Cannabis cups and competitions have proliferated in recent years especially in states with legal markets, but in Northern California’s Emerald Triangle, they have long been part of the culture. The Emerald Cup ran for twenty years and set the standard for many other competitions that followed. And now The Mendo Cup carries the torch and takes the competition to the next level as a showcase of Mendocino County’s best weed and a lifeline for the small farmers who keep the culture alive.
Founded by longtime Emerald Cup judge Nikki Lastreto in 2025 and led by Leah Cerri and a committee of volunteers in 2026, this small local competition celebrates the best sungrown flower in the region, and gives back to the small farm community who are struggling to stay afloat.
So How Does a Competition Like The Mendo Cup Ensure that The Best Weed Wins?
Each competition has their own process, but The Mendo Cup strives to offer objective blind judging by a variety of experts and tastemakers in the space. As a first-time judge for The Mendo Cup this year, I’m here to give you a little peek behind the redwood curtain at how the judging process went and what I learned from being a part of this year’s esteemed panel of judges.
I had been applying to judge competitions for years, but it wasn’t until this year’s Mendo Cup that I was given a chance, and I’m so grateful and honored to be chosen. The Mendo Cup prioritizes having a diverse panel of judges with varied levels of experience and roles in the cannabis space. Many had specific training such as a Ganjier Certification, some were legacy cultivators or dispensary owners, but the main requirement according to Nikki is that all the judges “simply see and smoke a lot of weed.” No matter their niche in the cannabis community, they know what’s good and keep up with the pulse of the market. In addition, most of the judges have a connection to or have lived and grown in Mendocino County. Mendo Love is the heart of the Cup.
Having lived on the Mendocino coast for a decade before I moved to Sonoma County in 2018, I found myself very aligned with the mission and vision of The Mendo Cup and everyone who brought it to life. Everyone involved invested their time and energy as a labor of love and we were all united in our desire to uplift the small farmers of Mendocino County, who can certainly use all the support that they can get.
The Mendo Cup is unique in that the farmers are truly centered in the competition and event, and all proceeds after expenses are split evenly between all the farms who entered. Every bit of grassroots support the Cup received from sponsors, volunteers, and attendees was paid forward. This year, after paying for event expenses, The Mendo Cup raised $5,410, which means each farmer who entered received about $200. The winner also received equipment and services from sponsors, and eight dispensaries in the area agreed to carry the winning cultivars as Retail Partners for the Cup.
The competition is limited to sungrown full-term flower grown on a licensed Mendocino farm with a total canopy of 10,000 square feet or less. We’re rooting for the little guys, and with such an amazing selection of farms that fit these strict criteria, the competition was quite fierce!
Judges were given 27 one gram samples in TerpLoc bags with a number assigned to each, and we had a few weeks to evaluate each entry, with plenty of time for spacing them out to properly assess the effects. I first went through each entry and made notes on the looks and smells, then tried each nug in my Venty flower vaporizer, and finally in a freshly cleaned bong.
The weekend before the Cup was my birthday, and I took the flower entries out to beautiful Orr Hot Springs, my happy place. It’s a relaxing resort tucked into a quiet valley near Ukiah and the perfect setting for experiencing the best of Mendo’s nearby farms. This set and setting definitely influenced my notes on effects, so I tried to keep in mind that I was already in a relaxed state, paying attention to how each flower I sampled enhanced or influenced the experience in the beautiful smoking garden at Orr in between soaks.
The day before the event, all the Judges got together and sat around a big table to see and smell full jars of each entry, allowing us to more deeply experience the aroma, examine the biggest nugs, and try all of our favorites both in a Volcano and in fat doobies passed around the circle. I tried to absorb as much knowledge as I could during the Judges Session, with some serious heavyweights in the room, I felt honored to be there.
What Are the Judges Looking For in a Winner?
Each judge has their own preferences of course, but we aim for objectivity as we examine and experience each bud, making detailed notes on the appearance, aroma, flavor and effects. In each category, this is what we assess:
Effects: This is a very subjective category, since each Judge has their own preferences and tolerance levels. Which is why trying each sample multiple times using multiple methods was key to getting a good assessment. I spaced my judging out over the weeks that we had samples so that I could be sure to accurately capture how each sample made me feel, but on Judging Day, we didn’t have as much time in between and the effects started to compound. Paying attention to the immediate sensations after smoking became important here – where and how did we feel the hit, what changes did we notice, and was it more uplifting or relaxing, euphoric or sleepy.
Appearance: The colors and bud structure of each sample is examined, as well as the crystallization and how the bud was trimmed. Many judges used a jeweler’s loupe or a magnifying glass and flashlight to get an up close look at how well the trichomes are formed – flowers plucked at the perfect moment of readiness received high marks here.
Aroma: The nose knows. As Swami pointed out as he shared judging insights, aroma is a huge factor in the way the flower is experienced. Unique flavor notes and pungent aromas are a differentiator that helps the best buds rise to the top. The Terpene Wheel from Ellen Holland’s Weed: A Connoisseur’s Guide to Cannabis was super helpful in identifying unique smells and offering clues on each cultivar’s terpene content and effects.
Flavor: Starting with a “dry hit” of each joint to assess the taste of each sample before it’s lit, we then sparked up and noted how the flower burned, the flavor notes perceived in each hit and the aftertaste that the smoke left after being exhaled. Strong, tasty or unique flavors stood out.
Effects: This is a very subjective category, since each Judge has their own preferences and tolerance levels. Which is why trying each sample multiple times using multiple methods was key to getting a good assessment. I spaced my judging out over the weeks that we had samples so that I could be sure to accurately capture how each sample made me feel, but on Judging Day, we didn’t have as much time in between and the effects started to compound. Paying attention to the immediate sensations after smoking became important here – where and how did we feel the hit, what changes did we notice, and was it more uplifting or relaxing, euphoric or sleepy.
Whether we were judging samples on our own or together in a group, we took copious notes. Some judges used a point system to rate each sample, and some wrote poetic descriptions as we narrowed down our favorites. While there were plenty of laughs throughout the day, everyone took their role seriously. Nikki, who I nicknamed Mother of Judges, kept us on task, reminded us to write down our notes, and tallied everyone’s votes up to determine the top 10 entries. Swami imparted knowledge of what to look and smell for and how to assess each entry. After much rolling, passing, enjoying and discussing each of the cultivars (with some breaks for snacks and fresh air in between), each judge wrote down their top 5 ranked choices, and those were tallied up to award the top 5 winners.
There was a lot of consensus among the judges as we were describing aroma notes, noting effects and narrowing entries down, and we compared notes as we passed around each joint. I felt validated when three of my top five picks made it into the final top five after all the rankings were counted up. It was definitely not easy to choose winners when ALL of the entries were so excellent!
On May 3rd at the Willits Grange, the community gathered for the second Mendo Cup, and farmers set up booths to showcase their entries. The outdoor lounge began to fill up with people sharing in the local bounty and sampling all the flowers. At 4:20pm, the awards ceremony kicked off with Native elder Ron Lincoln from the nearby Round Valley performing a ceremonial song. Leah made introductions and then Nikki and Swami announced the 5th thru 1st place winners, as well as an award for Best Breeder and five honorable mentions.
In first place was Fire Horse OG from River Txai Farms aka Arcanna Flowers, and they were also awarded Best Breeder for this cultivar. Second place went to Royal Blueberry from Emerald Spirit Botanicals, and Rainbow Belts x Runtz took third, from SoulSol Mendocino. Learn more about the winners and see tasting notes on The Mendo Cup website, where you can also get on the list to get a head’s up about the 2027 event.
The second annual Mendo Cup felt like a big hug from the Mendocino community, full of smiles and shared smoke, great food and the best weed from the heart of the Emerald Triangle. There’s no place like Mendocino, and there’s something special about the weed grown in this tucked away redwood studded paradise. Many of the farms who entered were multi-generational family farms with decades of experience, dedication to the craft, and unique genetics.
At a time when small legacy farmers are facing harder times than ever, the Mendo Cup put them at the center of the celebration and brought the whole community together for the love of good Mendo weed. I couldn’t be more grateful to have been a part of it and I learned so much from my first judging experience. See you next May at The Mendo Cup, and as always, May the Best Weed Win!
Megan Prusynski, known as “Pru,” is a versatile marketing and creative professional with a passion for planning and executing comprehensive marketing campaigns that seamlessly integrate digital and real-world experiences.
As a seasoned marketing leader, designer, strategist, and content creator, Megan thrives in dynamic, multitasking environments. She currently serves as Marketing Director for Doobie Nights and offers freelance marketing services. Megan is particularly inspired by purpose-driven, collaborative, and innovative projects that aim to create a positive impact on the world and educate on and advocate for the plant.
With a background as a cannabis patient, advocate, and industry professional, Megan’s career has been unconventional and intentional, often working closely with the cannabis community and counterculture. Her diverse experience spans event marketing and production, web and graphic design, social media marketing and copywriting, and the non-profit and creative agency sectors. Megan specializes in crafting efficient and creative marketing solutions for aligned businesses and causes. Learn more and subscribe to her newsletter at meganpru.com.
