Kava Amounts, etc.

[Bert07]

Hi everyone, I'm new to the kava lounge and fairly new to kava--I've tried the alcohol extract, kavalovetone capsules from kona kava, and the paste from ethnobotanicals.com. Needless to say they were all pretty much disappointments although the paste wasn't that bad compared to the others. I then decided instead of totally giving up on kava I would give it one more chance and so I did--I bought N@H's Wow! kava root last week and it arrived recently. Now, before brewing this stuff up I had done quite a bit of research, especially on these forums here, regarding root to water ratios and whatnot. I then came to the conclusion that the 1 cup of root to 2 cups of water was mostly just a marketing scheme set by most vendors who simply want you to run out of the kava more quickly so you can just buy more, hence they make more money. Ultimately I decided to take Vesuvio Cat's suggestion and give 2 tablespoons for each cup of water a try. So that night I brewed up the Wow! for the first time, as I put in around 5-6 tablespoons of root for the 3 cups that I made (from my understanding 1 cup roughly equals 2 shells), and I finished every last drop by the end of the night. Unfortunately to say I was a bit disappointed again! I was expecting Wow! to be some top notch stuff considering what I read about but it wasn't anything special besides feeling like I drank a beer or two with an occasional spacey feeling. To top it off I got rather sick at the end of the night although luckily I was able to control it and not puke my brains out.


So in due to all of this, I have a couple questions to ask:


Is the 1 cup of root to 2 cups of water ratio really that necessary to get these desirable effects a lot of you keep talking about? If not, then what do you recommend? I was thinking maybe a half cup of root to 2 cups water would be more reasonable? And just curious, are there any potent kava strains out there that are much easier on the stomach than the strains that I heard will almost always turn your stomach--those being Wow!, Stone, and Chief's Jungle if I'm not mistaken.


Thanks in advance!

 

[Ed!]

A half cup of kava to two cups of water is exactly where I would start. 1 to 4 ratio is solid, and I can generally get by with a half cup, which I'll push as high as a full cup on rare occasion.

 

[krunkedout]

You may be experiencing reverse tolerance. Welcome to the forum, by the way!

 

[KavaKrunked]

Unfortunately to say I was a bit disappointed again! I was expecting Wow! to be some top notch stuff considering what I read about but it wasn't anything special besides feeling like I drank a beer or two with an occasional spacey feeling.      

This is what you should expect.  You need to keep drinking on a daily basis, sometimes for up to a month, before you will notice any significant effects.  Keep at it.

 

[Bert07]

I appreciate the tips. I'm just now brewing up a batch made with 8 heaping tablespoons of the Wow!, probably a bit more than a half a cup worth. I'll see how this pans out. How much time do you guys strain/knead for? I try to do for at least 10-15 min or so but do you think more time would increase potency or does it not make much of a difference?

 

[kl.billbryan]

10-15 is good. Once you get the hang of it you can kinda tell when you got out most of the goodies, it will become less oily. I try to shoot for 15 min sometimes more sometimes less depending on my mood and patience at the time. I usually sit on the couch so I am comfortable and watch some tv or put on some good reggae to make the time go by easier. Sometimes I may end up kneading for 30 min!


Don't forget that you can do a second wash with the root. Some people do it to make another batch, though less strong than the first. I like to do a second run and mix it with my first to make it a bit more potent.

 

[Vekta]

That beer effect may also be due to the fact that WOW is some pretty serious root.


2 tsp hit me like a truck...teaspoons! I didn't get a beer feeling but I was staring at the ceiling and extremely comfortable.

 

[Ed!]

I try to shoot for 15 min sometimes more sometimes less depending on my mood and patience at the time. I usually sit on the couch so I am comfortable and watch some tv or put on some good reggae to make the time go by easier.

That's my exact routine... even down to the reggae or TV.

 

[kl.Kava Cola]

billbryan wrote:I try to shoot for 15 min sometimes more sometimes less depending on my mood and patience at the time. I usually sit on the couch so I am comfortable and watch some tv or put on some good reggae to make the time go by easier.

That's my exact routine... even down to the reggae or TV.

I can just about manage some old Reggae (anything off of Trojan Records label) but otherwise music or TV is too much for me after Kava.

 

[kl.Lente]

I never experienced a reverse tolerance. Although I appear to be in the strict minority according to other's experience.


I go for a good 2 tablespoons for each 8 ounces. I read somewhere that 2T is about the maximum you should use due to solubility. I don't know if that is true, but it works for me, so I don't see a need to change.


I start out with a good, solid dose, maybe a high tide of 16 ounces or so. Then I drink maintenance cups of 6-8 for the rest of the night every half hour or so.


Like cigarettes, it seems that the first "rush," if you will, indicates how much you are going to feel it the rest of that night. Or day. Whatever.


[I used Kava to successfully get off the cancer sticks, btw.]

 

[Buddhacide]

Man, mix two tablespoons in milk and toss and wash it. You don't need to always do this but if your not getting anywher give it a try. 8 heaping tablespoons seems like alot of kava for one person. Tossing it will give you the effects you want.