CBDLifestyleStrains & products

Looking for CBD in CA? Here Are 5 Options We Love

Published on August 17, 2018 · Last updated July 28, 2020
CARE_BY_DESIGN_VAPE Elise McDonough for Leafly
Elise McDonough for Leafly

The hot new health trend that’s sweeping the nation, CBD is a chemical component of cannabis that provides relief and calmness without inebriation. Look around, and CBD is seemingly everywhere in California—spas, restaurants, hip LA juice bars, and nationwide grocery store chains, where it could be found in chocolate bars, coffee, cookies and candies—until recently.

The products being sold in mainstream stores and through the mail contain CBD derived from hemp plants, a loophole that producers believed made these items legal to sell.

Find Legal CBD Near You

But the California Department of Public Health smacked down the hemp-derived CBD foods industry in early July, stating unequivocally that “CBD derived from industrial hemp is NOT approved for human and animal consumption by the FDA.”

However, CBD derived from cannabis plants is OK to add to edibles, since edibles aren’t considered “food.”

So, when looking for quality CBD, start your search at a local dispensary, where, in California anyway, you can be assured that products are rigorously tested for purity and potency. Select from a variety of delivery methods including vape carts, capsules, edibles, tinctures and flowers, guaranteed to keep you relaxed and worry free.

Care by Design

CARE_BY_DESIGN_VAPE Elise McDonough for Leafly

(Courtesy of Project CBD)

Places to Find It:Caliva in San Jose, Purple Star MD in San Francisco, The Green Door in San Francisco, 7 Stars Holistic Healing in Richmond, Berkeley Patient’s Group in Berkeley

The brainchild of journalist Martin Lee, longtime cannabis activists at Project CBD, and co-founders at cannabis conglomerate Cannacraft, Care by Design was one of the first companies to create a wide range of consistent, reliable products containing varying ratios of CBD to THC. Available in an array of delivery formats including vape cartridges, capsules, tinctures, topicals and edibles, Care by Design products can be found at hundreds of licensed California dispensaries.

Prana CBD Capsules

PRANA_TINCTURE Elise McDonough for Leafly

(Courtesy of Prana)

Places to Find It:Barbary Coast in San Francisco, Harborside in San Jose, 7 Stars Holistic Healing in Richmond

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These “biomedicinal products” from Prana utilize raw cannabinoids in their acidic forms, making non-inebriating options for patients that are new to cannabinoid therapies. With a range of formulations intended for daytime and nighttime use, Prana is taking advantage of the versatile abilities of cannabinoids to provide relief, delivered in the forms of tinctures, capsules, and sublinguals. Prana P2 capsules contain a 3:1 CBD to THC blend of CBD-rich strains including ACDC, Harlequin, Penny Wise, Sour Tsunami in both non-psychoactive and active formulations.

Satori Chocolates

Serving up bite-size morsels of CBD-rich chocolate covered caramel almonds and dried wild strawberries, Satori delivers a snack that you can munch on throughout the day to maintain a consistent, low dose of cannabinoids. | Elise McDonough for Leafly

(Courtesy of Satori)

Places to Find It:Harvest Off Mission in San Francisco, The Green Door in San Francisco, Berkeley Patient’s Group in Berkeley

Serving up bite-size morsels of CBD-rich chocolate covered caramel almonds and dried wild strawberries, Satori delivers a snack that you can munch on throughout the day to maintain a consistent, low dose of cannabinoids. Each piece contains about 6 milligrams of CBD and .6 mg of THC, with 24 pieces per package. Another subsidiary of Cannacraft, Satori is widely available throughout California, so add these CBD-rich chocolates to your shopping list before your next dispensary visit!

Plus CBD Gummies

Plus gummies Elise McDonough for Leafly

(Courtesy of Plus)

Places to Find It: Caliva in San Jose, Purple Star MD in San Francisco, Bloom Room in San Francisco

With 5 milligrams of CBD per gummy, these tasty treats from Plus are made with real beef gelatin for slow absorption and long-lasting relief. Made with 99.9% pure CBD isolate, the Pineapple & Coconut gummies arrive in a lovely tin, perfect for slipping into a purse for busy people on the move. Plus also makes limited-edition seasonal flavors, as well as a Blackberry & Lemon gummy with 9:1 THC to CBD ratio for those who’d like to try a low dose as an introduction to psychoactive effects.

Flow Kana CBD-Rich Flowers

Flow Kana Elise McDonough for Leafly

(Courtesy of Flow Kana)

Places to Find It:Barbary Coast in San Francisco, Santa Cruz Naturals in Aptos, 7 Stars Holistic Healing in Richmond

Sustainable, sungrown cannabis flowers and prerolls with high CBD content can be found through Flow Kana, a company dedicated to helping small farmers market their crops while preserving eco-friendly supply chains. Look for strains such as Rose Queen, Harmony Rose, and Queen of Hearts, all with CBD content measuring from 6% to 15%. High-CBD strains are ideal for new users, or for people returning to smoking after abstaining for many years.

Edibles, Gummies, Tinctures, oh my! Find Nearby

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Elise McDonough
Elise McDonough
Elise McDonough is a cannabis edibles expert and author of the Bong Appétit cookbook and The Official High Times Cannabis Cookbook, and Leafly's Product Specialist for Northern California. A veteran of the cannabis industry since 2002, McDonough has sampled over 500 edibles as a judge for the Cannabis Cup.
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