A grower for Oakland’s Harborside Health Center bested 260 other growers to win first place in Northern California’s premier pot competition — The Emerald Cup.
Billed as the “only outdoor organic medical cannabis competition in the world,” The Emerald Cup drew 130 entrants from the pot-growing epicenter in Northern California known as the Emerald Triangle, as well as 130 entrants from further south.
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Harborside grower “Darin” from Monterey — using seeds of DNA Genetics’ Lemon Skunk — beat out all the contestants from the famed triangle, leading to some scattered boos during the awards ceremony Sunday afternoon at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds.
Harborside founder Stephen DeAngelo, along with the 120,000-collective’s general manager and the grower’s “brother” accepted the award. A first place trophy in such contests has long-eluded Harborside, said the dispensary’s education director Rick Pfrommer, which made the victory that much sweeter.
But don’t expect to see stocks of outdoor Lemon Skunk in the club on Embarcadero anytime soon. This year’s batch of outdoor Lemon Skunk is depleted, insiders say, though the same grower has some great indoor destined for Harborside in the near future.
Some 5,000 people attended the 10th annual Emerald Cup, which moved south this year from its home turf in Humboldt to better access Bay Area crowds and bigger facilities. The event was hands-down the best cannabis contest we’ve ever been to, mainly because of its deep Bay Area roots, laid-back, family vibe, and an older, more diverse crowd.
Organizer Tim Blake said he made manifest his vision of a “cannabis county fair,” and hopes to return to Santa Rosa next year.
Here’s the top four winners.
1 – Darin’s Lemon Skunk from a DNA Genetics Lemon Skunk Clone
2- Sonoma County Collective’s Cherry Cola – from Cherry Cola Clone
3 – Mean Gene Cherry Limeade – from Jigga’s Girl Scout Cookies X NorCal Black Lime
4 – Aficionado Seeds Royal Sour – a cross of Sour Diesel x Purple Kush x Highland Afgani Seed