To all the plugs out there I mean no disrespect, but lets face it, MOST plugs do not have the financial resources that legal growers have, nor do they have access or desire to have their products tested. Why use a plug? Because it is easy, if you can find one, price, delivery and no need for MMP card.

Lets go over some of the reasons why access to dispensaries is desirable.

The Menu:

Everyone knows what a restaurant menu looks like. Dispensaries have menus too. If you walk into a dispensary you are presented with a menu of all the products they have to offer, and it looks very similar to a restaurant menu. There are sections for concentrates, edibles, topicals and flower with subsections for each.

Online Ordering for Pick-up:

The online menus are even better. Go to any dispensary and you can browse all the products that are available at that moment. There are hundreds of choices. At the time of writing this post there were 413 products to choose from. You will want to make use of the “Filter” options, usually starting with LINEAGE (Indica, Sativa, Hybrid, CBD). Other filters include THC Potency, CBD Potency, Categories (New This Week [14], Edible [84], Extract [61], Flower [59], Ancillary Products [42], Pre-roll [22], Tincture [29], Topical [11]), Price, Available Weights and Brands.

Quality:

Once a specific item is clicked on the specific test results are displayed with cannabinoid content and terpene content. In CT there are specific test regulations that must be adhered to. According to these regulations “The laboratory shall test each sample for microbiological contaminants, mycotoxins, heavy metals and pesticide chemical residue, and for purposes of conducting an active ingredient analysis.”

Pharmacist:

Access to the pharmacist is a fantastic, often overlooked, benefit. The pharmacist is very familiar with cannabinoid and terpene profiles. He is at the dispensary for you to talk to. For example, ask him what strains are best for sleep aid and he will point to strains that are high in myrcene and lonalool, both sedating terpenes. He knows that the limolene terpene can be used to enhance sex drive.

Price:

Here is a plug conversation example.
Me: What do you have available?
Plug: I have X and Y for $200 or Z for $250.
Me: I have some extra money so I’ll take Z.
Plug: Meet me at Walgreens, 20 minutes.

I can get the same product at a dispensary but it will cost a little bit more, on average $10 to $30 more.

Conclusion:

Purchasing from a dispensary is a bit more expensive and requires me to actually drive to the dispensary. The benefits of 1. hundreds of products to choose from an organized menu, 2. all quality and potency tested and 3. a certified, very knowledgeable pharmacist that I can talk to is reason enough for me to maintain my MMP card.