Oct 2, 2013
This month's incredibly special episode of the Web's Favourite Cannabis Podcast comes live from the third Dopefiend Cup, where the UK's cannabis growing and breeding elite gather to select this year's winner of the title of the UK's best producer of herbal cannabis. In a secret location high above the beautiful city of London, the Dopefiend hosts this year's festivities, where ten strains of UK-grown cannabis go head to head in blind judging. After introducing the two-man judging panel, made up of convicted cannabis grower and author of Cannabis Cultivation Mel Thomas, and California-based DopeTriber and expert medical grower Syconot, the Dopefiend talks to co-commentator the Gremlin of Ganja, competition entrant Hatchy, who has submitted his tasty Shoreline, and fellow entrant Weeshug, who has submitted his Holy Grail Kush. As the judges continue to sample the competing strains, awarding each strain points based on flavour and effect, the Dopefiend talks to spectator SycoNut, before we break away from the proceedings at the UK's only growers' and breeders' competition to return to the ongoing adventures of the Dopefiend and MangledMe on their USA tour. We join the pair as they cross the border from Colorado into Arizona, leaving safe territory for cannabis users for the first time on their epic cross-country drive. The Dopefiend talks about their earlier visit to a Durango, Colorado headshop, before being distracted by the weird visual effect caused by clouds of dust rolling across the seemingly endless road ahead of them. Skipping ahead to the next day, after a night's sleep in a motel in Paige, Arizona, we join the Dopefiend and MangledMe as their chaotic exit from the motel almost resulted in the loss of the essential Arizer Solo and accompanying package of high-grade (and highly illegal in Arizona) cannabis! As they depart from Paige, the Dopefiend talks about the astonishing scenery, the looming red rock cliffs and the imposing desert surrounding them, their journey from Antelope Canyon through Utah, Nevada, and now approaching the border with California, including a near-miss with the local police, all while loading up some Cindy 99 for a wake and bake. Returning to the scene of the Dopefiend Cup, the Dopefiend catches up with the judges, who are now deliberating on strain G, and give their opinion on the last four strains sampled. Syconot, the Dopefiend, and the Gremlin also give their thoughts on the new VapeXhale Cloud EVO vaporizer, which has been standing up to some serious usage at the judging session. Following a musical interlude from the DopeTribe's very own Esse B, the Dopefiend chats to competition entrant The Cannabis Geek, and gives him a chance to taste the supreme flavour produced by the VapeXhale Cloud EVO, while talking about his growing experience. Next, the Dopefiend talks to last year's winner topmonkeyboy, who is re-entering his award-winning Cloud 9, to Hatchy, who is nervously toking on his own Northern Lights as he watches the judges do their job, and to Blank Steve, who is hoping to improve on his disappointing score from last year's competition. As word reaches the Dopefiend that the judging has been concluded, he heads back over to the judge's corner, where there's a buzz circulating about the last strain in the judging, strain J, which has piqued the interest of Esse B, and impresses the Dopefiend as well as he takes a sneaky hit of it to see what the fuss is all about. As the blinds are lifted and the revelation of the winner is prepared, we take another break to catch up with the Dopefiend and MangledMe as they hit Death Valley and a super-surreal mushroom experience. Having pulled up to an unexpectedly incongruous frontiertown resort and taken a room, they immediately eat a strong dose of mushrooms and head off into the pitch black desert, where the wind, loaded with sand, soon makes speech impossible. After a very heady peak, the intrepid journiers manage to make it back to their hotel room safely. The next morning, the Dopefiend ventures to the hotel office to check out, before packing up the car and setting off on the road again, while discussing the previous night's adventures, including a visitation from a native american presence, a bat swarm, and a night-time nosfest. Finally, the Dopefiend and MangledMe are stunned by the breathtaking scenery and 121 Fahrenheit at Zabriskie Point, still deep in Death Valley, before continuing northwards through California. Back at the Dopefiend Cup 2013, the Dopefiend catches up with cup entrant Rustle Dust, as he calms his nerves with a hit of some of fellow competitor Kem Osiris's homemade oil, before chatting to spectator Mog Mog, who is sounding considerably mellow after an afternoon tasting the judges' leftovers. Finally the Dopefiend reads out the winners in reverse order, getting comments from the entrants and judges as the scores are announced, and finally crowning this year's Dopefiend Cup winning grower and presenting him with a brand new VapeXhale Cloud EVO! Huge thanks to all who entered and to everybody involved in this year's Dopefiend Cup. Special thanks to judges Mel Thomas and Syconot, and to Esse B and Mog Mog for their help in organizing this year's event. Don't miss next week's Dopecast, in which the Dopefiend and MangledMe journey through California, meeting Syconot and SycoNut en route, and finally arriving in San Francisco and taking a stoney tour of their final destination city. Email mail@dopefiend.co.uk, send us a voicemail, follow @dopefiend and the new Virtual VaporLounge on twitter, and check out the forum.
Download this episode here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/dopecast/Dopecast356.mp3
Hear more about Esse B's forthcoming album, Essential Beats at www.djesseb.com
Keep up with The Cannabis Geek's movements at www.thecannabisgeek.com
Playlist: Esse B featuring Krymson Wyte - Damage
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