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
173 episodes
#154 - Rescheduling, Global Politics, & Executive Action w/ Jason Adelstone of Harris Sliwoski
While the cannabis industry fixates on the slow drip of domestic legislation, the real momentum might be hiding in executive actions and international political shifts. Are you paying attention to the right signals, or just the loudest ones?
#153 - Breaking the Hemp Beverage Stigma with Chris Fontes of High Spirits Beverages
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 th...
TWICL (9/11/26) - Rescheduling Survives Its First Court Test & VA Drops a $10M Bomb
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 ...
#152 - Bootstrapping to $100M in California Cannabis with Big Oil Co.’s John LaFata
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 Anna...
TWICL (9/4/26) - Hemp Gets a One-Month Lifeline, M&A Power Plays & Michigan’s Tax Reality
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
#151 - Cannabis Business News Roundup w/ Ben & AnnaRae: De-cluttering, DEA & PPP
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 Gra...
TWICL (8/28/26) - 2,500 Pages of Rescheduling Testimony, $CURA vs. $ACB, and New York's High Art
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 p...
#150 - Cannabis Investing Realities with Tiby Erdely of Key Investment Partners
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 Episo...
TWICL (8/21/26) - Hostile Takeovers, EU Export Goldmine & Congress Presses the White House
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 ...
#149 - Building a Hemp Beverage Empire Inside Alcohol: Jason Dayton of Trail Magic
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...
#148 - How CAM Built a $73M California Cannabis Brand with Anna Willey
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<...
#147 - Reclaiming California’s Cannabis Market with DCC Director Clint Kellum
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 &...
#146 - Building Anti-Fragile Cannabis Culture, Multi-State M&A, and the DEA's Schedule III Hearings
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 r...
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TWICL (7/17/26) - DEA Hearing, Senate Dems Refile the CAOA, Pennsylvania Punts (Again) + Kiva x Conan
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...
#145 - Shifting Trends, AI, & State Markets with Leah Spokojny, CRO at BDSA
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 episod...
TWICL (July 10, 2026) - What Actually Happened at the DEA Hearings + Virginia's 2027 Timeline
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...
#144 - Betting Big on One Brand: Ohio’s Market Leader w/ Zach Weprin (Certified)
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 & ...
#143 - How Eddie Brennan Built ayrloom’s $75M Empire (Plus DEA Hearing Update)
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 A...
TWICL (June 26,2026) - Another Nasdaq Moment, Questions about DEA Fairness, and more
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 Rosentha...
IgniteIt Chicago Replay: AI, M&A, and Policy Blitz
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 enterp...
#142 - Is California Cannabis Going Global? Glass House Brands President Graham Farrar on NYSE Up-listing & Schedule III
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
#141 - Cannabis Biz News Roundup: CANRA Insights, Trulieve’s NYSE Debut & AI Labels w/ Ben & AnnaRae
Cannabis Business News Roundup w/ Ben & AnnaRaeThe landscape of cannabis and hemp policy is shifting beneath our feet faster than ever, forcing operators to constantly adapt to changing regulatory enforcement and market expans...
#140 - Unlocking the Power of Minor Cannabinoids: Proving the Science of CBN with Alleh Lindquist of FloraWorks
As the cannabis industry matures, the conversation is shifting from basic intoxication to precise, effect-based wellness. But how do we bridge the gap between consumer anecdotes and true scientific validation for minor cannabinoids?<...
TWICL(May 29, 2026) - NY's $10M for Seed-to-Sale, Curaleaf's Reverse Split & SAM Gets Tossed
This week on This Week in Cannabis Live, Jay Rosenthal, Jeremy Berke (Cultivated), plus Ben Larson of High Spirits and Marc Hauser of Cannabis Musings, break down the biggest stories in cannabis business and policy.New York'...
#139 - Discernment, Reinvention and Becoming Media People in Cannabis with Ben & AnnaRae
Nothing in the cannabis and hemp markets moves in a straight line, and lately, the operational whiplash has been more intense than ever. In this unpolished and deeply personal episode, hosts Ben Larson and AnnaRae Grabstein step away from the u...
