Christopher Louie started smoking weed to impress a girl.
Louie, the kind of plug who hollowed out his Catholic school Bible to store his stash, was deeply involved in the New York City legacy market from a young age.
Now, he’s an avid medical cannabis advocate and the founder of the premium cannabis brand, Made In Xiaolin. Together with his wife (and co-founder) Chongsi, Louie is bringing the luxury New York cannabis experience to a whole new market in Colorado.
Today, Louie is a down-to-earth and open-hearted cannabis business owner who is quick to share stories of his past – and whatever he’s smoking.
Growing up in Brooklyn and on Staten Island, Louie’s life used to look a lot different.
Once deeply involved in the city’s legacy market, Louie’s life changed forever when he was shot during one particularly hostile interaction.
This injury left him with partial paralysis, using a cane to get around. At the time, Louie’s only option for pain management was the opiates his doctor prescribed, which had a number of adverse side effects and impacted his ability to sleep through the night.
When his nurse friend suggested that he could be using cannabis for his pain and insomnia, Louie was quick to give it a chance.
“The cannabis really helped me with my quality of life. At that time, and I still think now, the only pain management they had was opiates, which really messed up my quality of life,” Louie shared.
“I tried it out, and it was crazy. Once I was able to get off the opiates, the quality of life came back. The sleep came back.”
As such, with the help of medicinal cannabis, Louie found a new – and more effective – avenue for managing his pain. Ultimately, cannabis not only helped to combat his physical pain but helped him find solace through a difficult period.
But cannabis isn’t the only thing that brought Louie’s quality of life back to him after his injury.
During his recovery, Louie’s life changed once more when he was introduced to Shi Yan Ming, a Shaolin Temple Monk from China. Shi Yan Ming invited Louie to train in Shaolin kung fu at a temple under the guidance of a 34th-generation Shaolin monk.
Shaolin kung fu is one of the oldest and most well-known martial arts styles, originating from the Shaolin Monastery in Henan Province, China, over 1,500 years ago. It combines physical techniques with mental discipline, emphasizing balance, flexibility, and the harmonious integration of mind and body.
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From that moment forward, Louie began consistently training in Shaolin Kung fu, a practice that now, years later, guides his brand’s mission. Combined with medical cannabis use, Louie’s martial arts training helped him regain his physical mobility and integrate mindfulness into his everyday life and his brand’s identity.
‘I had partial paralysis in my body from the bullet in my back,” shared Louie. “Now, after Shaolin kung fu, I can almost do a split. I can do cartwheels.”
It made sense then that Louie combined these two passions to create a unique business model that incorporates both his appreciation of cannabis and his respect for Shaolin principles.
As a result, Made In Xiaolin cannabis products are designed with balance, creativity, and integrity at their core. These products are crafted with high-quality cannabis material, meticulous creative rolling technique, and luxury experience at the forefront of every product.
Made In Xiaolin’s most well-known product, the Cannagar, perhaps best represents this balance, as it is a hand-crafted combination of flower and cannabis concentrate.
The cannagar is a slow-burning cannabis cigar containing anywhere from 0.4 to 2 grams of hand-selected flower. The Made in Xiaolin team, based in Evergreen, Colorado, carefully selects their flower based on terpene profile, taste, and aroma, determined during the team’s blind taste tests. The flower is then paired with live cannabis concentrate and rolled using premium rolling papers. In particular, their V.S.X.L. (Very Special Xiaolin) lines are detailed in 24kt gold rolling paper.
Ultimately, the cannagar can burn anywhere from half an hour to three hours, depending on which size you choose — be it Godfather or Bambino.
Alongside the cannagars, Made In Xiaolin’s infused joints and specialty rolls (including knife and winter tree-shaped joints) stand as prime examples of the brand’s mission toward creativity and integrity. Their quality, hand-crafted products exemplify the brand’s commitment to luxury and craftsmanship – and users are left with an unforgettable, balanced, and premium smoking experience.
“You’re not just buying the product, you’re buying this luxury, high-end, craft experience,” said Louie.
And while he may be planning a move back to his New York City roots, Louie can leave Colorado knowing he created this luxury niche within the state’s market – a niche that simply didn’t exist before Made In Xiaolin came into the picture.
When, after the birth of his son, Louie wanted a cannagar to celebrate, he noticed the absence of these products from the Colorado market. With his knowledge and passion for high-quality cannabis, Louie knew that he and his wife could be the people to fill this void, ultimately starting Made In Xiaolin in 2018.
Now, years later, their brand is synonymous with luxury cannabis across the state. Louie works alongside a team of passionate cannabis professionals and creatives who incorporate this passion, integrity, and appreciation into every product that the company produces.
Their commitment to delivering unmatched quality and unforgettable smoking experiences sets them apart in one of the biggest cannabis markets across the United States. Made In Xiaolin doesn’t just sell cannabis: they sell art in the truest form, a craft cannabis experience that remains unmatched in the Colorado market.
By staying on the cutting edge of rolling know-how and cannabis science, Louie and the team behind Made In Xiaolin continue to do exactly what it is they set out to do: push boundaries and redefine the limits of cannabis culture.
