New York’s cannabis market is popping. Regulated sales are finally surging, nearly three years after the Empire State legalized adult use. With production ramping up and more brands eyeing the East Coast, last week’s Hall of Flowers New York became a proving ground — and plenty of California companies showed up, hoping to spark interest.
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It makes sense — Hall of Flowers (HOF) originated in CA. Still, there was no shortage of New York representation on the show floor. Sampling was limited to license holders, but we still saw, smelled, and sampled plenty. Here are a few of the standouts.
Tarot Tokes
Winning the award for cutest brand at Hall of Flowers NYC is Tarot Tokes. The woman-owned brand exudes witchy energy — each jar of flower is paired with a tarot card archetype meant to reflect its effects. For example, The Empress Blueberry or The Page of Cups Stardust OG. The GreenState team is looking forward to tasting the organically grown bud and communing with the spirits at a future date.
Tokin’ Jew
Another one-of-a-kind cannabis company at HOF was Tokin’ Jew. What started as a popular meme page for yid stoners has come full circle. The company has sold apparel and accessories for some time — think mezuzah pipes and dreidel grinders — before expanding into kosher edibles like Tokin’ Chews and High, Honey. Now, the brand is preparing to launch a line of pre-rolls called Tokin’ Jays online. L’chaim!
Fire Dept.
It’s rare these days to find a cannabis company with both clever branding and quality bud. Not the case with Fire Dept. This fresh NY brand had a busy booth, drawing people in with big turkey bags of bud and an invitation to tag the activation’s back wall. The weed inside the mylar was a tad dry, but still smelled and smoked decently well. While many brands debut with splashy trade show buzz only to fade later, Fire Dept. has real potential.
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Royal Leaf
There were plenty of mason jars on display at Hall of Flowers, but the Royal Leaf booth caught our attention thanks to the large container of extremely pungent rosin next to the bud. It turns out Royal Leaf, the flower brand from Growing Renaissance, is teaming up with California hash darlings Kalya to produce collab jars of premium concentrates. With so few high-quality extracts on the New York market, this partnership had us intrigued. Dab heads on the East Coast will definitely want to snag a gram ASAP.
Olio
Aside from the Royal Leaf x Kalya jars, one of the only other extract booths we stumbled upon was Olio. The Colorado-bred brand is making waves in New York and for good reason. Every jar of rosin smelled better than the one before, and passersby were crowding in for a chance to grab a taste. While we were unable to secure a coveted container of concentrate, the smell alone saw Olio pass with flying colors.
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Electraleaf
Another booth that stayed busy throughout HOF was Electraleaf. With tons of different varieties to explore, it took a long time for us to work through all the jars. The aromas were intoxicating, with the Deep Fried Ice Cream in particular leaving us salivating. We also love a Latino-owned, legacy-to-legal cannabis brand. Smokers in nearby Massachusetts can already find Electraleaf products, and we hope to see them in even more markets soon.
Sherbinskis
Another out-of-state brand promising to do big things in New York is Sherbinskis. Often imitated but rarely duplicated, the California brand behind all-star strains like Gelato and Sunset Sherbert has been highly coveted on the traditional market for years. Sherbinskis is set to launch in New York any day now; while their flower is always hype, their new all-in-one Quattro live resin vaporizer had us more intrigued. Dual+ chambers, which feature multiple oil types in one vape, are trending, and this ultra-high-tech device is sure to raise the bar.
Mfused Super Fog
Speaking of cool vapes, another brand that caught our attention was Super Fog from Mfused. The brand’s bodega-themed booth was buzzing every time we passed by, packed with buyers and content creators. We scoped out the “Fire” line of vaporizers, which are filled with live resin high-terpene extract. The hardware is custom-tuned for performance and can be preheated for smoother draws and fewer clogs. For all the fans of extra flavor in their vapes, this one is for you.
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It’s always exciting to see new markets come into their own. While New York has been legal for a minute, it finally feels like the state is hitting its stride — and fast. We’re eager to watch its continued evolution as it grows into one of the biggest cannabis scenes on the planet.
