The Best Cannabis Club in Barcelona 2016

The best cannabis club in Barcelona is one that most people are not familiar with. This article details the top 5 clubs in Catalonia’s capital city, which is currently home to around 175 private cannabis social clubs. The 5 Barcelona weed clubs featured in this article are not only the best of what the city had to offer in 2016, they’re also among the best cannabis establishments in the world.

CLICK HERE to APPLY for MEMBERSHIP at a BARCELONA CANNABIS CLUB NOW

(This is a preliminary application process; not all who apply will qualify for membership based on Spanish law and club policy. Application for membership is general and is not necessarily applied to any particular club unless the applicant fully qualifies.)

Introduction

I’ve written about the best cannabis clubs in Barcelona before, but times change. Since I wrote the first edition of this article, the top club was closed under pressure from authorities. For about 2 years the best club in the city was La Mesa, but that club was shuttered in May of 2016 and the President and Secretary of the club have officially been sentenced to 5 years in prison.

Other reasons that clubs fall out of position include changes in policy that adversely affect current or new/potential members, and reduction in quality of cannabis products. The latter has been an acute problem in Barcelona during all of 2016, mostly caused by unpredictable cultivation and related market conditions. Because many clubs cannot afford the risk of growing cannabis directly, instead member resources are pooled and cannabis is purchased from local growers and distribution syndicates. Robberies and police raids are a big problem for cannabis growers in Catalonia. It’s safer for many clubs to outsource.

In fact, so much has changed in the city in the last year that only 1 of the clubs that I originally chose as among the best in Barcelona remains on the list today.

Methodology

Overall, there’s no true methodology here, so readers can consider this an editorial list. I chose these clubs based on my experience as a personal member of many cannabis clubs in Barcelona, as well as my experience working with clubs professionally. These experiences are blended with the opinions of other industry professionals, whom I directly queried in this regard to generate this list of the top 5 cannabis clubs in Barcelona in 2016.

The #1 Barcelona Cannabis Club is…Greenardo!

Best Feature: Medical Cannabis Program

Greenardo is one of only a handful of true medical-marijuana oriented clubs in Barcelona. The club works with a doctor to help soft-certify (no government program recognizes this yet) members as medical marijuana patients. If the member qualifies, the club provides a discount of 40% for that person’s cannabis needs, including flower, hash, edibles, extracts and more.

Equally as impressive as the generous medical program at Greenardo is the quality and consistency of the marijuana produced by the Association. With extremely unique strains that are grown, cured and manicured professionally, it’s difficult to find a more diverse and consistent selection in Barna.

Greenardo is named after a famous nearby park, Parc Guinardo. Located in the Horta neighborhood of Barcelona, the club is about 20 minutes outside of the city center. This makes it the perfect location for escaping the mess of Las Ramblas and other touristy areas of Ciutat Vella.

The #2 Barcelona Cannabis Club is…HQ!

Best Feature: Extracts and Concentrates

HQ is a stalwart feature among Barcelona’s weed clubs. The club specializes in producing potent and clean cannabis extracts like rosin, wax, iceolator and other types of concentrates. In fact, HQ consistently wins awards for their extracts at cannabis events like Dabadoo.

With sprawling, beautiful facilities, HQ is often busy – even in the middle of the day – and because of its highly interconnected member base, the club regularly hosts events where participation among members is “high.”

When it comes to raw cannabis flower, you can find a few straight-up strains at HQ Barcelona, but the club also offers a large selection of hybrids that you won’t be able to find anywhere else in Barcelona and perhaps nowhere else in Spain.

The staff at HQ are among the best that I’ve seen; the club is exceptionally well-managed.

The #3 Barcelona Cannabis Club is…Choko!

Best Feature: Proprietary Strains

Choko (full feature review HERE) is the only club from the original version of this article that survived the cut, moving from position 4 for 2014 and 2015 to position 3 for 2016. An exemplary cannabis club that I chose as my “home” club after the passing of La Mesa, Choko’s genetics team produces some of the best cannabis in the world. The club’s proprietary strains, Choko, Yuzu and Tao Pai Pai continue to absolutely amaze this author and virtually everyone in the industry that I know who has sampled these strains.

Choko boasts an expansive layout that is focused on the works of local artists. Unlike other clubs and establishments that claim to support local artists but then keep the same works on the walls for a decade, Choko rotates the artwork it features frequently, giving exposure to new artists and delighting members with a tasteful, quirky and ever-changing selection of things to gaze at and ponder while we consume the sweet lemony goodness of a joint of Yuzu.

The #4 Barcelona Cannabis Club is…StrainHunters

Best Feature: Location

StrainHunters is the most tasteful and well-provisioned cannabis club anywhere near Las Ramblas; the heart and soul of Barcelona’s tourist district. With classic strains from GreenHouse Seeds like Super Lemon Haze, Super Silver Haze and many others, StrainHunters club is based on the documentary series of the same name, produced in conjunction with Arjan Roskam, the self-proclaimed King of Cannabis.

StrainHunters is exquisitely adorned in copper and wood, including light fixtures and accents, which, when combined with professional-quality lighting, makes for a hip, peaceful and attractive environment. This club is an excellent location to enjoy a joint and a coffee and then head out for a quick walk to the beach, Placa Catalunya, La Boqieria, El Gotico, or anywhere else in the city center.

The #5 Barcelona Cannabis Club is…Circulo

Best Feature: The People

Circulo is a new club that was opened in the same location as the former La Mesa cannabis club. Situated in this author’s favorite part of Barcelona – El Born – Circulo is near Born Cultural Center, Parc Ciutadella, the Barcelona Zoo, and Estacio Franca.

In addition to offering staple cannabis strains like Amnesia and White Widow, and a good selection of edibles, Circulo has made this list mainly because of its people. Many of the current members are former La Mesa members, which means that there are always familiar faces and voices at Circulo. Chess is making a comeback at the club, and live entertainment – a rarity at cannabis clubs in Barcelona these days – is slowly being re-introduced.

For daytime considerations, Circulo is an excellent option for work or study as it acquired the massive tables of the former club’s namesake.

Conclusion

While 2016’s best Barcelona cannabis club is Greenardo, things could change in 2017. Keep your eyes on up-and-comers like Weeds BCN, which could easily rival some of these clubs, and keep your ears to the ground as rumors are abound about a rebirth of Green Age – formerly this author’s #1 club in Barcelona (2013-2014) – and signs pointing to a re-emergence of RDM as a top cannabis club in the city.

Do you have suggestions or disagree with this list? Let us know in the comments section below.

CLICK HERE to APPLY for MEMBERSHIP at a BARCELONA CANNABIS CLUB NOW

(This is a preliminary application process; not all who apply will qualify for membership based on Spanish law and club policy. Application for membership is general and is not necessarily applied to any particular club unless the applicant fully qualifies.)