To give you an idea of just how popular and well-known Blue Dream is, even my 93-year-old grandma (who does not toke) has heard of this strain. Granted she lives on the west coast, but I was still impressed.
What’s even more interesting about Blue Dream, in my experience, is that everyone seems to like it. I’ve found gassy diesel lovers and fruity strain aficionados alike who just can’t find anything not to like about this modern classic. It’s got a broad appeal that is rare to find in this age of countless cannabis strains.
It’s a little bit of a mystery who bred the strain originally, but most sources I read and spoke with agree it came out of the medical-forward Santa Cruz cannabis community in the early 2000s. Believed to be a cross of DJ Short’s Blueberry F5 and a Haze (which one is debated), it offers a “best of both worlds” balance in terms of growing and frequently reported effects.
A true hybrid, Blue Dream is a favorite for home growers who report it’s easy to grow like an indica but produces bigger yields like a sativa. With vibrant green leaves and buds with an abundant but not absurd amount of pistils (orange hairs), its appearance is as classic as its name has become. If you close your eyes and imagine a cannabis plant, what you see could probably be a Blue Dream chemovar.
Typical Chemical Makeup
Speaking of chemovars, while we cannot confirm the lineage of flowers we test, of the cuts that have come through lab that were claimed to be Blue Dream by the grower, we usually see somewhere between about 18% and 27% total active cannabinoids with max THC around 17% to 24%. All of the cannabinoid profiles we compared for this investigation share a mix of mostly THCa and THC, with less than a percent each of CBGa and CBC. Several of the reports I looked at also had a small amount of one or both of CBDa and CBN, but I find it more interesting that they all had between 0.1% and 0.2% CBC or cannabichromene. According to one study, cannabichromene combined with THC elicits an antidepressant-like effect, which may account for why so many users report experiencing mood-elevating effects from consuming Blue Dream.
When it comes to terpene profiles, the most common and most abundant terp we see in flower samples reported to be Blue Dream is beta-myrcene, which was present in every sample report used for this investigation. It’s the most plentiful terpene in the majority of the reports we looked at, and it’s always at least in the top 3 and accounts for between one fifth to one third of the total terpene percentage. Alpha-pinene was the second most common terp and was usually in the top 2 to 5 terps present in terms of percentage. Beta-caryophyllene was also very common among Blue Dream samples we’ve tested but was a little all over the place in terms of percent. In one or two samples it was the most abundant, but in others there were only very trace amounts detected. Similarly, D-limonene, linalool, trans-nerolidol, and beta-pinene were all common to the Blue Dreams compared here but did not consistently appear in very high quantities. Lastly, alpha-humulene, beta-ocimene, and terpinolene appeared in a majority of the samples as well. To see what this kind of terpene breakdown might mean for what to expect from Blue Dream, check out the terpene section of The Cannabis Review®.
Because everyone will have varying experiences with any given cannabis strain based on personal body chemistry and other factors, it’s impossible to predict what you should expect from Blue Dream, and different chemovars may produce a different experience. While the name suggests a more relaxed and sleepy effect, many patients and consumers report an uplifted, energized feeling. Like any great hybrid, Blue Dream offers potential for a nicely balanced effect for both body and mind.
It might be so iconic and universally loved that it’s almost a cliche strain at this point, but there’s a reason that Blue Dream can be found on menus all across the country. Whether you’re a veteran stoner or just starting your cannabis journey, it’s worth seeing what the Blue Dream near you has to offer.
DISCLAIMER: Strain names are self-reported by clients and are not a reliable reference to a given flower’s lineage or origin. All cannabis users have a unique endocannabinoid system and may experience distinctly different effects from any given cannabis product regardless of strain
