Vaping your herbs isn’t just better than smoking because it’s cleaner and doesn’t deposit tar in your lungs. Those are certainly great benefits – but if you ask us, the real magic of vaping is that you get to have double the fun! If you’re not sure what we’re talking about, prepare yourself because “ABV” is about to become one of your favorite terms.

ABV Means You Can Use the Same Herbs Twice!

ABV is short for “already been vaped.” If you’ve been opening your vaporizer after each session and dumping your used herbs in the trash, you’ve been missing out because those used herbs still have plenty of useful compounds in them. Put enough ABV herbs together, and you’ll have an experience that’s just as potent – and much longer lasting – than the experience you get from vaping fresh herbs.

The best part is that when you use a temperature-controlled vaporizer, you can actually control what’s in your used herbs to some extent. While THC vaporizes at about 315 degrees Fahrenheit, THC-V vaporizes at 428 degrees. If you vape at a lower temperature, there will still be plenty of good stuff left in your used herbs! Even if you prefer vaping at higher temperatures, though, you will still experience something when you use your ABV herbs because no vaping temperature consumes the herbs fully. ABV herbs are already decarboxylated from the heat of your vaporizer’s oven, and they’re ready to use just as they are. The list of things that you can do with your ABV bud is just about endless. You can simply eat them as they are. In this article, though, we’re going to provide some ABV weed uses that are a bit more interesting. Starting today, don’t ever throw your herbs away after vaping again. Instead, save those toasty nuggets of goodness for a rainy day; you’ll thank us later.

How to Store ABV Herbs

One of the fun things about ABV herbs is that when you use them, you generally don’t have to worry about any serious food safety concerns because you’ve already cooked your herbs at hundreds of degrees for several minutes. By the time you’re ready to empty your vaporizer, any microbes that might have been present on the herbs should be very dead.

It’s possible that you might need to save your used herbs for a while before you’ll have a usable amount, though, so proper storage is a must. Store your ABV herbs in a clean glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. To prevent the active compounds in the herbs from degrading before you’re ready to use them, keep the jar in a cool place where it’ll be protected from sunlight. Open the jar only when you’re adding more herbs. Remember that since the herbs have been ground to maximize their surface area, oxidation can happen quickly if you aren’t careful.

Start Slowly when Consuming ABV Edibles

If you’ve never made edible products from your herbs before, start slowly when you try eating ABV flower for the first time. While vaping causes the beneficial compounds in your herbs to enter your bloodstream almost instantly, it takes your body much longer to metabolize those compounds when you eat them. When you eat ABV herbs, it’ll be up to about 90 minutes before you’ll begin to feel the effects – and the effects may last for several hours. Start with a small amount and allow plenty of time to gauge how you feel before you consume more.

Another thing to consider with ABV edibles is that when you eat the herbs as they are instead of making an infusion or tincture, you’re consuming a pretty significant amount of plant roughage that may include ground-up stems and other things you wouldn’t normally eat. This is another reason to start slowly — you might get an upset stomach if you overconsume.

Just Eat Them

Here’s the simplest thing that you can possibly do with your ABV herbs — you can just eat them! Save your used herbs in a jar for some day in the future when you’re tapped out. When you’re ready to use them, send them down the hatch and chase them with a tasty beverage. You can also sprinkle the herbs on food, which is a subject we’ll discuss next.

ABV herbs aren’t the tastiest things in the world, and people often like to use them in ways that mask the flavor. If you don’t feel like doing the work, though, there’s nothing stopping you from eating them as they are.

ABV Firecrackers

If you want to, you can experience all the benefits of ABV bud by simply eating it plain. If you do, though, you’ll notice something: ABV herbs don’t taste very good. Some people compare the flavor to that of burned popcorn. Many ABV herb uses, therefore, focus on doing something to alter or cover the flavor – and that’s the reason why ABV firecrackers are so popular. To make one, heat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and grab a graham cracker along with some peanut butter or Nutella. Top the graham cracker with the spread of your choice and sprinkle some of your ABV herbs on top. Tent the ABV firecracker with foil and heat it in the oven until the peanut butter or Nutella becomes nice and melty. Consume and enjoy.

ABV Tincture

One extremely easy way to take advantage of the compounds in your ABV herbs is by making a tincture. Fill a short, wide-mouthed jar with ABV herbs and pour in enough of a strong drinkable alcohol such as Everclear to cover the herbs completely. You can store the jar in your freezer if you like; the alcohol won’t freeze. Seal the jar tightly and give it a good, firm shake periodically over the next several days. Strain the mixture through a nut milk bag. For even more smoothness, take the filtered mixture and pour it through a coffee filter. Store the finished tincture in an amber glass bottle with a dropper.

Your ABV tincture may not smell or taste very good, but it’ll be potent. Take one dropper by holding it under the tongue for several seconds before swallowing it. If you can’t tolerate the alcohol burn, add the tincture to a glass of water. Wait a couple of hours for the effects to set in before deciding whether you’d like to use more.

ABV Smoothie

Do you like drinking a smoothie in the morning or after a workout? If so, you’re in luck because making an ABV smoothie is one of the easiest ways to mask the flavor of ABV herbs. Throw your favorite fruits in a blender along with some ice and yogurt or milk. Finish with a generous pinch of ABV herbs and blend the mixture until it’s smooth. Don’t forget to clean the blender container well afterwards to prevent any active compounds in the herbs from transferring to the next thing you blend.

ABV Capsules

If you can’t stand the taste of ABV flower, making ABV capsules is a great way to enjoy the full benefits of your herbs without actually tasting them. To make the capsules, you only need empty capsules and a capping machine. You’ll find both in a well-stocked pharmacy. Place the capsules in a jar and store the jar in a cool, dry place. You may want to add a packet of silica gel to the jar to control moisture. One of the great things about ABV capsules is that they’re an easy way to maintain consistency in dosing. If you always use the same material, always vape at the same temperature and always pack your capsules tightly, your capsules will provide much the same experience every time.

ABV Butter

Making ABV butter or coconut oil is a great way to enjoy the benefits of your ABV herbs in a variety of different applications. You can use it as a replacement for another fat when making baked goods such as brownies. You can drizzle it over salad, popcorn or pasta. As long as you don’t heat it past about 314 degrees Fahrenheit, you can use it in place of any other oil.

To make ABV butter, combine your ABV herbs with butter and water in a saucepan and heat the mixture at a low temperature for about three hours. Don’t let the mixture boil. After three hours, pour the mixture through a cheesecloth or coffee filter and into a Pyrex bowl. Refrigerate the bowl until the oil solidifies.

When you remove the bowl from the refrigerator, you’ll find a solid puck of oil floating on top of the water. Remove and dry the puck before moving it to another bowl for storage. Discard the water.

Adding water to your mixture when making ABV butter is optional. The benefit of using water, though, is that chlorophyll is water soluble. Cannabinoids, on the other hand, are fat soluble. When you mix butter and water, the water will draw out some of the substances that give ABV flower its characteristic flavor. The beneficial compounds, however, will remain locked within the butter.

ABV Compost

If you try ABV herb edibles and decide that they aren’t for you, there’s still no need to throw your herbs away. Have you decided that you can’t stand the taste of ABV herbs? Maybe you simply don’t like the long-lasting effects of edibles and would rather use your herbs in a way that doesn’t keep you locked to your couch all day. No problem – just add your used herbs to your compost heap! Added to compost, ABV bud is the perfect fertilizer.