Since they hit the scene about three decades ago, cannabis consumers have loved concentrates—and it’s not just because of their high potency. While it’s true these extracts offer the most THC gram-per-gram, they’re also frequently hailed as the most flavorful way to enjoy cannabis—especially through live rosin and live resin.
Why? Both products have gained prominent positions in the cannabis market for their abundance of aromatic terpenes, which can make your dabs super fresh and tasty. But just because these concentrates smell and sound similar doesn’t mean they offer the same experience.
There are benefits and drawbacks to choosing between live resin and live rosin, so you should carefully evaluate the contrasting points for each. With a better understanding of them, you can confidently choose the perfect product for your body and needs.
What Is Live Resin?
Live resin is a syrupy cannabis extract made from flash-frozen cannabis flowers that are put through a solvent-based extraction process. Often, these concentrates are considered the highest of high-end “butane hash oils” (BHOs). These concentrates are made by using butane to strip away the cannabinoids and terpenes from the plant material before using the resulting extract to create live resin.
What sets live resin apart from other BHOs is the fact that it uses flash-frozen cannabis rather than dried and cured flowers as its starting medium. Why is this such a big deal? By freezing cannabis immediately after harvest, extractors lock in more aromatic terpenes than they’d otherwise lose due to oxidation and temperature fluctuations. Therefore, live resin tends to have higher concentrations of terpenes versus most other cannabis concentrates, giving it a richer and fresher flavor profile.
What Is Live Rosin?
Just like making live resin, the process of manufacturing live rosin starts with fresh, flash-frozen cannabis flowers that contain higher-than-average concentrations of terpenes. However, live rosin extractors avoid using solvents in their extraction process—one common selling point for live rosin is that it’s a completely “solventless” concentrate.
Instead of compounds like butane, CO2, or propane, extractors rely on heat and pressure to squeeze out their terpene-rich live rosin concentrate. Typically, lab reports reveal live rosin has the highest amount of terpenes for any concentrate, making it the premier choice for flavor chasers.
Check out our full guide to live rosin.
Live Resin vs Live Rosin: Key Differences and Characteristics
To better appreciate all the ways live resin differs from live rosin, we’ll examine specific categories and explain what each concentrate offers.
Manufacturing Process
Both types of concentrate use flash-frozen cannabis flowers as their starting medium, but live resin utilizes solvents like butane, while live rosin places bubble hash through specialized machines, using only heat and pressure in its production.
Texture and Appearance
Typically, live resin has a runny, saucy, or syrupy texture with a glossy and transparent appearance. By contrast, live rosin is often packed thicker with a doughy or crumbly consistency and a more opaque finish.
Terpene Content
Both live rosin and live resin have higher concentrations of terpenes versus other cannabis concentrates, but live rosin often takes the cake for its extreme terpene levels. Remember that the starting material’s quality (i.e., the cannabis flowers) usually dictates the final terpene percentages, so always double-check official third-party lab results for live rosin and live resin products to get a clear read of these levels.
Uses
Live resin and live rosin are most commonly associated with dabbing, but they’re also used as flavor and potency enhancers with flower in consumption methods like joints and blunts. You can also add both concentrates to a freshly packed bowl that’s ready to smoke on a bong or a pipe.
Many dab pens or concentrate-friendly vaporizers make it easier for dabbers to experience live rosin or live resin without blow-torching a dab rig. Today, you can even find dry herb vaporizers that are also compatible with extracts.
Average Cost
Live rosin typically commands a premium in the concentrate market due to its non-negotiable solventless extraction process. The extra labor, time, and skill required to make solventless extracts reach the final price tag. Plus, solventless extraction makes it harder to produce massive batches of live rosin versus live resin, which translates to a lower overall supply and a higher price per gram.
Shop Premium Live Resin and Live Rosin at Exclusive
Live resin and live rosin are phenomenal choices for those who appreciate the nuanced flavors of cannabis, and they can both be excellent additions to any dab setup or potent stash box. At Exclusive, we source only the best Michigan-grown cannabis and fresh concentrates, and our shelves are always stocked with plenty of terpene-rich extracts and other premium products.
Stop by the Exclusive dispensary closest to you, or check out our online menus for a huge selection of quality live resin and live rosin from the state’s top brands.
Have more questions about cannabis concentrates or searching for more answers? Ask any of our friendly budtenders or drop us a line. We’re always here to help.
