I've never grown anything OG surprisingly enough. I've grown a TON of cultivars and none of them had OG lol. I will get smell and smoke reports out in due time.
The pre 90 was what caught my eye. I've been searching for the quintessential Sour Diesel for a long time, even before growing. From what I understand, there are several variants. The first would be East Coast vs. West Coast Sour Diesel. ECSD is quite different. More "soft sweet" vs "sharp fuel." Then there are the cuts. I hear AJ (Asshole Joe) cut is supposed to be the main one that everyone is used to. This would be a "West coast" cut. I have never grown that. There are several cuts from Northern Cali Emerald Triangle that also make the "Sour Diesel" lineage. One being "Rattlesnake Diesel," which our friend
@Schwaggy P works with. I also have personally known of a cut coming from 707 that was like no other, very sweet and a bit of fuel, and an addicting smoke, cuz there was zero anxiety, only euphoria. So it's really all over the place. You are correct when you hear of Sour D coming from 91 chemdawg. Amherst could simply be a variant from the original fabled story many of us know. The pre-90 chemdawg is the claim from Humboldt Seed Organization. It was the closest I could come in seed form that I felt was from a reputable source. Very stout plants with heavy colas. I will provide smoke reports after harvest n cure.
Let me preface this by saying that I don't wanna come off as an elitist or snob, but I do want the correct lineage info out there, as anyone should. Also, there are always at least 3 sides to a true story...
So, if you haven't had OG experience, smell for lemon, pine, and gasoline smells in late stage flower and in the bag, and a soapy smell burning.
The original Chemdog, sprouted in Massachusetts, from bagseed bought at a Colorado Grateful Dead show is now known as Chem 91 Skunk VA, because a forum member called Skunk VA kept the cut safe, when Mass G got busted and lost it... It was the only publicly confirmed cut, and is now considered the original by those in agreement.
The Chem D, Chem Sis, Chem 4, 1, etc, came from subsequent seed pops by different guys involved in the original purchase, in different years, between 94 and 06, I think. If I recall correctly, Chem Sis was "B", and there was"D", popped by Chemdog himself in 94 or 5, and Chem 1, 3, and 4 was popped by Joe Brand later on.
I dunno if there's any older, more knowledgeable folks here yet, but feel free to correct me!
As far as Sour Diesel, that might even be more convoluted. Even the originators aren't sure who was the father, last I heard, but it's basically narrowed down somewhere between Super Skunk, Northern Lights, and Hawaiian... Or a cross between... But the mother was the original Chemdog cut, now known as Chem 91 Skunk VA.
Where it went from there is where it gets foggy. Some say AJs cut is the original, but I think the accepted consensus is that Chaco's cut is the original. I know AJ is in the East Coast crew, but I've heard it's different from the Chaco. There's different stories about what cut went where when, but either way, Diesel originated on the East coast, so West vs East coast Diesel would've come afterwards. I think West coast Diesel is daywrecker/headband, and I won't even speculate on their relation to the east coast stuff, other than they do seem close. These include folks like Loompa and 707 and their diesels.
I wouldn't personally trust Humboldt Seed Organization ... Aren't they the ones out of the UK who named their company close to a reputable one, actually out of Humboldt? I wouldn't trust anyone in Europe to get real cuts before anyone in America... Just closer relationships geographically.
I would, however, trust Schwaggy P in his research of provenance... And he chose a Humboldt Seed Organization Green Crack to work with, so take my advice with a grain of salt lol
I do look forward to your harvest and smoke reports!