Laws around the US - most recently in Hawaii - are cropping up that allow THC in beverages, a move that some experts say will have mixed benefits for those seeking an alternative to alcohol.
It’s part of a growing trend of policies that make THC drinks available, often where alcohol is sold. About a year ago, Minnesota passed a law allowing THC drinks to be sold in liquor stores; ever since, these beverages have begun to appear on shelves around the country.
A loophole in a 2018 farm bill removed federal restrictions on products derived from hemp with low levels of delta-9 THC.
Texas has allowed businesses, including bars and liquor stores, to apply for licenses to sell hemp products since 2019, but some liquor store chains did not take advantage of the rule until this year.
Connecticut passed a law in May that restricted the sale of THC beverages to licensed liquor stores and dispensaries. Many states do not have laws that specifically regulate the sale of THC beverages, and chains, like Total Wine & More, have recently started selling them around the country, given that they are not expressly forbidden.
Alcohol alternatives have become increasingly popular in recent years. As THC drinks become available around the world, it’s an open question whether customers will really see them as a long-term replacement for alcohol instead of a novelty.
Meenakshi Subbaraman, a biostatistician at the Public Health Institute at the University of California, Berkeley, has studied whether people with alcohol dependence can effectively use cannabis as a medication to reduce problematic alcohol consumption. She found that cannabis fully or partially meets six of the seven requirements for an effective substitute medication.
But whether THC drinks can functionally replace the social experience of alcohol is a different question.
Subbaraman says people are more likely to successfully replace alcohol with cannabis if they have a specific motivation for doing so – like using it to help with pain or sleep, or to intentionally cut down their alcohol intake.
“I think there are certain circumstances or situations in which cannabis can serve as an effective substitute,” she said, before adding: “If you’re going out, looking for a certain kind of intoxication that’s more stimulating, then cannabis isn’t the correct substitute.”
Still, THC beverage companies are angling to steer customers away from alcohol and towards their drinks. A recent poll shows there are more US adults who use cannabis daily than those who drink alcohol that often.
“I think the culture is ready for an alternative,” says Aaron Nosbisch, founder of Brez, a hemp-derived beverage company.
Nosbisch says when he first tried THC-infused seltzers, he found them too relaxing to replace alcohol. In an attempt to solve this problem, Nosbisch added lion’s mane extract to his Brez beverages, because it reportedly enhances energy and focus. Clinical research regarding the mushrooms in humans is limited.
Cannabis beverages also lack the immediate effect of alcohol. In some cases, it can take more than an hour for their effects to be noticed. THC beverage manufacturers have been developing nanoemulsion technology to speed up the process.
Removing the taste of cannabis is another challenge.
Cynthia Salarizadeh is the founder of House of Saka, which makes THC-infused beverages from wine. She says it’s an “incredibly expensive” business, “because we have to not only buy the wine but then turn around and remove all the alcohol from it”.
Then they had to formulate it to taste good with a cannabis emulsification.
“This is what happens with all wine, by the way. You sit down with the formulator and you start to add back in different flavors and tannins to bring it to where it should be,” she said.
Alcohol and cannabis also share some of the same problems; most notably, it’s dangerous to drive under the influence of either. As more cities around the country begin allowing cannabis consumption lounges, intoxicated driving could be a growing challenge for the industry.
The Artist Tree has two cannabis consumption lounges in southern California. Staffers deal with some of the headaches that come with running a bar, according to the dispensary’s co-founder Lauren Fontein. They will cut customers off if they look like they have had too much and sometimes help them arrange a ride home. They also keep a product called Undoo on hand, which is intended to sober people up.
But, Fontein says she contends with more restrictions than either bars or purveyors of hemp-derived THC beverages. Lounges must close by 10pm sharp to comply with California law.
The Artist Tree is a licensed adult recreational dispensary, and therefore must comply with more restrictions and pay higher taxes than competitors selling hemp-based drinks. The California governor, Gavin Newsom, issued an emergency ban on all intoxicating hemp products due to reported negative effects, but it has not been consistently enforced.
Another barrier for customers who might want to replace alcohol with cannabis is the price. A six-pack of THC drinks typically costs $30 or more, so it’s hard to imagine they will be a go-to for tailgates anytime soon.
