“The Clear” is a line of high purity concentrates extracted using a “solvent-free” method developed by the scientists at Clear Concentrates.

Though it was once only available to patients at Harborside Health Center in Oakland, CA, this “solvent-free” concentrate is now accessible at a number of Southern California dispensaries including Varieties For Life and Aardvarks in LA.

We spoke to a representative – we’ll call him Lens for the sake of anonymity – from Clear Concentrates who explained to us that their concentrate is solvent-free because the extraction process only utilizes a combination of heat and pressure. Clear Concentrates claims they do not use solvents such as water/ice, butane, hexane, ethanol, etc. to extract cannabinoids.

Lens also explained that decarboxylation is another difference between their concentrate and other crude extracts on the market (shatter, budder, honeycomb). “Due to the decarboxylation of the cannabinoids prior to purification, we are able to provide patients a totally active product,” he said.

What Is Decarboxylation? And How Does It Affect THCA & THC?

Decarboxylation is the process of turning THCA (Tetrahydrocannabinolic Acid) into THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) by removing the carbon dioxide atom from the carbon chain.

This process occurs naturally over time, but heating or drying cannabis can induce decarboxylation as well as exposing it to UV light. When you smoke or vaporize cannabis, you are causing this reaction to take place almost instantaneously.

Decarboxylation is required in order to achieve the many medicinal benefits of THC as well as the psychoactive effects the cannabinoid is known for. Since The Clear is completely active, it has the ability to be utilized as a topical or ingested orally, similar to the way Rick Simpson Oil is taken or applied.

This is one thing that really stood out for us about Clear Concentrates. There are very few companies on the market right now who are providing active concentrates that can be dabbed, used in a pen vape, eaten or applied topically.

The Clear Concentrate Is Lab Tested By The Werc Shop Inc.

In addition to abstaining from using solvents in the extraction process, every single batch is lab tested before release for both potency and residual solvents by The Werc Shop Inc. In addition to a full cannabinoid breakdown, The Werc Shop provides patients with a terpene analysis of every strain tested in their laboratory.

“We are proud of our process and are pleased to provide patients not only the medicine they seek but also the information regarding the product they need to make educated decisions about their wellness,” noted Lens.

How Is The Clear Concentrate So Clear & Runny?

The first thing you will notice about The Clear is its appearance, obviously. It looks different from any other concentrate on the market, and the texture is one of a kind as well. The Clear can be stirred very easily and has the consistency of honey; it sticks to everything it touches too!

“You will notice that our concentrates look much different than honeycomb, earwax, budder and shatter. This is because THCA is a white crystalline solid in its pure form,“ said Lens.

He explained that the concentrate is actually a runny consistency because of the presence of terpenes. “In its pure form, THC is not an opaque solid. It is actually more of a hard jelly or sap. The presence of terpenes in our formulation brings the consistency to a more liquid state.”

How Does The Clear Concentrate Compare To Other Concentrates?

We had he opportunity to sample a number of different strains from Clear Concentrates – Jack Herer, SFV OG, Strawberry Cough& Sour OG – and what we found is that they all generally had the same taste & smell. Clear Concentrates informed us that this loss of terpenes & uniformity in taste is a result of the decarboxylation process.

However, not all is lost. The scientists at Clear Concentrates have the ability to remove terpenes from the cannabis before hand and then reintroduce them later. “They are in no way synthetic flavor additives,” said Lens.

The Strawberry Cough stood out to us at first because it had the most flavor & smell. However, as we worked our way through a few grams of each strain, we still got the feeling that the same terpene was being used in each concentrate. It just seemed to be amplified in the Strawberry Cough.

“We are proud of our process and are pleased to provide patients not only the medicine they seek but also the information regarding the product they need to make educated decisions about their wellness.” – Clear Concentrates

Now, this is not to say that The Clear tastes bad, it actually has a very pleasant and clean flavor. We were just a little disappointed that the typical flavor of the strains didn’t come through in the concentrates. This is not a big deal in the end, considering these concentrates are not made solely for dabbing and Cloud Vape pens.

While the effects held true to their genetics – the Jack is uplifting & the OGs are very relaxing & sedative – it seemed as if the decarboxylation added a sedative effect of its own.

We all agreed that dabbing The Clear was akin to taking a small bite of an edible, except the effects were immediate and lasted for about 45 minutes before making you tired; even the Jack Herer.

At the end of the day, we admire Clear Concentrates for lab testing every batch of The Clear with the goal of informing and ensuring the safety of the end patient. We also appreciate the fact that they provide an active product to patients that may not want to smoke or vaporize their concentrate.

However, we would still love to know what causes the uniformity in flavors and smells… If I had to guess, I’d say it’s because the supercritical extraction process (that’s a guess as well) they use when extracting cannabinoids combines pressure and heat to the point where most terpenes are lost. After the extraction has been made, I believe they may be adding terpenes back into every batch, hence the similar flavors. But that’s just my guess…