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The Legend & the List: Fantastic OGs & Where to Find Them

Northern Emeralds' Titan OG — Photo The Third Eye Agency

Cannabis

The Legend & the List: Fantastic OGs & Where to Find Them

We’ve gathered the available information on its hazy genesis and provided a list of some standout OG Kush phenotypes.

OG Kush is a legendary expression of the Kush family of cannabis strains. Like most strains from the days of full prohibition, there’s some uncertainty surrounding its origins, but what’s absolutely certain is that this cornerstone of California cannabis remains a regional and national favorite.

We’re a month into 2017 and it’s even wackier than one could have possibly predicted. But despite the pains and gains of the transition into the new year, OG Kush is still some of the most bangin’ weed ever.

Since it first appeared on the shores of southern California in the mid 1990s, OG Kush had been a mainstay of what is considered “top shelf cannabis.” Few strains have ever been so synonymous with quality; it’s almost uncanny the way the words “good OG” can muster powerful thoughts of the aroma of pine, citrus, and gasoline. Getting that trifecta in a good balance as you open a jar is the epitome of how an amazing OG Kush experience should start in this day and age.

THE LEGEND:

The two most prominent stories about the birth of OG Kush feature Chemdawg as either a bag seed or mom. One of those stories was best told by Kailua Kid of Sierra Seed Company.

According to our research Kailua Kid would be about 66 years old today — we were unable to contact him to dive deeper into his story, but this is it:

In late ’93 John from Grass Valley Ca. got the Chem Dog cut. He shared it with me, Jerry (cowboy) from Dibble Creek Ca. and Harold (Putz) from Sunset Beach Ca.

Putz had a male he called the secret ingredient. It was a cross of Lemon Thai and an Old World Paki Kush. Putz bred the secret ingredient to the Chem Dog. The buds that came out of this cross were going around So. L.A. county in ’95. Someone told Putz that Kush must be so good because it was mountain grown. Putz laughed and told him “this Kush is Ocean Grown Kush bro”.

The tag stuck and it became known as OG Kush. In the spring of ’96 Putz married a girl from New Zealand. Before moving there he sent cuts of his OG to me and Bob (beans) in Salinas Ca. He gave all his P1 stock and all the remaining seed he had to Mike(mad dog) from Downey Ca.

In late ’96 Mike sold some seed to some guys in the Valley. That’s where the San Fernando Valley cut of OG comes from. It’s like the original only more set in phenotype. Mike sold a cut of the original to a guy in Orange county and that cut is called Larry today. It’s still around Orange county. Mike sent one other cut of the original OG to a breeder in Europe.

As far as I know he never let anyone else have it.

Of course many people say this is bullshit. But 20 years ago in cannabis breeding might as well be pre-Phoenician in many cases. What’s for sure is that OG has definitely stood the test of time, and there was a lot of it.

One problem that came with OG’s fame was an immediate wave of imitators that wanted to cash in on the popularity. This led to various mediocre Chemdawg efforts being passed off as authentic genetics. History has mostly weeded out the imitators over the last 20 years though, so what we call the best OGs today are still on par with the best cannabis in the world.

Here is a list of some particular phenotypes that are making waves right now and we expect to be very popular throughout the rest of 2017.

THE LIST:

Lemon Fuel OG – This popular limonene-laced variation on OG made big waves in California’s most elite circles of heads. While good OGs are traditionally heavy hitters, Lemon Fuel stands out for the extra cerebral kick. The story of Lemon Fuel is pretty straight forward:over a decade ago, Ted and Tyler from Alien Labs went OG hunting in LA (because obviously that’s where you go to get good OG) and returned to Northern California with cuts that would include the Lemon Fuel.

“We named it lemon fuel because of the extracts,” Ted said.

They brought their variation to SoCal where the OG pros told them it reminded them of great lost cuts from way back. Keep an eye out at Greenwolf LA for Lemon Fuel in SoCal and in the Bay it’s more widely available. Because Ted said, “we’re bringing it back in NorCal.”

Paris OG – SoCal is Kush Country, and it takes a killer cut to stay ahead of the pack. While the marketing savvy of Doctor K is also obvious, the genetics and cultivation quality have seen this strain make big waves in arguably the world’s most competitive OG Kush market. You can find Paris OG via various California collectives and delivery services.

Tahoe OG – A long time favorite from Swerve and the Cali Connection crew, proper propagation projects over the years have produced some Tahoe phenos that respectable pot folks consider their definitive representation of what OG Kush should be at the top shelf level. Generally speaking, it’s not as widely available as it was five years ago, but still a banger you have to keep an eye out for.

Titan OG – This OG from Northern Emeralds is a rockstar version of the strain. They keep the exact genetics close to the chest, but rest assured, it’s awesome. You’ll be able to read our full write up on Northern Emeralds later this spring in Cannabis Now Magazine. If you want to smoke some now, you can check the menus at Urban Pharm in San Francisco or Northstar Holistic Collective in Sacramento.

Night Terror OG – From the always great genetic library of Rare Dankness, Night Terror of is an on point combination of their house OG Kush cut and Blue Dream. The blend offers a more balanced high than your standard OG experience. We highly recommend grabbing some next time you’re in Colorado, and while there you might as well grab the StarKiller OG too.

TELL US, what’s your favorite OG Kush pheno?

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