Cup Winning Strains

That first year, only four growers submitted entries and only one winner was declared, the venerable Skunk #1 which was to become the basis for many of today's modern hybrids. By the eighth year, there were "1,500 judges, 21 coffeeshops, two entries from US growers, one entry from Canada, one entry from Switzerland, and five seed companies," as Cup founder and High Times editor Steven Hager has recalled in an article about the Cup's development.

Over the years, the Cup has had a chequered history, sometimes curtailed by the actions of law enforcement, and at other times riven by rivalries and dissent among the organisers. But somehow, it's always pulled through until it became the internationally recognised brand we know today.

In fact, there are now satellite Cannabis Cups in various states in the USA, Spain, Czech republic and Canada as well as a Medical Cannabis Cup. Even so, the annual November event in Amsterdam remains the gold standard. If a particular strain has won an award in the Cup, that can certainly be taken as a stamp of quality. Growers around the world, both commercial and domestic, can be strongly influenced in their buying decisions by Cannabis Cup ratings.

Winners in recent years have included Amnesia Haze, A sativa dominant strain with a well-earned reputation for its soaring high, and Tangerine Dream, a cross between the G13 and Neville's Haze strains that offers a truly euphoric high.