Concentrates and the Rise of Dab Culture

Shout out to all the dab lovers out there! We celebrated National Dab Day on 7/10, the highest of all holidaze. 7/10, or OIL Day, is dedicated to all the glorious concentrates in the world. Wax, budder, shatter, oil, sauce, resin... there are as many kinds of concentrates as there are ice cream: cones, cakes, sandwiches, sundaes, soft-serve, milkshakes… mmmm, milkshakes.

Comparing concentrates to ice cream actually works as an analogy, especially if you’re not familiar with dabs and dab culture. Let’s start with a quick overview of the wide, wonderful world of dabs.

Dabs became widely available to legal consumers starting in 2012, when legalization took hold in Washington and Colorado. In addition to legal herb and infused consumables like drinks and gummies, shoppers could also peruse an array of concentrates, and they were delighted by the flavor and strength of this intriguing new product.

Lo and behold, just a few years later, dabbing culture has its very own National Day. Do you know why we celebrate all things good in concentrates on 7/10? Why was that particular date declared National Dab Day? Cast your mind back to school daze, when you fiddled with your calculator in math class and typed in 80085 to make your friends snort.

Well, if you type in 710 and flip your Texas Instruments TI-108 upside down, you get… OIL. And so, July 10th was deemed OIL Day for those who love oil, concentrates and dabs to raise a rig, just like folks light up to celebrate legal herb on 4/20.

Choosing Dabs and Glass

There can be a bit of a learning curve for consumers new to concentrates—finding the right consistency of dab, anywhere from shatter to oil, as well as the perfect rig for your dabbing needs, can take some (very fun) research. Luckily, Daily High Club is here to serve all your dabbing needs. DHC has a rig for every kind of dabber: you’ll find all sorts of percolators, splash guards, bangers and other accessories in our extensive collection. Don’t be afraid to browse, read our blog, and ask questions from your dabbing friends so you find the rig that suits you best.

Where to start? Back to our ice cream analogy: there’s something for everyone. Do you like milkshakes? Dippin’ Dots? Soft serve, sundaes, gelato, fudgesicles, sorbet… hot-fudge-covered Talenti vanilla ice cream with roasted almonds and a sprinkle of sea salt? Ok, that one might be very specific to this writer. The point is: try all the different types of dabs, from sauce to shatter, to discover what you love. The delicious fun is in figuring it out.

As for dab rig and temperature, techniques are ever-evolving. Low-temp dabbing has mostly replaced the traditional high-temperature dab technique, which involved heat as high as 600-900 °F. Yeowch! Low-temp dabs are cooler, smoother and tastier—at 350 to 450 °F or thereabouts, they’re much easier on the lungs, lips and taste buds. You can learn how to make the most of your concentrate hit with a well-placed carb cap, rather than roasting your dab like a foil-wrapped potato left in the fire at a BBQ.

Check out our primer on low-temp dabbing for more info. Keep in mind, low temps preserve not only your lungs and the flavor of your dabs—it’s more efficient when it comes to ingesting your fave concentrates. You’ll get more bang for your buck, and more hits for great heights, at cooler temps. And you’ll preserve your kisser for… kissing. Or whatever.

Make a Statement with Your Style

Looking to make a statement with your glass? Flex with a Southern Dabber x Daily High Club "Combo King" rig. The reinforced matrix percolator in the large can offers major diffusion on hits of all sizes, and the slitted downstem in the small can pulls more flavor from vapors.

Saving up for Air Max 1/97s? Chill for cheaper, while still getting powerful hits, with a sweet Daily High Club Tree Perc Dab Rig/ Bubbler. Look at those pretty green accents and clean, simple design. It’s a winner!

Or you could sweeten up your day with a Daily High Club Honey Bear Rig, which will look as adorable in your kitchen next to the maple syrup as it will perching on your coffee table. Get him a Donut Dab Rig Mat to sit on, and you’ve got the perfect breakfast setup.

Don’t forget to pack the heat with a hefty Vector Hyper Torch, or a stealthy Vector Drone (great for travel!). Every party you will host this summer just got sooooo much better.

Daily High Club seeks out the latest trends in glass to bring them straight to you—often before anyone else even knows about them! Occasionally we’ll sell out of a hot-ticket item. But if you get yourself an El Primo subscription, you’re at the top of the DHC list to receive all the newest, most awesome smoking supplies. And you can always browse our site for everything you need in dab rigs, bongs, and smoking accessories.

What’s Up Next?

Just like Lil Nas X, concentrate culture keeps coming up with newer, better versions of dabs and dab rigs, without needing to change what people love because it works so well. It’s hard to say what might be the next crazy amazing thing, but we’re out here scouting for fire trends to bring you the latest and greatest smoking accessories. And while we’re at it, we’ll keep an eye out for what’s good in pizza, memes, and sneakers. You know we’re here for you.