Cannabis smokers will enjoy complex flavours ‘like fine wines’, scientists say

As cannabis marches towards legalisation in Canada, researchers from the University of British columbia have identified 30 genes responsible for the different flavours of pot.

The idea, the researchers say, is so that growers can standardise strains of the plant – so that people can enjoy different flavours ‘like fine wines’.

Jörg Bohlmann, a professor in the Michael Smith Laboratories at the University of British Columbia said that growers will want to identify different varieties for flavour and potency.

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Bohlmann says that, like wine grapes, the flavour of cannabis flowers is governed by chemical compounds known as ‘terpenes’.

Bohlmann said, ‘When you have a quality product that people are willing to pay a high price for, they expect a well-defined and consistent product.

‘Think about wine, when you buy a Merlot or a Chardonnay you know aside from certain subtleties what it will taste like.’