Zalenciaga is a hybrid from Limited Trees Genetics, grown by the Bay Area Flavors team. It crosses Zkittlez with Kush Mints 18, putting a candy-fruit Z parent on a mint-and-Kush parent.
The Highest Critic reviewed the Bay Area Flavors run on December 15, 2023, and scored it 8.9 out of 10 overall. The review's headline credits the release to Bay Area Flavors and Limited Trees together.
Limited Trees Genetics and its luxury-brand names
Limited Trees Genetics was founded in 2019 and works out of California. Its founder, JB, appeared on the High Times Top 100 list of the most influential people in cannabis. The company's Kush Mountains landed on a High Times cover.
At Zalympix 2023, Limited Trees won Best Terpene and placed 2nd overall for flower. The breeder credits itself as the original source of Cereal Milk, Kush Mountains, L'Orange, Strawberry Lemonade and Verzace.
The house pitch is boutique, connoisseur strains, built on careful selection and a strict focus on clean cultivation. Zalenciaga carries the same fashion-house wordplay as Verzace.
Bay Area Flavors and Bay Area music
Bay Area Flavors was founded by Matt Harbans as a lifestyle brand built around Bay Area music and cannabis culture. The company calls itself an independent heavyweight staple in that scene.
In 2020, Harbans partnered with Julio Sanchez, the San Francisco music manager and distributor known as Goldtoes. The deal set up distribution through GT Digital and created the brand's music division.
That division released a single with Too Short, Berner and J Diggs, which has passed 1M streams across platforms. Zalenciaga sits in the flower side of that same brand.
Zkittlez and Kush Mints 18
Zkittlez supplies the fruit. Leafly traces it to a Grape Ape and Grapefruit mix from a grower known as Gas Station Bob. Terphogz and 3rd Gen Family's Brandon Parker made it famous through cultivation, competitions and crosses.
The strain took 1st place at the 2016 Emerald Cup and won 2023 King of Z Hill. In 2023, it was rebranded as The Original Z after a trademark settlement with a candy company. Leafly lists it as an indica hybrid around 20% THC that flowers in 8–10 weeks.
The second parent is a numbered cut of Kush Mints, the Animal Mints × Bubba Kush hybrid. Leafly lists Kush Mints as a balanced 50/50 hybrid testing around 28% THC, with an 8–9 week flowering window.
Leafly describes Kush Mints buds as dense and very green, with purple and orange flecks. The Highest Critic lists the 18 cut with the same Animal Mints × Bubba Kush parents.
The same parents as Blue Zushi
Zkittlez × Kush Mints is also the cross behind Blue Zushi from The Ten Co. Leafly lists Blue Zushi as an indica-dominant hybrid at 20–25% THC. Its name comes from dark green buds with nearly blue accents and platinum trichomes.
Blue Zushi took 2nd place overall at the third annual Zalympix Championship in June 2022. It won both Best Terps and Best Tasting. Zoap from DEO Farms and Wizard Trees finished first overall, with Blueprint's Triple Lindy in 3rd.
Limited Trees went back to the same two parents with its own Kush Mints 18 cut. The Highest Critic reviewer compared Zalenciaga with Blue Zushi and said it was already performing better than the original.
How the Bay Area Flavors run scored
The Highest Critic split its score into six categories. Zalenciaga scored 9.1 on flavor, 8.7 on smoothness, 8.8 on ash and 8.7 on strength, finishing at 8.9 for the overall smoke.
The buds came in mixed density with the loose, messy structure typical of Zkittlez. They were light green with short, rustic pistils and a moderate coat of trichomes.
On the palate, the reviewer found sweet cherry with mint and menthol, a little peach, and a gas finish.