Hi there, and welcome to The Take it Easy Crew - my musings on the cannabis industry, California, and building Halara.
If you missed past emails, I recommend checking out the Take it Easy Crew page where you can see the past emails I sent.
California Weed > Italian Wine
Hey crew,
I’m back!
I did something wild in July: I took three whole weeks off. If you know me, you know that’s huge. Normally I max out at a quick 2–3 day escape to the Sierras with my phone off before I need to get back to Halara. So three weeks away felt like a recipe for disaster: 10-hour time zone difference, that nagging “what’s breaking back home?” feeling, and not being here for the team or our customers.
Fast forward and… shocker: the world didn’t end. In fact, we were slinging cartridges faster than ever (thank you July!). Moral of the story? Take the break you need to recharge.
And how did I recharge? By hunting down cannabis in other countries, of course. Verdict: nothing compares to the West Coast. Sure, Italy has wine that could win anyone over, but when it comes to weed, California is still the undisputed champ. (Don’t @ me, other states.)
Here’s me in Florence, Italy as my friends insisted on getting pics of me in front of every shop we found. No pics from my favorite shop in Corfu, Greece though… I was a little too busy conducting market research.
I also stayed in a castle that, until last year, was growing hemp right on its grounds. Completely organic. Surrounded by olive trees. Surreal. The product? Not quite California quality, but the setting might’ve been better than any partner farm I’ve visited. It’s hard to beat a full-on castle.
Honestly, I’m ready for California to bring back castle architecture for farms.
The castle in question - I was there for a wedding.
Anyway, enough reminiscing. I’m back in CA! So if you see me running around in the shops mostly in the Bay Area this morning … stop me and say hi!
See you in two weeks,
— Malcolm
The Review Corner
Big shoutout to Cultural-Menu5213 — the first person to post in our new subreddit r/halaracannabis (besides Nick).
It was their first time trying Halara, and they dropped a wild review. If you want to know how one gets “that classic nutty fresh rosin flavor,” you can check it out [here]. And while you’re at it, give Nick’s page a follow so he feels better about not talking to himself online.
Ahem*. The only thing that would make their setup better? Our dual-charging battery.
Think you’ve got a better review? Reply with your submission on the Reddit feed! Nick will critique 📨
My strain: Banana Mochi Funk
This pick comes straight from an after-hours event in San Jose last week. The staff couldn’t get enough of it.
I’m not usually big on banana terps, but the mochi creaminess here? Gets me every time. AND it did just win big at the CA State Fair (that’s 2/2 years medalling at the state fair for us, go Nick!). I’m not bragging - you are.
Asks:
What would you do if your dispensary doesn't have the product you're looking for?
Dope Things I’m reading
Some of my favorite things since the last newsletter (note: I don’t get paid to recommend anything here):
Loved reading about the pop-up events The Budist team has been putting on. @HumboldtFamilyFarms — if you’re reading this, I need one of those guitar picks.
Fresh from my Europe trip: hopeful news from @BeardBrosPharms — France is starting to lead on reform. It’s not the reform we’d hoped for, but it’s a step toward better access.
My Weekly Bops 🎵
It was Outside Lands in SF this weekend and for those who didn’t go and still have their hearing here are a few of my favorite bops I listened to gearing up for the show:
Baby (because Ludacris is great and no one can tell me otherwise)
Too Sweet (Hozier) - Focus song
That’s all for this week — thanks for reading!
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Halara · License No. CDPH-10004369
Santa Rosa, CA · USA