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How to Prepare Grog... the Cactus Kava Way

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CactusKava

Phoenix, AZ
Kava Vendor
I've kept my prep secret for a while, but I haven't a clue why. Here, my friends, I'll show you the best way to make a potent grog without going crazy using extraction techniques that only a scientist can figure out. It also only takes a solid 10 minutes! Patent Pending. Just kidding.

Step 1:
Take a heaping 1/2 cup of root (lately I've been into CK Lawena ) and put it in your strainer. Next, throw the bag of kava into a bowl, and shake it till there isn't much kava dust in the bag. Most of what you drink in kava happens to be these particulates that make their way through your bag anyways, so you're just making the process faster and easier doing it this way. By the way, CK provides free 80 micron nylon strainers with each order.
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Step 2:
Add 1.5 cups of the hottest tap water you can get (don't bother microwaving it, or it might get too hot. Just stick with your tap.) to your mess of kava dust, and mix up the powder at the bottom with your hands. Eliminate any lumps of powder you can find. After, start kneading the kava still remaining in the bag. What you've done is let the kava soak in the hot water for a bit while you messed with your powder, and made sure it was nice and pliable.
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Step 3:
Knead like the dickens. You're attempting to extract all of the oils and resins left over in the makas (the leftovers that you don't want to drink) that remain in your bag. If you've shaken it nicely, you'll find you don't have much left in your bag anyways, so it makes kneading quick and painless. If you've got a sweet nylon bag like I do, you can use your Hulk strength to get every last drop out.
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Step 4:
Add 1/2 cup of ice to your grog, and leave it for a few minutes. Swirl it around if you want, juggle some coconuts, whatever you want while it's thinning/cooling your kava. I normally start drinking before all the ice is gone, but you get the drift. FYI, drinking ice isn't fun -- it makes the texture strange, so make sure to take any bits out of your soon-to-be-gone shell.
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Step 5:
Bula! Pour into your favorite 4-6 oz container and chug it as fast as possible! I drink one shell (the 4-6 oz) every 20 minutes until I feel comfortable. Don't overdo it!
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Step 6:
If you get a little nausea like I occasionally do, chew some of these bad boys after a shell. They'll clear your palate and give you something tasty to suck on.
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I've also got some additional instructions on my site here: http://cactuskava.com/kava-preparation

Let me know if you have any questions!
 

Sam Handwich

Kava Enthusiast
Right? What would the difference be? I may try sifting off the dust into a dry bowl to be kept as "micro" then knead out a batch with what is left. It will be interesting to see how the kneaded batch turns out, probably weak I bet.
 

CactusKava

Phoenix, AZ
Kava Vendor
I feel silly for not thinking of sifting the dust through the strainer while it's still dry. Seems so obvious now that I read it here. Thanks for the tip!
No problem. I feel like it's an important step in the process, because you'll undoubtedly not squeeze out all of those fine particles. Saves time + kava :)

@Mrbinx69 This is essentially how how some folks' micro is made (assuming they don't just grind the whole root). One thing you should be aware of, though, is that the effects you'll get with ONLY using this powder are somewhat short lived. The oils and resins in the makas have something going on that's a bit different than the rest of the root; which is why I always shake the dust out AND prep my makas with hot water.
 

TidyMinion

Kava Padawan
@CactusKava Cheeky monkey! If i didnt mix up the last of my powder kava last night i'd try that now. Have a CK order on the way already though i'll be sure to try that. Great tip!

Has anyone tried this method yet? Please report...
 

TaneHead

Kava Curious
Just tried this. Seriously legit, idk why I'm just now seeing this because this should be the gold standard of grog making - holy moly.

This should be everywhere honestly.

Thank you so much for the knowledge.
 

StinkWeed

Kava Enthusiast
Hey I didn't know anyone else did this! I feel silly for having made a thread on it now but at least I know other people are having good results with it, too!
 
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