Pubdate: Sat, 12 Dec 2015
Source: Press Democrat, The (Santa Rosa, CA)
Copyright: 2015 The Press Democrat
Contact:  http://www.pressdemocrat.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/348
Author: Eloisa Ruano Gonzalez

EMERALD CUP IN SANTA ROSA TO FETE BEST MARIJUANA

LAYTONVILLE -- Score sheets in hand, the judges leaned over the table 
to get a better look at the color and density of the top contenders 
for the Emerald Cup. They opened the glass jars and took deep whiffs 
before sampling the strains of marijuana to test their effects.

The 15 pot aficionados already had used blind tastings to narrow down 
hundreds of entries to about 50 bud favorites when they met Thursday 
in Laytonville for the final round of judging to determine the best 
organic, sun-grown pot in the state. Within a few hours, they had 
picked the top 20, which will be showcased this weekend at the annual 
Emerald Cup at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds.

Some judges stomped their feet and shouted with excitement when they 
learned the name of the first-place "breeder," or grower. The name 
will be kept secret until Sunday, when they announce all of the 
winners at the two-day festival.

"It's huge. It's like winning the Academy Awards," said Nikki 
Lastreto, a judge from Laytonville.

Lastreto and her partner, who she introduced as Swami Chaitanya, both 
of whom are cannabis growers, have been judging the competition since 
it started 12 years ago as a way to celebrate the outdoor harvest in 
Humboldt and Mendocino counties.

Chaitanya rolled a joint of the winning bud to celebrate.

The Emerald Cup moved three years ago to Santa Rosa. It's expected to 
draw 20,000 people and will feature live music, two dozen organic 
food vendors and more than 150 cannabis-related vendors. Single-day 
admission is $55, or $100 for the weekend.

Doors open at 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. The awards ceremony will 
be held on the main stage from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

Emerald Cup founder Tim Blake said they received 421 entries for this 
year's bud competition, as well as hundreds more entries for other 
competitions, including edibles, topicals and concentrates. Last 
year, he said, they had a total of 900 entries. Roughly 80 percent 
were for the bud competition.

The numbers decreased this year because of a new $250 entry fee, 
Blake said. The fee helps cover the cost to test each entry cannabis 
for pesticides, fungicides and other chemicals that would cause it to 
be disqualified. In previous years, only the finalists had been tested.

"It's the first year we've gotten a decrease in entries," Blake said. 
However, he added, "We're seeing a lot more quality."

That made it a challenge for the experts judging the bud competition. 
Most were longtime judges, or had been referred by someone in the 
marijuana industry.

Mike Lewis, a first-time judge from Sebastopol, said it was like 
being asked to pick the best wine from a table full of fine, 
$300-a-bottle selections.

"It's brutal," said Lewis, who builds equipment for the agriculture 
industry, including wine-grape and cannabis growers. "I have to be 
critical. Here, we're dealing with the very best of the best."

"They are all excellent," he added. That's why it's so hard."

Like the other judges, Lewis paid close attention to the smell, 
taste, and appearance of the entries, rating them on a 50-point 
scale. He said his top picks were separated by a mere half-point.

Blake said it's so difficult to judge the competitions that some 
people don't come back the following year. Judges, who ranged from 
age 32 to 72, have been evaluating the entries for the past month.

"These people are lifelong smokers," he said. "They can look at it 
and already tell (if it's good)."

One of the judges included painter Trixie Garcia, daughter of the 
late Grateful Dead leader Jerry Garcia.

"It's an honor - it's some of the best cannabis on the planet," she 
said. However, she acknowledged it was a difficult task to pick a few 
favorites. It was her first time judging the competition.

"They're like puppies. You can't pick a favorite. They're all 
wonderful," said Garcia, 41, of Oakland.

Barry Wood, a manager at Peace and Medicine in Santa Rosa who has 
judged the competition for the past two years, said he looks at the 
crystal formation, colors and whether the smell stays with the weed 
through the burn. He likes the sweet and fruity smells more than the 
piney ones, Wood said.

"Ideally, you spend an hour with each," he said after someone handed 
him joint with the number written on it.

Smell was important for judge Pearl Moon and her business partner, 
Joyce Centofanti, who helped with the sampling. If it doesn't smell 
good, it's most likely not going to get smoked, said the pair, who 
are certified cannabis therapy consultants and founded Bud Sisters, 
which produces a pain-relief salve made from organic extra virgin 
coconut oil infused with organic cannaleaf.

Looks are important, too, added Moon, founder of Humboldt Cannabis College.

"It's a beauty contest," she said before someone handed her another 
joint to try.

Centofanti was excited about the quality of the cannabis. She said 
the annual event highlights the benefits of medicinal marijuana. 
"People need to have organic, clean medicine," Centofanti said.

She said the growers in the competition aren't in it for the money. 
However, winning can bring in good money for the person.

"It's like a race horse," she said. "The bud is like a stallion. 
They're able to profit from the breeding."

Added Wood, "A lot of the ones that are up in the top 20 are from 
people who have been (breeding) for generations."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom