High Spirits: The Cannabis Business Podcast
Hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein serve up unfiltered insights, reveal their insiders' perspectives, and illuminate transformative ideas about the cannabis industry for people who want to make sense of it all.
Episodes
Is the cannabis industry getting in its own way? With shifting legislation, political action committees playing both sides, and an impending supply chain crunch, the divide between hemp and marijuana has never been more contentious.
In this episode, Ben Larson flies solo while AnnaRae is out, welcoming Chris Fontes, Founder and CEO of High Spirits Beverages and President at U.S. Hemp Authority. Chris brings his polite but blunt pers...
Is a cannabis contract truly enforceable in federal court? The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals just delivered a ruling that sent shockwaves through the industry—and sent operators rushing to review their legal agreements.
In this episode of This Week in Cannabis Live, High Spirits hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein join Jeremy Berke and Jay Rosenthal of Cultivated and Marc Hauser of Cannabis Musings to break down the massive ...
While most operators treat California as an impossible market, Big Oil Co. is scaling past $26M in revenue and setting its sights on $100M—completely bootstrapped.
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with John LaFata, CEO and co-founder of Big Oil Co. (parent company of Bear Labs). John pulls back the curtain on processing 16,000+ pounds of biomass monthly, navigating customer conce...
The cannabis and hemp industries are navigating a pivotal crossroads where federal timelines, policy battles, and high-stakes corporate maneuvering collide.
In this episode of This Week in Cannabis Live, host Jay Rosenthal (Cultivated), Ben Larson (High Spirits) and Marc Hauser (Cannabis Musings) unpack a week packed with major regulatory and commercial shifts. The crew breaks down what the short-term CR extension means for hemp ope...
As business leaders settle back into fall routines, the cannabis industry is undergoing its own massive season of spring cleaning, federal audits, and regulatory reckoning.
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein dive into the latest headlines shaping the cannabis and hemp landscapes. From Glasshouse's historic NYSE listing to the DEA's bizarre new operator questionnaires, they break down what recent ...
Is the DEA's surgical strategy at the rescheduling hearing setting the stage for Schedule III? On this edition of This Week in Cannabis Live, the gang unpacks the massive 2,500-page rescheduling transcript, the ongoing corporate proxy battle between Curaleaf ($CURA) and Aurora ($ACB), and how mainstream anti-cannabis PR is shaping public opinion.
Plus, the crew sits down with special guest Rachel Bell, Curator of High Art at Go...
As capital markets reset and the hype cools, the cannabis industry isn’t collapsing—it’s maturing. So, what does it take to deploy institutional capital and build a resilient business in today’s environment?
About This Episode
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson & AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with Tiby Erdely, Founding Partner at Key Investment Partners. Drawing from his institutional p...
The cannabis landscape is shifting rapidly, and global moves are redefining M&A. Join us for a high-stakes breakdown with the Cultivated and Cannabis Musings crew as we digest Curaleaf’s hostile takeover bid for Canadian OG Aurora Cannabis ($ACB)—a calculated $4 per share push targeting prized EU GMP export assets.
High Spirits Host AnnaRae Grabstein teams up with Jay Rosenthal, Jeremy Berke (Cultivated), and Marc Ha...
What happens when a craft alcohol company accidentally builds one of the fastest-growing hemp THC beverage brands in America? As federal regulations loom and state lines shift, the traditional beverage world and hemp supply chains are colliding faster than ever.
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with Jason Dayton, Co-Founder of Minneapolis Cider Company and Trail Magic—Minnesota&r...
In a California market defined by ruthless price compression and distressed assets, how does a quiet operator scale to $73M in retail sales while commanding nearly double the average market price?
About This Episode
In this solo-hosted episode, AnnaRae Grabstein sits down with Anna Willey, Founder and CEO of California Artisanal Medicine (CAM). Anna reveals the operational strategy behind building California's #2 branded flower line,...
As California crosses its eighth year of adult-use legalization, operators find themselves caught between a stubborn illicit market and rigid regulatory oversight.
In this pivotal episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson & AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with Clint Kellum, Director of the California Department of Cannabis Control (DCC), to unpack the structural friction facing the world’s largest cannabis economy.
From th...
The cannabis landscape is shifting at light speed, and navigating the turbulence requires more than just keeping up—it demands rigorous strategic alignment and radical organizational transparency.
In this one on one, business news roundup episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein sync up for a dynamic news and culture roundup, pulling back the curtain on the internal mechanics of building an agile c...
It was a massive week in cannabis policy — and we're breaking it all down live with the teams from Cultivated, High Spirits and Cannabis Musings, Friday at 12 PM ET.
On the docket:
🏛️ The DEA's rescheduling hearing wraps up — what did we learn, and what happens next?
📜 One day later, Senate Democrats reintroduced the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act — led by Sens. Booker, Schumer,...
Are you running your cannabis business on gut instinct or hard numbers? In a volatile, state-by-state landscape where headlines rarely tell the whole story, relying on assumptions is a fast track to getting left behind.
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson & AnnaRae Grabstein are joined by Leah Spokojny, Chief Revenue Officer of BDSA, the industry’s leading market research and analytics firm. Together, the...
The rules of the cannabis economy are being rewritten right now in a small, secure federal courtroom in Northern Virginia. While July usually signals a summer slowdown for the industry, the exact opposite is happening.
In this week's live episode breakdown, AnnaRae Grabstein (Co-Host of High Spirits) steps into the arena alongside Jay Rosenthal (Cultivated) and legal analyst Marc Hauser (Cannabis Musings). Together, they pull back t...
While most multi-state operators are racing to build massive houses of brands, one independent Ohio operator made the exact opposite bet—and won.
About This Episode: In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson & AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with Zach Weprin, President of Certified Cultivators, to unpack how his family-owned, vertically integrated company captured an impressive 7% market share in Ohio. Zach shares the r...
What happens when a 115-year-old family farm bets its entire legacy on the future of cannabis? You get New York’s top-selling beverage and vape brand, bringing in over $75M in retail sales.
In this episode of High Spirits, host AnnaRae Grabstein holds down the fort while Ben Larson is away on paternity leave. She sits down with Eddie Brennan, CEO of ayrloom, to dissect their meteoric rise in the New York market and how they ut...
The cannabis industry is sprinting toward major U.S. stock exchanges, but a high-stakes showdown in Washington could completely rewrite the rules of the game.
On this episode of This Week in Cannabis Live, host Jay Rosenthal and the Cultivated Media team (Jeremy Berke) are joined by regular panel experts AnnaRae Grabstein (High Spirits) and Marc Hauser (Cannabis Musings) to break down a massive transparency battle unfolding at...
Live from the media stage at IgniteIt Chicago, High Spirits co-host AnnaRae Grabstein conducts five lightning-round interviews with the industry’s sharpest minds. From the realities of major M&A integration and enterprise AI deployment to a wild on-stage metaphor involving a literal caterpillar, this special bonus episode captures the exact energy, momentum, and anxiety of the current market.
Featuring insights from ...
The federal government has officially rewritten the history books by shifting medicinal cannabis to Schedule III—and Glass House Brands is making a massive, unprecedented chess move to capitalize on it.
About This Episode
In this episode of High Spirits, hosts Ben Larson & AnnaRae Grabstein sit down with Graham Farrar, Co-Founder, President, and Chief Cannabis Officer of Glass House Brands. Graham breaks down Gl...
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