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KWK LOA WAKA bad batch???

BoomKanani808

WatGetFoDinnah!!!
Bought a bag of Kalm with Kava Loa Waka and the taste was unbearable. This is the first time i had bought from this company. It had a strong SMOKEY and RUBBER taste to it. Is this stuff safe to drink????? Mind you i love the taste of kava. So this was a curveball for me.
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
Bought a bag of Kalm with Kava Loa Waka and the taste was unbearable. This is the first time i had bought from this company. It had a strong SMOKEY and RUBBER taste to it. Is this stuff safe to drink????? Mind you i love the taste of kava. So this was a curveball for me.
Loa Waka has been a culprit of this before. Send KWK an email about it, he’ll make it right. It’s safe to drink, it’s just an off flavor that develops when the kava dries at differing rates within the batch.
 

BoomKanani808

WatGetFoDinnah!!!
Loa Waka has been a culprit of this before. Send KWK an email about it, he’ll make it right. It’s safe to drink, it’s just an off flavor that develops when the kava dries at differing rates within the batch.
Thank you for the info! I was getting worried because I was really liking the effects from Loa Waka but was hoping it normally doesn’t taste that way.
 

Hightide

Kava Enthusiast
Thank you for the info! I was getting worried because I was really liking the effects from Loa Waka but was hoping it normally doesn’t taste that way.
I just got some loa waka too and I didnt notice the rubber taste before you mentioned it. I mean its Kava I just thought it was part of the taste. Ive been drinking it and im still alive
 

BoomKanani808

WatGetFoDinnah!!!
I just got some loa waka too and I didnt notice the rubber taste before you mentioned it. I mean its Kava I just thought it was part of the taste. Ive been drinking it and im still alive
I was getting that familiar kalua pig straight from the imu vibes after every shell. :wtf: Quite mind boggling
 

Chillbert

Kava Curious
KWK Loa Waka often had a flavor similar to a single malt scotch (though I say that only as a taste comparison). Although I love a good single malt, drinking Loa Waka was a commitment to the outstanding effects. Really love the vibe from it. Well worth the slightly odd taste, imo.
 

ThePiper

Kava Lover
Yeah it almost always tastes weird nowadays. Lots of other kava tastes that way, but it's almost always a Fiji thing. Never had a Hawaiian or tongan taste like that. Back in the day loa waka was an insanely powerful godly root. Now it's a nice potent heady but yucky strain. Still buy it, but not every order.
 

The Kap'n

The Groggy Kaptain (40g)
KavaForums Founder
There has been quite a bit of speculation regarding the formation of this scent/taste in kava in general (not just this kava). I first experienced 10 years ago in the Cook Islands. Locally sold Fijian kava smelled like a mix between plastic, kerosene and some solvent.

Dr JD Baker suggests that the smell is caused by mould. If I remember correctly, he suggested that this smell is due to styrne that can, under certain conditions (excessive moisture content, etc), be formed by the mold flora occuring in excess in kava. Mike tests his kava for mould, so even if this is the case, it must be due to the presence of a specific type of mould, not overall load as his kava doesn't have excessivem mould content.

Others (including Mike) have suggested this is due to the use of industrial plastic packaging in Fiji and packing warm/hot kava into these bags, which results in the kava absorbing some of the compounds from the plastic packaging.

EDIT: it was @Kapmcrunk who provided this info.

"this can sometimes happen when they're pounding the kava and transfer it to the bags too quick without letting it cool down" (http://kavaforums.com/forum/threads/re-kwk-loa-waka-bad-smell-issue-resolved.15125/page-2)

in any case, as @Kapmcrunk suggested, just get in touch with them and they will surely provide and answer and make things right.
Thank you Henry. I knew we had heard of this issue before, I suppose I was a bit fuzzy on the specifics. :)
 

BoomKanani808

WatGetFoDinnah!!!
Well i got back an email from Justin Smith (GM & Quality Control) at KWK.
Key points stated were
-This batch is from Feb 5th
-Test results came back great
-He said this batch is definitely SMOKEY Flavored
-He said i can get 10% off next order

I dont think ill be ordering another bag from KWK if its supposed to taste and smell like rubber and smoke. I guess i wasted $59.00 and I'm stuck with a pound of rubbery smoky goodness! Thanks KALM WITH KAVA! You're the best!

As for those vendors that i have been buying from like (Squanch/Gourmet Hawaiian Kava/Bula Kava House/Tikarams/ Kisa Kava) keep up the good work, i greatly appreciate the excellent quality that you put into your products from effects to consistency
, potency and taste.
 

BoomKanani808

WatGetFoDinnah!!!
That's strange. Mike himself is aware of the occasional issues with plastic smelling kava and has addressed it in a different manner here before. Perhaps try to enquire about sending your kava back for their analysis. Or wait for Mike to respond here before totally dismissing them. Mike really does care about his customers and if the kava has indeed absorbed plastic or is otherwise negatively affected, he will surely make it right.
I hope so because i really like the effects from that Fijian Loa Waka, even though i only had 3 shells before dumping the whole batch in the sink. But I do look at that bag everyday wanting to be on that dreamy KWK Fijian Loa Waka cloud. But then I get flashbacks!
 
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