the decisions that we make to make sure that we’re bringing the best products to market for our customers.

Matt Baum:

Which is super important. And I like the idea here of a smaller dose, you know exactly what’s in it, which allows users to start low and go slow.

Laurel Myers:

Go slow. Exactly.

Matt Baum:

And I think your product is an-

Laurel Myers:

And listen to your body.

Matt Baum:

-excellent introduction to it. This powdered product. I think it’s a fantastic introduction because, like you said, you know exactly how much you’re getting. I really like that aspect of it.

Laurel Myers:

And the other component with that too, because this is so individualized, and everybody responds differently, having that single serve measurable packet being a level that you can experiment with. And say, you know what, today I’m going to do two, I’m going to do two in my coffee of that Brain Fuel because I feel like that’s what I need. Or I’m going to do half of one because maybe 10 milligrams is too much for me. But when you have a premeasured packet that’s really easy to go up and down and figure out what works for you. And that’s the other piece of it is as well, is giving people flexibility to have control over their own bodies.

Matt Baum:

Definitely.

Laurel Myers:

And figure out what’s going to work for them.

Matt Baum:

Laurel, thank you so much for your time today. This has been fantastic and huge thanks to Laurel and Prima for coming on the show and talking about their new product. Of course, you’ll be able to find the links to that in our show notes. And while you’re at Ministry of Hemp dot com be sure to check out the review of their Brain Fuel supplement by our very own Drew De Los Santos.

Final thoughts from Matt

Matt Baum:

That about does it for another episode of the Ministry of Hemp podcast. We want to thank everybody who has been downloading, calling us and supporting us and like Kit said in the middle of the show, if you really want to show your support, check us out on Patreon.com. I’ll be posting Ministry of Hemp podcast extras there. We’ve got one for free so you can check it out this time. It’s just Laurel and I rapping about the CBD business. And it didn’t quite fit in our interview but I thought it was still really good information and I’m going to try and include more stuff like that weekly over at Patreon. So please check us out. Patreon.com\ministryofhemp.

Matt Baum:

Over at ministryofhemp.com you may have forgotten it is Valentine’s day this weekend, so check out our guide to the best CBD Valentine’s day gifts of 2020. Kit and the gang have put together a really cool list of stuff including some delicious CBD chocolates from Incentive Gourmet. If you didn’t hear my interview with David Little CEO of Incentive Gourmet, check it out. It was last week. It was a lot of fun. If you want to get in touch with us at Ministry of Hemp, you can find us all over the place. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or you can even call us at (402) 819-6417. Now that’s a phone line we reserve for your hemp questions.

Matt Baum:

Maybe you want to learn more about we talked about today or anything hemp related. Call me, leave a message and Kit and myself will answer your questions on the show. We’ve done a couple of Q and A shows and they were a ton of fun. I got another one coming up soon. We love to hear from you. And if you’re too nervous to call, you can always email me, matt@wordpress-559906-1802377.cloudwaysapps.com. At Ministry of Hemp we believe an accessible world is a better world for everybody. So you can find a complete written transcript of this episode in the show notes. Next time on the show, we’re going to be talking about taking hemp and wellness education straight to the people. So I hope you tune in, but until then, remember to take care of yourself, take care of others, and make good decisions, will ya? This is Matt Baum with the Ministry of Hemp podcast, signing off.

The post Powdered CBD Supplements: A Conversation With Prima COO Laurel Angelica Myers appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

We’ve only seen a few brands try out making a drink powder, but so far we love this method of getting our CBD! And Prima is taking things to the next level with their botanical elixir line. We are excited to review their Brain Fuel Elixir, which includes 10 mg of Broad Spectrum CBD plus Ashwagandha, Rhodiola, Lion’s Mane and Ginkgo Biloba. We’ll explain more about those additional ingredients below.

It’s easy to mix a drink packet into a glass of water. When our team tried it, it was a great addition to our morning routine. Within an hour we were zoned in, focused on work. Seriously, we couldn’t believe how noticeable the effects were! While it only lasted a few hours; it was a nice change from coffee. We felt calm yet attuned to tasks at hand. No jitters or distracted energy that sometimes happens after an espresso. 

Prima Brain Fuel Elixir is great for those who like a nutty, subtle earthy flavor. We mixed it directly with water or in drip coffee. However, we can imagine including this elixir in a chocolate-flavored hemp protein shake for a yummy pre-workout or quick meal replacement.

Prima paid us a fee and offered us free products in return for our honest opinion. If you purchase a product from one of these links, we’ll receive a percentage of sales. Read more about sponsored content on Ministry of Hemp.

Read on to learn more about this specially blended CBD drink mix from Prima.

A thoughtful, vegan blend of natural ingredients

Prima has done their homework to create a cohesive blend of supplements that work as an excellent complement to CBD. 

To start, Ashwagandha has been used as an ayurvedic regenerative tonic for centuries and has been studied by modern day scientists over the last 30 years. It’s been found to have “multiple [biochemical effects] like anti-stress, neuroprotective … and anti-inflammatory.” 

Lion’s mane is a fluffy mushroom that is gaining popularity as a natural nootropic with neuroprotective properties. While we’re not sure how effective the 300mg will be when taken through this method (like CBD it is best when taken regularly over time). Rhodiola, an adaptogen, and Ginkgo are both long standing and more well known mental support plants. There’s 200 mg and 100 mg respectively in each drink mix, we see this as a good way to get all the brain support we need in one convenient packet. 

Beyond the thoughtful blend of ingredients, we appreciated that this supplement is vegan, gluten free, and free of sweeteners and GMO ingredients. 

Hemp tech and bioavailability in Prima Brain Fuel Elixir

One fascinating thing about this powder is the technology that goes into making it. Cannabinoids are typically oily, which makes it difficult for our water-based bodies to absorb. It also makes it challenging to create a drink mix like this. 

So how does Prima get oil and water to mix in their Brain Fuel Elixir? We learned their process starts with a broad spectrum, terpene rich hemp plant which goes through extraction, drying, and micro-lipid emulsion stages to reach the final product. Basically, CBD oil gets encapsulated into a fatty orb that helps it mix with the water in our bodies.

While our third party test results showed that this process removes terpenes, Prima is working on improving the tech so that all beneficial parts of the plant make it to the powder stage. 

Of course, CBD is just one of the potentially helpful ingredients in this supplement. Prima also makes a broad spectrum CBD capsule that offers a fuller range of terpenes and natural hemp compounds. 

Overall we are impressed with Prima Brain Fuel Elixir! We’re excited to see this brand grow and evolve with the industry. Their team is dedicated to the highest quality, working with a medical collective in California to keep up-to-date with the latest in hemp and health research. They call this a commitment to being “100% clean” by going beyond the normal standards to maintain safety in their products.

We appreciate this transparency in their sourcing process, beyond where they get their CBD. We’d love to see more of this type of work in the hemp industry.

Prima Brain Fuel Official Review

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• Highlights: Prima Brain Fuel Elixir is a rapid-dissolving powder that’s a quick, easy way to take CBD. This drink mix is fast acting and high bioavailability, with a taste our team found pleasant. 
• Strength: 10 mg of CBD per packet, 20 packets per box
• Price: $55
• Special Offer: Use code ministry15 for 15% off!
• Customer Service and Shipping: Fast, friendly customer service available online 24/7 Free shipping on purchases over $75.00.
• Returns: Prima offers a 30-day return policy for unsatisfied customers.
• Independent Test Results: Available by batch. A QR code is on the box or you can look up online.
• Flavor & Texture: This drink mix is nutty, slightly earthy, with cacao undertones. It easily mixes with water for sipping or combining with smoothies and other beverages.
• Primary Ingredients: CBD oil / Broad Spectrum Hemp Extract with KSM-66® Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) Root Extract, Rhodiola rosea Root Extract, Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus) Mycelium Extract, Ginkgo biloba Leaf Extract
• Additional Ingredients: Soluble non-GMO corn fiber (dietary fiber), natural flavors, non-GMO maltodextrin, and silicon dioxide.
• Other: Prima also makes drink mixes in “Rest Easy” and “Go-To” formulas. 

On November 25, 2019, Ministry of Hemp conducted our own lab test of this CBD oil, using a third-party lab. Download test results here.

Prima uses hemp grown on a family farm in Oregon in their products. Our editor loved trying their “The Daily” CBD capsule.

The post Prima Brain Fuel Elixir Is A Delicious Way To Get Focused appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

We’re right in the middle of summer! What better way to cool down & relax than a refreshing drink? That hot weather inspired this delicious CBD strawberry limeade.

Our recipe is quick & easy to make and delicious!

Quick note from our video producer: Please note that I misspoke about the dosage! It’s not 600mg, 2 droppers is equivalent to 20mg. As I was filming I was thinking about the number 300 and mixed it up.

Remember to subscribe to the Ministry of Hemp on YouTube to get our latest hemp videos!

CBD Strawberry Limeade Recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes, plus time to chill

Servings: Makes 2 servings

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1/3 cup of water (for simple syrup)
• 1/2 lb sliced strawberries
• 20 – 30 fresh mint leaves, washed
• 1/2 cup lime juice, the fresher the better!
• CBD Oil (such as Elixinol 300mg CBD Hemp Oil)
• Topo Chico (or other sparkling or still water) for the lemonade

Preparation

• Combine sugar and water in a pan over medium heat to make simple syrup. Stir for 5-10 minutes until sugar is dissolved.
• Combine simple syrup with other ingredients.
• Chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
• CBD oil can be added before chilling or when serving.
• Stir well and enjoy CBD strawberry limeade!

This video was sponsored by our friends at Elixinol. Get your own Elixinol 300 mg CBD tincture.

Read more about sponsored content on Ministry of Hemp.

More CBD cooking recipes

• Cranberry Sparkling CBD Cocktail
• Homemade CBD Hot Cocoa
• Ministry of Hemp Podcast: Eat, Drink & Be Hempy!
• Our Favorite CBD Cocktails

The post Easy CBD Strawberry Limeade Recipe: A Refreshing & Relaxing Summer Drink appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

One Aberdeen-based firm specialises in CBD liquor: rum and gin infused with hemp and CBD.

So, you’ve tried the UK’s best CBD beer, but now you’re keen to try something with a little more kick? Wee Hemp Spirits have exactly what you’re looking for. It’s not only a first for the UK but possibly the world at large.

This Scottish Company Combines CBD And Liquor

The people behind the first CBD liquor are husband and wife team Calum and Rebecca Napier. They also run The Wee Hemp Company, a CBD-based firm which won Scotland’s Micro Business of the Year in 2019’s FSB Awards. We spoke to Calum about the origins, development and future plans of their journey in CBD spirits.

The Wee Hemp Company was launched in May 2018, largely thanks to Rebecca’s inspiring experiences with CBD.

“Rebecca has suffered with Crohn’s disease since she was five years old, and in 2016 she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a chronic illness that causes pain all over the body,” said Calum. “I did some research and found that in America many people were using CBD to help with fibromyalgia so we took a weekend trip to Amsterdam and purchased some.”

The changes were remarkable. “Over the next few months Rebecca regained her life back,” said Calum. “She changed her diet, did intolerance tests and had great success using CBD. We then trialled many different CBD products before jetting off to a lab in Europe to create our own product line and start our own company.”

In these early days the duo looked into growing four acres of hemp in Aberdeen, but the UK government made it near-impossible to gain the appropriate licenses. Then they had the idea of experimenting with hemp as a botanical in distilling spirits.

World First CBD Liquor Aging Technique

“We contacted a local distillery and they were more than happy to let us do some experimenting with our hemp in their facility. Over the next few months we perfected the recipes and Wee Hemp Spirits was born!”

Wee Hemp Spirits currently offers hemp-infused Canna’B Gin and Canna’B Rum, with a full spectrum limited edition CBD-infused Canna’B Spirits about to be released.

“All spirits have hemp seeds and hemp plant material as botanicals,” said Calum. “The rum has been aged in charred hemp stalks. This is a world’s first aging technique that gives our rum a subtle smoky yet sweet finish, and a beautiful golden colour.”

The name ‘Canna’B’ is a smart play on Scottish dialect, pronounced ‘cannae be,’ as in ‘cannot be.’ It also serves as a neat reference to the cannabis sativa L plant and the bees which provide the honey used in these CBD liquor products.

Even The Water Is The Best Available

This impressive attention to detail even goes as far as the H2O used to create the spirits.

“The water used in each of these is from the Cairngorms,” explained Calum. “It’s been filtering through the cracks and rock formations for 50 years before ending up in Canna’B.”

According to Calum, the special water gives the flavors in his CBD liquor “more depth.”

When it comes to the actual creation of these spirits, it’s a multi-layered process, simple in parts, complicated in others, that serves to create a wonderful handcrafted artisan product.

“The hemp seeds and plant material are steeped with our other botanicals to give more depth of flavour before it is distilled in small 250 litre batches,” said Calum.

“The rum is then aged in charred hemp stalks giving it the smokiness and glorious golden colour. When the spirits are ready, a percentage are infused with our full spectrum water soluble CBD and sent away for cannabinoid profile analysis, before Rebecca and I begin the process of bottling, corking, sealing, labelling and quality checking each and every bottle.”

Plans For The Future

And it doesn’t stop there. The founders have big ideas for the future.

“Our plans are to expand our Canna’B product line into many more spirits, utilising our unique ageing technique,” said Calum.

“Rebecca has been experimenting with CBD-infused vegan chocolates and full spectrum CBD-infused Canna’B rum and raisin fudge — which, I might add, is next level!”

Calum has his sights set on more than just CBD liquor:

“Wee are not just a CBD company however. Hemp can be used for just about anything, so expanding our portfolio is on the horizon. We’re looking at a solution for the plastic crisis with biodegradable hemp plastic, hempcrete for sustainable housing projects with local building companies, and fashion from 100% hemp fabrics – these are just a few areas we wish to expand into. We want this ancient plant to make a big comeback. And why not, after decades of demonisation it deserves it.”

The Legal Tide Is Turning

In a sign that the UK government is finally coming round to the idea of CBD oil products, Calum and Rebecca found the legal process of bringing their products to market surprisingly easy.

“There have been zero issues,” explained Calum. ”In fact the response has been very welcoming, and everyone is excited to try and stock Canna’B. It appears the stigma is being broken down day by day.”

The tide is certainly turning, not just in the UK but worldwide. Some of the biggest alcohol companies in the world are investing many millions of dollars in acquiring cannabis producers and research facilities. It’s clear this crossover market is on the verge of exploding and boutique companies like Wee Hemp Spirits are right at the cutting edge. If you’re a CBD user and enjoy a drink, the future is set to be very bright indeed.

You can buy Canna’B products online and in various stockists across the UK (see their website for more details). Wee Spirits are looking at expanding into other markets around the world, depending on local laws.

The post CBD Liquor: Exploring CBD Rum And CBD Gin With Wee Hemp Spirits appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

In our new spotlight series we are going to visit places and people within the hemp industry!

Our first stop is the Joy Organics store in Austin, Texas. We got to talk with owner Danielle Cearbaugh and get some insight into what Joy Organics is about and what she wants you to know about buying quality CBD. We also got to try Joy Organics’ CBD Energy Drink, which comes in a delicious “Happy Berry” flavor.

Bonus: Use coupon code mof15 for 15 percent off online Joy Organics orders!

Visit Joy Organics Austin

Joy Organics
902 N Lamar Blvd
Austin, TX 78703

More Information

• Joy Organics Austin
• On Instagram
• On Facebook

The post Spotlight: Visiting The Joy Organics Austin Store appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.

While St. Valentine’s Day is considered the most romantic of holidays, like many other holidays it can be surprisingly stressful. There’s a lot of pressure to get everything perfect. That’s why we wanted to pick some great Valentine’s Day CBD gifts for you. If you’re looking for a gift that’s more sustainable and healthier than another chocolate sampler, we think CBD is perfect.

There’s nothing worse than being too stressed to enjoy time with our loved ones. CBD seems to balance the human endocannabinoid system. CBD reduces pain and symptoms of anxiety, which can help us feel more relaxed and open to our loved ones on this special day. Even if you’re spending the day by yourself, CBD is the perfect choice for self-care.

Read on for a special Valentine’s Day CBD cocktail recipe, and our complete CBD Valentine’s Day gift guide.

RECIPE: CUPID’S CBD FIZZ FROM CURALEAF HEMP

CBD drinks are a great choice for entertaining and, when it comes to CBD-infused alcoholic beverages, might even counteract some of the negative side-effects of drinking since CBD reduces inflammation. Of course, it’s always important to drink responsibly and in moderation, so save the elevated cocktails for when you’re ready to stay in for the night.

Our friends at Curaleaf Hemp shared this delicious Valentine’s CBD recipe with us.

Ingredients

• 2 oz gin
• 0.5 oz lemon juice
• 0.5 oz Aperol
• One egg white
• 15 drops Curaleaf Hemp Lemon Bergamot CBD Tincture Drops
• Rose Petal for garnish

Preparation

• Place all ingredients in a shaker with no ice for a dry shake for no less than 10 seconds
• Add ice to the shaker and give a final shake
• Pour the liquid into a lowball glass
• Garnish with a rose petal

Curaleaf Hemp CBD Valentine’s Day Coupon

• What’s the deal? Get 20% off all Curaleaf Hemp products until Valentine’s Day.
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code CURALOVE at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until Valentine’s Day (February 14, 2019)

MINISTRY OF HEMP OFFICIAL VALENTINE’S DAY CBD GIFT GUIDE

We’ve got lots more great Valentine’s Day CBD gifts for you. Click below to jump to a brand, or read on to see all the Valentine’s Day CBD deals. We’ve provided everything you need to take advantage of these sales.

• Ananda Hemp
• Sunday Scaries
• PlusCBD Valentine’s Deal
• Every Day Optimal
• Inesscents
• Hemp Bombs
• CuraLeaf Hemp
• Joy Organics
• Sagely Naturals
• Nature’s Script

Ananda Hemp

• What’s the deal? Get 20% off Ananda Touch Bliss Oil when you order before February 15!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code blissfulday at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 15, 2019.

Bliss Oil is Ananda Hemp’s new intimate oil, designed to enhance sexual pleasure. Check out our official review of Bliss Oil! We’re also big fans of Ananda Hemp’s Spectrum Gels and their CBD tinctures.

Sunday Scaries

• What’s the deal? Get 10% off Sunday Scaries CBD products, which are formulated to reduce anxiety!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code ministry at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Anytime. It cannot be combined with other offers, however.

Our review team loved Sunday Scaries Vegan AF CBD Gummies.

PlusCBD Oil

• What’s the deal? Get 20% off PlusCBD Oil CBD balm all month long!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code BEMINE at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 28, 2019.

Soothe away your aches and pains with this great topical CBD and you’ll be ready for your night on the town, or staying in with Netflix.

Every Day Optimal

• What’s the deal? Get 25% off Every Day Optimal products until February 15!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code mhlove25 at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 15, 2019.

Our reviewer loved Every Day Optimal Gummies and their CBD capsules are some of our favorites too.

Inesscents

• What’s the deal? Get 33% off selected Inesscents Salvation CBD products: Inesccents CBD-infused soaps and any Inesccents Moontime Harmony product.
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code MINISTRY at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 15, 2019.

We’ll have a video review of some of Inesscents CBD products soon from our new video producer, Jessica St. Cyr.

Hemp Bombs

• What’s the deal? Get 25% off Hemp Bombs products until February 15!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code SWEET25 at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 15, 2019.

Our review team loved Hemp Bombs’ CBD gummies!

Joy Organics

• What’s the deal? Get 25% off Joy Organics skin care products until Valentine’s Day!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code spreadlove2019 at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until Valentine’s Day (February 14, 2019).

Come back on February 15 for Joy Organics annual “Joy Day Sale” to celebrate the founder’s birthday. Use coupon code joyday2019 on February 15, 2019 to save 40% off everything in their online store.

Sagely Naturals

• What’s the deal? Get free shipping on all orders from Sagely Naturals, with no minimum order, until Valentine’s Day!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code PLANTLOVE at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until Valentine’s Day (February 14, 2019).

Our reviewers enjoyed Sagely Naturals Relief & Recovery Cream and their CBD capsules.

Nature’s Script

• What’s the deal? Get 25% off Nature’s Script products until February 15!
• Do I need a coupon code? Use coupon code SWEET25 at checkout.
• When is this deal available? Until February 15, 2019.

Try Nature’s Script High Potency CBD Capsules for a great, high-strength CBD product.

The post The Best Valentine’s Day CBD Gifts: Our CBD Valentine’s Day Gift Guide appeared first on Ministry of Hemp.