In The Magazine
Strain Review: Blue Dream
A sativa-dominant cross between DJ Short’s original Blueberry and Super Silver Haze, Blue Dream is among the most popular strains found on the West Coast today. It’s almost… too popular. It is easily one of the most common strains offered at California pot dispensaries, and every commercial grower seems to be growing lots of it. Blue Dream is pervasive almost to the point of overkill. Buyers at pot shops these days roll their eyes when they see, yet again, another pound of Blue Dream on offer. It is so common, I found a prescription bottle labeled Blue Dream — that still had nugs in it — languishing in the gutter at the corner of Haight and Ashbury. Apparently, even the San Francisco street kids were over it!
But there is a reason why Blue Dream has reached such excessive prevalence. Blue Dream is fast becoming a new favorite among chronnoisseurs. It completely takes over your senses. All you see, smell, taste and feel is Blue Dream. Its bluish-purple hue with frosty sparkles makes it look like it got blasted to Earth from some intergalactic candy land. Its high crystal content delights your sense of touch, teasing your fingers with its resinous stickiness. Its deep, fruity smell is the reason you were born with a nose. For the first several moments, you can focus on little more than, “Holy wha??? Whoa, what’s happening…” But once you adjust to your new altitude, you’ll find Blue Dream to be quite a functional high.
The smell: Fruity blueberry aroma with a subtle hint of haze and vanilla after-scent.
The dry hit: Blueberry pancake flavor with an earthy bottom end, topped with a slight floral quality.
The flavor: Fruity blueberry. (Remember those blue Lucky Charms?) The blueberry flavor gives way to a tinge of menthol in the aftertaste, with strong hints of vanilla and an underlying lavender aroma adding to its complexity. There is a subtle detection of a sort of exotic wood taste that might remind you of Nag Champa or some other highly aromatic incense.
The cloud: Blue Dream has a distinct smell that lingers long after the joint has been smoked and whatever you were just talking about has been completely wiped from your memory. The scent of haze is most apparent in the cloud. If you walk into a room where Blue Dream has just been smoked, you’ll likely recognize it immediately, if the grins of stoned happiness aren’t evidence enough.
The high: Blue Dream delivers instant contentment. Many find Blue Dream to be a great daytime high, suitable for energetic activity. Personally, I prefer to smoke it just before bedtime — when there is nothing else I want to accomplish that day. That’s because on Blue Dream, what once seemed important suddenly becomes quite obviously irrelevant. The things I need to do today suddenly can wait until next month, no problem.
In spite of its high sativa content, Blue Dream usually leaves me completely incapacitated. Not in a bad way. It doesn’t cause couch-lock as much as it simply demands your complete attention, like a jealous, but worthy, lover. Just one toke and all my plans are out the window. I don’t remember what I was doing before the puff and I don’t care. I’m incapable of focusing on anything that isn’t Blue Dream —not because I can’t, but because I just don’t care to do anything that interrupts my experience of such an epic high. Profound thoughts and an inclination toward philosophizing are prominent cerebral effects, as well. After one hour, you are likely to notice a feeling of happy contentment and that you have become quite talkative. If you smoke it alone, you might wish you had other people around to muse with, or maybe you’ll be content to just explore your own mind.
Blue Dream gives good head highs, great for stimulating conversation. But it is balanced with an undeniable body high, giving way to a calm, relaxing effect. Its faint indica lineage is detectable only in the aspect of its occasionally stony high. I find it optimal as an evening high, great for relaxing after a long day. It soothes your muscles and mellows your mind without knocking you out, keeping you alert and present enough to engage in conversation and other mental activity. If you’re battling restlessness, Blue Dream will have you perfectly content just being.
The word: In spite of the fact that it is losing its appeal from a commercial standpoint due to its near-epidemic proliferation, Blue Dream still has all the characteristics of a connoisseur strain that will leave you dreamy-eyed.
Written for issue 8 of Cannabis Now Magazine.