Berkel, the lethargic child of Pre-98 Bubba Kush and GDP, packs an introductory, quick smack in the face. But it’s the innocent, seemingly sweet humming buzz in the background, that returns like a quiet boomerang, back for another explosion of the senses, to take things to the next level. On a summer day that begged to end in sun-soaked relaxation, our sample of the flower from The Other Place is Greener provided just the powerful, funky disequilibrium we needed.

Our sample was mysterious in appearance, in darker hues of warm green and whispers of purple, with rich fiery pistols and a coat of sparkling sugars. The woody, candied “marshmallow” essence, juxtaposed with the spicy, fruity grape made this specimen a genuine lipsmacker,, “...Showing kisses of gooeyness and sticky to handle. Love that,” as one critic put it. Ground, the tart aroma filled the room with a head-turning, un-maskable skunk.

With first spark, a cloudy and hazy new world unfolded in an Alice-in-Wonderland moment. We sat down thinking a new normalcy had arrived, but no, the high kept evolving at lightning pace. The best definition of the sensation was like entering a “past dimension.” Throughout the body and head the pull of the vortex seemed to pull our faces forward. It grew and grew until finally we were squinting, trying to process reality around us.    

We were flattened. Recording the experience proved a challenge. “Hard to keep a solid train of thought,” one noted. “Would not suggest for activities outside of Netflix.” The reviewer’s notes became somewhat illegible at this point, although one wrote of plans to of prepare a 3-course dinner, then segued into discussing the best words to describe the produce in her fridge (“green”, “raw”, “crunchy“); we were “far out” on an adventurous plane despite the anchored feeling.

Pain throughout the body had almost completely disappeared, offering the kind of freestyle levity that doesn’t come often. But we were also fastened to our perches. There were only two ways to proceed at that point in the high: Into a chilled out slumber, or to put some vegan butter spread on toast, down a quick Espresso, and plunge deeper into the dreamstate with all functions intact. Both came equally recommended.