The true artisan’s approach to charas involves making what are called temple balls. This top-shelf hash is prized by many as the single most exquisite form of cannabis concentrate in the world.
While the original Nepalese temple ball method is mostly a lost art, a slightly more modern method was pioneered by Frenchy Cannoli, involving heating resin glands gently with a glass bottle filled with hot, almost-boiling, water. Frenchy is one of the true masters of hashish in the world today, blending traditional methods with updated materials and techniques.
We could write a whole article on Frenchy and his artisanal techniques – but instead, we’ll refer you to this video cataloguing the hot water bottle hash method.
In a nutshell, you need to place your kief (or dry sift) inside a packet of parchment paper or heat-safe plastic wrap (like a turkey roasting bag), then apply heat and pressure using a wine bottle or mason jar filled with water that’s just under boiling temperature.
Slowly apply pressure and heat by rolling your bottle or jar over the packet of kief – you’ll eventually start to break down and melt the trichomes. Keep in mind that the purer your starting material, the better hash you’ll produce.
Keep at this process until you see the kief start to darken, melt, and fuse together – eventually, you should get a sticky, resinous, and fragrant compound that you can then roll into a ball or tube by hand. The pressing and heating process may take up to 30-40 minutes, but make sure to regularly pull apart your parchment or plastic to check on it – some purer kiefs can be ready in as little as 15 minutes.
You’ll know it’s done when it’s gone from powdery kief to a uniform, sticky substance. Rolling this hash into a ball helps it cure and preserve the terpenes, creating what’s known as a temple ball. Just like wine, temple balls improve with age – consider stashing one in a cool dark place for several months or even a year, and you’ll be blown away by the flavor once you crack it open.
