Catalogue entry · lab-tested · every claim cited
Purple Urkle is a classic California indica, described by most sources as a selected phenotype of Mendocino Purps and usually dated to the late 1980s.1,2,3,4 In only 35 state lab tests, a small sample, its flower had a median total THC of 19.00%, with the middle half of results between 15.98% and 22.42%.5 CBD is negligible: none of the 27 tests that reported CBD reached 1%.5
Purple Urkle is an indica, by most accounts a selected phenotype of Mendocino Purps. Its disputed link to Granddaddy Purple, seed versions and offspring.
Plate IIPurple Urkle flower tests at 19.00% median THC (15.98%–22.42%) in only 35 state lab results, a small sample. CBD is near zero; no test reports terpenes.
Plate IIILeafly’s top reported effects for Purple Urkle are sleepy, relaxed and hungry: a heavy, calming indica. Reported downsides: dry mouth, dry eyes, dizziness.
Plate IVSeed versions of Purple Urkle flower in about 7–9 weeks indoors, breeders say. Specs, yields, heights, the purple color and what to watch for, side by side.
Plate VPurple Urkle is scarce: 34 stores and deliveries listed it on Weedmaps across 27 US markets on Oct 3, 2026, led by Los Angeles. Counts and prices by market.
Plate VIA California indica usually dated to the late 1980s, by most accounts a Mendocino Purps phenotype. Its history, disputed parts and offspring, sourced.
An indica. Leafly classifies it as one and rates it mostly calming, AllBud lists 70% indica and 30% sativa, and several feminized seed versions are sold as 80% indica. Weedmaps tags it a hybrid but describes an old-school Northern California indica.1,2,3,7,8
Its lab results sit toward the lower end of the strains we track, though from a small sample: the median total THC across only 35 state lab tests was 19.00%, 8.6% of tests reached 25% or more, and 21 of the other 28 strains in our dataset have a higher median.5 Strain databases list 19% (Leafly), 18–21% (AllBud) and 18–26% (Weedmaps).1,2,3
A California indica that most sources describe as a selected phenotype of Mendocino Purps, a purple strain from Mendocino County. AllBud dates it to the late 1980s and calls it a clone-only strain kept for California dispensaries.1,2,3,10
Grape first. On Weedmaps, 50% of flavor reports say grape, 26% berry and 24% earthy, and Leafly’s top flavors are grape, plum and berry. Westword likened well-grown flower to skunky grape juice.1,2,11
Accounts differ. Weedmaps and AllBud list Granddaddy Purple as Purple Urkle × Big Bud, while Leafly gives Mendo Purps × Skunk × Afghanistan and mentions Big Bud × Purple Urkle only as others’ claim. Ken Estes, who popularized Granddaddy Purple in 2003, told Leafly the plant he started from was called Purple Medicine; he does not mention Purple Urkle.12,13,14,15
In few places, going by Weedmaps. On Oct 3, 2026, 34 stores and deliveries listed Purple Urkle flower across the 27 US markets we checked, 10 of them around Los Angeles; 16 markets had none.16
Full lab data: by year, by state, terpenes and the downloadable dataset →
Purple Urkle is not on the current best-seller lists we checked. It is absent from Leafly’s best-selling strains of 2025, where Granddaddy Purple ranked #2 nationally, and it is not the top seller in any of the 23 adult-use states in The Marijuana Herald’s September 2026 list.17,18
Its reputation is older. In a 2019 profile, Westword called it a fixture of Denver’s dispensary scene since the early medical days and one of the originals of the syrupy grape smell later strains took on; its Leafly page carries 1,346 ratings, and Leafly’s explainer on purple cannabis names it among strains known for their color.2,11,19
Store menus show how scarce it is now. On Oct 3, 2026, 34 stores and deliveries listed Purple Urkle flower on Weedmaps across 27 US markets, against 850 for Blue Dream in the same markets.16 It leaves a thin trail in state lab data too: only 35 matched flower tests, against 512 for Granddaddy Purple.5
| Market | Stores | Menu items | Median eighth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles, CA | 10 | 13 | $20.00 (n=2) |
| Phoenix, AZ | 5 | 5 | $30.00 (n=1) |
| New York, NY | 4 | 4 | $35.00 (n=1) |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 4 | 4 | $20.00 (n=1) |
| Anchorage, AK | 2 | 7 | $20.00 (n=6) |
| Seattle, WA | 2 | 3 | $26.00 (n=2) |
Stores within 50 miles listing Purple Urkle flower on Weedmaps, Oct 3, 2026.16
Purple Urkle
A Mendo Purps phenotype? A Granddaddy Purple parent? The full genetics page →
The Purple Urkle universe
If Purple Urkle is your strain, you keep late hours on purpose, because the best stars come out after everyone else is asleep. Meet the Night Owl.
