Oregon votes in November on legalizing it!

[nihil]

Looks like they may be worth a visit.

Interesting that their menu lists "*recreational" followed by other strains without the prefix. Is this the same bullshit that @llebhcaoc talked about earlier? If they're going to prohibit what I can purchase I'll purchase elsewhere.

 

[little maggie]

I picked up my dog's cannabis pills and then went to my first dispensary. I don't really like this process. Sit in the waiting room until your name is called and then go through a locked door to stand at a counter while someone helps you. I'd actually prefer the way a regular pharmacy works. I know nothing about strains and told the woman helping I wanted something for stress and pain. I came away with some cannatonic and dogwalker that she said to mix. I wish my friend who grows for the medical market wasn't retiring.

 

[llebhcaoc]

Looks like they may be worth a visit.

Interesting that their menu lists "*recreational" followed by other strains without the prefix. Is this the same bullshit that @llebhcaoc talked about earlier? If they're going to prohibit what I can purchase I'll purchase elsewhere.

Yes, you ran into the same bs that I did...how long untill there are 2 price levels for the same bud too?...Vote with your $$ and your feet...refuse to be a guppy!

 

[little maggie]

Yes, you ran into the same bs that I did...how long untill there are 2 price levels for the same bud too?...Vote with your $$ and your feet...refuse to be a guppy!

Aren't there? It looks to me like if you don't have a card you end up paying more for the same exact bud.

 

[llebhcaoc]

Aren't there? It looks to me like if you don't have a card you end up paying more for the same exact bud.

If they are screwing with us share the name of the dispensary and make them famous...

 

[little maggie]

Maybe I'm confused. Nihil has a post that notes $40 for medicinal and maybe $50 for rec. That's the kind of thing I have been seeing on menus. That's what I'm talking about- it seems the norm

 

[CarolKing]

@little maggie In WA state that's how the dispensaries work. You go in and a bud tender waits on one person at a time. If there are two bud tenders they wait on two people. I assume it's different at the rec stores in WA I've never been in one.

Come July 2016 things will be changing here with the new laws. I will miss the farmers that I have been going to. I'm hoping some of my fav dispensaries will be able to get a state lisence.

Next time I'm in OR I will have to visit a dispensary.

 

[grokit]

Maybe I'm confused. Nihil has a post that notes $40 for medicinal and maybe $50 for rec. That's the kind of thing I have been seeing on menus. That's what I'm talking about- it seems the norm

I believe that medical users pay less, at the same dispensaries as recreational in colorado as well.

 

[nihil]

Let me try to clarify:

Both the stores I went to charged more than on their online menu. Get this, when I asked about it they spun it. "Oh, well yes, medical users get more of a discount." Like I was getting less of a discount, not being charged more. George Orwell would have been proud of that bit of doublespeak. Kind of like how a Mac computer doesn't crash, it has an "event."

My data set is limited to 3 shops, the 2 I went to and another one a buddy went to. It was the case in all 3 regarding the higher than advertised pricing. Let me point out that even at the higher prices, it seems that we are still paying less than Colorado and Washington.. I just want them to be honest about it.

I have no issues with medical users getting a discount, in fact I support it. But they need to swap the online pricing model, i.e. don't show the discounted prices that most of us won't have access to, show the full price and specify that medicinal card holders get a 15-20% discount.

Here's another way they screwed me, and I'm going to mention it on Monday. I was told I'd get a discount on a quarter, buying in bulk and all. But because I got 4 grams of 1 strain and 3 of another, guess what? No discount.

Regarding the different buying experiences, I believe some of the stores that were medical dispensaries that started allowing recreational users are still working under the "hospital visit" atmosphere. I personally don't have a problem with that, it is just a different business model. Although I suspect that you are going to pay more for this level of service.

Lastly, the menu for the store that @woolspinner's Brother in Law went to had a prefix of *recreational in front of the 1st half of their menu. That leads me to believe that I cannot purchase anything on the 2nd half of the menu. If that's the case, that pisses me off and I will vote with my wallet, and will tell them so via an email or phonecall.


tl;dr - Prices are higher than advertised for recreational users.

I've accepted the higher prices for the time being, but this better sort itself out in the next few months. Otherwise it's time to start growing my own or calling "bob down the street" up and seeing what he's holding.

Hope that clarifies a few things.

 

[psychonaut]

In S. Colorado the medical prices are rarely available online and even the menu is non-existant through weedmaps. The prices on medical vary depending if you give the caregiver your growing rights or not. They are also excluded from retail mj taxes which in this area is a whopping 18%+.

Shops can and will do favors for the customer. A budtender told me since they weren't busy I could pick out 8 strains for the oz price. These are the shops you want to give your money to.

All shops are setup differently, but they normally segregate the two and there are obviously different products in some cases. Higher mg edibles, different strains. The rec user is generally after higher thc and could care less about cbd.

I've seen rec flowers at 32% thc and shatter about 87% so mostly we are getting a great selection at the retail level.

Med card is the way to go as it literally opens all doors. But most importantly, shop around for the overall experience.

 

[nihil]

Great info @psychonaut, thanks for that. As I scope out the scene I'll post in here what I would consider some of the better shops. Others please do the same.

I think all us Oregonians need to remind ourselves that it's only been available for a little over a week. Price gouging is to be expected until it all settles down. I remember heading up to Vancouver, WA in November of 2014 and seeing ridiculous prices ($30+/gram) on questionable material. I hear it is now down to $5-12/gram with better quality product.

I can deal with $12-15/grams for top shelf in the near future, but not permanently.

 

[little maggie]

I'm new to all this. The store I went to explained that I could only buy 7 grams and only buds- not other products. I only bought 2 just to see how this works. Does this change at some point or will this continue?

 

[nihil]

This will all change come 2016. Some of the changes will be in January, some will be in the fall.

Currently, as a recreational user you can only buy flower, seeds & clones. The flower is limited to 7 grams per day, but there is no centralized database, so you could stop by a few stores a day, but you'd be breaking the law ().

1 ounce is the limit you can have on your person, so next year I suspect you will be able to buy an ounce per day.

You can grow 4 plants per household. Note per household, not per resident.

8 ounces of dried flower is the maximum you can have, again, per household. If you harvest more than that from your 4 plants, Portland PD say to gift away the extra as soon as reasonably possible. In other words, I think they are going to be loose regarding the limits and only go after the big time growers.

Trading with friends? Hard to say. Play it safe and gift them an ounce, wait 5 minutes, they decide to return the favor?

A sales tax will go into effect in January, 19-25% depending on municipality if I understand the law correctly.

Feel free to correct me if I've misstated any of the above.

 

[macbill]

Medical marijuana dispensaries struggle while recreational marijuana takes off

[T]here seems to be a widespread expectation of making millions off Oregon's newly legalized marijuana market. But that gold-rush mentality is part of what's actually leading medical marijuana dispensaries to close faster than ever.

 

[little maggie]

Odd. I was driving across the Burnside bridge and notices a large billboard advertising New Vansterdam. It's the first ad like that I've seen. I wondered if it was a large business unlike most of the neighborhood ones. It turns out it's a Vancouver store. Why would someone drive to Washington now that it's legal here?

To avoid double posting- I didn't know this: In January 2016, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission will take over recreational sales and allow recreational-only retail outlets to open their doors. Sad that so many local shops are not going to make it when the national companies arrive in 2016.

 

[grokit]

The upcoming west coast price wars should be awesome

 

[CarolKing]

I live in Southwest WA and about 6 weeks ago I saw my first cannabis billboard sign. I was looking at the sign and almost ran into the car in front of me. It was advertising $10 grams, I just saw a couple more since then. Here it is, I had to take a pic. I posted this elsewhere on FC, I was so excited.

 

[nihil]

It's only been two weeks and the price wars have begun.

I decided against paying $85-105 per quarter from the place close to work and went back to the neighborhood shop. I was able to pick up a $35 1/8th of some pretty good Galactic Jack and another Kush to be primarily used for my insomnia. The Kush was pricey, but packed nicely in a sealed tin, so no crushed buds and it worked as planned.. Very good stuff.

Lastly, they changed their pricing to match their website, so I'm guessing enough people complained. Good.

I may hit the place close to work tomorrow only because they have that Durban Poison I really want to try out, but I'm seeing it is cheaper across town. If I feel like treating myself I'll spring for it, but logic says wait a few more weeks and pricing is going to come way down. Besides, I'm still experimenting with the 5 strains I've picked up in the last two weeks. Life is good.

 

[CarolKing]

Portland Medical Marijuana Dispensary Issues Public Statement After Being Fined
Posted by Johnny Green at 6:30 AM on October 23, 2015Marijuana Business News


October 1 was a very big day for marijuana consumers and dispensaries in Oregon. October 1 was the first day that dispensaries were allowed to start limited recreational marijuana sales. Many dispensaries held parties to celebrate, and some did promotions. That led to at least one dispensaries receiving a fine due to a ban on promotional giveaways. Per Oregon Live: The state has fined a Portland marijuana dispensary $2,500 for allowing a vendor to give away marijuana concentrates and pre-rolled joints in the parking lot on the opening day of recreational marijuana sales, according to a stipulated settlement order. The

Read More

 

[macbill]

New marijuana rules get tougher on pesticides in Oregon cannabis industry

Starting next year, recreational and medical marijuana sold in Oregon must be screened for nearly 60 pesticides commonly used in cannabis cultivation.

 

[nihil]

@macbill - That looks good but more research (on my end) is needed. We're pretty green down here, so I'm hoping most growers weren't using harsh pesticides in the first place.

Regarding my journey as a recreational user, I think the picture below sums it up better than I could put to paper:

Not pictured is some Dutch Treat and Blue Magoo. The WTF is just a mix of various unknown strains before legalization.

Pricing still varies, but I've been hitting the place close to work for $50-85 quarters. 5 more strains to go and I'll hit my goal of 30 before the year is out.. but I strongly doubt I'll stop there. The other cool thing is that I am not even close to the legal limit of 8 ounces.

I'm also researching Space Buckets to see if I have what it takes to grow a strain or two.

Still ecstatic that this is legal in my state. The 10th is my favorite amendment as of late.

 

[little maggie]

Marijuana home delivery- begins in January
There are now officially more marijuana stores and dispensaries than their are McDonald’s or Starbucks!
Interesting state to be in

 

[macbill]

Oregon collects $3.48 million in revenue from first month of taxed recreational marijuana sales

Oregon collected $3.48 million in taxes from recreational marijuana sales in January, far outpacing estimates and offering the first look at how much pot is moving through the state's newly regulated retail market.

 

[macbill]

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown signs bill giving medical marijuana dispensaries go-ahead to sell edibles, extracts.

It will just allow sale of vape cartridges w/concentrate: not grams.

 

[grokit]

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown signs bill giving medical marijuana dispensaries go-ahead to sell edibles, extracts.

It will just allow sale of vape cartridges w/concentrate: not grams.

"Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday signed a bill that allows anyone 21 and older to purchase marijuana extracts and pot-infused edibles from Oregon dispensaries."

So anyone? No medical recommendation necessary? How would that even work?

What is the point of dispensaries and how will the retailers be able to compete?!?