Cultivar:

Cherry Lemonade

Who:

Empire Genetics

Lineage:

Amarena de Limon pheno

Market:

Traditional

Aroma:

Cherry Permanent Marker, Pledge, Spearmint Rubber, Grapefruit Push Pop. Vol. 9

Composition:

Midnight purple flower with a sleet of snowy green kief. Humidity is great. Trim could use a little more love, but the flower looks healthy through 25x magnification. Nickel-sized nugs. “C+ Grade”

Palate:

Dry Pull: Cherry Guava Anise

Smoke: Lemon Butane, Citric Acid, Sour Cherry, lingering Ammonia & Shrub. Vol. 7

Vapor: Citrusy Dryer Sheet, Surgical Glove, Sour Fuel, lingering Cheesy Funk. Cookie Dough after the first hit. Vol. 10

Effect:

Well Above-Average Strength – Head slamming high with some upper body muscle relief. Crunchy brain. Heavy eyelids. Slowed thoughts. Some couch-lock symptoms without the weight on your body. Be prepared.

Overall:

Empire Genetics, a powerhouse in the industry, comes out swinging with their offering of the LCG craze that seems to be sweeping the nation. And it makes sense why people crave this profile, because when done right it can be some of the most flavorful flower around. Let’s see how this one stacks up to the competition.

As I cut the seal to the bag there’s an enormous release of sweet stone fruit hits my nose before I even pull the pack open. A lemon floor cleaner erupts as I bring my face into the pack. That Sharpie marker tinge of astringency throughout. Settling down, fresh rubbery spearmint becomes to intertwine with a creamy melted grapefruit push pop on the backend.

Breaking down the bud leaves me with so much kief left on my fingers it looks like a I’ve been playing in a sandbox. That’s not attributed to any kind of crumble that the pheno is known for, as the bud is more fluffy and malleable than expected.

This cut is much more focused on attacking your taste buds with lemon butane and tingling citric acid texture than providing a smooth, black cherry experience. Instead, notes of sour pitted cherry develop before giving way to a wallop of ammonia, like you’ve breathed in some chemical floor cleaner. Lastly, a bitter shrub note lingers with the floor cleaner to cause a very weird sensation.

Vapor experience is what really bumped up the score for me.

The notes I received through my Firefly 2+ at 345° were the most intense I’ve had all year so far. The inhale is slightly herbaceous, but the exhale resolves into a behemoth blast of citrus dryer sheet with a powdery texture coupled with fresh rubber that makes me feel like I’ve bitten into a rubber glove to take it off my hand. Then, slightly sweet and tart fuel develops before finishing into a slightly cheesy funk on the very backend. Subsequent hits bring about a nice cookie dough note before turning into malty popcorn later.

As noted above, the effects were pretty heavy, especially first thing in the morning. I don’t think I’d be able to review this one later at night without feeling like I need to rest, so yeah my day got slightly delayed for a few hours.

Based on my intial impression, for anyone out there looking at Empire Genetics flower on the menu, I definitely suggest you give it a try. Looking forward to seeing what they bring out next.

I bounced back and forth between scores, but ultimately settled where I did because of the fact that this was such a hard-hitting terpy flower that I had to give it a high