The best strain that I have ever sampled is called "The Cough". As far as I know, this strain has not made it out of Colorado where it was made by crossing Northern Lights #5 and Haze. The shit smells to me like fresh pine trees and burns very cleanly. Of course, the stuff is appropriately named. One single hit from the batch that I scored knocked my ass on the couch where all I could do is shake, grin, and totally trip-out. I'd feel high for a good 4 to 6 hours before coming down with no post-pot lethargia.
That was the best smoke ever. Of course, I hear those crazy Fort Collins growers have come up with a Cough #2 strain now but I haven't tried it.
These days my bud has mostly been a form of Northern Lights grown
aeroponically in which the nutrients are literally sprayed onto the roots. AFAICT, the grower has been perfecting his own version of the strain for years. Every batch is a little bit different. The most recent stuff I scored is the bomb (second best only to The Cough that I mentioned above). One hit makes me feel like I am enlightened with gorgeous visuals. It lasts for about 6 to 8 hours, and also has no post-pot lethargia.
I have had very few smokes that lack the post-pot lethargia and I am always so very happy when I find one. The batch of shit I got before this one was Critical Mass. It was super-potent downer weed that unfortunately only felt euphoric for about the first couple of hours. After that, it trailed off into a nasty pot-over with a headache until I get a full night's rest.
I'm just looking forward to getting to California and getting a better selection of tasty outdoor sativas.

I prefer trippier shit.