first impressions

[kl.skinnymonkey]

Hello...this community has been a big help to me so I thought I'd share my first experiences with kava, and hopefully help someone like me, who may stumble across this in the future.

First, I have generalized anxiety with some OCD elements.  Lately I've been looking for supplements or herbal remedies to help with my anxiety; I have a prescription for a benzo, but it's too sedating for frequent use.  Also I have repetitive worries that don't really warrant a benzo, but still cause a lot of mental discomfort.  I'm not looking to get high or krunked (not even sure what that means), just looking for something to quiet my mind at the end of the day, so I can relax, read a book, watch a movie, hang out with my family, etc, and go to sleep.  Valerian was not much help but I did enjoy the Yogi kava tea and it seemed to have a more relaxing effect than other herbals I've tried, so, based on recommendations from this forum I ordered a pound of Van3 limited edition from Kava by Rex (It got here lightning-fast, from all the way in Hawaii.  Thanks, Rex!).

First impressions--this stuff tastes revolting to me.  The Yogi tea, I realized, must hardly contain any kava at all because I actually enjoyed the taste of that tea and was looking forward to a nice creamy cup of Van3!  I think someone here said it tasted 'amazing', and in the Kavasseur review the Van3 got a 9/10 "taste" rating.  Well if this stuff is 9/10, I can't even imagine what a 6 or a 7/10 might taste like.  I made my kava 2T/1 cup water using the hand kneading method and I felt like I was sipping on the wrong end of a skunk.  I tried heating, adding honey, mixing with chocolate soy milk, icing, adding lots of 1% milk, adding a touch of condensed milk, adding coconut milk, fresh ginger root, steeping with a Yogi teabag...awful, awful, awful.  The worst was when my heated kava came to a simmer and I was stuck trying to force down a cup of bitter, stinky kava pudding.  I was about to give up on my kava until finally, I came up with the following recipe:

5T van3 kava
2 cups water
1 cup 1% milk
2 teabags Celestial Seasonings Sweet Coconut Decaf Thai Chai
1t vegetable oil
sugar to taste

Blend the milk, kava, water, and oil in a bowl with an immersion blender, add the chai, steep for several hours, strain well, and chill.  Add a teaspoon or so of sugar per half cup serving.  I'm not going to say this is delicious...but if I roll my tongue into a straw and make sure and sip on the exhale, it's tolerable.

Since I got my Van3 on Monday, I've been drinking a cup and a half to two and a half cups a night, and while it's subtle, I do think it's helping my free-floating anxiety, and I've been sleeping great.  I'll definitely finish out this pound.  One question--my kava chai recipe didn't seem to have the mouth-numbing effect as my heated kava brews.  Is that a bad sign?  Maybe I didn't press it well enough during the straining process?  Anyway, it did still seem to effectively quiet my mind, so I think I'll stick with this method until I become better 'acquainted' with the taste of Van3.

Again, I appreciate all the advice and information I've found here.  I was surprised how little info I was able to find on using the ground root; especially since it seems more effective, and definitely more cost-effective, than using extracts or tablets.  Cheers, or should I say, bula!

 

[Vekta]

Hehe, I couldn't help but giggle a little bit when I read what you went through. I've made some pretty bad kava when I first started to. I guess it's a right of passage.(smiley: laugh)

After a while the taste will grow on ya. I used to use Coconut juice(not milk...different) but now I only use that when introducing kava to people new to it. There are some Kava that is really light and doesn't have that "skunk" flavor at all.

Keep at it. You'll find your most preferred method eventually.

 

[kl.Ted]

I think it's better to chase kava+water with something like grapes, an orange slice or some chocolate, rather than trying to mask the flavor.

 

[kavalover]

Yeah I agree Ted, I always found masking the flavor ended up with an even worse tasting concoction. Mango slices are the chaser of choice on my end, but I've come to enjoy the many flavors of kava

 

[Bula Kava House]

Bula! Welcome to the world of kava drinkers! It really can be a great substance for a lot of people.

Diligent you are! Lots of experiments.

Keep in mind that traditionally kava is chugged, not sipped. The reason this has been done for over 3,000 years is that kava isn't the tastiest beverage. Flavor is secondary, some people enjoy the taste of kava, but for most that would be a bonus. You're drinking for the effects, kind of like people taking shots of Jose Cuervo. My advice is to get it down quickly and chase it with fresh fruit.

I also saw that you mentioned heating the kava. Kava is stronger when mixed with warm water but hot water breaks down the kavalactones. Most people suggest preparing with water under 140 degrees, but I have read information that claims that some kavalactones break down as low as 112 degrees. For me, preparing with water that's simply warm to the touch works well.

If you ever order from me at store.bulakavahouse.com, give the Fu'u or Melo Melo a try. They're both quite pleasant tasting (for kava). In the meantime, I may have to give your concoction a try.

 

[kl.skinnymonkey]

Thanks for the advice everyone. It really does, unbelievably, seem to be growing on me. I'm enjoying the cold kava chai now so hopefully soon I can progress to the chaser method. If only we could get decent mangoes around here! Funny because I can shoot whiskey with the best of them, but the thought of "chugging" a bowl of kava.....ew...sipping it quickly is about all I can manage right now. Luckily I've had no nausea at all, so I only have the taste to contend with.



Judd, I tried to keep the heat on the low side when I made the warm kava, because I was worried I was destroying the kavalactones. A couple of times, though, it did get almost to a simmer, and once it got hot enough that the starches thickened into a pudding. Still, even with the kava pudding, the mouth-numbing effect was much stronger when I drank the kava warm. Maybe the heat of the drink just made it more noticeable? Next time I'll try preparing it with water that's warm to the touch, like you said, and then chilling it. I'm about halfway through my pound, so maybe I'll go with the Melo Melo next. It looks like a nice, soothing kava.

 

[kl.skinnymonkey]

I ordered some of Judd's Melo Melo this week, so I thought I'd post a review, even though my experience is pretty limited, there isn't much on the forum yet about Bula Kava House and I think it deserves a little buzz. First, thanks for the Ultra-fast shipping! I expected to wait over the weekend for my kava but it only took two or three days to get my shipment. I ordered the Boroguru kava and the Melo Melo. I've been simplifying my kava preperation more and more as I've gotten used to the taste of the van3, so when I brewed up the Melo Melo last night, I went with 1 part kava, 5 parts water, a few drops of vegetable oil, and a blender. I kneaded the kava in a panty hoe for five minutes, then steeped, blended, strained, and chilled. This was some viscous looking stuff, dark brown with a thick, bright yellow foam that actually stained my white plastic mixing bowl. I took this as a good sign. The smell as I prepared the Melo was milder than the Van3, so I was optimistic that, having grown accustomed to the Van3, I'd have no trouble downing the Melo.



I was wrong.



The Melo was like drinking a cup full of dirt. Not a bad taste exactly, but while I could get around the bitterness of the van3, the "earthy", dirty taste of the Melo registered right on the widest part of my tongue...there was no getting away from it. Once I choked down a cup or two, though, I really warmed to the Melo Melo! While the Van3 gave me a heavy, stoned feeling, the Melo just sent me sinking, blissfully, into the couch. I was watching some old Wonder Years reruns (haha) and over and over I found myself just closing my eyes and letting the music wash over me. The effects were less dramatic than the Van3, but to me, more enjoyable.



I did get used to the taste of the Van3 so I'm hopeful I'll have the same experience here. If not, I still think it'll be a great kava to have around for the days I need an emotional Band-Aid. It had an almost narcotic effect, which I loved. If anyone else here has tried this kava I'd really like to hear your impressions.



I still have had no nausea at all from either kava. I also haven't had anything I'd call euphoria. And I don't feel more social...if anything, I've been more introspective, and less social, since I've been drinking kava.

 

[Vekta]

I think we really need a petition to get Bula House Kava it's own sub-forum now...



All in favor say AYE!

 

[kl.Lanake]

Aye! I would also love to hear from people that have actually stopped in to Bula Kava House. I've read some great reviews on Yelp.

 

[kl.skinnymonkey]

Aye! I'm looking forward to trying the Boroguru. I hope my comments about the taste don't put anyone off trying the Melo. I really, really enjoyed the Melo.



Once I grabbed a bottle of water after a soccer game, drank half of it, and realized it wasn't water after all. Someone had filled a water bottle with gin, and left it to chill in the refrigerator. This is the problem I'm having with kava. It *looks* like a delicious, creamy coffee, or a chai tea. It *tastes* like something completely different. I think when I can reconcile the way kava looks, and smells, with the way it tastes, I'll have an easier time getting it down. In the meantime, thank God for reverse tolerance!   I've only been drinking kava for a couple weeks, and already, two or three shells is all I really need.

 

[Vekta]

To a new thread! *insert old school batman music here*

 

[starsofclay]

their fu'u is the best!