Cannabis in NorCal


“We think it’s our duty to welcome new consumers


to cannabis.” –Edwards


Sonoma County Edwards


fun—and we get better at it,” says Casey. “It’s pretty magical.” The institute, which is today just a


cluster of dark, echoey buildings with dirt floors, will come alive with important tasks such as licensing, processing, testing and distributing, along with educational classes and events under one (rather large) roof. “Cannabis has had a bad rep for so long,”


says Steinmetz. “The idea here is that people are engaged in safe consumption in a fun environment while they learn about the plant.” He envisions visitors enjoying yoga classes, live bands and cold-brew coffee or cannabis-laced wood-fired pizza served by staff in Prohibition-era garb. Meanwhile, two hours away in Sonoma,


says Steinmetz, who, after a stint as a NASA engineer, started a food-distribution company. Working closely with the land, Steinmetz saw the ways that mono- cropping—which typically requires chemical fertilizers to encourage plant growth—can weaken the soil and encourage pests. More than 50 local farmers were drawn to


his idea and have joined the co-op, including second-generation farmer Casey O’Neill and his wife, Amber. The couple, who have been part of Flow Kana since its inception in 2014, grows broccoli, garlic, squash, tomatoes and peppers for their HappyDay Farms CSA vegetable subscription service. They also grow indica-dominant cannabis hybrids such as OG Strawberry and Lemon Ogre. Indica is known for producing a physical “body high” that is great for relaxation and meditation and is often used to treat anxiety, chronic pain


Time Out San Francisco July 26–October 10, 2017 Steinmetz


and sleep disorders. Joining the Flow Kana cooperation gave the O’Neills the chance to focus solely on cultivating highly medicinal craft marijuana in the ground, under the sun and without the use of pesticides. “Every year, growing cannabis gets more


28


Sam Edwards shares the dream of mainstreaming the marijuana lifestyle. The 30-year-old former civil engineer and Santa Rosa native is the cofounder of the Sonoma Cannabis Company (sonomacannabisco .com), which operates six small cultivation sites in the county. His goals are quite similar to Steinmetz’s: Creating Wine Country–style experiences for the cannabis crowd with art- filled designer tasting rooms, Michelin-star– quality food and wineries that offer vineyard hikes, yoga classes and gourmet picnics. A longtime scholar of the plant, Edwards has been cultivating since he was 23 and even devised a method to harvest a 98-percent pure THCA (a highly potent concentration of cannabis in crystal form), a feat honored at the 2013 High Times Cannabis Cup. Still, the stoner scientist doesn’t apply his achievements to his current work. The company’s flagship brand, Aya,


PHOTOGRAPHS: TOP LEFT, CENTER LEFT: RYAN YOUNG, BOTTOM CENTER: COURTESY FLOW KANA


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