Heineken International’s new non-alcoholic beer features a different kind of buzz for the beverage making company. Each can of Lagunitas “hoppy sparkling water” features either 10mg of THC or an equal mix of 5mg of THC and 5mg of CBD, for an even more mellow effect. They aren’t the first beer makers to dive into the pot market, but they’re certainly making a splash.
Beer and soda sales have been in a steady decline as of late, and with the cannabis market expanding at a rapid clip, this type of near beer is likely to become popular with millennials especially. It’s not so cool to get blotto drunk and thus foolish or dangerous anymore. Of course, plenty still do, but the zero alcohol cannabis beers are set to be all the rage.
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The bubbly beer-like concoctions are only currently available in California since July 30 at a price point of $8 each, but they’re flying off the shelves already, according to Harborside Dispensary in Oakland, California. Not a bad price for an “edible,” though a six pack, which is what it will likely take experienced users to get a real heady buzz going, will cost nearly $50. But maybe that’s part of the point.
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Cannabis has always been a communal substance. Even if you’re at home alone toking up, if a roommate or friend pops in the first thing you’d be likely to do is offer the bong or joint. Now you can offer friends an ice cold one, with just a little buzz, that will likely be folded into other forms of cannabis ingestion, thus making one or two bud beers the perfect amount.
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Business Insider went to California to try the drink out themselves. One curious stand out is the tab, which must be popped at the top then slid back, but the obvious advantages are that after a night of sipping low-dose cannabis beer you A. are going to sleep better and more restfully than had you actually drank alcohol, B. are not going to wake up cringing and wondering what might have gone down the night before, and C. won’t have a hangover.
The cannabis market continues to open up and expand, leaving plenty of room for these types of innovation. What will stick and what will fall by the wayside as gimmicky is yet to be seen, but if the initial reaction to Lagunitas hoppy sparkling water is any indication, people are ready to incorporate cannabis into even more social facets of their lives.
