Medical marijuana dispensary review: Grassroots Grown in Denver

Amnesia Haze: $25/eighth
As we've already said, it's not as pretty as indoor, fertilized herb -- that much you can tell by the picture. But solar-powered herb I've had in Jamaica and California over the last few years had similar dull characteristics and still packed a surprising punch. Samples of this I've seen in friends' indoor gardens have much more contrasting colors compared to the dark, jungle camouflage-like greens and tans. Under the scope, the buds were more appealing, with loads of amber-to-dark tan trichomes with huge, fat heads and skinny stems scattered throughout the bud. Broken down for a bowl pack, the herb let out a piney sweetness with a faintly noticeable musky haze. The taste wasn't much different. Nothing exciting or eyebrow-lifting, just sweet, nondescript ganja taste on the inhale and exhale. Medically, it was mildly potent with a heavy narcotic feeling through the first 45 minutes. For $25, this Colorado-grown outdoor bud wasn't terrible to have around; it's just not what I would normally have in my jars. But I would love to see what a fall harvest of Amnesia looks like.

Cough: $25/eighth
Cough is one of the few Colorado-based strain known for being grown outdoors. In fact, one of the legends of how this strain got its name comes from its extremely long flowering time -- sometimes as long as three months. (That meant in years when Mother Nature didn't cooperate, it had to be brought down early without enough time to flush.) The other origin story? The amazingly rich and pungent haze characteristics caused a lot of people to go into coughing fits. I know I've been there myself a few times. But it's a very unique, distinct strain either way. The round, marble-like buds on my purchase were thin but still fully developed and coated in small, dark trichomes. In the shop, the buds together had a distinct mild haziness to them, but after a few days in the baggie, the sample buds I brought home lost a lot of their smell. Giving the buds a pinch brought out some of the rich scent, but it was nowhere near as impressive as it should have been. Same goes for the flavor, which was less than memorable for what is normally a very robust, thick smoke. Having seen great outdoor Cough over the years, this sample didn't stack up aesthetically. But it did pack a Cough-like punch that left my mind foggy and my stomach grumbling for food, and it burned down clean and smooth in a clean pipe, a spliff and the bubbler.

OG Kush: $25/eighth
Some of the best looking buds in the store, though I could tell from my first sniff of the jar that looks were pretty much all they had going for them. No smell, really, and marginally wet, the buds could have used some TLC over the last few months before hitting the shelf in terms of drying and curing. Too much moisture left the buds with a moldy stink that didn't belong -- a shame considering how well-developed the flowers were. I didn't see anything odd on my scope of the bud, but sometimes the nose knows what the rest of the body doesn't. After a few days drying in a kief box, the buds dried to a smokable consistency and if I tried hard enough to convince myself it was there, I could detect some mild, rubbery Kushiness to the flavor. Medically, the strain behaved like a lot of OGs, giving me an enjoyably euphoric head buzz with moderate pain relief on the side.

William Breathes is the pot pen name for Westword's medical marijuana dispensary critic. Read back on two-plus years of his reviews in our Mile Highs and Lows blog and keep up with all your marijuana news over at The Latest Word.