Review: Berggren Botanical Wellness Hemp/CBD Granola Bar

While attending the Oaksterdam Graduation this year I happened to wind up with a CBD Granola Bar sample from Berggren Botanical Wellness, It was a good sized sample, about 1 1/2″ x 1 1/2″ x 3/4″, wrapped in wax paper, and sealed in plastic with a printed label.

The texture is a combination of crunchy and chewy, with an emphasis on the chewy. My advice would be to nibble on it slowly to enjoy the variety of flavors hidden within. The bite is hearty, and intensely but pleasantly flavored. In true tradition of traveling foods, I can see this being a handy snack to tide one over until the next regular meal.

I had the pleasure of speaking with a gentleman from the company, although to be fair it was when the graduation ceremony had become a graduation party, and I was a bit more mellow than I would normally be. I do remember talking about there not being peanuts in it due to allergy concerns, but best bet would be to contact them directly with any ingredient questions.

It is a CBD edible which has cbd liquid, although I would say it would make a good THC infused recipe as well. I think the strong flavor and filling nature would lend itself well to not overindulging, something that can be an issue with other edibles of the same caliber where they would be a taste treat even if not infused. I’ve overdone it on chocolates and gummy bears where after the first few the munchies kicked in and I continued eating them for the pleasure of eating them. With this granola bar (and nibbling at it) I found it to be much more a gourmet granola bar experience than an edible centric one.

Although I haven’t yet had the chance to try it yet, I also received a limoncello CBD bath bomb. I have every reason to believe it will be a nice experience though, since who doesn’t like the occasional indulgence in the bath.

Clay Pipe

Clay pipes these days are somewhat of a rarity, with glass being the material of choice for many. However, once upon a time clay was one of the more popular materials for pipes, so I thought in the spirit of tradition I’d make a couple, besides, I had some leftover clay and used my glassmaking kiln.

Before firing.

The above is the formed pipe before firing. I used a combination of white and black clays, although the colors are much sharper after firing. I used a bamboo skewer in a plastic straw to build the pipe around to make the hole through the stem. The skewer adds stability as an armature, but in and the straw can be slid out before firing (although if the straw gets stuck, there won’t be much trace of it after firing).

After forming, the clay must be allowed to completely dry or escaping steam may fracture the piece. It must be dried slowly or the difference in the outer and inner shrinkage can also create cracking.

After firing the colors are more obvious. This was fired at slightly over 2,000 F.

eGo C E-cig – First looks

I just received an eGo C electronic vaporizer. So far so good, but time will tell.

eGo C

Since this is a tank type unit that is refilled with the vaporizing liquid. The flavors I’m starting with to try are lemon, cola, Pepsi, Marlboro, tutti fruity, and whiskey.

Okay, so this is another attempt at quitting (or at least cutting way back on) tobacco smoking. I’ve tried pills, gum, patches, hypnosis and a couple things I’m sure I’ve forgotten about. On a previous attempt I tried a pen style vaporizer from Vapor4Life. That style used cartridges called “cartomizers”, which worked well with the prepackaged units, but refilling them was on par with refilling a cigarette lighter by soaking the cotton, an activity I’ve never been all that fond of. I seem to either underfill and am disappointed in how quickly it runs out, or overfill and make a mess.

eGo C

With the eGo C, the heating element is replaceable, and liquid it used to refill the “tanks”.

eGo C

The eGo C kit I received contained 2 complete vape pens, a USB charger with wall socket adapter, 3 extra tanks, and 3 extra heating elements. It also came with a manual and cloth case, neither of which seem particularly useful. I found much more useful information online.

eGo C

The assembled unit is small enough to be carried, although it is much larger than the original more cigarette form factor I’d tried before.

eGo C

I also picked up an extended tank, which holds more than the standard tank.

The eGo C is comprised of a battery, heating element, barrel, and tank. They have their own jargon for the different pieces, but that’s the gist of it.

To use, once charged and assembled, press the button for a second or so, then take a 3-5 second drag on the mouthpiece. It isn’t bad, not like a real cigarette, but at least it incorporates a lot of similar activities. I’m using fluids with nicotine in them, so I’m still intaking nicotine, what I’m trying to do is shift how I’m getting it.

I’ve tried the lemon, cola, and tutti fruity so far. Out of the three, I like the tutti fruity the best, the lemon isn’t bad, and the cola has an odd perfume like quality to it.

It is too early to tell how well I like the eGo C, although so far it seems to be working as intended. The real question is going to be if I use it enough to get my money’s worth out of it, and if it helps me curb my desire for tobacco cigarette use.

Wish me luck!