Kava Preparation Blender timing and cosmic slop

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

Stop the presses part 2

Yesterday I went out for my usual Sunday morning tennis, when I typically play for 1.5 or 2 hours or longer, sometimes followed by a 5k run, just for fun.

Anyway, as I was heading out I noticed we had some of that Moana prep grog left in the jar, about 5 ounces or so so I took it along. Right before hitting the courts I chugged the last of that grog, and also had a 2TBS cocktail of KWK concentrate, strictly following a Squnch.

Well, it was probably the best exercise/play session I've had since I was 19 or so.

At first I was focusing on the sensation of being ina control booth on a planet light years away controlling my robot body, which is interesting because usually in that scenario I've been shrunk to about 1/4 inch size and my robot body's control booth is immediately behind the picture windows that are my eyes. But no, I was on another planet far far away and having fun with my body. But as my body got more and more comfortable, I melded back into it in a kind of seamless flow until I was right back in there.

I noticed several things: I could hit anywhere I wanted to, with much better accuracy than usual. I only had to think a ball where I wanted it, and it went there. My actions were smooth and flowing. When I bent or kneeled to pick up a ball, I felt nothing, nothing in my knees, nothing in my back. Now keep in mind I am a very old man, with a kind of arthritis. I have full movement but always feel at least a creaking in my knees, if not varying degrees of complaint when I use them. But this was nothing, just pure fluid easy motion. Also I could run easier and faster, and didn't get winded as easily as usual. I went for stuff and got it. When I was done I checked my blood pressure and it was 103/75.

Needless to say I credit the kava I drank, and plan to do this again and again as long as it works like this. I had no idea kava could have this effect. When krunk, of course, you mainly just want to sit on a couch. I didn't know it could greatly enhance the athletic experience, especially one's enjoyment. Given the appropriate preparation.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

Some conclusions:

1. More than one prep is appropriate. You need to prep your kava different ways if you want different things of it. To get krunk you need one way, but to get the other kavalactones, you need other prep. There is no one "right" prep, just preps that are appropriate to different effects desired, different qualities of individual kavas, and individual drinkers.

2. Kava can probably do more than we think it can. It's up to us to give it the chance. And a type that is good for one purpose might be lame for some other purpose. Conversely, if it's lame for one purpose, it might be fantastic for another purpose, but if we never try it on those terms, we'd never know how wonderful it was.

3. This is an issue for marketing on both ends of the equation. Vendors should probably get to know the best qualities of the kava they sell and provide information to consumers so that they can enjoy their purchase to the fullest and be appreciative. If left to fend for themselves, there will be some floundering out there. It would be a tragedy if some kava was excellent in one way, but everyone hated it because it wasn't the best in some other way. It's best to know what it is appropriate for each kava and what is the very best way of prepping it to reach that goal.

4. Kava reviews are lots of fun but they aren't necessarily as completely useful as we might like, nor by any means as thorough. I wonder if we are ready for some kind of standardisation, where we take a pound of a kava and really run it through its paces? Try it on different people with krunk doses, then try it in a different prep, and try it in medicinal doses on a different group of people, ones who are using it medicinally.

5. Kava as an aprhodisiac: well, I had never thought this possible, especially as when krunk one usually wants to just sit on the couch and not bother. How does that Fijian proverb go about "on kava you come home wanting to make love but if she says no you say ok and go to sleep" ? Well, that's not what happened to us with the Moana prep. It happened to both of us on three separate occasions, including once when she woke me up at 3:30, and it was not to ask if I'd put out the cat because a. the cat was not on fire and b. we don't have a cat. And we are talking occasions which were intense and very satisfactory. And when we ran out of the Moana prep the effect stopped, so I believe it really was that prep. Also, we were not expecting this at all.

6. I want to try each kava I get with a variety of preps. I also don't need to get krunk to enjoy kava goodness of health benefits, pain relief, good dreams, mood enhancement, deranged sloppy monkey sex, etc etc. I only need to get krunk to get krunk. This changes the ball game for me. In a good way.

 

[Zaphod]

Oh, I'm very curious to hear how it works.

As for kava keeping, I am a light kava user (certainly as compared to some on these forums). My strategy is to make a quart of kava, put it into a mason jar, and pop it into the fridge. Some weeks it might be a full seven days later before I polish it off, and never have i encountered any funkiness or loss of potency. Your strategy to drink it all over the weekend has immense charm, though should that plan fail you, keeping it refrigerated will buy you plenty of time.

I have to second the vote for a tightly sealed mason jar in the fridge. I have made up batches and had them sit the fridge for at least 5-6 days (usually they don't last that long) with out any noticeable change in taste or smell.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

My wife went out this morning and bought me an early birthday present of a new blender. I think she likes me.

So to try it out I dropped the proportions to 1/3 but made three separate mason jars of Squanch, Dua Na Bilo, and Wakacon waka. It's going to 83F tomorrow so I think my deck is a nak now. Good times ahead, I reckon.

 

[KavaCat]

(...)
5. Kava as an aprhodisiac: well, I had never thought this possible, especially as when krunk one usually wants to just sit on the couch and not bother. How does that Fijian proverb go about "on kava you come home wanting to make love but if she says no you say ok and go to sleep" ? Well, that's not what happened to us with the Moana prep. It happened to both of us on three separate occasions, including once when she woke me up at 3:30, and it was not to ask if I'd put out the cat because a. the cat was not on fire and b. we don't have a cat. And we are talking occasions which were intense and very satisfactory. And when we ran out of the Moana prep the effect stopped, so I believe it really was that prep. Also, we were not expecting this at all.
(...)

We had a thread about this some time ago, where I reflected that as a female, certain kavas do make me particularly affectionate or receptive. Were there any correspondences with certain strains? Because I always prep the same way, and found it to be more correlated with kava variety.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

We had a thread about this some time ago, where I reflected that as a female, certain kavas do make me particularly affectionate or receptive. Were there any correspondences with certain strains? Because I always prep the same way, and found it to be more correlated with kava variety.

Ah, but if you always prep the same way then the only variable for you is the kava variety, no?

Of course, I know and am sure different varieties have different kavalactone profiles. But I think this prep gave us something we weren't getting before out of the same kava. Interesting.

Iae, tonight she's shelling the Moana prep of Dua Na Bilo but I am shelling the Moana of Squanch. Could be interesting, if we survive.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggg

I've been saying Moana when it's Manoa, of course. I blame it on the Squanch, what the heck.

 

[HeadHodge]

Ah, but if you always prep the same way then the only variable for you is the kava variety, no?

Of course, I know and am sure different varieties have different kavalactone profiles. But I think this prep gave us something we weren't getting before out of the same kava. Interesting.

Iae, tonight she's shelling the Moana prep of Dua Na Bilo but I am shelling the Moana of Squanch. Could be interesting, if we survive.

Sounds like an exciting foursome. Wifey is shelling Bilo and your shelling Squanch. I dont need kava, only need to read your posts to get turned on!

Im inviting you guys for Fun Friday on the Bunga Bunga boat!!

 

[HeadHodge]

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggg

I've been saying Moana when it's Manoa, of course. I blame it on the Squanch, what the heck.

It should be called Moana.

 

[KavaCat]

Ah, but if you always prep the same way then the only variable for you is the kava variety, no?

Of course, I know and am sure different varieties have different kavalactone profiles. But I think this prep gave us something we weren't getting before out of the same kava. Interesting.

Iae, tonight she's shelling the Moana prep of Dua Na Bilo but I am shelling the Moana of Squanch. Could be interesting, if we survive.

Yes! Of course that's the only variable for me. What I'm suggesting is that if you are using a variety of kava varieties AND preparation techniques, you should also make note on which varieties you've been using as well, if what you're looking for which kavas are best for a passionate evening. Based on my experience.

Obviously other factors come into play, personal hormones, moods, but you might notice a pattern over time...

 

[superspeedkit]

What strainer are you using after you blend, @Krunkie McKrunkface?

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

What strainer are you using after you blend, @Krunkie McKrunkface?

For the Manoa prep I am using the cloth strainer bag that KWK sent me with the assortment pack, seems to work fine.

For my krunk prep I use a blender and then a plastic strainer that has metal mesh at the bottom, fairly fine, and stir with a spoon till there's just makas left and no more liquid coming out. I think this was originally used for straining tea. It does a really good job .

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

Yes! Of course that's the only variable for me. What I'm suggesting is that if you are using a variety of kava varieties AND preparation techniques, you should also make note on which varieties you've been using as well, if what you're looking for which kavas are best for a passionate evening. Based on my experience.

Obviously other factors come into play, personal hormones, moods, but you might notice a pattern over time...

well, we've done further research using a variety of preps and kavas and so far the only thing we've found that had that effect was the Wakacon waka done using the Manoa prep. That's why she bought me a new blender, I think.

 

[Poivrier]

Very interesting observation on your experience of using kava with sport. I usually drink kava after the training, not before. I haven't had yet the courage to try to drink it before...my sport is muay thai, I am wondering what could happen...
Any martial artist and kava drinker here ?

 

[Zentri]

Very interesting observation on your experience of using kava with sport. I usually drink kava after the training, not before. I haven't had yet the courage to try to drink it before...my sport is muay thai, I am wondering what could happen...
Any martial artist and kava drinker here ?

I agree, I honestly thought he was going to say he drank it after and then when I read that he drank it before I was 100% expecting him to say he only played for an hour or something (in comparison to his stated usual 2.5-3hr) and stopped due to "chill mode engaged" lol, especially with that concentrate, but I guess it could be a bit more stimulating too?

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

I agree, I honestly thought he was going to say he drank it after and then when I read that he drank it before I was 100% expecting him to say he only played for an hour or something (in comparison to his stated usual 2.5-3hr) and stopped due to "chill mode engaged" lol, especially with that concentrate, but I guess it could be a bit more stimulating too?

I think the key was having just a "weak" dose of the Manoa prep, 4 to 6 oz of grog. My wife has since tested this with both aerobic workouts and with weight training (she turns 60 this year and in 2 weeks is doing her 4th Tough Mudder in a row and has run dozens of marathons, she's a wild and crazy freak child) she found, like me, that it really enhances the experience, none the least of which is because there's no creakiness t the joints, just fluid motion. Plus it feels awesome. You feel great for several hours afterwards.

Kava is weird. I'm having to adjust to feeling good and being happy ALL THE GODDAM TIME. It's just weird. I mean, people are SUPPOSED to suffer, right? And it's worse when I'm asleep, there is no stopping it, I'm even happier in my dreams, if that's possible. It's just relentless.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

one tiny more thing to add. I was not able to krunkify from Manoan prep using the strict 5.33 TBS per 900ml original proportion or 6 TBS per 1L that I've arrived at. However, doing the Manoan prep on 8 TBS waka per litre, i.e. 450ml/300ml/300ml on the three washes, I was indeed able to achieve krunkifamacation. It's not the same krunk as when I quickly blend 4 TBS root to 3/4 liquid for 30 seconds and then strain, doesn't hit like a tidal wave, more sort of sneaks up as you do the 100 - 150ml little shells every 20 minutes till you hit the "whoa, time to hold off on the next one" point (my wife had a learning experience when she ignored that and got the double vision effect, though it only lasted 5 minutes or so and then she just went and happily napped it off, no harm done). This is the closest so far for me to what I imagine doing shells in a nak feels like. Of course, I don't drink the whole litre of grog made with 8 TBS! We share that and might have some left over.

Tonight I'm going to do up a litre of Dua Na Bilo using 8 TBS Manoan prep and see how many/few I need to float in a warm fuzzy hug. Thursday I'll try it with Squanch. For some reasons I always like Squanch on Thursdays. No idea why, I just do. It's becoming almost a ritual.

 

[Vekta]

I'm going to say Spirit.

 

[chandra]

I finally got to try the blender method today. I used about 1/2 cup root and 1 1/2-2 cups water. Pulsed a few times and blended it for about a minute. Then I filtered and kneaded it, repeating the process two more times (total of 3 washes) and mixed it all together. The first wash was very dark, and I imagine it was quite capable of getting me krunk. The third wash had white foam on top, which I've never seen before. Looked almost soapy, but whiter and not as translucent. My hands are pretty weak, and I think from now on I'm just going to do the blender. I didn't seem to accomplish much with my kneading. I've had 3 shells, and I'm in that beautiful zone where I feel good and happy, but not lazy. I do wonder if I should have went with two or three minutes each time instead of one. It's my first time trying Kumakua, but this method seems to yield results that are balanced as well as beautiful. It's been a long time since I've achieved krunk status on kava (been awhile since I've had any) so I may continue to travel down the rabbit hole and see where it goes. I've still got plenty left in my fridge!

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

8 TBS to about 4 1/2 to 5 cups total with 3 blend and knead cycles sounds like the Manoa prep or close enough. And yup, each wash has a different colour and consistency and you mix them together at the end. 3 shells, whether small traditional nakamal 125ml half cup kind or the "big cup" 200 - 250 mls, one cup variety, three should make you feel pretty fine, especially if paced about 20 - 30 minutes apart. Of course, to get all the kavaloctones out of that root you have to get every last drop out at the end, that's where the goodies are, and that's darn hard work. At some point one must give up. And then enjoy. If you used hot water for the prep you can chill the grog down with ice cubes for a minute or so before shelling. I find that works fine and when you're ready for the next shell the jar in the fridge is nice and cold.