Opinion: One ganjaphile's report from the High Times Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam

Amsterdam is in many ways the city that Vancouver aspires to be. Multi-cultural and diverse, bicycle and marijuana friendly, walkable and clean. From a Vancouverite's perspective the city lacks in trees and green space, but the architecture is wonderful and everything is foot and bicycle accessible. Many streets are blocked off to cars and most downtown streets have only one lane.

The famous Red Light district is clean and safe for both the working girls and their clients. Unlike Vancouver, prostitutes in Amsterdam suffer far less violence, sexual assault and there have been no serial murders or need for inquiries into missing women.

VIEW A GALLERY FROM THE CANNIBIS CUP

I am one of a few thousand ganjaphiles from around the globe who have gathered in Amsterdam once again to be judges for the 24th High Times Cannabis Cup, the world's most famous and longstanding marijuana judging event.

Thirty one of Amsterdam's roughly 300 coffeeshops participate, and winning a cup can certainly increase the volume of tourists they'll receive. But the real value of the Cup is for seed breeders for whom victory means a lucrative boost in sales and name recognition.

I used to attend the Cannabis Cup more regularly around the turn of the millennium, and the event has definitely matured. My early reviews included complaints about things being a bit disorganized and events not starting on time. But this year everything is running smoothly, there is live entertainment every night and during the day there are lectures about different aspects of cannabis science and history as well as a huge Expo which features many booths with all sorts of cannabis products.

The who have not been initiated into the cannabis culture may not be familiar with the amazing array of products used by pot lovers to grow, refine and consume their favourite plant. From grow equipment and fertilizers to cutting-edge hash extraction technology, from hand-crafted artisan bongs and pipes to space-age vaporizers, from seeds of hundreds of strains of potent marijuana varieties tailored to your specific conditions and needs to fashionable and stylish hemp clothes and fabrics, the Expo is a testament to how cannabis is truly the world's most useful and versatile plant.

Notable BC booths at the expo include Vancouver-based Fresh Headies which makes high-end ice-water hash extraction kits known as "bubble bags," and the BC Bud Depot seed company based on Vancouver Island.

If marijuana is over-fertilized you might increase the yield slightly but the buds will not burn properly and will have a "chemmy" taste. This is often the result of rushing a crop to harvest or seeking quantity over quality. In previous years I've complained of chemmy bud in Amsterdam, but this time I am happy to report that Dutch bud is wonderful and clean, with many coffeeshops featuring organically grown varieties.

There's a variety of Cups and awards presented at the end of the week-long event, including Best Coffeeshop, Best Indica, Best Seed Company and more. A crew of celebrity judges also render verdict on a broad selection of bud and hash entries, many submitted from international competitors who smuggle their samples into Amsterdam for the chance at fame, glory and a shiny trophy.

Some Canadians have put on marijuana-judging events in the past, such as Marc Emery's Tokers Bowl which had 200 guests judging two dozen strains and ran annually from 2002-2005, the year Emery was arrested by the DEA and the extradition process began. Also notable was the Quebec Cannabis Cup organized by Alain Berthiaume which ran from 1998-2001 in Montreal. I attended a few times, including the final one which had 500 guests judging 8 strains of bud at the Worldbeat Club. Alain was arrested for trafficking during the first evening of that one and was eventually sentenced to a year in prison.

As someone who operates medical cannabis dispensaries in Vancouver that often feature over thirty high-quality varieties on our extensive menu, having access to a broad range of world-class cannabis is nothing new. The real fun for me in that regard is to enjoy the openness of there being dozens of coffeeshop within close walking distance anywhere in the city, each full of happy locals and tourists enjoying themselves and peacefully contributing to the Dutch economy. I have never seen a fight or unpleasant altercation in any dutch coffeeshop ever.

I doubt I'll be voting for a winning strain, I usually take 3 kinds of marijuana and two kinds of hash and blend them into a single fat joint. However, all the ganja I've tried here so far has been excellent. From heavy, dense Indica buds to long, fluffy Sativa varieties, everything has burned clean and been potent and tasty. Some recent favourites have been the G-13 Haze, Godzilla, Blue Cheese and the Vanilla Kush. Many coffeeshops have free samples of their bud and hash entries for judges.

Dutch weed typically costs around 10 euros a gram, with some of highest-end varieties going for up to 14 euros. In a Vancouver dispensary the typical cost for comparable buds is $10 a gram.

Many Europeans prefer to mix their buds or hash with tobacco, which can make for an unpleasant surprise when someone passes you a joint and you get that harsh tobacco hit. As a non-tobacco user I consider mixed tobacco/marijuana joints to be a waste of good ganja, and most coffeeshops don't allow tobacco smoking on the premises, insisting that patrons smoke "pure" joints only.

There are rumors and worries that this might be the last Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam. The Dutch government is seeking to reduce marijuana tourism by encouraging cities to make their coffeeshops "members only" and restrict membership to Dutch citizens. This is more of an effort to reduce Germans and other european tourists from driving home with their pockets full of hash than it is related to American visitors.

Coffeeshops are licensed and regulated municipally, so while some border towns have implemented the members-only policy, it is up to the city of Amsterdam to make any such changes here, and the city government is happy with the way things are right now. Amsterdam's mayor recognizes that banning tourists from coffeeshops would mean an increase in street dealing and disorders, and a decrease in tax revenues and licensing fees. I fully expect the High Times Cannabis Cup to continue long into the future.

I hope to see Dutch-style coffeeshops operating openly in Vancouver within the next few years. This is the direction we should be moving in: a taxed, regulated and licensed above-ground market for cannabis users to enjoy world-famous BC Bud. We'd see a nice bump in tourism, we'd get most of the weed-dealers off the street, and the city and province would both have lucrative new revenue streams from licensing fees and sales taxes.

Despite Harper's cruel omnibus crime bill, which I beleive is a direct attack on Canada's cannabis culture, marijuana is increasing in popularity across the nation. There are more headshops, medicinal dispensaries and hemp products to be found in our country now than ever before, as well as more cannabis prisoners than ever before in our history. Amsterdam's tolerant attitude towards cannabis came about as the result of hard work by risk-taking activists, and the same forces are still hard at work in Vancouver, struggling to build a similarly tolerant, open and cannabis-friendly city.

Dana Larsen is the Director of the Vancouver Medicinal Cannabis Dispensary Society, founder of "End Prohibition, New Democrats Against the Drug War" and a former candidate for the leadership of the BC NDP.