Ricardo Baca

Ricardo Baca

Ricardo Baca is a contributing editor for The Cannabist. He was appointed The Denver Post's first marijuana editor in November 2013 and spearheaded the formation of The Cannabist, a division of the Post. Fortune magazine ranked Baca as one of the seven most powerful people in American cannabis while the Brookings Institution said he's one of 12 key people to watch in marijuana policy. Considered by Vice as 'the nation's most prestigious weed editor,' Baca is also the subject of the feature-length documentary 'Rolling Papers.' Baca also founded music blog Reverb and co-founded music festival The UMS.

Recent posts by Ricardo Baca

UPDATED: 47 ways to party in Colorado on 4/20 in 2014

So what’s happening on 4/20 in Colorado? A lot — so much that you might need this handy Colorado 4/20 guide. We’ve been keeping a running list of happenings, and we’ll keep this updated.

Video: How this non-toking Coloradan made $100,000 in pot stocks

Loveland-based amateur investor Kent Holesinger made $100,000 in pot stocks — entirely on the highly volatile penny stocks that professional investors often warn against.

3 hot pot stocks amateur trader says worth following

Amateur trader Steve Templeton turned a $77,500 investment in pot stocks into more than $325,000 in about a year. Since much of that profit came from highly volatile marijuana penny stocks, Templeton has seen his fair share of luck — including the prosperous market that defined much of 2013.

A pot-friendly TV show and cooking battle, “Medicated Chef” returns

Famed management consultant Peter Drucker once said, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” And that’s a sentiment Steve Nelson Jr., aka Thurlow Weed, understands.

4:20 Digest: Stoned sex talk, High Times covers and more (3-20-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on March 20, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Denver’s “biggest weed nerd in town” shoots his first High Times cover (interview)

Interview: Placing one of your weed-worship photos on the cover of High Times magazine isn’t unlike your band being featured “on the cover of the Rolling Stone.” And one Colorado photographer (who also shoots nug-porn for The Cannabist!) achieved that goal this month.

Denver chef Tom Coohill talks pot in workplace, rock club, bedroom

Denver chef Tom Coohill is talking about it all. Having sex while high. Cooking while stoned. Understanding prog rock band Rush more thoroughly via chemistry. No topic is taboo as Coohill sits in his popular LoDo restaurant’s fashionable bar listening to Radiohead and sipping on a pint.

4:20 Digest: Celebrity stoners outed by Seth Rogen and more (3-18-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on March 18, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Seth Rogen: “I’ve never smoked weed with James Franco” (video)

Actor Seth Rogen is many things, including “a Hollywood star who was brave enough to come out of the closet as a stoner,” according to chat show host Andy Cohen, who mans Bravo’s ever-popular “Watch What Happens Live.”

4:20 Digest: Smokin’ Stevie Wonder, Colbert’s quips & #WSMFP (3-17-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on March 17, 2014 — St. Patrick’s Day, friends, so we’d like to say “KISS ME, I’M HIGH-RISH” to our readers — and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Colbert on pot taxes: “The market has spoken, and the market is tokin’ ” (video)

Ah, Stephen Colbert. How happy are you with all the fodder coming out of Colorado these days? Talking on Colorado’s January marijuana taxes announced last week, Colbert didn’t miss a beat — or a joke.

Video: Colorado Rep. Jared Polis on how many in Congress smoke pot

How many members of Congress use marijuana? That question was posed to Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., on March 13 during a news conference for the National Cannabis Industry Association in Washington D.C.

Cannabis job fair draws 1,200-plus, 35 percent from out of state

At one point during the first-ever CannaSearch job fair on Thursday, a news station helicopter hovered above O.penVape’s Golden Triangle headquarters as a line of 700 job seekers snaked around the neighboring 1000 block of Delaware Street.

Sugar is more harmful to your health than marijuana, says NBC poll

Sure, we’ve seen the four major polls in the last year that say the American public thinks marijuana should be legalized. But that didn’t prepare us for the results of today’s NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

4:20 Digest: Pot-friendly dating, Panic en La Playa and more (3-13-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on March 13, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Speed dating for stoners? 420-friendly mate awaits

Less than 10 weeks after the introduction of legal recreational marijuana sales in Colorado and we already have a speed dating event for people who partake.

Video: How shatter hash is made

Shatter hash and other similar concentrates make up one of the fastest-growing facets of Colorado’s bustling marijuana industry — but shatter, which can be used for dabbing, is also still quite controversial. Click here

THC levels in edibles: See the lab tests

All week long we’ve been talking about the THC potency of marijuana-infused products (MIPs) here on The Cannabist. Our exclusive report on THC levels was filled with surprises.

THC/edibles followup: Some stunned, angry, curious

As a journalist, it’s always educational to see how your work is treated and digested and repackaged after it’s published and released to the world. Since our report on THC levels in marijuana-infused edibles published March 9, we’ve received plenty of feedback — mostly positive, some negative.

On testing THC in edibles: The story behind our pot report

Imagine buying a 100-milligram edible that unknowingly only contained .2 milligrams of THC — less than 1/500th of the amount promised on the edible’s label. Would you feel ripped off? Confused? Disoriented? Suckered?

The Onion’s “Everyone knows you’re high” video’s alternate endings are bad trips

The Onion is known and celebrated for its clever fake news stories, but its latest report on pot is already a classic: “The nation’s top researchers concluded that you can’t hide how stoned you are and that you should be freaking out if you aren’t already.” See the report and its alternate endings here.

4:20 Digest: Breck local mocks “Inside Edition,” ticking off The UN & more (3-4-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on March 4, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Breck-made parody video mocks smoke shack exposé

It was only a matter of time before somebody strapped on their GoPro and made a parody of the over-the-top “Inside Edition” report that led to the eventual demolition of a beloved smoke shack in the trees of Colorado ski resort Breckenridge. Click here

Denver airport’s busiest January ever coincides with first legal pot sales

Did legal marijuana make for a busier than normal January 2014 at Denver International Airport?

Ganjapreneur loses day job after vaping on national TV

Denver businesswoman Amy Dannemiller created her alter ego Jane West for her cannabis enterprises in October 2013. Her hope: Amy would work her 9-to-5 as an event planner for an unnamed national corporation, Jane would anonymously host her monthly bring-your-own-marijuana dinner parties, and never the twain should meet. Click here

4:20 Digest: A quiet Boulder 4/20, death by pot in Europe & more (2-28-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on Feb. 28, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

4:20 Digest: On Miley Cyrus, a hemp milestone & fallen smoke shacks (2-27-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on February 27, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Breck smoke shack razed by Vail, USFS after “Inside Edition” story (video)

Last week we told you about an over-the-top “Inside Edition” report on stoned skiing and snowboarding in post-legalization Colorado. One of the smoke shacks targeted by the show is now gone. Click here for story

4:20 Digest: Richard Pryor’s daughter talks, God tells man to open pot shop & more (2-26-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on February 26, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ. Click here

Ganjapreneur: “I prayed … and God said, ‘Open up a pot shop'”

Bryan Davies is a Christian, a tax evader and a ganjapreneur. And when he prayed for help, God told him to open a pot shop.

Drug dealer says legal pot helps his business (video)

One of the mysteries of Colorado’s legal pot experiment remains: Will this take down the black market? One local dealer says his business has been better.

4:20 Digest: Snoop/Wiz on the Rocks, viral satire tricks readers & more (2-24-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on February 24, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Denver RNC 2016 bid: Pols “will want to see how (legal pot is) working” (video)

Denver officially submitted its bid for the 2016 Republican National Convention on Monday — and part of that bid is the opportunity for visiting politicians to witness Colorado’s regulated recreational marijuana market first-hand, according to former Rep. Bob Beauprez.

Viral story satire: No getting out of jail for free

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper’s office has received 10 calls and six-eight emails about a satirical online article that went viral this weekend. Yes, there are still those who believe everything they read on the Internet.

Poll: Most Ohio voters don’t partake, but they still want medical pot

Ohio voters want their medical marijuana — and a by quite a large margin, according to a recent poll by Quinnipiac University.

4:20 Digest: Rihanna gets high in Aspen, Lyman Currier laughs & more (2-21-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on February 20, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

Watch Boulder skier Lyman Currier react to his 4.20 score at Sochi Olympics

Part of the Olympics’ allure is the drama, the sadness, the emotion. Colorado skier Lyman Currier experienced all of the above as his Olympics ended with the worst kind of “pop” earlier this week.

4:20 Digest: Pot and skiing linked, $1B in weed sales & more (2-20-14)

It’s 4:20 p.m. on February 20, 2014, and here are a few of the things we’re talking about at Cannabist HQ.

“Inside Edition” hilariously investigates pot and snowboarding connection

“Inside Edition” is reporting on the link between pot and snowboarding/skiing as if it’s breaking news in this ridiculous, gotcha-styled report.

Marijuana stocks: Turning a $100 investment into nearly $2,000

Not all marijuana stocks are created equally. The penny stocks that dominate the industry are plentiful, and some of them are becoming dime stocks — or something more substantial. While dime stocks might not sound like much, imagine paying a half a cent for a stock and it jumping to more than 10 cents in less than two months.

Denver city council’s Charlie Brown: “I believe in celebrating 4/20” (video)

Charlie Brown is a Denver city councilman and the chair of the council’s Amendment 64 Committee, and he had some interesting — and often surprising — things to say in his recent appearance on The Round Up, a video series by The Denver Post’s editorial board.

Will Denver police ticket smokers at 4/20 rally? (videos)

Miguel Lopez pulls the permit annually for the big 4/20 rally in Denver’s Civic Center. With the big day only two months away, Lopez is a busy man. Click here

Inside look at Incredibles: On pot chocolate, THC oil (interview)

It’s no secret: Business is booming at Colorado cannabis companies. The partners at Medically Correct, which produces the popular and well-regarded Incredibles brand edibles (known for their foil-like packaging and uncanny flavors), have a compelling story of growth.

O.penVape’s huge gains match ambitions

INTERVIEW: Ask O.penVape chief revenue officer Todd Mitchem about the national cannabis scene and he says, “The whole thing is falling like dominoes.” The Denver-based company’s oil-based pen vaporizer is sold in three states, but their plans don’t stop there.

Denver County Fair: Major sponsors include 4-H and vape pen company

The Denver County Fair — which famously announced its inclusion of marijuana competitions a few weeks ago — is inking sponsorship deals for its 2014 outing. And who all is in the mix so far as major sponsors? The youth development organization 4-H Club and marijuana vaporizer pen company O.penVape.

Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus: “All drugs should be legalized”

How does Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus feel about the legalization of marijuana? Our colleagues at music site Reverb asked him recently — since his current band the Jicks will kick off the U.S. leg of their “Wig Out at Jagbags” tour at Colorado’s Gothic Theatre on Feb. 12.

Bud-for-Bitcoin transactions hit snag in Washington

Remember the story about the Spokane, Wash., marijuana dispensary accepting Bitcoin? There’s a new wrinkle in the ongoing saga.

Marijuana tourism: Denver flight searches spiked as pot shops opened

Did marijuana tourism make for a busier-than-average January at Denver International Airport?