Three words get thrown around like they're interchangeable — joint, spliff, blunt — and they're not. All three are cannabis you roll and light, but what's inside and what it's wrapped in changes the size, the flavor, the burn, and whether you're also smoking tobacco. Here's the whole thing sorted out, plus a note on how it all works under Vermont's rules.

What is a joint?

A joint is the simplest of the three: cannabis flower and nothing else, rolled in a thin rolling paper. Papers come in rice, hemp, or wood pulp, usually with a little cardboard crutch (or tip) rolled into one end so it holds its shape and doesn't get soggy. That's it — no tobacco, no cigar wrap. Because it's just flower in a light paper, a joint burns relatively cleanly and lets the flower's own aroma come through, which is why it's the go-to for tasting a particular cultivar. If you've never built one, we walk through it step by step in how to roll a joint.

What is a spliff?

A spliff is a joint's tobacco-blended cousin: cannabis mixed with tobacco, rolled in the same kind of rolling paper. The ratio is up to whoever's rolling — anywhere from a light pinch of tobacco to a roughly even split. The term is more common in Europe and the UK, where mixing in tobacco is the default way people roll.

The tobacco does two things. It makes the flower stretch further, and it changes the burn — tobacco keeps the roll lit more evenly and adds its own harsher, nicotine-forward note to the flavor. That last part is the catch: a spliff contains tobacco, so you're smoking nicotine too, with everything that comes with it.

What is a blunt?

A blunt is cannabis rolled in a tobacco-based wrap rather than a thin paper — traditionally a hollowed-out cigar or a purpose-made blunt wrap made from tobacco leaf. The wrap is thicker and holds more flower, so a blunt is the biggest of the three and burns the slowest, which makes it a shareable, sit-down kind of roll.

The key detail people miss: even if you put only flower inside, the wrap itself is tobacco, so a blunt still delivers nicotine and a heavier, cigar-like flavor that competes with the cannabis. Some modern wraps are marketed as "tobacco-free" (made from hemp or other leaf) — if avoiding tobacco matters to you, that's the label to read for.

How do they compare on flavor, burn, and size?

Same flower can taste like three different things depending on how it's rolled:

• Flavor. A joint tastes the most like the flower itself. A spliff carries a tobacco edge from the mix. A blunt is the most flavor-altering — the cigar wrap adds a distinct, earthy-sweet tobacco note.
• Burn & size. Joints are the quickest and most personal. Spliffs burn a touch slower thanks to the tobacco. Blunts are the largest and slowest, built for a group and a longer sit.
• Tobacco. None in a joint. In the mix for a spliff. In the wrap for a blunt.
• Smoothness. This is personal — some find the tobacco in spliffs and blunts makes the draw feel different, but it's still smoke, and none of the three is gentle on the lungs.

Which one should you choose?

It comes down to two questions: do you want tobacco in the mix, and how big a roll do you want? If you want to actually taste the flower and skip nicotine entirely, roll a joint. If you like a tobacco kick and a slower burn, a spliff does that in a familiar joint format. If you're sharing with a few people and don't mind the cigar-leaf flavor, a blunt is the big, slow option. When in doubt, a joint is the cleanest read on what a given cultivar actually tastes like.

Not sure you want to roll at all? A pre-roll is a joint that's already built for you, and there are plenty of other ways to smoke flower — pipes, bongs, vaporizers — if paper isn't your thing.

What to grab at Float On

Every roll starts with good flower, and the whole shelf at Float On is Vermont-grown. A few ways to put one together:

• Whole flower by the eighth or quarter, plus rolling papers and a grinder, if you want to build your own joint from scratch. New to picking bud? See how to choose cannabis flower.
• Pre-rolls — classic single joints already rolled — if you'd rather skip the papers entirely.
• Smalls or shake as budget-friendly flower that's perfectly good for rolling. We cover the value angle in popcorn buds, smalls & shake.

Browse what's in stock on the live menu — the grower is named on each item, so you can see exactly whose Vermont flower you're rolling. Note that Float On sells cannabis; it doesn't sell tobacco or cigars, so a spliff or blunt means bringing your own wrap or tobacco to the mix.

The Vermont rules that apply to all three

However you roll it, the same Vermont basics hold. Cannabis is adult-use, 21 and older, and everything you buy leaves the shop in a sealed bag. Public consumption is not permitted in Vermont — not on Church Street, the waterfront, in a parked car, or anywhere public — so smoking a joint, spliff, or blunt is for private property only, and your purchase can't legally cross state lines. As always, keep it away from kids and pets.