Craving something sweet? Get baked with Cookies – a strain and brand that changed the cannabis game forever. Learn more about the brand that redefined cannabis, as well as the best cookies strains to treat yourself too.
- What is cookies weed?
- The best Cookies strains of all time
- The Cookies fam:
- 1. GSC (aka Girl Scout Cookies)
- 2. F1 Durban
- 3. LPC (London Pound Cake)
- 4. Cherry Pie
- 5. Cereal Milk
- 6. Gary Payton
- 7. Runtz
- Sensi sensations
- The extended fam:
- 1. Gelato
- 2. Jealousy
- 3. Sunset Sherbet
- 4. Cookies and Cream
- 5. GMO Cookies
- 6. Wedding Cake (also known as Pink Cookies)
- 7. Thin Mint Cookies
- Honourable mentions:
- Cookies strains FAQ
Cookies is one of the biggest buzzwords in cannabis. And rightly so – on the one hand, cookies strains forever changed how we thought cannabis to smell and taste. Moreover, the Cookies brand set the gold standard for the reach and impact that cannabis businesses aim to have.
So, in this article, we’re going to do one thing – honour cookies! Join us as we shine a light on what makes cookies cannabis so special. We’ll take a look at the best cookies strains and the revolutionary impact of the Cookies cannabis brand (formerly The Cookies Fam).
What is cookies weed?
The term “cookies” has many meanings in the cannabis world. On the one hand, it refers to the strain GSC (formerly Girl Scout Cookies) and the lineage it birthed. Secondly, it also refers to the Cookies brand – the most influential name in the history of commercial cannabis.
Below we’ll walk you through a summarised history both of GSC and the Cookies brand. Then, to finish on a real high note, we’ll even list our favourite cookies strains for you to check out!
The Cookies strain; Girl Scout Cookies (GSC)
When you hear smokers and growers talk about cookies weed, they’re usually referring to a cookies strain. The quintessential cookies strain is, without a gram of doubt, GSC (formerly Girl Scout Cookies), which was created in the San Francisco Bay Area by the Cookies Fam Collective circa 2010.
A cross of OG Kush x F1 Durban (a South African sativa), GSC had a special flair never before seen in any other strain.
On the one hand were its effects, which drew the perfect line between uplifting euphoria and soothing physical relaxation. Above all, however, GSC blew the weed world away with its incredible aromas and flavours.
Break into a jar of real GSC and you’ll be bathed in an earthy-sweet aroma reminiscent of, you guessed it, freshly baked cookies. But GSC isn’t just sweet – its aromas and flavours also have unique overtones of mint, lemon, and cherry that add complexity and depth.
When it hit the streets, GSC changed our conceptions of what cannabis could smell and taste like – so it wasn’t surprising to see the strain become as popular as it did. Smokers chased it for its delicious aromas/flavours, while breeders did the same with the hope of using it in their projects.
Today, GSC continues to be a top-seller across US dispensaries. Thanks to Sensi Seeds and other respectable seedbanks who managed to track down original GSC or recreate it, home-growers in Europe and other parts of the world can also treat themselves to this modern USA classic.
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The Cookies brand and legacy
Behind the famous GSC strain is The Cookies Fam – now better known simply as Cookies. Founded by grower and breeder “Jigga” (Jay Chang) and rapper/entrepreneur Berner (Gilbert Anthony Milam Jr.), Cookies is the most influential cannabis brand in the world.
Both Berner and Jigga played central roles in the Bay Area cannabis scene during the early 2000s. However, it was the launch of Cookies in 2010 that really took things to another level.
Despite releasing exceptional, trend-setting strains, Jigga and Berner did something better than every cannabis company that came before them – they created a brand so strong it’s even recognised in countries where it doesn’t exist.
From the West Coast of the US to Europe and even the Southern Hemisphere, tokers know and love the blue Cookies logo and the mouthwatering flavours the brand releases – even if they can’t get their hands on them.
At Sensi Seeds, we’re excited to share the stage with Cookies. In fact, we’re proud to have collaborated with one of the hidden stars behind the brand’s success – Serge Damirjian.
In 2018, Serge headed the setup of a cultivation facility in Maywood, Los Angeles that would become central to Cookies’ success. Together with its ability to secure all the necessary licenses, owning LA’s first-ever vertically integrated cannabis cultivation facility helped Cookies continually breed and grow only the best genetics.
Following the drop of London Pound Cake (another monstrous Cookies creation) Serge also helped breathe life into Fiore (another premium Cali cannabis brand) and Serge Cannabis – his own genetics company.
Finally, in 2023, Serge visited Amsterdam – a place he’d long been sourcing genetics from. When he got here, we wasted no time in showing him around the Sensi Seeds facility and, in no time at all, another true connection was born.
As part of our Breeding Grounds program, Serge Damirjian collaborated with Sensi Seeds to create delicious cannabis cultivars inspired by the best Dutch and USA genetics, including:
Besides our collaboration with Serge, we’ve also honoured Cookies with countless strains inspired by GSC, Gelato, and more – many of which you’ll find on the list of best cookies strains below. Make sure you try them and any original Cookies strain you can get your hands on!
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The best Cookies strains of all time
Now that you know a little more about cookies weed, GSC, and the famous Cookies brand, it’s time to get your bowl dirty. Here’s a selection of our all-time favourite cookies cannabis strains, broken down into the following categories:
- Cookies fam: These are strains developed by Cookies that sent shock waves through the weed world.
- Sensi sensations: We can’t get enough of cookies weed, and we’ve created many cookies varieties of our own. In this section, you’ll find Sensi Seed’s best-selling cookie strains.
- The extended fam: Here you’ll find revolutionary strains from other breeders that stem from Cookies genetics.
The Cookies fam:
1. GSC (aka Girl Scout Cookies)
Genetics: OG Kush x F1 Durb
What makes it great? – GSC is the quintessential cookies strain. It dropped around 2010, introducing the world to a new array of cannabis flavours and aromas. Today, it’s one of the best cannabis strains of all time, comparable to timeless classics like Skunk #1, Northern Lights, and more. Grow her at home with Girl Scout Cookies by White Label – rife with real cookies traits and unique Sensi Seeds flair.
2. F1 Durban
Genetics: South African landrace
What makes it great? – F1 Durb is a South African sativa strain hunted down and preserved by Jigga, who’s been growing it since the late 1990s. It laid down the genetic foundation for GSC and countless other Cookies varieties. While it’s usually not up for sale, we simply couldn’t leave the grandmother of cookies off this list! If you’re looking for something similar, try our Durban – available as regular and feminized seeds.
3. LPC (London Pound Cake)
Genetics: Sunset Sherbet x unknown indica
What makes it great? – Loaded with an upfront sweet and buttery aroma accented by notes of fresh citrus and diesel, London Pound Cake is as delectable as she is potent. While Cookies has released countless strains since, LPC continues to be one of the brand’s best-selling varieties. And it’s no wonder why.
4. Cherry Pie
Genetics: Grandaddy Purple x F1 Durb
What makes it great? – Love the sweet yet complex aromas of strains like Cherry AK, Black Cherry Soda, or our Sweet Cherry Kush? Then you MUST try Cherry Pie. The founding mother of the cherry line, this strain boasts delicious aromas and flavours that mix the sweetness of cherries with notes of herbs, flowers, and spicy, caramelised dough. If you want to harvest buds rife with cherry terps at home, check out our Big Berry Bliss (Gelato 41 x Cherry Pie) or Sweet Cherry Kush – a delectable hybrid stemming from Hindu Kush, Durban, OG Kush, Diesel, and Haze.
5. Cereal Milk
Genetics: Y Life (Cookies x Cherry Pie) x Snowman
What makes it great? – Light up some Cereal Milk, close your eyes, and brace yourself for a psychedelic trip down memory lane. Loaded with THC, this strain is extra potent – but it’s her unique terpenes that’ll hit you with a deep childhood nostalgia. Loaded with a sugary, fruity, and notably creamy flavour/aroma, breaking into a jar of Cereal Milk will make you feel just like a kid who’s about to slurp down the sugary leftover milk at the bottom of their breakfast bowl – yum!
6. Gary Payton
Genetics: Y Life (Cookies x Cherry Pie) x Snowman
What makes it great? – Stemming from the same lineage as Cereal Milk, Gary Payton is another best-selling Cookies strain. It’s won numerous awards and offers rich aromas/flavours that mix notes of ripe stone fruit (particularly apricots) with fresh lavender and pungent black pepper. Like GSC, Gary Payton walks the perfect line between uplifting and sedating, making it a favourite among smokers of all kinds.
7. Runtz
Genetics: Zkittlez x Gelato
What makes it great? – Runtz is a quintessential candy strain. Created in the Bay Area by The Runtz Crew (Ray Bama and rapper Yung LB) and Cookies, Runtz took the sugary sweetness of Zkittlez and layered it with Gelato’s rich fruitiness and creamy undertones – clearly a winning combination, because the strain continues to be a dispensary best-seller more than 10 years after it first hit the streets.
Dying to grow real Runtz weed at home? Fortunately, we’ve released Runtz Automatic – a speedy, easy-to-grow version of this American classic that delivers sugary sweet buds in the blink of an eye.
Sensi sensations
1. Purple Cookie Kush
Genetics: Girl Scout Cookies x Purple Kush
What makes it great? – Where should we start? By combining real GSC with Purple Kush, our expert breeders created a stunning strain packed with flavour, aroma, and potency. Grow her at home with these feminized seeds and you’ll be harvesting big, purple buds loaded with frosty trichomes and a delectable aroma with notes of fresh grapes, coffee, and sweet caramel. Plus, her effects are perfectly balanced, mixing an uplifting cerebral rush with a growing physical body buzz. Grow Purple Cookie Kush at home with these feminized seeds.
2. Pumpkin Spice
Genetics: Sour Apple x Animal Cookies
What makes it great? – Love sipping on creamy pumpkin spice lattes? Then you’ll love this strain. By crossing Animal Mints with Sour Apple, we created a unique hybrid that takes the bold flavours that USA strains are known for to new heights! Enjoy a complex aromatic profile that mixes the classic earthy and spicy notes of a good indica with sweet, fruity sativa overtones. As if that weren’t enough, our Pumpkin Spice also delivers a creative buzz with light physical effects. Get your feminized seeds here.
3. Honey Melon Kush
Genetics: Blueberry x Girl Scout Cookies
What makes it great? – Crossing GSC, the biggest strain of the last century, with Blueberry (one of the biggest strains of all time) seemed like a no-brainer. Even so, we still can’t get over just how good this genetic mix turned out. Honey Melon Kush delivers the dense nugs you’d expect of a Kush with earthy undertones and delicious fruity highlights that fill the air the minute you crack into your curing jars. Grab your feminized or autoflowering seeds here now to grow this tropical treat at home!
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The extended fam:
1. Gelato
Genetics: Sunset Sherbet x Thin Mint Cookies
What makes it great? – Gelato is another modern classic that’s earned its place as one of the best strains in the world. With a fruity front-end and uniquely creamy undertones, it’s simply delicious. Plus, you’d be hard-pressed to find a situation that isn’t elevated by its uplifting yet relaxing buzz. If you want to add top-tier Gelato genetics to your garden, check out our Gelato #420 and Buttercream Gelato!
2. Jealousy
Genetics: Sherbet Bx1 x Gelato 41
What makes it great? – Crowned Leafly’s Strain of The Year in 2022, Jealousy offers plenty to get excited about. On the one hand, she’s the offspring of Gelato and Sherbet (the predecessor to Gelato). Secondly, she boasts extra-high THC levels (over 25%) and a mesmerising, giggly high. Finally, her sweet plum and apricot aroma is to die for, too.
In 2025, Sensi Seeds released Papaya Jealousy – a cross of the original Jealousy with Papaya, a Dutch coffeeshop favourite with Jack Herer genetics. It packs sweet tropical aromas and a powerful buzz that’s uplifting yet relaxing!
3. Sunset Sherbet
Genetics: GSC x Pink Panties
What makes it great? – Sunset Sherbet is the predecessor to Gelato and a flagship of Sherbinskis’ ever-growing strain catalogue. Created at the hands of Mario Guzman, this strain delivers tropical aromas that blend notes of candied lemons and ripe orange peels with hints of creamy desserts. Moreover, Sunset Sherbet produces a spacey, warm, and happy high that relieves both physical and mental tension from the first toke to the last.
Luckily, you won’t need to travel to California to taste-test Sunset Sherbet – with White Label’s Sunset Sherbet Automatic seeds, you’ll be able to grow this Cali classic at home with ease.
4. Cookies and Cream
Genetics: Starfighter x Girl Scout Cookies
What makes it great? – Cookies and Cream was created by Exotic Genetix in Colorado and became an instant hit. It took first place in the hybrid category of the 2014 Denver Cannabis Cup, wowing the panel with its nutty vanilla aromas and flavours (reminiscent of the world’s favourite black and white cookie). Moreover, despite being extra potent, Cookies and Cream delivers balanced effects that stimulate the mind while relaxing the body.
5. GMO Cookies
Genetics: Girl Scout Cookies x Chemdawg
What makes it great? – With a complex bouquet of toasted garlic, fried onions, and earthy mushrooms, GMO isn’t for everyone. But those bold enough to try her tend to agree that she provides arguably the most unique smoking experience of any modern hybrid. We still wonder if the breeders at Mamiko Seeds knew that they were about to make history when they crossed GSC and Chemdawg.
6. Wedding Cake (also known as Pink Cookies)
Genetics: Triangle Kush x Animal Mints
What makes it great? – Wedding Cakewas created by Seed Junky geneticist JBeezy (aka Anthony Hart). By crossing Animal Mints (a GSC offspring) with Triangle Kush, he created a robust hybrid packing buttery aromas and flavours reminiscent of cream-filled sponge cake. To honour this modern favourite, we mixed GSC, UK Cheese, and Cherry Kush to create Wedding Cheesecake – a frosty hybrid with rock-hard buds and a sugary, cakey, and slightly sour aroma! Grow her at home with these feminized seeds from White Label.
7. Thin Mint Cookies
Genetics: GSC
What makes it great? – Last but definitely not least on our list of the best cookies strains is Thin Mint Cookies, a unique GSC phenotype that’s won over thousands of smokers with her fresh mint scent. Despite descending from the same cross as the original GSC, Thin Mint Cookies developed unique effects that are more potent and focused on the body – ideal for when you want to relax.
Honourable mentions:
There’s no shortage of cookies strains out there, and they all have something unique to offer. Besides the varieties listed above, some other great cookies strains we love but chose not to cover in more detail in this article include:
- Tropicana Cookies
- Gorilla Cookies
- Animal Mints
- Cookies Kush
- Blue Cookies
- Animal Crackers (aka Animal Cookies)
Cookies strains FAQ
A: Yes! Many people turn to GSC to promote sleep, even though it’s not strictly a sedating strain.
A: GSC is renowned for having well-balanced effects that soothe both physical and mental tension. Though not energising, cookies also isn’t sedating – instead, it walks the perfect line between mental stimulus and physical relaxation.
A: GSC has a sweet, slightly doughy aroma with hints of mint, lemon, and cherries.
A: GSC is a hybrid strain that contains both indica and sativa genetics.
A: Cookies is very good at branding, so any genuine Cookies strain will come in a sealed and branded bag/container. The best way to ensure you’re getting 100% legitimate Cookies cannabis is by buying it from a licensed Cookies store. But don’t be afraid to try other variations of cookies, either – they all have something unique to offer!
Got caught with your hand in the cookie jar? When it comes to cannabis, that’s definitely not a bad thing – it just means you’re smoking on some true American fire! Let us know your favourite cookies strains in the comments below, as well as which strain from this list you’ll be chasing down next!
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- Disclaimer:Laws and regulations regarding cannabis cultivation differ from country to country. Sensi Seeds therefore strongly advises you to check your local laws and regulations. Do not act in conflict with the law.
