The cannabis industry has come a long way from joints and acrylic bongs. Near-Michelin-star gourmet cannabis dishes, craft edibles, and high-potency THC distillate have all become part of a market that shows no signs of slowing down. While cannabinoids like CBD and CBN have become more understood over the past several years, the cannabis plant hosts more than 100 cannabinoids, many of which still warrant further scientific research.
The Evolving Terpene Industry
As the broader market has shifted from purely recreational use toward more deliberate, informed consumption, more people have become interested in terpenes specifically. Terpenes are the aromatic building blocks behind flavor and scent across the natural world, not just in cannabis. They exist in virtually any plant that produces a fragrance. Researchers have studied terpenes for a range of potential properties, and their aromatic qualities alone have made isolating them from cannabis and other fragrant plants a natural next step for the industry.
Terpenes at True Blue
That's exactly what we do at True Blue Terpenes. By providing strain-specific cannabis terpenes and natural flavorings, we help consumers get the exact flavor and aroma experience they're looking for. Our terpenes and flavorings are made without synthetic carrier agents like propylene glycol, and our products contain no THC or CBD, making them non-psychoactive. Browse our natural terpene flavors to find your next favorite.
Terpene Extraction Isn't New
While isolating terpene compounds specifically from cannabis resin is a relatively recent practice, terpene extraction itself has a much longer history in the fragrance industry. Kenneth Morrow of Trichome Technologies is widely credited as the first person to extract and isolate terpenes from cannabis specifically, building on extraction techniques that were already well established in fragrance and essential oil production.
How Terpenes Are Isolated and Extracted
There are multiple ways to isolate and extract terpenes from cannabis, and each method comes with its own tradeoffs. Steam distillation is one of the most common methods. The basic process involves passing steam through plant material, which causes the volatile terpenes to vaporize at their individual boiling points. The vapor is then re-condensed into a separate flask, where the terpenes are collected and refined. Done correctly, and with the help of a vacuum pump to keep temperatures low, this process can preserve most of the original aromatic profile. However, the heat and oxygen exposure involved can still alter or degrade some compounds if not carefully controlled.
Cold trapping is another extraction method that better preserves volatile compounds. It uses a vacuum pump along with liquid nitrogen and distilled water to bring down the temperature during extraction, capturing terpenes that would otherwise evaporate and be lost in a higher-heat process. Several proprietary and patented extraction systems also exist across the industry, but the core technology and methodology behind terpene isolation is openly available for any enthusiast or producer to experiment with.
Proven Methods With Room For Innovation and Improvement
Distilling terpenes is a common extraction method, though there are multiple methods currently employed by the terpene extraction industry. In a distillation run, the basic premise is to begin passing steam through the cannabis, thereby trapping the essential oils as they gas off at their unique boiling points into a vapor. Then, the terpenes are re-condensed individually into a separate flask to be collected and cleaned for a final run. Ideally, when done correctly and with the help of a vacuum pump, temperatures stay low enough to avoid destroying any essential bioactive compounds.
Again, currently, there are several different ways to isolate terpenes from the cannabis plant, even proprietary and patented systems. Our point here is that the technology and methodology to successfully extract terpenes exists freely on the open market, for the most part, available for any terpene or cannabis enthusiast to experiment with.
Terpene-Based Products
Cannabis-derived terpene products generally fall into two categories. The first is the single-compound isolate, which contains one individual terpene, such as limonene or pinene, on its own. These work much like a traditional essential oil: they can be diffused into the air, blended into fragrant topical products, or used in candle making.
The second category is the strain-specific blend, where companies like True Blue combine multiple isolated terpenes in carefully designed ratios to recreate the aroma and flavor profile of a specific cannabis strain. From Sour Diesel terpenes to Blue Dream terpenes, this approach lets consumers enjoy the sensory character of a specific strain without any psychoactive effect.
Where Terpene Isolation Stands Today
What was once an emerging niche in the cannabis industry has become an established part of how cannabis products are made and marketed. From strain profiles to natural flavors, True Blue's food-grade terpene extracts continue that work today. Explore our full range of pure terpenes to find the profile that's right for you.