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High on Adventure with The Hazy Camper
High on Adventure with The Hazy Camper
By: Vivien Allen
Camping season might be over but that doesn’t mean it’s out of season to indulge The Hazy Camper. In fact, if I’m being honest, The Hazy Camper should be a staple for any cannabis consumer. From their careful ingredients to the melt-in-your mouth richness of their chocolate, you’re bound to be amazed, even if dark chocolate isn’t your jam. I had the pleasure of trying The Hazy Camper chocolates a few weeks ago following an epic mountain bike crash that resulted in a broken collarbone. Not one to rely solely on prescriptions, naturally I sought out some edibles to ease my recovery. It was love at first bite. Second bite… Third bite… It was all love. The chocolate was decadent. It melted perfectly on my tongue, it was flavourful, and when I was done eating it, I felt great. Wanting to give credit where credit was due, I reached out toThe Hazy Camper and was fortunate enough to connect with Andrea Hoy, one half of the sister-duo behind the brand.
It’s in their genes
It’s in their genes
Every brand has a story and The Hazy Camper is no different.But not often do I have the serendipitous pleasure of hearing an origin story that makes me feel the full spectrum of feelings like I did when I spoke with Andrea. If there is one thing that I want you to take away from my conversation, it’s that perseverance, hard work, and drive are only a small part of what moves The Hazy Camper brand. Because when it comes down to it, the story behind this micro-producer from northern British Columbia is about family, love, and sharing their passion with the cannabis community.
Yes, I admit that sounds a little over the top, but hear me out because this isn’t a story
you’ve heard before.
Before they were The Hazy Camper, Andrea and her sister Lisa were two women navigating a difficult situation: cancer.
“We have a genetic mutation in our family which gives us very high rates of cancer.” Andrea recounted, “After the loss of many uncles and my father, my sister, Lisa, was diagnosed with breast cancer.”
In an effort to help Lisa manage her symptoms and the effects of chemo, Andrea started formulating and creating and soon realized that her “homemade” edibles actually made a difference. And thus, with the confidence in their homemade chocolates and their desire to share what they’d experienced with others, the footprint for The Hazy Camper was laid.
“The chocolates helped so much that we knew we needed to do it properly, dose it properly and bring something to market that isn’t an overly sugary, not-so-health-centred product.”
And I can’t blame them. If you’re looking to take edibles medicinally - or like me and are picking about aftertaste, sugar content and weird ingredient bloat- there aren’t really many options - especially not in the early days of 2.0 legalization.
So in 2020, the sisters stepped out of their comfort zones, and learned to jump, dance, and navigate the ins-and-outs of becoming a licensed producer.
Their journey wasn’t easy.
From self-funding their licensing, DIYing the retrofit of their facility, to writing all their procedures, the sister-duo had their hands full. Which of course, meant that life was about to throw them another curveball: Andrea was diagnosed with cancer.
“Our build out was done, but we were still going through other licensing hurdles when I was going through my own cancer journey.” she noted, “And we were grateful that we had this wealth of knowledge behind us to help me out so we could stay on track despite everything.”
Only the best kind of chocolate here
Only the best kind of chocolate here
And that’s how The Hazy Camper became the only micro LP in Canada exclusively making chocolate. Unlike other edibles companies who have entered the Canadian market with partnership deals, The Hazy Camper is one unto itself. Because for them, their cannabis journey is more than making a buck, it’s about sharing with others what helped them in their time of need. Andrea and Lisa are two halves of a whole. Leveraging Lisa’s background as a pastry chef, and Andrea’s knack for the operations side of the business, they became an unstoppable force. Soliciting the help of their family as needed, Andrea and Lisa worked against the oddsto bring The Hazy Camper to life.
By spring of 2022, they debuted in the market with what I think is the best tasting chocolate so far.Seriously, if you haven’t tried The Hazy Camper chocolate coins… you’re missing out.
And why is their chocolate so delicious?
Because they’ve committed to a high standard quality for their ingredients, especially given the reason they started in the first place.
“We're just trying to get out a clean product.” Andrea explained, “We haven't devalued our personal beliefs to save costs. There are definitely cheaper ingredients that we could be using, but they don’t align with why we started this so we don't wanna go there.”And sure enough, just a quick look at their label and you can see clear as day a list of basic, clean ingredients: organic dark chocolate, sunflower oil, vanilla, natural flavours, and cannabis extract. No emulsifying agents, no soy, no MCT oil, no synthetics. Just pure, consistently dosed deliciousness with an impressive 1g of sugar!
It’s a family affair
It’s a family affair
Probably the most impressive thing that I learned through my conversation with Andrea, and I said it earlier, is that the story of The Hazy Camper is one of family. That’s because Andrea and Lisa, and their partners are The Hazy Camper.
They do it all.
Yes, they’ve had some help throughout the process, but the bulk of the work has been done with their two hands. From formulation, documentation, production, packaging, excise stamping, marketing, boxing and even trucking their products to the warehouses in BC and Alberta themselves - these women and their family have poured their heart and soul into The Hazy Camper. So when I was at home recovering from my injury and indulging in chocolate, every package I opened was handled by the sisters or their partners at every step of the way.
That’s dedication.
So what’s it like?
So what’s it like?
The Hazy Camper has three products for sale. Each piece is a cute inch-and-a-half wide chocolate coin stamped with their logo. But it is the experience of their chocolate that I can’t get enough of.
No matter the flavour, you can tell you’re indulging in quality. The chocolate is rich, melts in your mouth, and offers a pleasant flavour-forward experience that - in my opinion - is second to none. You won’t be left with a funky cannabis aftertaste, a waxy mouth-feel, or even that weird bitterness at the back of my throat. Plus, as someone who is conscious of allergens, the clean label makes my heart sing. The onset is perfect and gradual, which for an edible is key since with the 30-60 minute onset typical to edibles, that feeling of being ploughed when the cannabis hits kind of sucks.
Raspberry Starry Night CBD: A full 40mg CBD chocolate that tastes EXACTLY like raspberries dipped in chocolate. It starts sweet and fruity, but ends in that melted chocolate goodness.
Black Forest THC: The first bite tastes like cherries, but then the creamy vanilla-dark chocolate sets in and it feels like you’re eating a slice of cake - the 10mg of THC is smooth.
Hazy Mint THC: The best mint-chocolate in cannabis! It’s decadent, rich and perfectly minty. My mouth tingled with that minty freshness even 15 minutes after I ate the chocolate. 10mg of THC.
Andrea did allude to some more flavours coming down the pipeline, and I am super excited to see this brand take off. Cannabis chocolate has been a hard sell for me since its debut, but you can’t go wrong with The Hazy Camper. I highly recommend you ask your favourite budtenders about carrying these amazing chocolates. And if you’re lucky enough to find yourselves in BC, Alberta, Northwest Territories or the Yukon, get yourself some chocolates!
(don’t worry, Ontario they’re coming your way soon!)
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