Highly Recommended

By Leah P.Society & Culture Leisure Places & Travel

Highly Recommended episodes

June 28Hash Burger: Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year + DEA Rescheduling Hearing
Daisy and Astoria break down Hash Burger, the umami-forward indica hybrid Leafly crowned 2025 Strain of the Year, then pivot to the federal cannabis news dropping this week — including the DEA rescheduling hearing that kicks off the day after this episode.
In this episode:
Why Leafly named Hash Burger its 2025 Strain of the Year
The genetics: Han Solo Hash Plant × Double Burger, a ~60/40 indica-leaning hybrid
Flavor notes — garlic, onion, cheese, pepper over a skunky, ammonia-tinted base
Potency reality check: typical 28-35% THC and why "couch-lock as a service" is the move
The DEA's formal Schedule I → Schedule III hearing runs June 29 through July 15, 2026 in Arlington, VA
The fight over livestream access to the rescheduling hearing
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger's deal to finally legalize recreational cannabis sales
ATF preparing new guidance on cannabis consumers' Second Amendment gun rights after the SCOTUS ruling
Sources:
Leafly: Hash Burger strain profile
Leafly: Hash Burger named Strain of the Year 2025
DEA: Marijuana rescheduling hearing begins June 29
Marijuana Moment: DEA's pre-hearing testimony stance
Marijuana Moment: Judge pressed on livestream access
Marijuana Moment: Virginia recreational sales deal reached
Marijuana Moment: Virginia plan heads to governor's desk
Marijuana Moment: ATF to clarify cannabis consumer gun rights
Subscribe: mncannabishub.com
Full transcript
Daisy: —no, no, you have to let me finish, because the bag literally said "Hash Burger" on it and I thought it was a joke.
Astoria: It's not a joke. That's the actual name.
Daisy: I KNOW that now, Astoria. I did not know that on Sunday night at ten p.m. when my budtender handed me a jar and went, "this is the one."
Astoria: Okay so you walked in totally blind.
Daisy: I walked in blind, I walked out high, and I woke up Monday on the floor next to a half-eaten quesadilla.
Astoria: Of course you did.
Daisy: The quesadilla had ONE bite out of it. One. Like I committed and then my body went, nope, we sleep now.
Astoria: That's the strain working as intended, babe.
Daisy: Is it though? Is it?
Astoria: Yes. Leafly named Hash Burger Strain of the Year for 2025. Like, officially.
Daisy: Wait, that's a real award?
Astoria: No, Daisy, I made it up on the drive over.
Daisy: Okay, fair.
Astoria: It's a real thing. Strain of the Year. And they gave it to a nug that tastes like a cheeseburger.
Daisy: See, that's what I want to talk about, because that's INSANE.
Astoria: It's a little insane.
Daisy: A whole industry of like, brilliant breeders, lab coats, terpene charts, and the winner is named after the thing you order at two a.m.
Astoria: To be fair, the thing you order at two a.m. is the most important food group in this house.
Daisy: Truly our love language.
Astoria: So here's the part I think you're going to love. The flavor notes? Garlic. Onion. Cheese. Pepper.
Daisy: Stop.
Astoria: Over a skunky, kind of ammonia-tinted base.
Daisy: Ammonia? Ammonia is a flavor note now?
Astoria: According to the people who write these things, yes.
Daisy: Babe, ammonia is what I smell when I clean the litter box.
Astoria: And yet.
Daisy: And yet I'm supposed to grind it up and put it in my lungs.
Astoria: You ALREADY did. Sunday. Floor. Quesadilla.
Daisy: Right.
Astoria: It's a hybrid, by the way. Slightly indica-leaning. Like sixty-forty.
Daisy: That tracks. Because it didn't feel like a "let's clean the apartment" high.
Astoria: No, it's the parents are Han Solo Hash Plant crossed with Double Burger.
Daisy: Han Solo Hash Plant.
Astoria: Yeah.
Daisy: We've fully lost the plot as a culture.
Astoria: We did. A long time ago.
Daisy: Han Solo Hash Plant sounds like a stoner Etsy shop.
Astoria: It sounds like a candle.
Daisy: It sounds like a candle that smells like ammonia.
Astoria: Stop, you're going to make me ruin the bit.
Daisy: Okay but seriously, how strong is this thing, because I felt like I had been swaddled.
Astoria: The profile says it usually clocks in around twenty-eight to thirty-five percent THC.
Daisy: THIRTY-FIVE?
Astoria: High end of the shelf.
Daisy: Okay see, this is the thing—
Astoria: —yeah—
Daisy: —this is the thing nobody warned me about, because when I started smoking, like, in college, twenty percent was the BIG dog.
Astoria: Twenty percent was a flex.
Daisy: Twenty percent was, like, "ooh, fancy."
Astoria: And now thirty-five is just Tuesday.
Daisy: Tuesday and a quesadilla.
Astoria: Right.
Daisy: I want to push back on the THC arms race for a second, actually.
Astoria: Push back.
Daisy: Because I don't need to be unconscious. I need to be giggly.
Astoria: Counterpoint—
Daisy: —oh god—
Astoria: —you SAID you were giggly. You texted me at nine forty-seven from the floor. It said "the ceiling is being so nice to me right now."
Daisy: I don't remember sending that.
Astoria: I know you don't. That's the point.
Daisy: Okay, so maybe I was giggly and THEN unconscious.
Astoria: The order matters.
Daisy: The order absolutely matters. Giggly then sleep is a vacation. Sleep then giggly is a medical event.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: I'm just saying.
Astoria: Leafly's whole writeup on it leans into the heavy, sedating body buzz. Like, it is marketed as a night strain.
Daisy: See, why didn't my budtender lead with that.
Astoria: Because your budtender knows you, Daisy. He took one look at you on a Sunday at ten p.m. and...
12 min
June 21Hash Burger: Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year + Virginia Recreational Sales
Daisy and Astoria taste-test Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year — Hash Burger — and unpack the biggest cannabis policy shifts of June 2026, from Virginia's retail deal to the federal Schedule III move.
In this episode:
Hash Burger named Leafly's official Strain of the Year 2025, averaging around 33% THC — Leafly flags it as unsuitable for newcomers or low-tolerance users.
The lineage: Double Burger (Donny Burger × GMO) crossed with Han Solo Hash Plant (Han Solo Burger × Black Triangle Kush) — a family reunion of stinky burgers.
Flavor profile of garlic, onion, cheese, and pepper over a skunky, ammonia-tinted base — Leafly calls the funk impossible to conceal.
Onset described by Leafly's reviewer as "taking off a pair of too-tight shoes after a marathon"; body melt, giggles, then sleep. 4.7/5 stars.
Virginia: Gov. Abigail Spanberger and legislative leaders reached a deal on June 15, 2026 to legalize recreational marijuana sales via the state budget — possession has been legal since 2021.
Federal: DOJ and DEA placed FDA-approved marijuana products and state-licensed medical marijuana into Schedule III, with a broader rescheduling hearing set to begin June 29, 2026.
The drug-testing industry is openly lobbying against rescheduling — the pee-cup lobby fighting for its life.
Illinois: Gov. JB Pritzker signed an omnibus bill doubling adult possession limits while restricting hemp-derived THC products.
Sources:
Leafly: Hash Burger — Strain of the Year 2025
Marijuana Moment: Virginia cannabis sales deal (June 15, 2026)
DOJ: Schedule III placement for FDA-approved marijuana products
Marijuana Moment: Drug-testing industry vs. rescheduling (June 12, 2026)
Marijuana Moment
Subscribe: mncannabishub.com
Full transcript
Daisy: —no but that's the thing, I'm standing in the dispensary, right, and the budtender goes, "you want the Hash Burger?" and I genuinely thought he was telling me where to get lunch.
Astoria: Wait.
Daisy: I said, "is it close?" Astoria. I said "is it close" to the budtender.
Astoria: Daisy.
Daisy: He just stared at me.
Astoria: Okay so you didn't know it was a strain.
Daisy: I did NOT know it was a strain. I thought we were getting sliders.
Astoria: In your defense, it's called Hash Burger.
Daisy: Thank you!
Astoria: That is a sandwich name.
Daisy: It's a sandwich name! It sounds like something you order at 2 a.m. and immediately regret.
Astoria: Okay but here's the thing — Leafly named it Strain of the Year. Like, officially. 2025.
Daisy: Strain of the YEAR.
Astoria: Of the year.
Daisy: That's like the Oscars but for getting destroyed on your couch.
Astoria: It really is.
Daisy: And the lineage is INSANE. Hold on, let me — it's Double Burger crossed with Han Solo Hash Plant.
Astoria: Which is itself Han Solo Burger crossed with Black Triangle Kush.
Daisy: It's burgers all the way down.
Astoria: It's a family reunion of stinky burgers.
Daisy: A family reunion of stinky burgers. That's the tagline.
Astoria: Put it on the jar.
Daisy: Okay so I get it home —
Astoria: Wait, what's the THC on it?
Daisy: Around thirty-three percent.
Astoria: Daisy.
Daisy: I know.
Astoria: Daisy, Leafly literally says — and I'm quoting — "unsuitable for newcomers or low-tolerance users."
Daisy: I am not a newcomer.
Astoria: You're not low-tolerance, but you are a person who once cried at a Sbarro.
Daisy: That was unrelated.
Astoria: Sure.
Daisy: That was a sad week!
Astoria: Okay, okay.
Daisy: So I open the jar.
Astoria: Mhm.
Daisy: Astoria. My apartment immediately smelled like a White Castle parking lot at 2 a.m.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: I am not exaggerating. Garlic. Onion. Cheese. Pepper. And underneath it, this skunky, like... ammonia note?
Astoria: That's the official Leafly description, by the way. Garlic, onion, cheese, pepper, on a skunky base.
Daisy: It smells like a TGI Fridays appetizer sampler had a baby with a gym bag.
Daisy: And Leafly straight up says the funk is impossible to conceal.
Astoria: Impossible.
Daisy: My dog left the room.
Astoria: No.
Daisy: My dog. Looked at me. Sighed. And left.
Astoria: Your dog has standards now?
Daisy: Apparently more than me.
Daisy: And then — okay, this is the part — my landlord texts me.
Astoria: No.
Daisy: At like 9:15. He goes, "is everything okay up there."
Astoria: Wait, what did he think was happening?
Daisy: I don't know! I think he thought I was deep-frying something illegal.
Astoria: You kind of were.
Daisy: I was deep-frying my LUNGS.
Astoria: Okay so this strain — Leafly says it'll out you to your landlord, your dog, AND your Uber driver. Simultaneously.
Daisy: All three. At once. Like a funk trifecta.
Astoria: A funk trifecta.
Daisy: I had to spray everything. I sprayed the couch. I sprayed the curtains. I sprayed the dog.
Astoria: You did not spray the dog.
Daisy: Lightly! A light mist!
Astoria: Daisy.
Daisy: He was fine. He was fragrant.
Astoria: Okay. So how was the actual... effect.
Daisy: Okay so this is where I'm gonna be honest with you.
Astoria: Mhm.
Daisy: Leafly's reviewer described the onset as — and this killed me — like "taking off a pair of too-tight shoes after a marathon."
Astoria: That's so specific.
Daisy: That is EXACTLY what it felt like.
Astoria: Really.
Daisy: I sat down. My shoulders dropped about four inches. And I just went... oh.
Astoria: Oh.
Daisy: Oh, this is the good one.
Astoria: So body melt.
Daisy: Full body melt. Indica-leaning. And then this little wave of giggles, like you can feel your mood lift, and then about forty-five minutes later —
Astoria: Asleep.
Daisy: Asleep on the floor. Next to the dog. Who still smelled like Febreze.
Daisy: It's 4.7 stars on Leafl...
11 min
June 18Hash Burger: Leafly's 33% THC Strain of the Year & Virginia Legal Sales Deal
This week we dig into Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year — Hash Burger — and a long-overdue legalization deal out of Virginia. One smells like a 2am cheeseburger having a crisis; the other is five years late to its own party.
In this episode:
Hash Burger named Leafly Strain of the Year 2025 — an indica-leaning hybrid testing around 33% THC on average

The absurd lineage: Double Burger (Donny Burger × GMO) crossed with Han Solo Hash Plant (Han Solo Burger × Black Triangle Kush), descended from Chemdawg

Bred by Respect & Mrs. Respect of California Seed Bank with Skunk House Genetics' Skunk Master Flex

Leafly's flavor description: "a heaping helping of umami: garlic, onion, cheese, and pepper atop a skunky, ammonia-tinted base"

Reported effects: sleepy, relaxed, euphoric body relaxation — classic couch-lock; 4.7/5 user rating

Virginia lawmakers and Gov. Abigail Spanberger reach a deal to legalize recreational cannabis sales through the state budget, targeted for June 2026

Virginia legalized personal possession in 2021 but never built a legal retail market — this closes the loophole

Timing note: the deal lands the same month the DEA opens an expanded rescheduling hearing on June 29
Sources:
Leafly: Hash Burger — Strain of the Year 2025

Marijuana Moment: Virginia cannabis sales legalization deal reached
Subscribe: mncannabishub.com
Full transcript
Daisy: —no but that's the thing, I genuinely thought it was a sandwich.
Astoria: You thought what was a sandwich.
Daisy: Hash Burger. I saw it on the menu at the dispensary and I was like, oh cute, the budtender's moonlighting.
Astoria: Daisy. It was at the WEED store.
Daisy: I know that NOW.
Astoria: Oh my god.
Daisy: In my defense, it's called Hash Burger. Like, the entire name is two foods.
Astoria: Hash is a weed thing.
Daisy: Hash is a breakfast thing.
Astoria: Okay sure, in your house.
Daisy: In every house! Hash browns? Corned beef hash?
Astoria: Corned beef— we are not doing this.
Daisy: We are doing this. Because this is Leafly's Strain of the Year. For 2025.
Astoria: Right.
Daisy: And it is named, officially, after a burger.
Astoria: It's named after a lineage of burgers, actually. Which I think is funnier.
Daisy: Wait, what?
Astoria: So I looked this up. Hash Burger is a cross of Double Burger and Han Solo Hash Plant.
Daisy: Han Solo Hash Plant.
Astoria: And Double Burger is Donny Burger crossed with GMO.
Daisy: I'm sorry, Donny Burger?
Astoria: Donny Burger.
Daisy: That's a guy. That's somebody's uncle.
Astoria: That's a guy who runs a body shop in New Jersey.
Daisy: Donny Burger has opinions about the Mets.
Astoria: Donny Burger has a very specific way he wants his lawn cut.
Daisy: Okay so the family tree is Donny Burger, Han Solo Burger, Double Burger, and then Hash Burger.
Astoria: Correct.
Daisy: The breeders just gave up. They were tired. They ordered off a menu.
Astoria: They were like, what if the strain... was also dinner.
Daisy: And then they bred it with Black Triangle Kush at some point in there, which sounds like a band that opens for a band you actually wanted to see.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: I'm just saying, the Black Triangle Kush guys are LOADING in right now while everyone's at the merch table.
Astoria: Okay but here's the thing that I need you to sit with.
Daisy: Okay.
Astoria: This strain tests around thirty-three percent THC.
Daisy: Oh no.
Astoria: On average. Some cuts are higher.
Daisy: That's not a strain, that's a CONSEQUENCE.
Astoria: That's a life event.
Daisy: Thirty-three percent. For an indica-leaning hybrid named after a sandwich.
Astoria: It's not a sandwich—
Daisy: It's CALLED a burger, Astoria.
Astoria: A burger is not a sandwich, that's a whole separate episode.
Daisy: You're right. Tabled. Tabled for later.
Astoria: But yes, thirty-three percent THC, indica-leaning. The Leafly write-up basically calls it couch-lock.
Daisy: So it gets you horizontal.
Astoria: Horizontal.
Daisy: And it tastes like a burger.
Astoria: Okay so I need to read you the actual flavor description because I cannot do it justice.
Daisy: Please.
Astoria: Leafly describes it as, quote, "a heaping helping of umami: garlic, onion, cheese, and pepper atop a skunky, ammonia-tinted base."
Daisy: ...ammonia-tinted.
Astoria: Ammonia-tinted.
Daisy: They put that in print. About a product. That people pay money for.
Astoria: And it has a four-point-seven out of five user rating.
Daisy: STOP.
Astoria: People LOVE it.
Daisy: People love the ammonia burger.
Astoria: People love the funk.
Daisy: Okay so this is the most American plant we have ever talked about on this show.
Astoria: Hands down.
Daisy: It's named after a burger, it smells like garlic and cheese, it gets you horizontal, and it's the strain of the YEAR.
Astoria: It's basically a Super Bowl ad.
Daisy: It's a Fourth of July parade in a jar.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: Okay so I have to tell you what happened.
Astoria: Oh god.
Daisy: Because I tried it.
Astoria: You tried Hash Burger.
Daisy: I tried Hash Burger. Last Tuesday.
Astoria: On a TUESDAY?
Daisy: Yes, Astoria, on a Tuesday, like a normal woman with a normal life.
Astoria: You are not a normal woman with a normal life.
Daisy: That's fair. So I get home, I have my little setup, I'm feeling cute, I'm feeling powerful.
Astoria: Mm.
Daisy: And I take ONE hit. One. Hit.
Astoria: At thirty-three percent.
Daisy: I did not know that yet! I did not have the research brief, Astoria, I am not a journalist.
Astoria: Oh my god.
Daisy: So I take one hit, and immediately the flavor hits, and I'm like, why does my mouth taste like a sandwich.
Astoria: Burger.
Daisy: Why does my mouth taste like a BURGER.
Daisy: And not even a good burger! It tasted like a burger that was going through something.
Astoria: A burger with personal problems.
Daisy: A burger ...
11 min
June 17Hash Burger: Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year + Virginia Rec Sales & DEA Rescheduling Fight
Daisy licks a jar of Hash Burger and tries to explain to Astoria why Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year tastes like ammonia, onion, and cheese. Then the couch becomes a planet and the conversation drifts to Virginia, the DEA, and Germany.
In this episode:
Hash Burger — a ~60/40 indica-leaning hybrid crossing GMO, Donny Burger, and Triangle Kush.

Why Leafly literally lists "funk" and "umami" as flavor notes (earthy, ammonia, pepper, cheese, onion).

Reported effects: sleepy, relaxed, euphoric — plus dry mouth, headache, and paranoia.

Leafly crowned Hash Burger its 2025 Strain of the Year over every cookie-cross on the shelf.

Prohibitionist groups petitioned the D.C. Circuit on June 15 to stay the Trump administration's April order moving cannabis to Schedule III; DEA's substantive hearing is set for June 29, 2026.

Virginia's compromise after Gov. Abigail Spanberger's April veto: adult-use retail launches July 1, 2027, with a two-ounce per-transaction cap and an 8% excise tax after a two-year ramp.

Quebec's SQDC posted C$809.5M in fiscal 2025–26 sales (+10.7% volume) and C$132.4M net income across 110 stores.

Germany and Austria authorized Exilby (VER-01), Europe's first pharmaceutical-grade full-spectrum cannabis extract, for chronic lower back pain — commercial launch September 2026. Plus Aurora's FY2026: C$321M revenue (+11%), C$53.8M adjusted EBITDA (+32%).
Sources:
Leafly: Hash Burger strain profile

Leafly: Strain of the Year winners

Business of Cannabis: rescheduling stay bid, Virginia retail deal, SQDC, Exilby, Aurora
Subscribe: mncannabishub.com
Full transcript
Daisy: —no, no, no, you don't understand, I licked the jar.
Astoria: You what.
Daisy: I LICKED the jar, Astoria.
Astoria: Why would you do that.
Daisy: Because it smelled like a hibachi grill and I missed dinner.
Astoria: Okay, hold on, back up. You're telling me you opened your new little jar of weed, and instead of, I don't know, smelling it like a normal person—
Daisy: I smelled it like a normal person FIRST.
Astoria: Okay.
Daisy: And then my brain went, "that is a steakhouse." And then my mouth went, "investigate."
Astoria: Your mouth went investigate.
Daisy: My mouth is its own guy. He doesn't check in.
Astoria: So this is the Hash Burger thing.
Daisy: This is the Hash Burger thing. This is our recommendation today, by the way, sort of. With a giant asterisk.
Astoria: A giant Daisy-shaped asterisk.
Daisy: Listen. Leafly named it Strain of the Year. Twenty twenty-five.
Astoria: Right.
Daisy: STRAIN of the YEAR.
Astoria: I heard you.
Daisy: Out of every cookie cross with a gas station name. Out of every "Rainbow Birthday Sherbet Number Nine." This one won. And it tastes like... ammonia.
Astoria: Ammonia.
Daisy: Ammonia. Onion. Cheese. Pepper. There is a real, official, Leafly-on-the-record flavor note that is just the word "funk."
Astoria: The word funk is doing a LOT of work.
Daisy: They literally call it umami. Like it's a broth.
Astoria: Okay but I have to push back a little.
Daisy: Push.
Astoria: Strain of the Year is a vibe award. It's not like the Oscars. It's not like a panel of scientists sat down—
Daisy: It should be the Oscars.
Astoria: It is not the Oscars.
Daisy: I want a red carpet. I want Hash Burger in a little tuxedo.
Astoria: Hash Burger would show up to the Oscars smelling like a hibachi grill and get kicked out.
Daisy: Honestly, fair.
Astoria: My point is, just because it won doesn't mean YOU are obligated to lick the jar.
Daisy: Astoria. Astoria. When has a label ever stopped me.
Astoria: That's true. You once ate a candle.
Daisy: It said "edible-grade soy." I made a decision.
Astoria: It said FOR DECORATION.
Daisy: That's marketing.
Astoria: Oh my God.
Daisy: Okay so back to the burger.
Astoria: Yes please.
Daisy: It's a hybrid. It's a little indica-leaning. Sixty-forty, ish. The genetics, and I'm gonna say these words like I know them—
Astoria: Go.
Daisy: GMO, Donny Burger, Triangle Kush.
Astoria: GMO is a real strain name?
Daisy: GMO is a real strain name.
Astoria: That feels like a prank.
Daisy: Everything in this industry feels like a prank. I've stopped fighting it.
Astoria: Donny Burger.
Daisy: Donny.
Astoria: Like a guy in a Hawaiian shirt who runs a marina.
Daisy: Donny's been there since the seventies. Donny knows where the bodies are buried. Donny invented this strain by accident.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: Anyway, effects-wise, people report sleepy, relaxed, euphoric. Which is the holy trinity if you're trying to not be conscious at nine PM on a Tuesday.
Astoria: Which is your entire personality.
Daisy: Which is my entire brand, yes.
Astoria: Adverse stuff?
Daisy: Cottonmouth, headache, and the big one — paranoia.
Astoria: Mmm.
Daisy: So if you are a person whose brain, when given the chance, will write a forty-five minute play about whether your dentist hates you—
Daisy: —this might not be your move.
Astoria: Has your dentist ever given you any indication—
Daisy: My dentist has never been anything but lovely.
Astoria: Okay.
Daisy: But have you SEEN how she looks at me when I say I floss.
Astoria: Daisy.
Daisy: She KNOWS.
Astoria: Everybody's dentist knows. That's the deal. You sign up for that when you skip flossing.
Daisy: I refuse.
Astoria: Okay so — the anecdote. You licked the jar. Then what.
Daisy: Okay. So. Context. I had been promised a, a chill little Sunday. My friend was gonna come over, we were gonna watch something, I was gonna roll one little thing.
Astoria: One little thing.
Daisy: One. Little. Thing.
Astoria: I've never seen you do one little thing in your life.
Daisy: That is a separate conversation.
Astoria: Okay.
Daisy: My friend cancels. Which, fine. I'm an adult. I have hobbies. I have... I have a window I can look out of.
Astoria: You have a window.
Daisy: I have a window. So I open the jar, and the smell hits me, and I'm ...
12 min
June 14 Highly Recommended — June 14, 2026
Leah G. highly recommends First Class Funk, an indica-dominant hybrid strain purchased from Legacy Cannabis on Lyndale Ave South in Minneapolis. She describes this cross of GMO and Jet Fuel Gelato as uniquely relaxing and giggly, with a distinct peppery, gassy, diesel aroma and taste. The episode also features tales of a chaotic week, a disastrous attempt at baking a lemon meringue pie, and a passionate hot take on the phrase "It is what it is."
Key Highlights:
• Leah G. reviews First Class Funk, an indica-dominant hybrid strain from Legacy Cannabis in Minneapolis.
• She praises First Class Funk for its relaxing and giggly effects, along with its unique peppery, gassy, diesel scent and taste.
• The host shares a humorous story about her failed attempt to bake a lemon meringue pie after consuming edibles.
• Leah delivers a strong hot take, criticizing the phrase "It is what it is" as a lazy and unhelpful response.
Topics: First Class Funk, Legacy Cannabis, Minneapolis, cannabis strain review, indica-dominant hybrid, GMO, Jet Fuel Gelato, edibles, baking, hot take, MN Cannabis Hub, podcast
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TRANSCRIPT
(Upbeat, slightly chaotic synth intro music fades in and then fades to a low background hum)
What is UP, Highly Recommended listeners, and welcome back to the only podcast that matters on a Tuesday afternoon… or, wait, is it Wednesday? Hold on. It’s… it’s Sunday. Wow. Okay. So, my week has been a week. Bartholomew, my cat, the furry orange agent of chaos, has discovered that he can open the kitchen cabinets. I found him sleeping in my big pasta pot yesterday. Just, curled up in there like a little marinara-scented angel. I didn’t have the heart to move him, so I guess we’re a salad household now. Anyway, that’s the energy we’re bringing to today’s show: the energy of giving up and ordering a pizza. And also, the energy of a truly, truly bizarrely fantastic strain that I am now obsessed with. So, let’s get into it.
This week, I am highly, *highly* recommending a strain called First Class Funk. And yes, it is as fun to say as it is to smoke. I picked this up over at Legacy Cannabis in Minneapolis. You know, the one over on Lyndale Ave South. So, First Class Funk is an indica-dominant hybrid, a cross between GMO and Jet Fuel Gelato. And the effects are just… chef’s kiss. It’s somehow both completely relaxing and also makes you super giggly. You know that feeling when you get a joke like, a full thirty seconds after everyone else? This is the strain for that moment. It’s pure, unadulterated bliss. But the smell. Okay. The smell is where it gets weird, in the best way. It’s got this peppery, gassy, diesel thing going on. It’s like you’re at a gas station that also sells high-end spices. It sounds wrong, but it smells so, so right. The taste is just as wild—peppery and a little earthy. This is the perfect strain for the activity of… and hear me out… watching old, terrible reality TV shows. You need something that’s going to make you laugh at a woman throwing a glass of wine in another woman’s face for the fifth time. This is that strain. First Class Funk. Go get it.
Alright, so speaking of things going sideways, let me tell you about my attempt to become a person who… bakes. I got absolutely wrecked on some edibles last Saturday and decided, in my infinite wisdom, that what I needed to do at 10 p.m. was bake a lemon meringue pie. From scratch. I saw a picture of one, and it was like a siren song. A beautiful, lemony, fluffy siren song. So I pull up a recipe on my phone, and immediately, it’s asking for things I don’t have. Like a zester. Who has a zester? I used a cheese grater. My knuckles will never be the same. Then it’s telling me to separate eight eggs. EIGHT. I’ve never held eight eggs at one time in my life. I felt like a dragon protecting its hoard. I’m standing there, covered in what I can only describe as ‘egg dust,’ and I realize I’ve been mixing the egg WHITES into the lemon curd part. And the yolks are just sitting there, looking at me. Judging me. Bartholomew is on the counter, batting at the shells. It’s a scene. I decide to just… keep going. Forge ahead. What’s the worst that can happen? The ‘meringue,’ which was basically just sad, sugary egg yolks, turned a color I can only describe as ‘greige’ in the oven. The whole thing looked less like a pie and more like a failed science experiment. I ended up eating cereal over the sink. So, yeah. That was my journey into domesticity. It was short-lived.
Okay, time for a hot take. You know what needs to stop? The phrase, "It is what it is." No. I refuse. It’s the verbal equivalent of a shrug. It’s a conversational dead end. You tell someone your flight got cancelled, your car broke down, and your favorite coffee shop is out of oat milk, and they hit you with, "Well, it is what it is." Really? That’s all you’ve got? It’s the laziest possible response. It’s not profound. It’s not comforting. It’s just… four words that mean absolutely nothing. What if we replaced it with something better? Like, "That sounds profoundly annoying," or "Do you need me to help you burn something down?" See? Much more productive. "It is what it is" is the participation trophy of empathy. We can do better. We MUST do better. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
And that, my friends, is our show for this week. A journey through funky strains, failed pies, and righteous indignation. Next week, I’m not sure what I’m reviewing, but I have my eye on something that smells like it was grown in a library in another dimension. It’s gonna be weird. In the meantime, if you want the actual, serious, grown-up news about cannabis in our great state, you should be checking out the MN Cannabis Hub. They’ve got all the legislative updates and real journalism. I’m just here for the chaos. Alright, I’m Leah G., this has been Highly Recommended. Go be weird, Minneapolis.
5 min
June 07 Highly Recommended — June 07, 2026
This week on Highly Recommended, host Leah G reviews the uniquely savory and creamy Zesty Parm strain, an indica-dominant hybrid found at Strains of the Earth in Jordan, a short drive from Minneapolis. She details its bizarre aroma and flavor profile, describing an initial rush of mental clarity and euphoria that transitions into a warm, relaxing body high. Leah also recounts a hilarious cooking disaster and delivers a passionate hot take on the phrase "trust the process."
Key Highlights:
• Leah G reviews Zesty Parm, an indica-dominant hybrid from Strains of the Earth in Jordan, describing its bizarre savory aroma and euphoric, relaxing high.
• She recounts a hilarious kitchen mishap where she accidentally used lavender bath salts instead of sugar in her fancy tomato soup recipe.
• Leah delivers a passionate hot take, arguing that the phrase "trust the process" is the most useless advice ever invented.
• Listeners are encouraged to visit Strains of the Earth in Jordan, a dispensary housed in a gorgeous old brewery building with an immaculate vibe.
Topics: Zesty Parm, Strains of the Earth, Jordan, Minneapolis, cannabis review, hybrid strain, cooking disaster, hot takes, trust the process, Bartholomew, MN Cannabis Hub
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TRANSCRIPT
(Upbeat, slightly chaotic indie music plays for about 10 seconds, then fades)
Leah G: Oh my god, you guys. Welcome to Highly Recommended. I am your host, Leah G, and I am broadcasting live from a pile of unfolded laundry that has officially become a permanent feature of my apartment. Bartholomew, my cat, my furry little chaos agent, has decided it's his new throne. He knocked a full cup of water all over it yesterday, so now it’s… damp. It’s a damp throne. And you know what? He deserves it. He’s a king. Anyway, I’ve been so deep in a Wikipedia hole about the history of the spork this week that I have forgotten to eat actual meals more than once. So if I sound a little floaty, it’s because I’m currently powered by half a bag of salt and vinegar chips and the sheer force of my own enthusiasm. Today, we are going to talk about a strain that sounds like it was named by an Italian grandmother who just discovered a grinder. It’s weird, it’s wonderful, let’s get into it.
(Short musical transition)
Alright, so this week I took a little field trip. A pilgrimage, if you will. I drove out to Jordan, which is like, a totally manageable 40-ish minute drive from Minneapolis, and you gotta do it, you have to. I went to this dispensary called Strains of the Earth. It's in this gorgeous old brewery building, they have a consumption lounge, the whole vibe is just... immaculate. And I went for one reason: a strain I saw on their menu that broke my brain. It’s called Zesty Parm. Yes. Like the cheese. And I am here to tell you, it is a journey.
So, Zesty Parm is technically a hybrid, a little bit indica-dominant. And when you open the bag… whoa. It does not smell like weed in the way you’re used to. It smells like someone is cooking a very strange, very delicious meal in another room. You get this sharp, peppery, herbal thing right up front, and then underneath it, there’s this wave of what is unmistakably a savory, creamy, almost cheesy smell. It’s like a fairy sneezed in a spice cabinet that happens to be next to a deli. It is bizarre and I am obsessed with it. The taste is just as wild—you get the citrus and the spice, but on the exhale, man, there's this funky, earthy flavor that just lingers.
The high is what really sells it, though. It comes on super bright and happy. I felt this immediate rush of… I can only describe it as "mental clarity." Suddenly, I wanted to organize my bookshelf and maybe finally learn how to properly fold a fitted sheet. It’s super euphoric and focused at first. And then, just as you’re about to start color-coding your entire life, this lovely, warm, relaxing feeling just melts down your body. It’s the perfect strain for after work when you need to switch gears from chaos-mode to chill-mode but you still want to be, you know, a person. I paired it with watching old episodes of Grand Designs and just feeling deeply satisfied with other people’s architectural choices. You can find this magnificent weirdo, Zesty Parm, at Strains of the Earth out in Jordan. Highly, highly recommended.
(Short musical transition)
So. Speaking of needing to chill out. I had a classic Leah G moment this past Tuesday. I’d just enjoyed a little bit of that Zesty Parm, feeling focused, feeling good, and I decide, you know what? I’m going to make that fancy tomato soup recipe I saved three months ago. The one that requires roasting the tomatoes and doing things with an immersion blender, which is already a high-risk kitchen appliance for me. So I’ve got the tomatoes in the oven, my apartment smells amazing, Bartholomew is trying to trip me at every turn, as is his sacred duty. I’m feeling like a domestic goddess. The recipe says to add a pinch of sugar to the soup to balance the acidity of the tomatoes. A pinch.
I reach into the cupboard, I grab the container I *think* is sugar. It’s in a little glass jar, looks right. I’m not measuring, of course, I’m an intuitive cook. An artist. I dump a very generous… let’s call it a "Leah pinch," into the pot. I stir it in, I’m feeling great. The soup is simmering. I go to grab a spoon to taste my masterpiece. And as I’m reaching for the drawer, I glance back at the counter and I see the actual jar of sugar. The one I always use. And next to it is the identical jar I just used. The one filled with… bath salts. Lavender-scented bath salts. I had made, not a balanced and delicious tomato soup, but a cauldron of hot, savory, lavender-scented tomato garbage water. I just stood there for a full minute, spoon in hand, having a complete existential crisis. Bartholomew looked up at me, blinked slowly, as if to say, "This is your path. This is the life you have chosen." I ended up ordering a pizza.
(Short musical transition)
Okay, hot take time. Can we please, as a society, stop telling people to "trust the process"? I hear it everywhere. At work, in movies, my yoga instructor said it last week right before I almost fell on my face. And I’ve decided it is the most useless phrase ever invented. What process? Whose process? Is it a good process? Because I have trusted many a process in my life that has led directly to disaster. Assembling IKEA furniture, for example. That’s a process. A process designed by Swedish chaos gods to test the limits of human sanity. I trusted that process and ended up with a bookcase that leaned at a 45-degree angle and a mysterious pile of "extra" screws. Following a new recipe? That’s a process! I trusted that process and ended up with soup that would be more at home in a spa than in a bowl. It’s a verbal shrug. It’s what you say when you have no actual advice to give but you want to sound wise and serene. It’s like saying "thoughts and prayers" to a broken dishwasher. No. I will not trust the process. I will question the process. I will interrogate the process. I will ask the process for its credentials. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
(Upbeat indie music fades back in)
And that is our show for this week, my friends. I’m already excited for next week, I’m going to be reviewing something that smells like it came from another dimension, in a good way. For real, fact-based Minnesota cannabis news and updates, because I am just a chaos agent with a microphone, please check out the folks at MN Cannabis Hub. They do the serious work. You can find me right back here next week, probably sitting in a slightly less damp pile of laundry. This has been Highly Recommended. Stay golden, Minneapolis.
(Music swells and plays out)
7 min
May 30Hash Burger: Leafly Strain of the Year & Señorita Hits the Opry
This week we taste-test Leafly's 2025 Strain of the Year — Hash Burger — and unpack the country music world's wildest crossover: the Grand Ole Opry's new official THC beverage partner. Real strains, real venues, real ammonia.
In this episode:
Hash Burger is named Leafly's Strain of the Year 2025 — a 60/40 indica-leaning hybrid crossing Han Solo Hash Plant with Double Burger.
The published flavor profile: earthy, ammonia, umami, onion, and funk (plus pepper and cheese on top).
Potency typically tests 28-35% THC/THCa — well above average — with reported effects of sleepy, relaxed, and euphoric.
The downside column: possible headache, dry mouth, and paranoia. Half the dose you think.
Hash Burger took silver at the 2024 California State Fair Cannabis Awards for high THCa.
On May 14, 2026, Opry Entertainment Group named Señorita — a RYTHM, Inc. (Nasdaq: RYM) brand — its official THC beverage partner in a multi-year deal.
The drink: a 12-oz canned agave cocktail with 5mg hemp-derived THC per can, sold as a non-alcoholic option.
Where you can grab one: the Grand Ole Opry, Category 10 Nashville, Ascend Federal Credit Union Amphitheater, ACL Live at The Moody Theater in Austin, and Ole Red locations in Nashville, Orlando, and Tishomingo.
Sources:
Leafly: Hash Burger named Strain of the Year 2025
Leafly strain profile: Hash Burger
Señorita named official THC beverage partner of Opry Entertainment Group venues
Subscribe: mncannabishub.com
Full transcript
Daisy: —and I'm not saying it smelled like an ammonia spill, I'm saying it WAS an ammonia spill, Astoria.
Astoria: In your apartment.
Daisy: In my apartment. On a Tuesday.
Astoria: Okay back up, because you skipped the part where this is supposedly weed.
Daisy: It IS weed. That's the whole problem. It's the strain everyone's been losing their minds over.
Astoria: Wait, the burger one?
Daisy: Hash Burger. Yes. Leafly named it Strain of the Year. Like, officially. For 2025.
Astoria: And you felt obligated.
Daisy: I felt obligated.
Astoria: Obligated by who, the weed magazine?
Daisy: By the algorithm, Astoria. By society.
Astoria: Society did not tell you to buy a strain called Hash Burger.
Daisy: They kinda did though.
Astoria: Okay so what's in it. Like, what is the burger.
Daisy: It's a hybrid. Sixty-forty, indica-leaning. The parents are Han Solo Hash Plant—
Astoria: That's a real name?
Daisy: That's a real name. Crossed with Double Burger.
Astoria: Double Burger.
Daisy: I know.
Astoria: Someone in a lab coat picked that.
Daisy: Someone in a lab coat with a dream. And the THC on this thing is like twenty-eight to thirty-five percent.
Astoria: That's a wide range.
Daisy: That's a "you'll find out" range.
Astoria: Okay—
Daisy: That's a "depends on the batch and your tolerance and also God" range.
Astoria: So you went in blind.
Daisy: I went in confident. There's a difference.
Astoria: There's not.
Daisy: There's a vibe difference.
Astoria: Continue.
Daisy: So the budtender pulls out the jar. And immediately—immediately—my whole face was like, what is happening.
Astoria: Because?
Daisy: Because the official flavor profile, and I'm not making this up, is earthy, ammonia, umami, onion, and funk.
Astoria: You're—
Daisy: That's published.
Astoria: That's not a strain, that's a French dip.
Daisy: I KNOW.
Astoria: That's a sad French dip.
Daisy: Astoria, it smelled like if a gym sock fell in love with a burger. And they had a child. And the child was a vapor.
Astoria: Stop.
Daisy: I'm describing it accurately.
Astoria: And you brought it home.
Daisy: I brought it home. Because I am a professional.
Astoria: You're a podcaster.
Daisy: Same thing.
Astoria: Sure.
Daisy: So I'm in my kitchen, I open the jar—
Astoria: In the kitchen?
Daisy: Yes, because that's where my snacks are, and I had a plan.
Astoria: The plan being get high and eat the snacks.
Daisy: The plan being curate the experience.
Astoria: Okay. What happened.
Daisy: I open the jar, and my neighbor knocks on the door within ninety seconds.
Astoria: No.
Daisy: Within ninety seconds.
Astoria: What did she say.
Daisy: She said, and I quote, "Did something die in the hallway."
Astoria: Oh my god.
Daisy: I said no. She said are you sure. I said yes ma'am, that was me, I'm so sorry.
Astoria: You apologized for your weed.
Daisy: I apologized for my weed.
Astoria: To a stranger.
Daisy: To my NEIGHBOR. Whose Wi-Fi I steal.
Astoria: Daisy.
Daisy: It's a complicated relationship.
Astoria: So then what.
Daisy: So then I'm like, the smell is a feature not a bug, allegedly. I grind a little. I pack a tiny bowl. Tiny. Like a thimble.
Astoria: Smart.
Daisy: One hit.
Astoria: One.
Daisy: One hit. And I'll be honest with you—
Astoria: Yeah—
Daisy: I don't fully know what an indica-dominant hybrid is SUPPOSED to feel like at thirty-something percent. Like in theory I know. In practice—
Astoria: In practice you melt.
Daisy: I melted. Astoria, I melted into the linoleum.
Astoria: Okay.
Daisy: The effects, on paper, are sleepy, relaxed, and euphoric.
Astoria: That sounds nice.
Daisy: It IS nice. Until you remember the OTHER paper says possible headache and possible paranoia.
Astoria: Oh.
Daisy: Yeah.
Astoria: Which one did you get.
Daisy: I got the relaxed one. But I was on alert for the paranoia one, which is its own paranoia.
Astoria: Wait, you can be paranoid about getting paranoid?
Daisy: That's the entire experience of being me, Astoria.
Astoria: Okay fair.
Daisy: I sat on my floor and watched the freezer hum for forty minutes.
Astoria: That's a vibe.
Daisy: I felt CONNECTED to my appliances.
Astoria: B...
9 min
May 20 Highly Recommended - May 20, 2026
Welcome back to Highly Recommended, where Leah G. is coming to you live from her living room floor because her couch is currently acting way too judgmental. In this hazy mid-May session, we’re navigating the post-Solar Flare world of 2026 and trying to remember how to put shoes on our actual feet instead of our hands. Leah dives deep into a review of the "Static Shock OG" strain, which apparently has the power to turn your bones into marshmallows and make your Wi-Fi sound like a polite British man whispering trivia.
The chaos hits a peak when Leah recounts a disastrous trip to a Taco Bell-Tesla hybrid charging station. From forgetting the word "taco" and describing it as a "crunchy orange envelope with meat confetti" to accidentally attempting to pay with a library card, it’s a masterclass in social anxiety and drive-thru panic. It's a relatable reminder that sometimes the car really is judging you, and maybe we aren't ready for that much power at one window.
To wrap things up, we’re getting into a spicy hot take on the "AI Nostalgia" trend that's sweeping the media. Leah questions why we’re obsessed with reanimating the 90s like a denim-clad Frankenstein just to watch a digital Ross Geller explain NFTs. It’s a call for original thoughts, proper hydration, and a plea to stop trying to code the specific sarcasm of the Friends cast. Grab a glass of water and settle in—it’s going to be a weird one.
6 min
May 13 Highly Recommended - May 13, 2026
This week on the pod, Leah G. takes us on a wild ride from the depths of moving hell to the celestial casting choices of Hollywood. Kicking things off from her new, box-strewn apartment, Leah shares the universally relatable struggle of unearthing forgotten treasures (and horrors) during a move, including a cringe-worthy high school diary that reveals her past ambitions as a professional unicyclist.
To combat the existential dread and past awkwardness, Leah introduces us to her new favorite strain, 'Temporal Tapestry'. She raves about its mango and peppery scent and its ability to flip her mood from mortified to "good for her" with its giggly, euphoric sativa lean, making it her go-to for any "shame-based emergencies."
Finally, Leah delivers her hot take of the week, questioning the baffling casting of Timothée Chalamet as George Jetson in the upcoming live-action *Jetsons* reboot. She passionately argues for "justice for George Jetson," highlighting the cosmic vibe mismatch and advocating for Hollywood to let Chalamet play roles more suited to his angelic, sad indie music aesthetic.
4 min
May 11 Highly Recommended - May 11, 2026
Your host Leah G. kicks off this week's episode from her official pillow fort office, ready to dive into her latest recommendations. First up is a review of a sativa strain called "Galactic Lemon Haze," which turned a regular Saturday into an incredibly productive, astronaut-level cleaning spree. While the experience left her apartment spotless, it also led to an alphabetically organized spice rack that has made finding the paprika a brand new adventure. Use with caution if you want to find your spices, but highly recommended if you want to feel like a sparkly spaceship who scrubs baseboards.
Later, Leah recounts her journey to a trendy new vegan spot to reward her cleaning frenzy, only to be met with a mushroom burger that cost a soul-crushing thirty-seven dollars. She breaks down the internal monologue of paying for the burger and delivers her final verdict on whether a mushroom on a bun can ever be worth that much (spoiler: it can't). To wrap things up, Leah dives into a hot take on the current state of movies, pleading for a return to standalone films that don't require homework to understand the post-credits scene.
4 min

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A weekly Minneapolis lifestyle podcast for the 90s-baby mid-30s crowd. Concerts, restaurants, art fairs, Mystic Lake shows, what's actually good in MPLS this week — plus a strain review, a chaotic…

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