The Life and Legacy of Hash Queen Mila Jansen

There are countless icons in the cannabis world, from prolific breeders developing new weed strains to innovative pioneers transforming how we enjoy cannabis. Among these trailblazers is Mila Jansen, widely known as the Hash Queen. She revolutionized hash-making techniques by inventing the first washing method to loosen trichomes from dried, harvested buds, inspiring a new generation of cannabis enthusiasts and entrepreneurs worldwide!

The Roots of a Rebel Spirit

As we stepped into Mila’s home to discuss her remarkable journey as the Hash Queen, the inviting aroma of simmering vegetable soup immediately filled the air. Mila Jansen, now in her early eighties, exuded vibrancy and warmth, her eyes sparkling as she greeted us with a steaming cup of tea. Her house, situated along the canal, is bathed in natural light and was once an old Catholic church nestled in the heart of Amsterdam’s Grachtengordel district.

Mila’s eyes sparkled with nostalgia as she vividly recounted her childhood adventures.

“You know,” she began with a smile, “I was born in Liverpool in 1944. Even before I turned three, I was already wandering through Indonesia’s lush landscapes, thanks to my father’s job at Shell. After our adventures there, we returned to England, where I started primary school. But life had even more surprises in store. When my father retired, we eagerly packed our bags and set off for the Netherlands, full of anticipation for what was to come.”

Throughout the mid-1960s, Amsterdam pulsated with a creative spirit, its animated canals reflecting the colorful murals and vibrant fashion of the burgeoning counterculture. The air was thick with the scent of freedom as jazz and rock music filled the cafes. Vondelpark became a gathering place for artists and hippies, while students engaged in passionate debates at local cafes, and the scent of hashish was commonly present in the streets.

Recounting her initial encounter with hashish in Amsterdam, Mila explained that her interest was piqued because her boyfriend, a medical student, wanted to explore the effects of smoking hash. 

“Hash was only found in the harbor, where sailors eagerly traded it for beer,” she noted. “A matchbox full could be bought for just 25 guilders, around 12 euros. But honestly, no one knew where it came from; it was simply referred to as hash.”

Reflecting on the first joint she ever smoked, Mila’s face brightens as she recalls kneeling on the ground, her hands trembling slightly as she took the first toke. Laughter bubbled up uncontrollably as she and her friends tumbled onto the ground, tears streaming down their faces from the joy of the moment. 

“It was love at first toke,” she says softly, her eyes twinkling with nostalgia, capturing that enchanting moment when everything just clicked.

Growing up in Amsterdam

Mila recalls her clothing boutique, Kink 22, which opened in the summer of 1964 at 22 Tweede Rozendwarsstraat. 

“We were the first to sell miniskirts in the Netherlands.”

Mila reminisced about three tailors who worked tirelessly in the back. Kink 22 became very successful, even catching the attention of Tina Turner, who bought a shirt there, while parts of Erik Terpstra’s film De Verloedering van de Swieps were shot at the boutique, featuring Ramses Shaffy.

As the era of Timothy Leary and psychedelic exploration unfolded, Mila transformed it into a tea house called Cleo de Merode, and the space became a haven for free spirits, drawing visitors from as far as India and Afghanistan. Although many people have regarded it as one of the first coffeeshops, Mila clarifies that, despite the fact that they openly smoked hash, they did not commercialize or sell any products, maintaining a focus on personal expression.

But the local police were less than pleased, often raiding the place without ever finding any hash. 

“They’d take foreigners and dump them across the Belgian border, only for them to return the next day,” she remembered with a chuckle. 

Faced with increasing pressure and threats from social services regarding her daughter, Milous, Mila made the bold decision to close the tea shop and hitchhike to India, embracing the long adventure that lay ahead.

The Hippie Trail

With a treasure trove of stories and insights about Asia’s wonders shared by fellow travelers at the tea shop, Mila felt an irresistible pull toward India. Embarking on this next chapter, she crossed into Belgium and ventured through Western Europe, a vivid tapestry of cultures and experiences. Her journey was more than just a trip; it was a colorful adventure along the legendary overland hippie route, where each mile brought her closer to India.

Before reaching Turkey, a vibrant gateway into Asia, travelers embarked on an adventurous journey through Iran, a land rich in history and culture. Mila, full of wanderlust, found herself hitchhiking eastwards through the bustling streets of Tabriz, soaking in the sights and sounds of this enchanting city. However, in the late 1970s, border restrictions tightened, casting a shadow over the free-spirited travel that had once characterized the route.

Mila elaborated on their arrival in Afghanistan. As they pulled into the bustling border town of Herat, the bus signaled its intention to return to Dogharoun, Iran, and another group of eager passengers awaited to board. In fact, she remarked that it felt as if everyone on their bus could have been featured in a National Geographic documentary, given the rich diversity of Afghans and Iranians, adorned in their magnificent turbans and embroidered garments.

After disembarking, they stopped to enjoy some local cuisine. Shortly thereafter, customs officials approached them, bringing a hookah. With a warm smile, she reminisced about how they had taught everyone to smoke it, cheerfully declaring, “Welcome to Afghanistan.” 

She fondly recalled that it was September 28, 1968, a day that symbolized her experience in a country that stood out as one of the most welcoming places along their entire journey.

She spent nearly a month in Mazar-i-Sharif, fully immersing herself in the region’s rich local traditions before crossing the Khyber Pass into Pakistan. One of the highlights of her experience, she explained, was making dry-sift hashish alongside the residents, during which she was welcomed into their homes and communities. Eager to learn, Mila embraced the culture wholeheartedly, dry-sifting trichomes from dried cannabis plants to make hash. 

India Changed Everything

In 1968, Mila arrived in South Goa, a tranquil destination on India’s southwest coast. As one of the early stops along the hippie trail, Goa remained largely untouched, characterized by its natural beauty and simplicity. Mila vividly remembered those days, living among palm trees and the warm ocean, without electricity, immersed in local music, and gathering around fires. She described it as an unspoiled sanctuary of serenity and authentic community. 


“We moved to Mussoorie, Himachal Pradesh, for ten years because there was an international school. Every summer, we would go trekking in the Himalayas, and that’s where I made my first charas. You just look at what all the women were doing and copy. In fact, my daughter Milou was about three or four years old, and she’d make it. You just rub the buds in your palm, and after a while, your hands are covered, and there’s your charas,” said Mila.

In 1975, Mila remembered her decision to cross the Rohtang Pass before heading to the Baralacha Pass, linking Manali to the remote, less accessible parts of Ladakh. Her journey was a challenging, 500-mile trek along what is considered the world’s highest paved road. Meandering through rugged, untouched terrain, it offers travelers an awe-inspiring panorama of nature’s untamed beauty and tests their resilience along every step of the journey.

A year after their adventurous expedition to the north, Mila recounts a gripping ordeal during a second, grueling journey into northern India. For months, her group had pressed onward when, suddenly, they were encircled by ominous shapes—shadows of wolves with sleek black coats, lurking just 30 yards away. Tension skyrocketed as seven pairs of piercing, glowing eyes cut through the darkness, gripping everyone with a mix of fear and adrenaline.

Hans quickly handed each traveler a sherpa knife, readying them for defense. Fear consumed Mila more than ever as the minutes dragged on, the eerie silence broken only by their tense breathing. Just when hope seemed lost, the wolves unexpectedly retreated, disappearing into the shadows. This terrifying event left a deep impression on Mila and served as a reminder of nature’s unpredictable rage and the bravery required to face it.

Bringing the Knowledge Home

After 20 years in India, Mila faced a difficult decision as her son was about to enter his third year of school. With dyslexia and having been placed in first grade for the third time, she felt it would leave him three years behind his peers. This prompted their move back to the Netherlands, where her son earned a PhD and became a computational pharmaceutical chemist, and his journey is a genuine testament to the power of will and determination.

However, upon returning, Mila realized she didn’t have a college diploma and that her job prospects were limited. Mila shared her journey of transitioning to growing weed, using only the skills to make clones. She remarked that the venture lasted three years and ultimately funded her children’s education. Remarkably, she noted that she has never had a boss in her life, highlighting her entrepreneurial spirit and determination to create a better future.

She vividly remembers starting her cannabis cultivation in her basement in 1994, driven by a keen interest in horticulture and a fundamental knowledge of cloning.

“That knowledge became invaluable because no one knew how to create clones.” She continued, “Back then, it was all men running everything, and they weren’t too keen on having a woman involved. But when I told them I could make clones, I landed my first job,” 

Clandestine Indoor Gardens

However, cultivating cannabis in Holland can present significant challenges due to the region’s often unpredictable and harsh climate conditions, as she explains: 

“Typically, by September 13th, outdoor plants begin to bloom, signaling the start of a vibrant flowering phase. However, extending this period by eight weeks means these plants face increasingly harsh weather, including heavy rains and temperature swings. Recognizing these challenges, most Dutch growers have proactively moved their cultivation indoors, shielding their crops from the unpredictable elements and ensuring a successful harvest.”

“I’ve always cultivated orange buds from California, which I found in the center of a bouquet of flowers I was gifted,” proclaimed Mila. Recognizing the plant’s extraordinary potential, she decided to clone it, resulting in thousands of identical offspring. This marked a truly inspiring beginning to her journey into cannabis cultivation, especially considering that, at the time, seed companies were nearly nonexistent and the weed industry was still in its infancy.

Orange Creampop cannabis strain

Regarding her first large-scale grow, Mila explained that she befriended a local shop owner who offered her access to his spacious upstairs studio, where she started her operation.

Giggling as she reminisced about an encounter with the police, she recalled, “We were moving clones from our van when we spotted a drunk man stumbling down the street. Soon, the police began to follow him, turning the scene into quite a spectacle. Meanwhile, we hurried upstairs with hundreds of clones, trying to stay discreet amid the intense smell. But it was still early in our operation, and I doubt the cops even realized what was happening.”

She managed an impressive network of 14 gardens across the city at one point, all documented with harvesting schedules. The main location buzzed with activity as clones were cultivated, with Mila assisted by two others. Some gardens had as few as 10 lamps, while others had up to 45, along with a greenhouse which housed around 26,000 plants.

“In the end, everything spiraled out of control when a carpenter sharing our space overheard something he shouldn’t have and tipped off the police, leading to the dismantling of our entire operation,” remarked Mila. 

Faced with the possibility of being arrested and the burden of having four kids at home, she was forced to confront the harsh reality that cultivating cannabis was no longer an option, and made the difficult decision to quit growing altogether.

The Birth of the Pollinator

With a noticeable increase in the availability of cannabis in the local coffeeshops, this expansion of supply served as a clear indication that the cannabis culture in the city was beginning to flourish. Despite this increased accessibility, Mila remarked that she did not find any enjoyment in smoking cannabis itself, as she preferred to smoke imported hashish or even produce her own, emphasizing the techniques she had learned while traveling.

Reflecting on her time after she had returned to Holland, she recalled, “Initially, I would lay the harvested buds over a screen and waffle it, ensuring the trichomes separated and dropped through the mesh, but producing enough for a joint took me about ten minutes. And then one night, I was standing in front of the clothes dryer. I realized all these clothes were tumbling inside the dryer, and I thought that’s kind of what I’m doing on a very small scale.”

This led her to experiment further with a secondhand clothes dryer, where she carefully tied a piece of sieve around the drum, added some dry buds, and observed the process closely. In her very first attempt, the machine ran for just five minutes but produced enough material for ten joints. Excited by the impressive results, she realized she had created one of the greatest inventions in the hash world, marking the beginning of a revolutionary new era.

The Pollinator Drum is a specialized post-production device for extracting trichomes from harvested cannabis buds. It features a rotating cylindrical chamber equipped with fine-mesh screens that gently agitate the buds, helping to loosen resin-rich trichomes without damaging the plant material. As the buds tumble, the trichomes detach and pass through the mesh screens, which filter out larger leaf fragments, yielding a pure, concentrated form of kief.

Continuing to share her experience with the original Pollinator prototype, Mila described in detail how she personally used the device every day to roll hash joints more efficiently. She mentioned that her friends expressed curiosity after learning about it, and generously allowed them to try it. Upon testing the machine, their reactions were overwhelmingly positive, and they collectively agreed it was an impressive device for any hash-smoker!

This excitement drove her to produce the Pollinator machines within six months. Now, 32 years later, “Apart from Antarctica, there’s no continent where we don’t sell,” revealed Mila. Revealing a surprising demand for hash-making equipment even in countries where cannabis is illegal.

The Hemp Hotel

In 1997, Mila allocated a portion of her earnings from the Pollinator to establish the Hemp Hotel. She leased a building located on Frederiksplein, a vibrant square in the city. In 1998, Mila, along with her second daughter, Elferra, opened the budget-friendly hotel that also served as an educational space focused on hemp. The Hemp Hotel featured five uniquely themed rooms, including Afghan, Caribbean, Indian, Moroccan, and Tibetan.

They infused hemp into a variety of hotel amenities, from soaps and shampoos to curtains and mattresses, to show the power of hemp. Their onsite bar and café delighted guests with 12 different hemp beers and hemp rolls served with breakfast. Plus, the lively “Hemple Temple Bar” was a favorite late-night spot, staying open until the early morning. Sadly, in 2013, their landlord decided not to renew the lease, leading to the Hemp Hotel’s closure.

From her book, How I Became the Hash Queen, Mila recalls the early days of their venture. They built a website that attracted a large number of customers, all captivated by the intriguing name. In just four months, after being featured in local news and national magazines, they doubled their income. However, she said they often received strange emails from potential customers who seemed eager to light up the hemp curtains.

Community Matters: Dab-a-Doo

Asking about the Dab-a-Doo, she explained, “There were numerous cannabis cups going on, including the annual High Times event, and these contests typically involved five or six experts judging, while the remaining participants waited for the results. I never liked that model and preferred a competition where everyone could vote. I believe it’s important to respect everyone’s opinions, and I didn’t even want to make it a competition.”

Mila was filled with enthusiasm as she took charge of organizing an event dedicated to hash, which she affectionately named “Dab-a-Doo.” She planned to host this special gathering on her birthday, and explained that the event would feature two distinct categories: Solvent and Non-Solvent. Each entry was to weigh 15 grams to ensure equal distribution and consistent judging criteria for all participants, including judges, competitors, sponsors, and VIP guests. 

“So, what truly matters to you when it comes to hash? Is it consistency, effect, or flavor?” I asked, eager to hear her thoughts. 

She replied, “ I’ve never had the time to judge. I’ve always been the hostess, and wanted to talk to everybody. Plus, I’m probably not the best judge, because I just usually really like what I’m smoking. By the time you’re on joint six or seven, everything seems to merge together. It’s not always easy to differentiate between one strain and the next. But doesn’t that just capture the essence of cannabis? It’s about the camaraderie, and the good vibes.” 

Mila’s approach highlights an important truth: sometimes it’s not about every specific detail, but about embracing the moment and fostering the connections we make along the way.

Dab-a-Doo’s success led Mila to travel across Central and South America, where fans warmly hosted their favorite Dab-a-Doo events in seven countries. In Costa Rica, the event showcased the region’s impressive climate and immersive cannabis culture, while Argentina hosted a notable Dab-A-Doo Resin Cup in Buenos Aires, drawing local hash extractors to showcase their best solventless concentrates and connect with the international community.

Peru also held editions where groups like GotPlantPerú earned awards for high-quality flowers and extracts. Uruguay, one of the first South American countries to legalize cannabis, hosted early gatherings for local growers to compete with various hash and extraction techniques. Throughout these trips, Mila and Dab-a-Doo helped foster community, celebrate innovation, and promote the evolving cannabis culture throughout the region. 

How I Became the Hash Queen

In July 2018, Mila launched her autobiography, How I Became the Hash Queen, at the Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum in Amsterdam. The book launch took place during the museum’s exhibition, “We Are Mary Jane: Women of Cannabis,” which explores the diverse roles women have played in cannabis history. Several years later, she showcased her personal journey by presenting her documentary about her life at the cannabis college.

Her book draws on her travels to offer readers an immersive account of her adventures across the Middle East, India, and Nepal. Each chapter captures not only the sights she experienced but also how these moments profoundly influenced her life. Reflecting on her proclaimed title as “The Hash Queen,” and the publishing of her book, she explains that, 

“It took me 11 years to write my book because I didn’t view myself as a genuine writer, and I found it difficult to establish the routine of sitting down to write each morning.”

She has received numerous industry awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from High Times magazine for her significant contributions to cannabis extraction and culture. Additionally, she was awarded the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award at the Emerald Cup Awards in recognition of her decades of advocacy and innovation. Beyond these accolades, she is often recognized as a guest of honor at major events worldwide. 

The Queen Who Never Ruled — She Shared

Mila and Mark

In conclusion, Mila Jansen’s journey as the Hash Queen is a testament to her passion and dedication to cannabis culture. Her innovative techniques and unwavering commitment to quality have reshaped the landscape of hash production, inspiring generations of growers and enthusiasts alike. As we celebrate her legacy, we recognize not just her contributions to the industry but also the vibrant community she has fostered around the art of hash-making.

Her influence will endure for years to come. Thanks, Mila!