I'll try the experiment, but should I go back and just buy the powdered form? Is that closer to what it really looks like?
Good thing I dodged a bullet by not making a tea out of it. Now with the ground powder, the health food store clerk said that the people buy the powder and put it into their smoothies. They say it works great. The powdered form is what I am looking for right?
there are three major types of powdered forms that kava can take so you have to be specific. The three are:
Medium grind, which is a neither course nor fine but somewhere in the middle hence medium grind of dried kava, comprised of either the lateral roots, known as waka, or the corm or stump root called lawena, or a mixture of the two. Traditionally made by kneading it inside of leaves or moss or hibiscus or a T shirt or ladies stocking or preferably a good food grade bag, like a nutmilk bag. It can also commonly be made using the AluBall wire mesh in plastic balls shaken in a jar or bottle, or by grinding in water in a blender and then straining thoroughly.
Instant - this powder is made from prepared kava (grog) that has then been dehydrated by removing the water. To reconstitute you simply add to water and stir
Micro - Micronised kava is in many cases simply an ultrafine grind of kava so that one can stir it into water and drink it down almost like it was an instant powder, although in this case one would actually be consuming the ground root itself rather than a beverage made from the ground root. Micro is also stronger than regular kava but has some other aspects that some people mind and some people don't mind but the micro and non-micro people always get along very well because no one thinks their way is the right way and everyone else is wrong. More like, there are many right ways and it's really all about what is right for you. (if it works and you enjoy it, then it's right for you, I use that rule of thumb). Some of the premium micros are made only from the outer part of the waka, so it avoids many of the issues that trouble some people who drink micro made from the whole root including the very tough inner membranes (think of a cross section of a carrot, with the inner circle lighter in colour and denser, the outer part more colourful, more succulent, and with more pronouced flavour. Kava is like that, too, although the outer part is really quite thin compared to the inner part, the opposite of a carrot in ha regard)
That being said, I don't know what those folks could be putting in their smoothies. Could be any or all of the above or even something else,like a prepared flavoured kava drink powder (such things do exist and are often the first things people try in the way of kava.
