How To Make Cannabis Tea

Cannabis can be consumed in all sorts of ways but how can you drink it? Making tea is a healthy part of many people's routines and the benefits have been known for millennia. A cannabis brew is no different. This article teaches you how weed tea can improve your lifestyle, and provides a simple recipe for preparing your own at home.

Consuming Cannabis

Cannabis is known to have plenty of health benefits, but they depend on how the weed in consumed. You see, THC and CBD are processed by the body differently if say you smoke it instead of eating it.

When we smoke or vape we introduce heat before the product is consumed. This causes certain chemical changes to happen. In other words, THCA compounds break down into THC with heat. Without it, we would not be able to 'get high' as THCA isn't psychoactive. This process is called decarboxylation.

When you eat weed without decarboxylating it first, the endocannabinoid system does not respond in the same way although ingestion does signal it to function differently, just not in the same way if the cannabinoids were activated. In order for us to get high, cannabis ideally needs to be decarboxylated first to alter the structure of the THCA and turn it into THC. The same goes for CBDA and CBD.

Normally, tea is made by simply brewing herbs in hot water to release beneficial chemical substances found in the plant. The problem with weed and water is that the oils on the plant do not bind well with water on its own. Therefore we can add an extra ingredient to help this process happen seamlessly.

Resin on cannabis can be extremely sticky and is not easy to remove without using a fatty/oily consumable such as milk or butter. For edibles, the weed is usually decarboxylated before proceeding to extract the cannabinoids by placing it in the oven on a low temperature for a short period of time.

Simmering the plant material in an oil-based solution can also decarboxylate the cannabis. As the weed is heated, the chemical compounds become oilier and can mix with the solution. Just think about how oil separates in water.

The Health Benefits Of Cannabis Tea

Cannabis tea can be used to remedy a number of health imbalances. Firstly, weed can help to relax the body, and the process of drinking tea compliments that further. The experience itself can be very positive for one's well being.

Cold and Flu - Hot teas work well for clearing congestion and killing bad bacteria in the body, amongst other things. If you smoke cannabis regularly and get sick, smoking is one of the worst things you can do. Making a weed tea helps to solve both problems.

Other health benefits of cannabis tea:

• Healthy digestion
• Antioxidant
• Improved sleep
• Throat soother
• Hydrating

Cannabis Tea: The Effects

Drinking cannabis tea tends be quite a mellow experience, but this obviously depends on the quality and quantity of weed you use, as well as how long the tea simmers for (more on how to make cannabis tea below). For a more relaxing tea, you may want to choose strains with higher CBD content, however some THC may help to boost the medicinal quality of the infusion.

THC

If you want a noticeable psychotropic effect from drinking your cannabis tea then you want to use buds that have been grown for their THC content. Consuming THC in tea form can be just as strong as eating it or smoking it so it's important to dose properly. The effects are not as fast as smoking, but arrive quicker than they do through edibles.

To gauge how strong your cannabis tea might be, find out the weed's THC content and multiply the number by 10. For example if the weed is 20% THC, the tea should be 200mg if you use 1 gram of weed. This is the measurement we will be following in our example, so keep this in mind for later.

CBD

CBD (cannabidiol), as you might know, is the non-psychoactive cannabinoid found in cannabis. The percentage is not normally as high as THC, but that really depends on the strain. The CBD content of a cannabis plant is often enough to enjoy it's health benefits, whether the plant also produces THC or not. Strains that do not produce THC and only CBD can be used for tea with great success. 

2 Plant Closet Grow

Cannabis Infusions

When it comes to tea, we can take advantage of pretty much the whole cannabis plant except the seeds. Even the roots can be used to make tea and have many potential health benefits of their own, but to keep it simple let's stick with the plant matter above ground. 

In terms of flavour, the terpenes found in the trichomes are majorly responsible for how enjoyable the tea tastes. Depending on your preferences, you may want to sweeten the tea with sugar or honey. You can brew the leaves in a teabag with hot water, but for a better kick add a bit of milk or butter.

Leaves

There is plenty of good stuff on the leaves of a cannabis plant (especially sugar leaves and popcorn buds) and they are ideal for making a simple, soothing tea. Although the result may not be as potent, leaves can be used like other herbs commonly used for brewing teas, such as peppermint or camomile. Combining different herbs can produce more diverse, flavourful blends that deliver extra benefits.

Using trim for tea can be a great way to give variety to your harvest.

Stems

It's common for stems to get thrown away but building up a collection means you can eventually use them for making tea. You may need a fair amount to get a worthwhile effect, but it doesn't hurt to throw them in a pot instead of the bin. The more you can get out of your plants, the better.

Flowers

Cannabis flowers make the best tea and the flavour is much nicer than tea made with leaves or stems. Aside from that, the potency is higher as the trichomes holding the cannabinoids and terpenes are found most concentrated on the flower. You won't need as much in plant weight to make a strong tea, but using flowers for making tea can get quite pricey, especially if you drink a lot of it.

Tip: Decarboxylate your weed or trim before making tea.

How To Make A Cannabis Tea

There are a few methods of preparing cannatea, but this is the easiest method that doesn't require any complicated processing beforehand. All you need to do is decarboxylate the cannabis and you're good to go. You can either decarboxylate before you start (in the oven at 115-117°C for no more than 60 minutes) or allow the infusion process to take care of it. You may just need to simmer the tea for longer.

Materials needed:

• 1 gram ground cannabis
• 1 litre water (boiling)
• 1 tea bag of your choice
• Tea strainer
• Tea infuser or empty tea bag
• A pot or saucepan for infusing
• Butter or coconut oil
• Honey, sugar (optional).

Steps for making cannabis tea:

1. Fill the pot/saucepan with water and bring to the boil.
2. Grind up the cannabis and place it in the tea infuser or empty tea bag.
3. Reduce the water to a simmer and add the butter or coconut oil. Stir thoroughly until well mixed.
4. Add the tea infuser to the pot along with an extra tea bag of your choice.
5. Leave the teas to simmer for 15-20 minutes to allow the cannabinoids to decarboxylate and be stripped from the plant. Leave for longer if you want a more potent tea.
6. Remove the tea infuser and tea bag
7. Add optional sweetener, milk or cinnamon, and allow to steep for 5-10 minutes.

Remember to dose carefully and consider testing your tea before drinking a whole pot's worth. Like with edibles, the effects can last a long time and may take over an hour or two to kick in, so be patient before deciding it's not working. You can expect to have effects for 4-6 hours or longer if you drink a 200ml cup of 150-200mg cannabis tea.

This really does take green tea to the next level.

If you found this article helpful and have any thoughts on cannabis tea, please feel free to comment down below!

External References

Cannabis infused foods and drinks: Food safety and the endocannabinoid system. - Holbrook, Larry & Kani, Michael. (2018).

Use of cannabis infusion in patients with fibromyalgia: effect on symptoms relief. - Triggiani, Leonardo & G, Ballerini & L.M, Dodaro & Vellucci, Renato & domenico, Mediati. (2017). 

Acute effects of THC on time perception in frequent and infrequent cannabis users. - Sewell, R. A., Schnakenberg, A., Elander, J., Radhakrishnan, R., Williams, A., Skosnik, P. D., Pittman, B., Ranganathan, M., & D'Souza, D. C. (2013).

Disclaimer: This article does not provide medical advice. It is intended for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

This article was updated January 2021.