Does one style of solventless concentrate provide a better-maintained terpene profile?
After watching the new Bong Appètit episode this weekend featuring Hashishin Frenchy Cannoli I was left thinking what are the differences between dry sift and bubble hash? The difference really is the addition of water. In the episode, he stated, “The only true evolution since we invented sieving, is the use of water.” For this reason, I want to focus on creating a conversation in what role the water is playing in the process, and what differences it causes between the two finished products.
After some research, it seems the largest way that the water is used is as a solution to agitate the product. What does this mean to our product? It is possible that it could have an affect on the quality. Being too abrasive will result in excess plant material finding its way into our stash. The advantage here sides with the sift though because we can easily re-run the material and adjust the quality. Whereas re-running bubble will be very time consuming and laborious which in my head sounds like a waste of time.
Another thought that comes to mind is how/why the taste is affected in each process. From my personal experience with dry sift and bubble hash I have always noticed a difference in taste. Why is this? Well again it has to do something with the addition to water, but what exactly is the water doing to cause this tasteless reaction? After researching, I found that most terpenes are not water soluble, which means they will not dissolve in water, but some flavonoids and terpenoids are, which might be the reason for the difference in taste loss? Hard for me to give a definite answer due to my lack of chemistry as well as information on the subject at hand, but it seems plausible to me.
What’s apparent to me after writing this article, is that I am familiar with the process of how to make both but the science behind the process is a bit hard for me to describe. And I’m not alone here. There are plenty of articles explaining how to make dry sift and bubble hash, but I couldn’t find much on what role the water is playing or the science behind it all.
