The high guide to the best hash in Amsterdam 2021

The Netherlands is a stoner’s paradise. With cannabis easily accessible at coffeeshops, getting high is almost as straightforward as going to the supermarket. Still, many people choose to smoke weed but forget about the great alternative: hash.

Hashish is not as popular as weed, but as its THC-infused cousin, it’s definitely worth the try. Milder and more refined as a high, hash is well-suited for your daily activities.

We went around Amsterdam to look for the best coffeeshops out there to get hash from, but before we get to discussing some delicious strains and where you can get the best hash of Amsterdam, let’s find out more about hash in the Netherlands and what’s up with it.

What is hash exactly and how is it made?

For starters, hash is made from the cannabis plant, it’s just obtained through a different process than weed. For weed, you dry out the plant, and take the savoury buds, gleaming with pollen full of THC.

To get hash, however, there are several methods used to get the brown block. The Morrocan method uses a sieve to sift out the pollen from the dry bulb. This process is then repeated over and over with more and more pressure and finer sieves until the product that emerges at the end is the famous block hashish. That is, however, just one method of making hash.

There are many different methods, some traditional and some of the DIY, at-home variety. In all honesty, we can dedicate an entire article to the methods of making hashish, but that seems unnecessary when you can watch this informative video on how hashish is made in Morrocan farms.

What hash to get from the best coffeeshops in Amsterdam?

A visit at the elegant Coffeeshop Boerejongens

This wonderful hash will give you a relaxing high, but with the cerebral activity and boost of a Sativa strain. It’s well suited for all sorts of creative activities, so if you’re feeling like drawing or playing some music, this strain is the one to go.

It has a strong and earthy hashish flavour, sure to give you a classic vibe. It’s not harsh either, as some hash tends to be, so expect a smooth experience smoking this fat kid.

You can get this strain from Coffeeshop Boerejongens Sloterdijk. The location is luxurious and the staff very knowledgable and quick to help (as well as elegantly dressed). There are three Boerejongens coffeeshops in Amsterdam, all of them clean and pleasant to visit.

A stop at the corner store

Next stop is at a gezellig corner coffeeshop. Mixed from kosher and kush strains, the Kosher Tangiblock Static Hash is a Morrocan classic, obtained through the process of static electricity (more on that in the video above).

This is a spicy tasting hashish, with a strong earthy flavour. It will give you a strong head high, so don’t go too overboard when rolling it unless you want to struggle to raise your hand to get some water for your (very) dry mouth.

You can get this strain from the coffeeshop The Corner. It’s a small shop, but good for pick-ups and clean and sparkling as well.

Revisiting the Fat Kid at the Tweede Kamer

Our next stop is at the Tweede Kamer. No silly, not in The Hague (although, you wonder what they are smoking there sometimes), but the coffeeshop in Amsterdam! The Fat Kid makes a reappearance on the list, but worry not, it is different from the other Fat Kid previously mentioned.

This strong hash has an interesting flavour, as it has less of the earthy taste that hashish usually has, and has a strong green and fresh flavour and smell. This strain is also a knockout, so smoke in moderation and you should reach the sweet spot of your high-ness.

You can find this strain at the Coffeeshop Tweede Kamer. Tweede Kamer is not only a great coffeeshop for hashish but also a beautiful venue in a historic building and one of the best coffeeshops in Amsterdam centre for your hash of choice.

A Moroccan classic at Coffeeshop Amsterdam

Next on the list is one of of our favourite coffeeshops in Amsterdam. This Morrocan-bred hashish with is well-suited for all sorts of creative activities. It will give you a strong and uplifting high, and if used in moderation, you can go ahead and do all sorts of things while enjoying this strain.

It has a smooth and earthy taste, akin to other flavours on this list. Prepare to feel green despite its brown colouring!

You can find this strain in Coffeeshop Amsterdam, Haarlemmerstraat 44, 1013 ES Amsterdam. Sad that corona was spoiling things as usual because this one is also a nice place to hang-out and smoke, always loved the drinks, dudes behind the counter and the general vibe there.

Chocolate delight from DNA

For our last visit, we’re heading to the South of Amsterdam. Here, we can find the white choco block, a great hashish strain that is the love child of Chocolope and White Russian, beautifully named the White Choco Block.

Surprise! It has a ring of chocolate to it. And some subtle flavour both sweet and spicy, nice and deep. It also tastes like a day at a festival in Amsterdam (you know why).

Coffeeshop DNA also sells some of the best edibles in Amsterdam and has some great ganja paraphernalia — enjoyed a spacecake bar with pistachio flavour from there and wandered through an empty Amsterdam (pandemic times).

The list goes on! Here are some other strains of the best hash of Amsterdam to be found:

Johnny with Super Silver Haze Block

It’s clean, fresh and near the nine-streets-area. So if your mom is into good hash you can take her to Johnny! Johnny teamed up with the good people from Amsterdam Genetics and together they bring you the Super Silver Haze Block (love how with strain-names more is always better). The product is dark, citrusy and soft. The high is fun and happy (but strong), makes for a good friend to take and smoke at a festival.

Voyagers taking you away with Green Crack Hash

Take a voyage (sorry) to this shop east of the Damrak and get some of that Green Crack Hash. It’s affordable, nice and green and gets you there.

Eerste Hulp Coffeeshop has some Sour Diesel in their first aid kit (again sorry)

The Eerste Hulp shop is coming to your rescue if you are in need of some Diesel flavoured hash. Some smokers live for this particular strain and it’s much sought after.

Katsu and the Amnesia Block

Katsu is a nice and old-school shop in the Pijp. Good (psychedelic) vibes to be found there, what you can also find there is some excellent Amnesia Block — a tasty dark Morrocan hash made from the amnesia plant.

The Stud: Strawberry Banana Hash

The name should say enough: you’re in for a relaxed time with some fruity flavours. Too bad it isn’t strawberry or banana looking.

History of hashish

As you might guess by now, hash doesn’t grow next to tulips and cheese (also, cheese doesn’t grow). Hash has a long and rich history spanning millennia and many different cultures, from Indians and Nepalese to Egyptians and Moroccans. No one is certain where it first emerged, but one thing is certain: hashish takes a special cultural role in several countries.

Hashish first arrived in Europe back in the 18th century, but back then it was more of a curiosity than a daily habit of people. By the 19th century, however, hashish was widespread in certain literary circles throughout Europe. Some famous French writers of the time, such as Victor Hugo, Baudelaire and Alexandre Dumas loved the sticky hash, and they all consumed it in a literary club called the Club des Hashischins. Using drugs to enhance creativity, anyone?

The international trade of hashish started later in the 20th century. Pakistan and Afghanistan used to be one of the major exporters of hashish, but after conflicts in the region, Morroco took over the international market. They managed to maintain quasi-monopoly until around the ’90s, but Afghanistan is now considered the biggest producer of higher quality hashish.

That does not mean that Morrocan hashish isn’t still very popular, and many strains of hashish that you can get here in the Netherlands have their origins in Morroco.

Smoking hash compared to weed

Now, what does hashish give you that weed doesn’t? Well, first of all, they’re both going to get you high, that’s for sure. The main difference is that hashish will give you a milder high than weed. While weed is prone to give you that heavy, hazy high, hashish is better suited for doing activities and not sitting on your couch.

Flavour is also a major difference, as hashish usually has a more earthy taste (although some hashes, depending on their quality, can be more similar in taste to weed).

Lastly, while hashish is generally milder than weed, hash has much more THC compressed in it, so don’t add too much hashish in the joint. Or do, if you want to get really, really baked.

Rolling hashish compared to weed

Prepping weed for a joint is straightforward. Using either a grinder or your own hands, you break it down in small pieces, mix (or not) with tobacco, roll, and voila, you made yourself a joint!

Hashish is a slightly different story, but do not worry, as it’s not (too) complicated. Most hashish is quite solid and hard to break by hand. In order to prepare it for the joint, you need to heat it up a bit with the flame from a lighter. That will make it softer and easier to break. Some hashish is already softer by default, so a lighter won’t be needed.

Once you heat it up, you can either put little crumbs of hashish in the joint or alternatively, you can make hash snakes. What’s a hash snake, you may ask? Well, hash snakes (as called by me) are when you take a little bit of hashish and using your fingers, you mould it into a thin, snake-like figure. Just think of it as playing with plasticine, but instead of playing as a child, you’re playing as an adult looking to get high after a long day of work.

If you do use the hash snake method, be careful when you ash, because you risk if you push too hard against the ashtray to lose some of the contents of the joint.

Another thing to note is that, unlike weed, hashish will not burn on its own, so you necessarily need to add tobacco or some herb to make the joint burn.

Help! I want to know more about getting high but don’t know where to start

Maybe you’d like to know more about hash, weed and all other highness-related activities. If you’re around Amsterdam, we recommend a visit to the Coffeeshop Info Centre. The knowledgable staff can tell you all you need to know about getting high. Not only that but if you have curiosities about the legal status of hash/weed, this is the place to go!

What if you’re sceptical about hash and would like to try some alternatives? You can always check out edibles for a more culinary high experience, or give a try to the magic CBD oil.

Have you tried any of these kinds of hash in Amsterdam on the list? What do you prefer more, hash or weed? Let us know in the comments!

Feature Image: DutchReview