A plant extract is a substance with desirable properties that is removed, typically by a solvent, from the tissue of a plant. Extracts have a wide variety of uses, from vanilla extract used in cooking to the aromatic oils used in essential oil diffusers. There are even extracts derived from cannabis, called cannabis concentrate, that have been around since the 1940s. In fact, cannabis concentrate is the backbone of any vaping or dabbing experience. But in order to fully enjoy the essence of your favorite strain, you'll need to add another crucial ingredient to the mix - that's where terpenes come in.
A Delicate Balancing Act
There's no perfect way to extract terpenes from organic sources. As with most things, it's really a cost-benefit analysis: how do you eliminate impurities like fats, chlorophyll, and other plant metabolites without damaging the precious compounds you're trying to preserve? Time is also a factor. The longer the process takes, the less efficient it is for commercial use and the more chances impurities have to work their way into the finished product. A whole host of methods and technologies are used to achieve that goal.
Proper terpene extraction is key to preserving the terpene profile. Terpene extraction methods vary in effectiveness and in their impact on the integrity of the extracted terpenes. Results generally fall into two categories: solventless and solvent-based extracts.
Solventless Terpene Extracts - Good for Avoiding Dilution
A solventless extract is made using heat and pressure. Two methods are used: steam and hydrodistillation.
The steam distillation process is commonly used to extract essential oils and volatile terpenes from plant matter. Steam distillation involves suspending a basket full of raw plant material above a vessel of boiling water. As steam passes through the plant material, the lighter oils, including certain classes of volatile compounds such as terpenes, are drawn out of the distiller until they reach a cooled condenser, which liquefies the water and oils.
The lighter oils float on the surface of the water and can be easily collected. Hydrodistillation is similar except the plant material is placed directly into the boiling water. Both methods rely on precise temperature control to prevent terpene loss.
These methods are effective for extracting essential oils, but because volatile terpenes can easily evaporate or degrade at high temperatures, careful temperature control is necessary to prevent the loss of these sensitive compounds during extraction. Understanding terpene boiling points is particularly important here, since different terpenes vaporize at different temperatures. The advantage of these methods is that, by not introducing any solvents (like butane or ethanol), there is no danger of diluting the extract with residual solvents. However, a downside is that working at such high temperatures risks altering or destroying the terpenes altogether.
Solvent-based Extracts & Extraction Methods
Solvent-based extracts made with lower-boiling solvents were developed to address this issue. Solvent extraction uses organic solvents to dissolve terpenes and cannabinoids from plant material, resulting in a liquid form or solution that can be further processed.
Butane Hash Oil
Butane hash oil (BHO) is a cannabis concentrate that is created through the use of butane and applied heat and pressure. BHO is produced through hydrocarbon extraction, a process that isolates extracted terpenes, cannabinoids, and other compounds from the cannabis plant. The end product is a hardened yellow-gold substance often referred to as "butane honey oil." It's the most common solvent-based extract, as it produces a high yield in a relatively short period of time.
Butane hash oil can be understood as the end-product of a complex process that extracts the THC content (among other things) from the raw marijuana plant. The initial product is a crude extract, which is further refined to improve purity. In the meantime, let's take a closer look at how to make BHO.
BHO Extraction
The butane extraction process involves placing the starting plant material in a glass container and running it through a butane solvent. The butane solvent penetrates the plant tissue, dissolving terpenes and cannabinoids for efficient extraction. Controlling butane's boiling point is important to ensure efficient extraction without degrading sensitive compounds. The resulting liquid is then put through the winterization process.
This results in a refined BHO concentrate. Butane is also a non-polar solvent, which means that you can reliably extract terpenes from the plant source without also extracting impurities.
A Word on Butane Tubes
There's a lot of misinformation out there regarding the safety of using butane tubes at home. A lot of this has to do with several well-publicized accidents involving amateur kids trying to make BHO at home with so-called "open BHO tubes."
As a result, CO2 extraction companies have financed a widespread campaign to demonize all things BHO. When done properly by trained professionals, butane extraction runs through a closed-loop system, meaning all the butane that evaporates during the extraction process is safely recovered in a vacuum oven.
It's very important to prevent it from contaminating the air, because it could result in an explosion. The numerous news stories of basement explosions caused by novices not using a closed loop system have seriously damaged butane extraction's image in the marijuana industry and have led many companies to seek safer alternatives.
Supercritical CO2 - A Safer Alternative Extraction Process
One such alternative is supercritical CO2 terpene extraction. This process uses heat and pressure to turn gaseous CO2 into a supercritical fluid, a special state of matter that acts as a solvent for plant material. This process of cycling the CO2 through the plant leaves produces a compound that needs to be refined in a process known as "winterization". Winterization removes the plant lipids and fats from the desired terpenes. CO2 is non-flammable, making this process safer than butane extraction.
However, refinement and winterization mean more of the terpene profile is lost. Because of this loss, the industry has largely shifted away from using CO2 for premium terpene-rich extracts. In 2025, CO2 is primarily used to create bulk distillate (for vape cartridges), where flavor is added back later, rather than to capture the plant's original essence.
Live Resin - The Advantages of Frozen Concentrate
For a more potent end product, live resin is a popular alternative. Live resin is a concentrate made by keeping the plant material frozen at subcritical temperatures throughout the process. In other concentrates, like wax or shatter, drying and curing involve heat, oxygen, and physical disturbance to remove moisture and chlorophyll before extraction. These concentrates often use dried or cured material, which can impact the preservation of cannabis terpenes compared to live resin that uses fresh frozen material.
Unfortunately, these factors can severely reduce the plant's terpene content. Live resin is unique because the plant is kept frozen, preserving its aromatics and maximizing terpene retention.
The result is a concentrate with a greater and more complex terpene profile than standard dried-cure extracts. Today's Live Resin is typically produced using advanced Hydrocarbon (BHO) systems, proving that, contrary to older myths, professional butane extraction is the gold standard for preserving delicate terpenes. Proper storage of both the starting material and the final concentrate is essential to maintain the quality and potency of extracted terpenes.
2025 Market Shift: The Rise of Live Rosin & Volatile Sulfur Compounds (VSCs)
While steam distillation remains excellent for isolating botanical terpenes, the cannabis concentrate market has shifted massively toward Solventless Live Rosin. Unlike older methods, Rosin uses only ice water, heat, and pressure to separate resin glands, creating a chemical-free extract that connoisseurs demand.
Furthermore, new research from 2024 has shown that Volatile Sulfur Compounds (VSCs) - not just terpenes - are responsible for the highly coveted "gassy" and "skunky" aromas in cannabis. Because VSCs are incredibly fragile, modern extraction has moved away from harsh CO2 methods and back toward ultra-cold Hydrocarbon or Solventless methods to capture these elusive flavor notes.
Breaking New Ground with Ethanol Extraction
This takes us to ethanol extraction, a method that has gained significant traction in recent years that is safer than butane and more efficient than live resin. Ethanol extraction is part of a broader terpene extraction process designed to efficiently extract cannabinoids and terpenes from plant material. While ethanol is a tried-and-true solvent used to make many other substances (from hemp oil to food flavoring), it hasn't yet penetrated the extract market the way these other methods have. And that's because its greatest strength as a solvent is also its greatest weakness. Ethanol molecules have both polar and nonpolar ends, allowing them to bond with a wide variety of molecules. This makes ethanol effective at drawing out cannabinoids and terpenes from plants, but it also makes them effective at drawing out impurities as well.
Chlorophyll, lipids, and other components can get into your oil, giving it a dark complexion and even imbue it with a bitter, grassy flavor. However, new extraction technologies are being developed to deal with this problem. Many modern ethanol extraction systems are designed for high throughput, allowing for faster and larger-scale production to meet market demands. Many ethanol extraction systems now operate at cryo temperatures so that the plant material can be sprayed with ethanol at its freezing point.
Micron filtration is also a cutting-edge method for filtering impurities out of the extract. This allows users to skip the winterization process, making the whole process cleaner and much more time-effective.
Admittedly, this isn't a simple process. If you have custom requirements, True Blue can provide wholesale terpenes so you can skip the extraction process and let us do the hard work.
Why Worry About The Smell And Flavor Of Your Cannabis?
At this point you may be wondering why the flavor and smell of your cannabis should concern you to the point that you actually consider altering your growing process. As any home grower knows, it can be hard to zero in on the exact process that produces healthy, potent strains. Most growers would rather stick to a reliable process, rather than risk an unsuccessful crop. Here's why we think it's worth re-evaluating that process with taste and smell in mind: your customers want it.
Whether you're growing medical marijuana as a caregiver for multiple patients or selling it to recreational dispensaries, your product must have a potent flavor and smell to set it apart from the rest. Consider what people do when they're shopping for flower - they open the jar and take a big whiff. If your buds aren't pretty and the scent is lackluster, potential customers will perceive your product's quality as much lower.
Another reason to focus on the taste and scent of your cannabis is that they are directly connected with the character of your plants. Terpenes drive a strain's flavor and scent profile. A richer terpene profile means a more complex, authentic flavor experience and a stronger representation of the strain's original character. Research into terpenes' potential biological properties is ongoing, but the immediate value for growers and consumers is sensory: better smell and taste.
Terpenes Are The Secret To Dank Marijuana Flavor Profiles
Terpenes are the key to cannabis plants having stunning scents and fantastic flavors. As a strain grower, you have the power to influence the level of terpenes present in your plants.
Because our sense of smell is closely tied to our sense of taste, how your cannabis oil smells will strongly affect how people perceive its flavor. So the question becomes: how do you flavor weed? Well, in order to do this, you have to wait until the raw plant material is processed into cannabis oil. Once you've distilled the THC, CBD, and other base components into a concentrated liquid, you can introduce external oils.
Strain Flavor Tips To Try & Mistakes To Avoid
Things you'll need to produce plants with high essential oil levels (stronger scent and flavor profiles):
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Specialized nutrients and soil supplements - Don't use "bloom" nutrients in the veg stage. Try to avoid chemical nutrients and use fertilizing agents made from organic sources (think kelp, bat guano, and worm castings).
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Use strong grow lights that deliver UV-B - While most growers flower their cannabis plants under HPS grow lights, research suggests that UV-B lights can enhance trichome production and strain smell. "Supplementing your flowering plant with UV-B light may increase the potency and smell production by triggering a natural stress response," explains Grow Weed Easy.
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Watch temperature and humidity closely - Indoor cannabis growing often feels like a greenhouse operation, but there's strong evidence to suggest that keeping the environment cooler and drier actually enhances essential oil production in your plants. During the day, try to keep grow room temps at 80 degrees or below, and keep the nighttime temperatures 5-10 degrees cooler. Humidity should be kept "around or under 50% relative humidity throughout the flowering stage for the best terpene production and overall plant growth," GWE continues.
Enhance Your Marijuana's Flavor With Terpenes From True Blue
Focusing on terpene production can feel intimidating at first, and you'll likely go through some trial and error. Don't worry! You can always enhance strain flavor after harvest with terpenes from True Blue.
Take a look at our full selection of fun flavors.