In states and areas where cannabis has been legalized, alcohol sales have dropped up to 15 percent. That’s a big chunk of capital just sitting on the shelves. Well, necessity is the mother of invention and it’s clearly become necessary for some savvy brewers to glom onto the wave of cannabis infused products, specifically by making their own weed beers. The latest? A lager out of South Africa.
Poison City is the brewing company behind this newest infusion and the product hit shelves in September. The drop in beer and liquor sales is global wherever territories have legalized and so a hybrid of the two intoxicants seems to only make sense, especially for investors and CEOs of alcohol companies and their affiliates.
The lager itself is a craft brew made with the hemp plant, so rather than getting high on cannabis’ component THC, which there is little to none of in the beer, imbibers enjoy the therapeutic and medicinal properties of CBD. The brewers, however, have hinted that if it becomes possible, they’d like to add a touch of THC for that extra kick.
Poison City is also in favor of local industrialized SA hemp farms, which would bolster the economy, create jobs, improve soil conditions and provide the hemp for the lagers at home base. Not to mention cut out import expenses for Poison City. Encouragingly, the Inkatha Freedom Party said that the efforts to legalize hemp were “starting to bear fruit,” while the department of agriculture, forestry and fisheries said it had asked that the departments of health, justice and constitutional development consider the legislative changes that would allow for the production of hemp.
This SA lager isn’t the first cannabeer to hit the shelves. The master brewer behind Blue Moon beer created his own label and Constellation Brands – which brings us the likes of Corona, Pacifico and Modelo – paired up with cannabis company Canopy Growth with an investment of $4 billion.
There are even rumors circulating now that the makers of Guinness, Smirnoff and Johnny Walker are talking with Canadian entities to make their own infused creations. As the world changes to a darker shade of green all around, companies are keeping up by joining in. Rather than pour more money into anti-cannabis ads, these pioneering brewers have found a way to evolve and that speaks volumes as to the state of the growing cannabis marketplace.
The new lager comes on the heels of SA’s Constitutional Court making the ruling that using cannabis in private is a constitutional right. The fight to legalize for personal use was led by Rastafari Gareth Prince, who worked at it for 21 years and is now enjoying his success, perhaps with an infused lager.
