Just to be clear: This isn't going to be green dragon or whatever people call weed-infused booze these days. For obvious reasons, that'd be hard to get by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, and frankly it'd be a disaster for the nation's social skills.

Instead, the New York-based brand wants to distribute products like sodas, fruit elixirs, ready-to-drink coffee, and other “drinkable cannabis products that don’t contain alcohol,” Constellation's CEO Rob Sands told the paper. Many of these products are already on sale by other brands in states with legalized recreational weed like Colorado and Oregon, but Constellation Brands' hope is to get "a first-mover advantage" on national distribution.

The industry is trying to account for what Sands sees as the "highly likely" legalization of weed in the United States. Currently, recreational weed is legal in eight states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington), plus Washington, DC. Medical marijuana is accessible in 21 other states. According to a Gallop poll released last week, 64% of the US wants recreational marijuana legalized, a record high, so Sands has reason to be optimistic. 

Marijuana is seen as a potential threat to our juggernaut of an alcohol industry. In markets that include weed sales, alcohol sales have decreased, according to Bloomberg. Consumers see weed as a potential replacement to alcohol, especially among the younger crowd. In the past decade, marijuana use by 21- to 25-year-olds has been on the rise, while alcohol consumption has declined.

Sands downplayed any threat to alcohol's dominance, but he added that the company wasn't "going to stand around twiddling our thumbs."

It is highly likely, however, that users of these products will be found doing exactly that.

“In the industry, we’re always on. We’re always out in bars and restaurants and talking to people, so it can be hard to relax,” Diedrich says. When he and his wife can’t take it anymore and need to escape the chaos for a couple of days, they love to head up north to Portland, Oregon, where they find it’s easier to turn off.

“Portland has a more relaxed attitude and ambiance than San Francisco. It gives off this really cool vibe that’s a lot more chill and mellow, almost like going to Hawaii,” he says. “And it’s accessible. It’s a short flight, so it’s an easy weekend getaway. They not only have great food and great drinks, but the city is beautiful; you can go hiking and be in nature.”

Plus, as he notes, “it’s significantly less expensive than San Francisco.” From the best of the city’s cocktail bars, to a casually impressive bistro, and a couple of outdoor retreats, here’s where Diedrich loves to go when he retreats to the City of Roses.