Koniak

[Bula Kava House]

Our 10 kilo sample of "Koniak" kava from PNG arrived today. The smell, texture, and consistency reminds me of Nambawan, It's got that same freshness. I'll be able to try some tomorrow and I'll get some kava bar customer feedback tonight and tomorrow. First impression is that this kava is awesome; I think we found a winner. I'll keep y'all posted on this thread.

 

[Ed!]

Always good stuff at BKH, eager to hear the reactions.

 

[kl.ImSoCold2323]

This better not be some extremely potent DHM strain...  I think you guys officially hold the strongest Kavain kava with Nambawan, that'd just be mean if you had the best of both worlds.  

 

[Ozzyfan121]

Assuming the general reaction is positive, do you have any intention of making this available for online purchases? I've loved your Fu'u since day one of my kava drinking, and after having the choice between that and Nambawan, I rarely stray from you as a vendor. I'd love to try a new BKH kava.

 

[mos3z]

awesome, cant wait, i need a new strong png since chiefs jungle is missing.

Id be happy to buy a batch and test it out for you

 

[Bula Kava House]

I'll have to send it in for chemotype testing to know if it is a higher DHM tudei type kava, but that's what PNG is known for and the supplier described the effect as leaving a "halo" the next day, so...


Assuming it's something the customers like we will definitely make it available online. This may take some time though because this supplier does not currently ship to the US. To do so he needs to apply for FDA registration which doesn't get taken care of overnight.


One of the best things about this kava is that it's relatively inexpensive. Depending on shipping costs I would expect the price to fall somewhere between the price of our Borogu/Melo Melo/Boroguru and Fu'u.


Like I said, I plan on getting down on a few shells tomorrow afternoon. I'll report my thoughts here after.

 

[kl.metacog]

Hell yeah, sounds sick. Definitely eager to see the write-up.

 

[The Kap'n]

Just out of curiosity, Judd, where do you send your samples to be tested for chemotype profile? And if you don't mind me asking, how much do they charge? Some members have expressed interest in having their favorite types tested.


Thanks!

 

[Ed!]

I would also love to know what the kavalactone profile is for Nambawan... if you've already done that fella.

 

[mos3z]

i am curious about the last two post also judd

 

[Bula Kava House]

Okay, so I'm about three hours post Koniak session. I made the kava by putting two cups of ground root in a Fijian strainer bag, then immersing that bag in 8 cups of water. I kneaded the kava within the bowl for about ten minutes before manually squeezing out as much liquid as possible. At first glance, the brew looked scary. It was a dark brownish green color with thick bubbles covered in an oily haze. It just looked potent.


The taste was intense and pungent, very peppery but fresh. I drank three approximately six ounce shells and was absolutely floored. The effect was heavy in the body but not necessarily just muscularly relaxing, more of a floaty, euphoric body high, kind of like that of a body high from herb. My vision was skewed a bit and reaction time seemed slow. I didn't feel comfortable driving for about an hour and a half.


This is the most potent dried kava I've ever had. The only thing comparable was the fresh root Borogu kava I had in Vanuatu and the fresh root Isa from Hawaii I once made for a special event at the kava bar. I didn't think there would be a dry root kava comparable to the potency of Nambawan, but this stuff is even more serious than that.


Hopefully we will have Koniak available online at some point in the relatively near future. When that happens I would advise people to start slow with small amounts. This kava has the potential to do too much, and I could see it making a drinker nauseous. In fact, a kava newbie had three shells with me and was feeling pretty yucky. It's unfortunate that she was a writer putting together a piece for a national magazine about BKH. Oops.

 

[Ed!]

Hah, awesome. You keep getting those writers sick so that we can keep BKH secret. Can't wait to try some.

 

[mos3z]

sounds incredible, i want asap

cant wait

curious to see the chemotype

 

[Bula Kava House]

Up until the introduction of Nambawan all our kava was tested by the suppliers who showed me the results. I never actually had to test one. I have a message out to an associate who will be able to tell me where to look for kavalactone profile testing. I'll keep everyone posted.

 

[mos3z]

thanks Judd

 

[odys1i]

'koniak' sounds like 'waeld koniak' which is actually Madang short/long in other words PNG Isa. It is fantastic even with the high dhm. It's the 1st kava that truly kicked my ass and I love it for that. The hawaiin and vanuatuan grown Isa tastes a little smoother but in my opinion smooth tasting Awa's for squares ;D j/k

 

[Bula Kava House]

odys1i- From what I know about PNG kavas, Madang Short, Madang Long, Isa, and Waeld Koniak are all different cultivars. BKH actually carried Madang Short and Madang Long in our infancy before we lost contact with the supplier. I believe most, if not all of the kava names you mentioned are listed in Lebot's book "Kava: The Pacific Elixir: The Definitive Guide to Its Ethnobotany, History, and Chemistry" in the section listing kavas from different parts of the world (I'd confirm but I loaned the book out). Funny thing is that sometimes the word "Koniak", which is what the farmers are calling this particular strain, is used to simply describe a strong kava in the PNG pidgin language, but in the case of this particular kava I'm leaning toward guessing it is Waeld Koniak. I plan to test it and if the kavalactone profile matches that of the Waeld Koniak listed by Lebot, or any other PNG kava for that matter, I'll know precisely what I have. Whatever it is, it will floor you. Definitely a kava to drink when you have no other pressing responsibilities.

 

[odys1i]

Certainly so.  This was the 1st kava to truly kick my ass to the floor. I think I got Madang Short specifically, from Nukahivatrading.com. yarons and yarons ago. Whoa, I just tried to go to nukahiva and see thier site is not up (eek, another kava provider's bit the dust?). Anyhow I did believe he said that Waeld Koniak is dutch for Wild Conjak so what you said about strong kavas makes sense. I find hawaiian and vanuatuan grown Isa very similar but with a mellowed flavor. I really like the super pungent PNG taste though.