Long associated with drinks, especially green beer…what about adding marijuana to your St. Patrick’s Day

Green rivers, big parades and lots of drinks – St. Patrick’s Day definitely has strong traditions. It is a massive festival atmosphere. It is also the top beer-drinking holiday in a bar in the United States. Meaning more people drink beer in bars (as opposed to their homes) than on any other day of the year.  But as cannabis become legal and people start consuming more and drinking less….what about adding marijuana to your St. Patrick’s Day?  BDSA, a leading analytics firm which covers the cannabis industry, just released numbers and data revealing the cannabis industry earned $29.5 billion dollars in 2023. That is a lot of green and a ton of consumers!

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For the holiday, green beer is a staple. There is no trick to making the iconic beverage. It is a light-colored beer with a drop of green food coloring added. No flavor change just the color.  It is so popular, the University of Miami students added a new tradition of Green Beer Day when a change of schedule put St. Patrick’s Day in the middle of spring break…when the students are away from campus.

Marijuana is also becoming a recreational as well as a medical staple.  California sober is now a national thing and beer sales have been hit by marijuana’s increase.  You might want to put down the calorie filled pint and pick up a green gummy, a green apple vape or just some old fashioned flower.  If you are out and about in a crowd for a parade or a pub crawl, the gummy or vape is the most discreet and most “public” friendly.

If you are going to mix weed and alcohol, there are few things to remember. Moderate your consumption and make sure you are paying attention. Using weed before drinking alcohol may minimize the effects of alcohol. Don’t get drawn into doing shots or Boilermakers. Both weed and alcohol are depressant drugs. Their effects suppress, impair and inhibit the brain’s ability to function. When alcohol and weed are mixed together, the effects of each individual substance become exaggerated. This can result in a person losing control of their actions .

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And the Chicago green river thing? It goes back to 1962 when Mayor Richard J. Daley wanted to turn Lake Michigan green in honor of the holiday. He was persuaded to dye the more manageable Chicago River instead. The Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Union have always been in and charge and use  same green dye plumbers used to find sewage leaks.