But a cloud of controversy hangs over the usually mellow Cannabis Cup. Last year's winner withdrew Friday, saying the yearly smoke-out has become a "commercial circus."

During Cannabis Cup week, an event sponsored by the American magazine "High Times," hundreds of people, mostly Americans, descend on Amsterdam to sample the best brands of marijuana and hashish the shops have on offer.

Dutch authorities tolerate the shops, saying they allow police to keep tabs on the trade in soft drugs and deter cannabis users from hard drugs such as heroin.

But 2 1/2 days of judging by cannabis connoisseurs can lead to -- believe it or not -- a "stressed atmosphere" in some of the "coffee shops" where marijuana and hashish are freely sold, said two-time winner cafe De Dampkring.

"With grave concern we see how the event, which started in 1988 as a harvest festival ... gradually deteriorates into a commercial circus in which the economic interests of coffee shops and seed companies pull most weight," the cafe said.

"We hate the stressed atmosphere, the favoritism and the buttering-up to the media," it added.

During the cup, which begins Monday, coffee shops slash their prices and often dole out free marijuana samples. De Dampkring argued that such extravagance means only about 20 of Amsterdam's 356 coffeeshops can afford to participate.

Copyright: 1998 Associated Press.