It can be tough keeping all the ganja jargon straight. And even we have to admit that sometimes it’s worse than trying to decipher the sizes at your local coffee shop. Why can’t they just use small, medium, and large?
Or, in the case of marijuana, low quality, medium quality, and high quality?
That’s essentially what the terms beasters, headies, mids, and regs describe: quality. “Why the slang?” you ask. Well, keep in mind that weed wasn’t always something you could buy at your corner shop. For those of you too young to remember, it was once illegal.
Cannaseurs needed to obfuscate (yes, obfuscate…crack a dictionary) what they were talking about lest they get arrested. So they came up with code words, if you will, so that they could talk openly about Mary Jane without nosy parents — or the fuzz — being any the wiser.
Add to that the fact that getting high opens up a whole new world of experiences and creativity, and it’s easy to see why our canna-forefathers started talking like they did.
It’s the same reason surfers make up terms to describe their environment and experiences — the available English words just don’t do it justice.
And, honestly, when you get into it, it’s just good fun to rattle off a sentence that sounds to an outsider like a string of unrelated, nonsensical gibberish. There’s a camaraderie about it that draws people together and makes them happy.
But enough waxing philosophical! Let’s get back to the business at hand.
In this article, the cannabis experts at Honest Marijuana will walk you through the lexicon so you get a good sense of the difference between beasters, headies, mids, and regs. In the immortal words of Samuel L. Jackson in the original Jurassic Park, “Hold on to your butts!”
The Differences Between Beasters, Headies, Mids, And Regs
Just to reiterate before we dive too deep, beasters, headies, mids, and regs are terms used to describe quality. Think of it like the difference between McDonald’s and a five-star steak place.
Not to impugn McDonald’s — we do love us a Big Mac now and again — but they’re not known for the quality of their food (even though it’s delicious after a fatty of Blue Dream). But we digress…
To make the differences more obvious, we’ll break each quality level into five components:
- Appearance
- Flavor
- Cannabis Concentration
- Effects
- Price
That way, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting when you ask for a Z of Yoda OG mids. We’ll also throw in some other words that describe each level — think of them as aliases — so you’re fully informed.
Regs
Regs — likely shortened from the word “dregs” — is used to describe the lowest-quality form of cannabis.
Keep in mind that you can use the term regs (or mids, or beasters, or headies) to describe any strain of cannabis. So you can have Sour Diesel regs or Chemdawg regs. The strain doesn’t matter, just the quality.
A.k.a. dirt weed, brick weed, ditch weed, popcorn, bottom shelf, Bobby Brown (no relation to the guy who married Whitney Houston).
Appearance
Because regs are the bottom of the barrel, so to speak, marijuana sellers will often pre-package them in large quantities (usually bricks).
Those bricks will usually be rife with visible stems and seeds. Similarly, regs will be more brown than green and give off an earthy, dirt-y (dirt-like?) aroma.
Flavor
Regs are best described as harsh or spicy. Even seasoned smokers get throat burn when they tackle the regs. That tells you a lot about what you’re up against.
Cannabinoid Concentration
Regs have very low cannabinoid concentrations. You won’t get a lot of CBD or THC in a brick of regs. What you will get is plenty of CBN (a byproduct of degradation).
That’s because regs are often stored improperly, mishandled during transport, and basically not cared for as much as the other types.
Effects
Because of the over-abundance of CBN, regs tend to produce a somewhat mellow high (if you can even call it a high). More often than not, you’ll just get sleepy and want to go to bed.
Regs also have some nasty side effects — like headache, upset stomach, and trouble breathing — due to the presence of contamination (dirt, mold, mildew, insects, and pesticides).
Price
The only “good” thing about regs is the price. You can get a lot for a little, but the lack of a decent high and the potential for “un-fun” side effects may make you think twice.
Mids
If we divided the quality scale into low, medium, and high (which we kind of are), mids would be the medium.
“But wait,” you say, “there are four divisions on this list. How does that fit in with your low, medium, high scale?” As you’ll see in the Beasters and Headies section, these terms describe two levels of high-quality cannabis (think of it like Low-High and High-High, if that’s even a thing).
A.k.a. middle, middle shelf, B+, middies, thirties, work (we have no idea where those last two came from).
Appearance
Most domestically grown U.S. cannabis will fall into the mids category (except for Honest Marijuana’s offerings, of course). The buds will come separate, not smashed into bricks or bags.
Mids contain very few stems and seeds (or none at all), and they’ll be green with colorful pistils and orange hairs. You may even see a few trichome crystals if you’re lucky.
Flavor
Mids present a pretty normal flavor profile. They’re certainly less harsh than regs, although they can make you cough and hack fairly easily.
Cannabinoid Concentration
Mids contain a higher cannabinoid concentration than regs. Because of that, you’ll get a better recreational high or better medicinal effects than you would with regs.
Effects
Depending on your experience with the wacky weed, you can get anywhere from high to blazed to completely blasted with mids.
Side effects will be more normal and will depend on the predominant cannabinoid the strain contains. For CBD-dominant strains, you can expect a bit of dry mouth, but that’s about it. For THC-dominant strains, watch out for paranoia and the munchies.
Price
With the legalization of marijuana across most of these United States, the cost of mids has become more standardized than it once was. Check out this guide to weed prices for details.
Beasters
As we intimated (yes, intimated) in the mids section, Beasters are the “lows of the highs” on the quality scale. They’re certainly high-quality weed, but you can still do better if you’re willing to pay.
Before marijuana was legal in the U.S., it was often shipped in from Canada (or British Columbia, to be more precise). Early stoners would call it “BC bud” or “BC weed,” which led, of course, to beasters. Go figure
A.k.a. fire, kill, flame, kine, kind, dro.
Appearance
Vivid, tropical greens with more oranges and purples than mids. Beaster buds are nicely shaped and attractive to look at. No stems and minimal seeds. More noticeable trichome crystals.
Flavor
While still not the best, beaster weed is by no means low-grade. Flavors are much improved over mids (and certainly regs) and will be described as “smooth” and “delicious.”
Cannabinoid Concentration
Beasters contain cannabinoid concentrations on the higher end of the scale (e.g., between 15 and 20 percent for THC strains). That makes beasters much more potent than mids.
Effects
You’re going to get a good high when you use beasters. Many describe the experience as kind of a lower-body high where you become one with your couch.
Again, depending on your experience, you can get anywhere from blazed to very blasted from a beaster bud. Those new to the marijuana experience should be careful with beasters so they don’t get too high.
Because the potency of beasters is so much higher, the side effects will also be more severe.
Price
Beasters are more expensive than mids of the same amount. So if you’re paying $50-$60 for a quarter of an ounce of mids, you might pay the same price for an eighth of beasters.
Headies
Headies are the top of the line when it comes to cannabis quality. You’ll pay a premium for this quality of weed, but we recommend trying it at least once in your life. If you can afford it, you’ll never go back.
A.k.a. loud, chronic, dank, primo, top shelf.
Appearance
Bright greens, oranges, and purples. No stems. No seeds. Covered with trichome crystals and terpenes.
Flavor
All we can say is wow! Delicious! Smooth with no hint of harshness. Chock-full of flavors that you can taste individually. The flavors are an experience unto themselves.
Cannabinoid Concentration
Very high cannabinoid concentration (upwards of 25 percent for THC strains).
Effects
This is where the headies really distinguish themselves. As the name suggests, headies provide more of a “heady” high when compared to beasters. This allows for more physical function and less couch lock when riding a headies high.
Side effects could be potent because of the higher cannabinoid concentration, but some report that the higher quality of the headies actually reduces unpleasant side effects. Try it and see.
Price
Expensive…but well worth it.
Go For Quality Over Quantity
With higher-quality weed (like beasters and headies), you can use less to still feel some truly righteous effects.
We recommend trying high-quality weed (like that produced here at Honest Marijuana) at least once in your life. You might find the experience so enjoyable that you’ll be willing to save your pennies to pay for the top shelf bud.
For more information on all things cannabis and to check out our 100-percent all-natural marijuana products, visit HonestMarijuana.com today