Distillate

Distillate refers to a concentrated cannabis extract produced through distillation—a separation process that isolates and purifies cannabinoids and volatile compounds from plant material. Unlike whole-plant extracts, distillates are often nearly odorless and flavorless because distillation removes many terpenes and plant lipids during processing. In breeding and seed development contexts, distillate production serves as a refining tool rather than a preservation method, allowing researchers and producers to study isolated cannabinoid profiles independent of the original cultivar's aromatic or terpene characteristics. The term is primarily technical rather than descriptive of a plant's natural chemistry, making it distinct from strain-specific terpene profiles.

Plant breeders and geneticists use distillation to analyze cannabinoid ratios in candidate cultivars without terpene interference, enabling more precise selection for specific cannabinoid phenotypes. Distillate production also allows preservation of cannabinoid data from rare or historically important genetics for future reference.