NorCal Grown: Modified Grapes by LitHouse

by Matt Jackson
May 19, 2020

Where’s the fire: searching for the best cannabis strains in the Bay Area.

Continuing from last time, this is part two of our LitHouse new release review. This time we’re focusing the lens on Modified Grapes, originated by Symbiotic Genetics, the renowned creators of strains like Banana Punch and Mimosa. This powerhouse was achieved by mixing Purple Punch with GMO to create a strain described as sweet grape candy meets garlic and gas.

LitHouse scoured over thirty seeds to uncover the one they felt contained that perfect balance of sweetness and umami. After hand-selecting the winner, they gave it that personal touch by cultivating it with a combination of mixed light greenhouses and their signature coastal climate. As their co-founder, Kris Harris, stated, “We like to say our vibe is ocean protected. Terpenes boil off under heat as low as 72 degrees; we keep things cooler to maintain a broader profile.”

Thanks to the advantages of using mixed-light, they’re able to work with the surrounding environment, pairing science and nature to grow crops throughout the entire year instead of just during the summer harvest, something less than 5% of farms in Humboldt and Mendocino are able to do. This careful mixture of temperature and light is in a constant state of refinement, a factor that’s helped Kris and his brother Allan produce this strain’s impressively complex spectrum of flavor and aroma. “I think it’s like sweet grape candy, coated in spicy garlic. The pairing is pretty unique to have on the same palette. It’s a lot like fusion food.”

When it comes to taste and smell, this is some Willy Wonka wallpaper. Right out of the jar, there’s a mix of spiciness and concentrated sweetness that shifts and changes depending on where you go next. When I used a grinder, I got a lot of that garlic and savory smell with just a hint of sweetness. Breaking it up with my hands resulted in a blast of pure candied grape that made me swear I had a pouch of Big League Chew. On the dry inhale, I had to keep asking myself, was I tripping, or was I really getting the taste of frozen grapes one minute then butter-sauteed garlic the next?

A couple of puffs after I lit the joint, I stopped firing off guesses as I relaxed into a cloud of thick, pleasant smoke. The high comes creeping up from the back of the head with a slight pressure behind the eyes, signaling a noticeable head change. Not fuzzy-headed, though, instead there’s more of a calming sense of engagement and euphoria that might leave you laughing too hard at your own jokes.

Since this sensory chameleon is a hybrid with multi-talented parents when I caught up with Kris from LitHouse, I asked him what he felt the effects of this strain are. He described it as “a hybrid that gives people a personal experience.” Unlike the way Indicas and Sativas get shuffled into categories like housecleaning weed, or good-for-sleep, “hybrids get to become what they become for people versus it being more of a prescription.”

To test this out, I tried smoking a joint right before relaxing all afternoon, and one right before having to go out for supplies. True to form, this shaped itself to the situation like a pair of Spanx. Whether I was having a dance party for one in my kitchen or waiting in line to get into the market, I felt the same comfortable pressure behind the eyes and lightness in my feet. The high was one of those baby duckling experiences, excited to be alive and amazed at everything around me. It made it a lot easier to see all the blue arrows on the ground, not as a strange new normal, but as a fun game of supermarket sweep that we all get to play.

Whether you’re trying to decide what you’re tasting, what you’re smelling, or what you’re doing next, this strain is a page-turning, nonstop choose your own adventure. Out in stores now, this run is only the second batch to hit the California marketplace, and with LitHouse’s dedication to quality over quantity, I suggest snapping some up when you see it.