Gilliane Nadeau, Uncorked Tours. Image: Submitted
A company specializing in introducing tourists to New Brunswick’s wine and beer scene will be stepping into the cannabis space next year.
Saint John-based Uncorked Tours will be offering a Cannabis 101 tour, starting in April 2020.
The tour is geared towards adults curious about cannabis and interested in learning more about the history and science around it. With legalized cannabis still new to a lot of people, Uncorked Tour owner Gilliane Nadeau saw an opportunity for her company to enter the cannabis space.
“One of the things that I saw as an opportunity right away was this idea for folks that are kind of new to cannabis scene and environment who don’t know anything about it, or [the information they’re] getting is what they find themselves on the internet,” says Nadeau.
While the tour will include cannabis consumption for those who want to, its main focus will be on the history and science behind the plant.
“We wanted to create an experience around cannabis that would give people a legal, safe place to try it if they wanted to, but also scratch that science itch,” says Nadeau. “We [now] have research coming out on cannabis and the different cannabinoids and terpenes that are found in the plant. We actually have some really interesting research on how cannabis can have similar effects as aromatherapy.”
The tour will begin at the City Market with a brief overview of current legislation and botany lesson on the cannabis plant. From there, participants travel through uptown Saint John learning the history of how citizens and business people responded to the historical prohibition on cannabis and alcohol. The tour will stop at the Picaroons General Store, where the group will have a beer and use hops to explore different terpenes that can be also found in cannabis.
The tour will conclude at the Mahogany Manor, at 4:20 p.m., to enjoy a picnic in their private garden where those who have legally purchased cannabis can consume if they wish.
“If you want to [consume it], if you’re comfortable and that’s the kind of thing that you like to do, by all means, let’s do it. If you don’t want to, that’s okay too,” says Nadeau. “We have plenty of non-drinkers who come on our drinking tours because they’re interested in the science of beer or the science of wine, or the culture of what’s going on, more so than the alcohol itself.”
Nadeau got inspiration for the Cannabis 101 tour after going on a similar one while visiting Denver, Colorado.
“This was really based on, ‘let’s talk about science. Let’s learn something,’” she says. “Absolutely have a puff, but it’s really about education and hopefully, people can take that and take some of the resources that we give them, and then go home and do a bit more research and find out what is it they’re interested in trying.”
People can start booking the tour online now, with the first one taking place on April 18. The two-hour-long tour costs $79 per person, which includes the food and drinks. Tour groups range between eight and 12 people.
“We always do small groups so people can have a nice intimate experience,” says Nadeau.
Uncorked Tours is one of the first companies in the province that are entering into the cannabis tourism industry. With rules and regulations around advertising and health strict, Nadeau says they’ve worked closely with the province’s tourism department the Health Canada while developing the tour.
“We spent months talking to Health Canada and trying to really make sure that what we were offering was even legal,” she says. “I wanted to do it above board the whole way so that when it came time to promoting our experience, it would be well-received by the department of tourism and they would comfortable and confident mentioning to the folks they talk to.”
A version of this story was published in Huddle, an online business news publication based in Saint John. Huddle is an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.
