An Interview with MrSoul of Brothers Grimm Seeds & an Apollo Haze preview

 Howdy Meph-Heads!

The release of our Apollo Haze (Apollo Haze [Brothers Grimm Seeds] x Mango Smile) is right around the corner, and it’s one of the most anticipated drops of 2025 at Mephisto HQ. We love a strong, long-lasting sativa high here in the office (and out on the trails!), and Apollo Haze is the perfect strain for that job. Brothers Grimm Seeds has graciously given permission to use the Apollo Haze name for our own autoflowering version, which we are eternally thankful for. Mitch has also recently sat down with MrSoul from Brothers Grimm Seeds for a little interview to pick their brain.

A Mephisto Apollo Haze, grown by our own @jimbo_mephisto

But first, to whet the appetite, here’s how Jimbo has summed up Mephisto’s Apollo Haze:

All together, Apollo Haze offers a sweet and sour explosion of creamy tropical flavours, balanced by a floral finish and effects that offer energy, mood elevation, and a bit of the classic cerebral fog which we all love about a good haze. On the vine, she’s chunky with a solid build, finishing green and requiring just a bit more time to fully ripen and develop those juicy pineapple and lemon hazy notes to pair with her uplifting tempo. In the vein of fruity, sweet & sour varietals, Apollo Haze is the sativa Yang to the Kiwi Lime Ying.

Mephistory Lesson #452

As everyone knows, we at Mephisto have been seed nerds from day one, searching the magazines and early internet forums for any mythical strains we could get our hands on. We first came across Brothers Grimm on OverGrow almost 20 years ago, tales of Cindy99 and Apollo 11 with the Genius potential effect were beyond legendary. It wasn’t until many years later that we were actually able to score some seeds to work through; however, a project involving their genetics was living rent-free in our heads from the very early days of our seed-hunting, before Mephisto was ever even a twinkle in our eyes.

Mephisto's Apollo Haze

Brothers Grimm were off the radar for some years, ceasing operations in 2002 for security concerns; however, when they re-emerged in 2016, we quickly snagged ourselves some beans to evaluate and off to work we went.

During one of our many phenohunts, trying to discover the next piece of the Mephisto puzzle to add to our catalogue, we grew out Brothers Grimm’s Apollo Haze and found a spark of magic. She specifically created a robust indica-like frame with great branching potential, flowering hard and fast, but with sativa-like aesthetics. Tim and I looked at each other, and we each said, “If these girls grow like this, but give us a sativa high…” We were almost giddy with excitement. A few stem rubs (not a double-entendre) later, a spicy, citrus, fuelly haze stench blanketed our now crossed fingers. Within seconds of the very first toke, our wish had come true; an easy-growing, fast-flowering, potent and pretty lady with flavour and yield in abundance and a classic cerebral sativa high.

Tim then bumped into MrSoul at the American Autoflower Cup hosted in LA in 2024. After the initial fangirling by Tim was over, they got on famously well. MrSoul was a pleasure; hilarious and insightful in equal measure. Tim told him all about our own work with Apollo Haze, and MrSoul was super-stoked to hear all about it, before making sure that he would be one of the first to get his hands on seeds from the finished project.

Interview with MrSoul from Brothers Grimm Seeds, by Mitch

Let’s start right back at the beginning, shall we? What were your first experiences with cannabis? And when did you have the lightbulb moment that made you want to get into breeding your own strains and start Brothers Grimm Seeds? 

My first experience with cannabis was when I was 14 years old, and I found a joint in my uncle's bedroom, and he caught me smoking! It was a super high experience. The lightbulb moment was in 1997, while I was in the 77 "forum", I realized that the plants I worked with were showing far superior results than some of the others I was working closely with, and the quality was beyond, and that was the catalyst that made me decide to start a seed company of my own.

Can you fill us in on the lore regarding the shutdown of the original Brothers Grimm and its reopening? There are a lot of wild theories we’ve heard over the years!

During that time of prohibition, my partner, Sly, and I launched Brothers Grimm Seeds. We began distributing through Heaven's Stairway in Canada in 1996.  We had made a pact that if anything seemed awry or the heat started coming, we would both close shop and walk away. So in 2002, that's exactly what we did. I went to Belgium, and he went the other way, and believe it or not, that was the last time we saw or spoke to one another. In 2015, during the progression of legalization I reopened Brothers Grimm Seeds in Colorado, initially teaming up with Duke Diamond, who then left to begin his own seed company, Dominion Seed Company.  

We remember reading about your Cinderella 99 way back when in the ICMAG forums, and she’s gone on to become one of the most legendary strains in cannabis breeding history. 

Can you tell us the full story of how she came to be?

I was in an Amsterdam Coffee Shop, where I found seeds in a Sensi-packaged Jack Herer bud. One grew into an extraordinary female pheno I called "Princess". It flourished in indoor environments.  It was compact, high-resin, with a strong pineapple aroma. Flowering time was short, 50 days, and stable performing under stress.

I noticed that Princess was a compact plant; ideal for indoor cultivation. However, she also had an extraordinary Haze-influenced vibe, a trippy, paranoia-inducing vibe. The buds gave off a pronounced pineapple scent, and remarkably, the flowers had a short 50-day maturation period in 12/12, and outrageous resin production. Princess exhibited Sativa-dominance, yet was a compact, fast-flowering plant that remained free of hermaphroditism after years of cloning, under various growing conditions and stresses. She’s the Holy Grail of indoor plants.

To preserve Princess's traits in seed form, I used a method coined "cubing a clone", involving repeated back crosses:  

I crossed Princess with a resinous Shiva Skunk Male, which then yielded P.50., I then backcrossed P.50 males to Princess creating P.75, BX P.75 to P.88, BX P.88 to P.94, which then finally crossed P.94 male to Princess to produce Cinderella 99 (essentially P.97)  The name "Cinderella" evokes the strains rag to riches journey from "hapless discovery" to royalty in Cannabis breeding.

It was eventually included in High Times Top Ten Strains 2009.

What sort of qualities do you look for in a plant when selecting your breeding stock? Are there any “non-negotiables” in your process?

Uniformity & high product quality, improvement over parents; my rule of thumb is that it has to be an improvement on both of its parents.

When breeding with male plants, I look for female traits in male parents. Since males don't often visibly show desirable traits like resin or potency, I select the males based on their female offspring's characteristics, not their own appearance. Now that I breed with only female plants, that problem is solved.

Healthy seed production - I focus on health and viability. I'm looking for the number of seeds.

Desired cultivation traits- compact plant structure, dense bud formation, fast flowering time, high resin production, robust and unique terpene profiles.

How has the cannabis breeding landscape changed since you got your start in the ’90s, for better or worse?

Initially, when legalization first came around the bend, it was "BOOM" time and abundant.  However, it has quickly changed due to the oversaturation in all markets and a lack of experience.  It has put a damper on all facets of the industry.

Autoflowers have been a slow-burning concept that are definitely picking up pace and far more acceptance in the cannabis world at large. What was your first experience with autoflowers? What’s your opinion on them now, and how has that changed over time?

My initial impression of autoflowers would be that it was difficult to get high potency due to having to breed out ruderalis, and that the quality, flavor, just weren't up to par, etc, plus more time-consuming. However, I was recently asked to judge the American AutoFlower Cup and I was quite impressed with some of the autoflower I tested, the quality and the flavor were fantastic as well as the high. It definitely opened my eyes to new possibilities.

What pearls of wisdom do you have for up-and-coming breeders who want to create something that stands the test of time?

Advice to new breeders: avoid poly-hybrids, to get the most stable parents for the most predictable results. Use NUMBERS, grow LOTS of plants; statistics become meaningful in high numbers.

How do you balance preserving classic genetics with innovating for the future?

I keep the gene pool very small, yet I am able to create all the variations that I need to evolve my vision. I gladly welcome collaborations and/or crosses, which would be a good parent with one of my stable genetic lines. This fosters both control over core genetics which ensures heritage breeds remain true to their origins, and flexibility to innovate. I retain the integrity of my original strains while also being able to deliver improved versions. Also, switching to feminized breeding and yet still creating with my original legacy strains. This modernization helps preserve the essence while adapting for the future.

Preservation doesn't mean being stuck in the past - it means creating a reliable genetic anchor. When genetics are maintained, they provide stable, predictable parents for future crosses. The true-to-type lineage ensures every project retains a Brothers Grimm fingerprint. The scientific process I consistently use ensures that the preservation is backed by data, control, and exact replication to avoid genetic drifting. Having a fine balance between preservation (honoring roots) and innovation (extending the life of the original roots into future creations).

Do you have a favourite strain that’s flown under the radar, one that never got the recognition it deserved? Is there a ‘strain that got away’ for you, something that you want to work with but either didn’t get the opportunity to or time simply passed you by?

My favorite strain, of course, is Cinderella 99, however, one that I always wanted to work with would have been the ORIGINAL HAZE from Haze Brothers, but never got the chance. 

You’ve got a reputation for precision and scientific thinking. How does your background influence your approach to breeding?

I'm a Nuclear Engineer, so my background allows me to approach breeding systematically with a data-driven approach. I am able to rigorously control the variables and track lineage, phenotypes, flowering times, yields and stress tests with exact precision through controlled experiments. I insist on stable and uniform offspring. I also have the ability to analyze problems at their root with trouble-shooting logic using cause and effect systems.

Can you give us any insight or further backstory on the Apollo Haze? We adored the fact that it’s an easy, manageable, fast-flowering sativa. Hence, us putting in 2-3 years' work to bring the project to fruition. 

Apollo Haze was not derived from a pure HAZE; Apollo came from the Genius being the mother plant, and Super Silver Haze was the pollen donor. The Genius- provided short flowering times, flavor, structure, and the Super Silver Haze provided potency, flavor and balance.

We’ve seen your Trailer Park Boys strains and we think it’s so fucking cool. We’ve paid homage to TPB in some of our own strain names. Hubbabubbasmelloscope - Bubblegum derived auto, came from the episode where Cyrus calls Bubbles the Hubblebubbletelescope, and Samsquanch OG (Yeti x 3 Bears OG), Grade 10 (Schoolyard Crush X). How did that come about? We’re both stoked and insanely jealous!

The TPB collaboration came from a connection we made on LinkedIn, believe it or not.  Our VP of business development and marketing, Marc E., connected with someone on LinkedIn, and we then built the connection over a 2-year time period and built from there. The Julian strain will be out soon.

What’s next for Brothers Grimm? What fire is in the pipeline that you can share with us? And what’s out right now that needs a shoutout?

Next, up.... I am retiring but will still direct our cultivation team on the breeding, and my wife Laura, has now become the CEO of Brothers Grimm, not only running the business side, but also becoming involved in the cultivation. She is evolving this company to another level... We have recently created collaborations with Ice-T, Montel Williams, as well as remaining loyal to our homegrowers, etc. Between September and December, we will be releasing Purple Urkle x Rosetta Stone and Body Count by Ice T.    Second, we will be releasing our "Brothers Grimm Seeds version of White Widow x Blue Dream, called Montel's Dream Widow. We have huge campaigns we will be releasing, working with patients and veterans, etc.

You can shop for Brothers Grimm seeds through their website, located here.

Peep their IG here.

Shop for the latest Ice-T collab, dropping on October 1st here.

Shop for their upcoming Montel Williams collab, dropping November 30th here.

And check out their Trailer Park Boys collab strains here.