Rowan Bailey

January 24th, 2024

Curaleaf Cannatonic T12 C8 Medical Cannabis Strain Review UK 

Balanced CBD and THC Cannabis Flower prescribed in the UK

*Disclaimer*

Any experiences/ benefits described below are my own, and by no means should be taken as medical benefits / claims. This strain has been prescribed by my doctor for my specific condition and needs. It is important to talk to your Dr about your specific needs and see if they have other patients similar to you who have benefited from this strain or others. This post is purely meant as a useful reference for you to then do further research from. My tolerance, condition and experience will be greatly different to some.

Table of Content

• Introduction
• Main review 
• Initial observation upon opening (nug shape/ density/ cure and shake content)
• Any improvement after storage change and curing?
• Curaleaf Cannatonic effects
• Splitting the nug
• How does it grind?
• Batch number
• Throat issues like scratching or allergies?
• Side effects or issues?
• Overall impression

Meet the reviewer 

Rowan is one of the founders of Infinity CBD and Pembrokeshire CBD Centre. Having worked in the CBD/ Cannabis industry for over five years, he has extensive knowledge of the supply chain issues, compliance and other fun things you have to contend with from the corporate side of this. However, having also been a patient for 3+ years he has also had experience first hand of the ups and downs of the patient experience, quality woes and what to generally expect. 

These medical cannabis reviews are presented to try and form a balanced and honest opinion relating to his experience and understanding of the limitations the clinics/ pharmacies and producers face with trying to navigate compliance standards that compete with perceived quality of some products.  

Everyone is different, and Rowan is prescribed for specific conditions and is provided these prescription legally by a Dr who has been working alongside him to find the best treatments. This means that any perceived benefits expressed in his article are purely anecdotal and related to his experience and may not reflect yours and certainly in no way mean to boast any medical claims about the use of these treatments outside of what he has personally experienced.  

Curaleaf Cannatonic Balanced Strain Review UK

Introduction

Here we are with another medical cannabis review discussing one of the current most popular balanced strains from Curaleaf pharmacy, Cannatonic Balanced T12 C8. This is prescribed for a range of reasons, and as of writing this seems to be a popular choice to replace the previous balanced strain ACDC.

For context, I’m typically prescribed a daytime ‘Sativa’ and a nighttime ‘Indica’ as my daily regime. However recently I have had some additional issues relating to an upcoming surgery that has made my pain management in the daytime a bit trickier. So this was prescribed as a strain to blend with my daytime sativa to dial in my needs a little more.

I must admit I was a little hesitant as to whether this would be effective in this manner as the issue I was having was that the Sativa was great for productivity, but not covering the pain as effectively as before. So I wasn’t sure if adding a lower THC/ CBD option would help, but I’m happy to admit I was wrong. Not only that, but I was pleasantly surprised by the terpene preservation and cure!

As always, if anyone has had this strain tested, or has sample COA that you think would be useful to attach here, please feel free to reach out and we’d be happy to showcase it here, along with any relevant reference back to you, and a cheeky gift card for our site as a thanks!

Main Review 

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my review of the Curaleaf Cannatonic T12 C8 medical cannabis strain. This was sourced legally via prescription to myself with chronic pain being the primary condition this is used for. I hope my feedback here is useful for you to make an informed choice on future prescriptions, or to avoid it depending on your needs. I always welcome feedback in terms of other specific points I could cover in these reviews.The way this strain is being discussed is with relation to a chronic pain prescription, although this prescription has also been useful for gastro, and nausea symptoms that relate to my condition too.

Device/ Setup

Ok so we’ve taken your feedback and updated some of the fields and points of interest in our reviews. I will now include the setup I have tested this strain with and preferences for it as a result:

Main device: Storz and Bickel Mighty OG

Secondary Devices: Storz and Bickel Volcano Hybrid & Dynvap M.

Outcome: One of the things I was intrigued about with the strain Cannatonic was how bright the terpene profile was. I'm not only used to medical coming in a little underwhelming, but particularly 'CBD Dominant' flowers due to the amount of terrible samples we've been sent over the years in the shops. This stood out off the bat and in all setups the flavour translates well. I have seen remarks of this being harsh, but I just haven't experienced this personally. 

When it comes to dry herb vaporisers, this is translated into flavour and as such the choice of temperature, device and setup can be crucial. To explore  I started at 175c in my Mighty and 185 for my first bag on the Volcano Hybrid. For the Dynavap you can’t dial it in as much, but I held off the heat after the initial click to keep it on the lower end. On all three counts the flavour and smooth vapour is exceptional from this strains cure and non irradiated processing.

I’d imagine it will perform well in most devices and out of my three it’s been a stable in my mighty as even at higher temps it has maintained a smooth experience whilst also allowing me the extra control at first to maximise isolating those flavours.

Initial observation upon opening (nug shape/ density/ cure and shake content):

Well firstly a lot of you will know there’s been a recent change with the Adven/ Cura range moving away from the old plastic pots and to the new mylar foil packs. Personally I’m a fan of this change as it seems to have made a big change to the over all terpene preservation and it’s easier to store these in a bag. Having said that, it does mean that the nugs can be squished if you’re not careful. Not so much of an issue for me, but worth noting for others that may find this a problem. Personally I prefer to keep my buds fresher with a boveda pack in an airtight and UV proof glass jar like THESE. 

With that in mind, I was surprised to be hit with such a clean terpene profile upon opening the cannatonic. The initial tones with a minty basil scent that was followed by a sweet citrus/ fruity tone. A really refreshing profile that I simply was not expecting. Although the nugs are relatively loose in formation, their size was decent and unlike a lot of medical cannabis, it wasn’t bone dry! It seems like a nice improvement in terms of curing and terpene preservation which is a huge step I the right direction. So hopefully we shall see more of this with the other strains we have come to rely on as our go to.

The temptation to throw a Boveda pack in there to see if there’s any room for improvement is certainly there but honestly it doesn’t need it! Well done to the team processing this strain. I can only imagine it will get better with time, and hopefully becomes a stable for the more balanced options out there.

Any improvement after storage change and curing?

My go to is to transfer my flower from the plastic tubs to UV protected glass storage (Whilst keeping original packs and labels!) as it vastly improves the over all tone of the terpene profile and seems to help balance the cure a little. Particularly improved with a Boveda Pack in there to help reintroduce some of the moisture in the cure.

You’re never going to be able to undo what has been lost through it’s processing completely, but it does make a noticeable difference particularly to the way the flower vapes in my experience, making it less scratchy at high temps, and certainly allows the remaining terpene profile to shine a little more.

Now that things have changed up with the mylar bags, there isn’t as much of a need for them, however I have found the extra space vs the bags a benefit allowing the nugs to ‘breathe’ and cure a little more. So after a few days in one of these I found the outside of the nugs starting to feel slightly more ‘crisp’ whilst breaking them open to grind exposed the perfectly cured centre.

This change made this the first medical strain that got stuck to my fingers when opening up from how sticky it was! I noticed these changes after only a couple of days, and honestly this comes from the fact they’re already most of the way there cure wise, but would certainly recommend this if you can just to balance it a little more. 

If you want the ideal storage solution for your medical cannabis look no further than HERE. 

Curaleaf Cannatonic CBD Strain Effects

Context: I’m prescribed for chronic pain, that is accompanied by nausea/ gastro issues. I work full time and have a young family. As such, I have to find the balance between managing pain/ symptoms, and being functional in my various responsibilities. In turn, the split between a day time and night time strain gives me that ability to address deeper pains in the evenings where it may be more sedating, whilst using a more uplifting/ cerebral strain for day time to help get me through without any unwanted side effects. Cannatonic has been added to this to help me balance the difference between a more sedating evening dose, and the productive daytime dose on my more challenging days.

For many, this strain will be prescribed as a stand alone to use solo, either due to lower tolerance, different uses or simply because it’s got a better terpene profile for their conditions. So it’s worth noting my use is different than many and I have a relatively high tolerance. So the effects I feel won’t be as pronounced as those with a lower tolerance. With that in mind, let’s jump in!

I wasn’t sure what to expect, so my first test was to try it alone rather than blended with my High Silver. Off the bat my first reaction was the flavour. The basil/ mint really pops through with an almost mojito like familiarity whilst being brought to life with the fruity slightly citrus leaning undertones. A really beautiful terpene profile I simply didn’t expect. I don’t know if it’s the years of being sent awful ‘CBD flower’ samples at the shop that gave me a negative expectation perhaps, or just the fact that the terpene profiles are usually destroyed by packaging/ curing and irradiation with medical cannabis, but either way I was gladly wrong here.

This flavour held really well even when blasting at 210 in my mighty off the bat making this a very pleasant strain to vape. I like the fact that it’s quite a fresh profile as well that doesn’t necessarily lend it’s self to the more pungent smells often associated with cannabis.

5 minutes into the vape and I’m starting to feel the drop in my shoulders which was a surprise. I’m not sure if its the CBD doing some of the lifting here, but the tension in my shoulders doesn’t usually completely go with my day time option High Silver. So I was surprised to notice this level of relief on a relatively low potency flower option. Don’t get me wrong, my usual pains weren’t completely gone, however I also wasn’t vibrating ready to jump into work mode or fidgeting finding something to do like Sativas often do. The CBD in this balanced strain really seemed to offer a more grounded effect and yet the THC was still working it’s magic. So it would seem that the doctors recommendation was spot on.

I expected to have to follow this initial test up with some of my usual High Silver and I simply didn’t need to in this instance. Colour me impressed. Although since this test I have had bad days where I’ve needed to accompany this with High Silver or Tokoloshe Sherbet, the amount of control it has provided on these days has been exceptional and a real game changer. To top it off, on my better days now I don’t have to go all the way in with High Silver and can use Cannatonic in a way that minimises any other side effects of THC that I may prefer to go without, or simply as a way to feather my tolerance making my overall prescription more cost effective.

Considering i’ve been used to the 19% High Silver and 25% LA Kush Cake as my main two contenders I didn’t expect this amount of relief and control to be gained by a balanced strain. So I would recommend those similar to me to consider giving it a go, as being able to dial things in like this has been amazing.

Continued below: 

5 Quick Bits about Curaleaf Cannatonic

Splitting the nug:

Often once irradiated and transported/ stored, the trichomes on the outside can become a little lack lustre. By pinching open a nug you can release a fresher terpene profile and observe the trichrome formation a bit better. So I try and take a photo of a freshly opened nug to display this and provide as much detail about a strain as possible for you guys. We are considering a microscope to capture photos at this stage, so keep an eye out for future updates. As always, if you think of another metric/ approach that you would like us to take in these reviews, feel free to reach out and let us know!

From a glance these flowers aren’t anything to shout home about, but as you know that doesn’t always relate to quality or effects. On close inspection you can see lovely glistening trichrome heads in a relatively bright green backing. Upon splitting the nug open you get those lovely minty basil notes popping out with a sweet undertone not to dissimilar to juicy fruit, you have to hunt for it, but it is in there. Once split you get a much clearer image of the beautiful trichomes on this strain and the more balanced cure really shows as you notice how sticky it still is in place with nugs sticking to your fingers in some instances.

How Does It Grind? 

These doesnt need a Boveda off the bat as the cure is nice and balanced, however if you want to help the terps sing a little louder then it can't hurt.  

I was certainly interested to see how this would grind compared to other medical strains simply as this wasn’t bone dry like others. LA Kush Cake will turn to dust if you’re not careful, and as such can mean replacing screens more often with more cleanups on cooling units. So having a better cure would typically help with this and sure enough that is the case here. As I release the lid off of the classic orange Storz and Bickel grinder, you see the ground flower starting to move and spring back from being compressed. As I tap it out into my hand it’s ground perfectly without turning to dust, meaning that clean up won’t be as much of an issue and more of those terpenes will remain intact for longer between loading the dry herb vaporiser. Compared to dryer strains this won’t produce as much kief if you’ve got a fancy multi level sifting grinder, but if you’re like me, you prefer to keep it all on the flower whenever possible then this strain is ideal.

Batch No

For reference we include a batch number. As mentioned above, some strains have been found to vary over time, (Thankfully mostly for the better!) so we include the batch as a reference for anyone looking. We haven’t noticed any issues with this batch that need addressing.

Throat issues/ catching/ allergies?:

In the past I have had hay fever like symptoms with a scratchy throat/ runny eyes and sneezing around loading my device or vaping certain strains. So I take note whether this is an issue on my reviews incase anyone else has the same problem!

For me Cura Cannatonic T12 C8 didn’t have any of these issues. This batch arrived with a more balanced cure than I’m used to for medical, which in my opinion gives it a much smoother vaping experience. So those of you who struggle with dry herb vapes making you cough, this may be a good choice if they keep up this standard of cure. I imagine this would only improve with a Boveda pack in a UV glass jar.

Side effects/ issues?

I haven’t observed any, if you have any would like to add any info here to help others let us know! I imagine for many this would be a low risk strain for side effects simply due to the potency involved here and how well CBD does at balancing some of THC’s more prevalent effects that can lead to anxiety etc. So overall I’d rate this a pretty safe strain to try for those with all levels of tolerance.

It works wonderfully when used to balance things like I often do using a CBD Oil in conjunction with my typical THC regime. 

Strain Profile: Curaleaf Cannatonic 

Info from www.MedBud.wiki:

"For many the idea of a strain with a 1:1 ratio of THC and CBD may sound ridiculous, but Resin Seeds strove to achieve this in their strain Cannatonic. Their final product ended up being a 50/50 hybrid strain that barely achieved a THC percentage higher than 6 percent, however, it's CBD content tested between 6 and 17 percent.

By pollinating a female MK Ultra with the well known male G13 Haze, Resin Seeds created an earthy and citrus tasting strain. Resistant to many pests, Cannatonic has reportedly had some issues with molds and mildews, meaning it should probably be kept in a controlled environment or carefully watched. Resin Seeds keeps some very in depth growing information on their website for the strain when grown indoors. They recommend vegetating for a week, using Bio Vega and Bio Rhizotonic. Clones may need an eye kept on them to ensure the development of a strong root system. After the vegetative period comes a nine week flowering period, during the last of which Resin Seeds advises lowering the hours of light to ten from twelve. Cannatonic plants may yield up to 500 grams per square meter indoors. Outside in October, these plants may be harvested for 250 to 400 grams per plant."

Terpene profile:
 
Most commonly found terpenes:

Alpha-Pinene

Beta-Pinene

Myrcene

Caryophyllene

Consistency 

I can't comment on consistency across batches yet as this is my first batch so far. I was eager to get my feedback out there as balanced THC/ CBD strains are coming up in conversation more and more often. Whether it's online or with our customers, it's clear that a lot more medical cannabis patients are starting to appreciate the relationship between these different cannabinoids. 

It's been a long time misconception that 'stronger is better', and we often hear of patients claiming they only need high THC strength flowers and strains like this wouldn't touch the sides. 

What I would say is that if you find yourself on that side of the fence, for the sake of £80, introduce the control this offers you into the mix and you may well realise how useful it is to have in your regime! 

Overall impression

I’m very impressed with this strain and I’m honestly not normally one to get excited about balanced strains. I use CBD Oil Drops orally every day and have done for over 5 years. So I have always had quite a distinct relationship with CBD’s role in balancing THC as I have dialled it in over the years. However this is the first time I’ve experienced an effective CBD flower that works as well as this one does.

Not only does the strain smell amazing and pave the way for better curing methods with terpene preservation but it’s completely opened up the control I have over my day and dosage. There will be days where I need to maintain a base line, but as I’m not having a particularly bad flare up I would ideally like to avoid any feeling of a ‘High’ as my usual daytime dose can at times. So being able to mitigate that whilst providing relief is a godsend for me. Equally, on days where my day time sativa isn’t quite doing enough, I can mix it with this for a more balanced effect. So if you’re looking to balance your THC routine with CBD, or simply want to step in with a low risk yet effective strain then you really can’t go wrong with Curaleaf Cannatonic.

Even patients with more advanced needs can get use out of these low potency strain! I’m excited to see what the future has to hold for more balanced strains to come to the legal UK Medical Cannabis market if this is only just the start! In my opinion it has lived up to the hype, and although I can see a better cure making a work of difference on terpenes, practical usage and dosing issues, it does have some room to go but it’s an easy thing to achieve. So I have high hopes for future batches of this!

If you would be interested in offering your own reviews/ insights on strains or the medical cannabis industry in the UK in general, we are open to collaborating. Feel free to drop us an email!

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