The Review

CBD Sunday – 2021 | Episode #2 | Southern Heat Botanicals | Alive! (O’Cherry)

I ordered this eighth of Alive! (O’Cherry) hemp flowers from the Southern Heat Botanicals website, and the first thing that struck me when I opened the box I’d just received in the mail was the dark, opaque jars. Quality, was the thought in my head. Opaque jars protect the herb from UV light, a nice touch that reminded me that I was going to be enjoying some premium, craft hemp flowers.

I was a bit surprised when I noted that the side of the jar stated this had only 8% CBD… 8%?! My expectations of a strong CBD buzz dropped a few notches. Little did I realize that numbers like CBD levels can be a misleading sign of what’s ahead…

As I opened the jar I was impressed to see that it was filled to the brim with nugs. I pulled them gently out and laid them on the tray. Alive! is a cross of Sour Tsunami and Cannatonic, and the eighth was a mix of medium to dark green, dense nugs and some airy nugs.

When I weighed out the contents of the jar I was very happy to see that they had packed 3.86 grams of herb inside – an eighth and then some!

Smell And Taste

The jar smell was full of sweetness, with strong hints of cherry surrounded by dense, dank, earthy aromas… there was definitely a bit of a honey smell mixed in there. The aromas just increased as I started to cut up a nug… which wasn’t too surprising because from the photos I had taken I could see these nugs were just covered with trichomes.

The cut-up pile of herb was very appealing – nice and sticky, very aromatic… I couldn’t wait to load this up in the bong and give it a rip!

I was immediately hit with a delightful taste – very much like the smell – deep, earthy, hints of cherry! The honey came through faintly on the first hit, but the more I smoked this one the more the honey flavor stood out. As I mentioned in the video review, once you tasted that honey flavor, you couldn’t untaste it. Delicious!

The aftertaste had a nice woody flavor, a very marijuana taste… I walked out of the cabin for a minute and walked back in and thought, oh my, someone has been smoking the herb in here! I think that’s one of the best smells in the world – freshly smoked herb hovering in the air…

The Effects

Because these flowers had only 8% CBD I figured I could take a bunch of hits before I felt any effects… I made it to the fifth hit before I had to stop for a bit because I was feeling a mighty CBD stone coming on. I’d been enjoying the flavor so much, and the smoke quality was just right – smooth with a medium thickness, that I didn’t notice the effects until I was engulfed by them.

The high from this herb – and it definitely had a strong buzz – was on the Sativa side. It gave me a mental “snap” and a jump to my step while providing a nice amount of body comfort. This was an herb that truly lived up to it’s name – Alive! A good one to start the day with, for sure!

Now, here’s the interesting thing about the effects of this one… very strong after a handful of hits – much stronger than I would ever expect from just 8% CBD. I was so surprised I had to send off a message the Southern Heat Botanicals asking them how this herb could possibly be so strong. They responded nearly immediately. Terpenes, they told me, were mostly responsible for the cerebral effects. The CBD provided the relaxing feel while the terpenes caused the extra effects. Of course, I thought, it’s the terps.

Terpenes are organic compounds found in hemp and cannabis, and they cause the smell and flavor. They are found throughout nature, but are often associated with marijuana because the herb has such high concentrations of terpenes. There are over a hundred different terpenes, but only about a dozen are most common, showing up in different strains in varying degrees and strengths.

While there is much research still to be done on these compounds and their participation in the high that comes from marijuana, we already know that they have a substantial effect – each terpene adding different effects, from body relaxation to anti-inflammatory properties, and a whole number of interesting properties in between.

According to Southern Heat Botanicals, this strain was strong in the terpenes pinene, farnesene, myrcene, and ocimene. Considering how wonderfully strong the flavor was, it doesn’t surprise me that the terpenes were very active in this one!

The Wrap Up

Before I go, I just want to mention that this herb has a great vibe to it – a very positive feeling! I think that reflects on the grower – I believe that plants pick up on the vibes of the humans that attend to them. Southern Heat Botanicals obviously grows their plants with a lot of tender, loving care – their farm in Louisiana is organic, and practices regenerative growing techniques!

Just a reminder – hemp is legal in the USA, and you can buy it online. Southern Heat Botanicals has a very nice website you can order their farm-direct herb from, and as I mentioned earlier, their customer service is excellent!

I’ve been slowly working my way through my eighth in that “make it last” kind-of-way. I’m savoring it, but when the last bud is finished, I’ll be definitely ordering some more of Alive!

Until later, best of health.

The Low Down