Powdered Kava Puariki

[The Kap'n]

A rare kava - Puariki.

This 100g kava sample was sent to me to try out by Henry. It came with the instructions to "Fasten your seatbelt", and boy was it necessary. I was informed this plant was one of the last survivors of hurricane Pam being 7 years old. The bad news is that you currently can't buy it. From what I was reading this cultivar rarely makes it off the island due to it's popularity with the locals. Maybe Henry can sweet-talk the farmers into putting several plants aside for him. I can only hope, because this kava was insanely good.

Very fine grind size, but no particles transferred through my strainer bag.​

Prepared in my normal fashion with 40g of kava powder to 400ml of water. Knead and strain with a resulting 12 oz of superbly amazing, lightly colored and easy to drink kava. This kava is smooth and the taste is quite mild.

Made up some of the smoothest kava I've had in a very long time. Like my blue plaid pants I managed to get in the shot?​

Taste: Five stars easily. Reminiscent of the other kavas KS has acquired being 20% lateral roots 80% stump (@Henry correct me If I'm off)
Effect: Same. This kava had me leaning, clenching my jaw, and finding it difficult to pronounce any words. I fell asleep in seconds. One thing that really stood out is how I felt the next morning. I'm accustomed to getting a bit of holdover from the night previously, waking up a bit groggy. With Puariki I had none of that. In fact, I woke up more refreshed than I have in a long time from any kava.


It's a balanced leaning heady kava that we should all bug @Henry for relentlessly until he carries it.

 

[Zaphod]

A rare kava - Puariki.

This 100g kava sample was sent to me to try out by Henry. It came with the instructions to "Fasten your seatbelt", and boy was it necessary. I was informed this plant was one of the last survivors of hurricane Pam being 7 years old. The bad news is that you currently can't buy it. From what I was reading this cultivar rarely makes it off the island due to it's popularity with the locals. Maybe Henry can sweet-talk the farmers into putting several plants aside for him. I can only hope, because this kava was insanely good.

I find it amazing that not only are there still rare kavas out there, but that there are rare kavas that are really, really, good. Does this stem from a desire of original users to keep the good stuff for themselves and not share with "outsiders" or just from a real scarcity?

 

[Skinskava]

@Kapmcrunk jealous isnt the word. Glad you got to enjoy a rare one. @Henry ill pray someday you get it on the site

 

[The Kap'n]

I find it amazing that not only are there still rare kavas out there, but that there are rare kavas that are really, really, good. Does this stem from a desire of original users to keep the good stuff for themselves and not share with "outsiders" or just from a real scarcity?

From what I found it's high local demand coupled with low supply.

 

[TheKavaSociety]

I find it amazing that not only are there still rare kavas out there, but that there are rare kavas that are really, really, good. Does this stem from a desire of original users to keep the good stuff for themselves and not share with "outsiders" or just from a real scarcity?

There are several reasons why this might be the case. Note that many of these are only "rare" outside of Vanuatu. local love those kavas and often consume them locally. Kelai has long had an excellent reputation not just on Epi, but also in Port Vila. Puariki and Pualiu have also been very popular but cyclone Pam destroyed a lot of the gardens on Tongoa (where both of them have been traditionally grown). Palarasul has always been popular on Santo etc. But getting single cultivars, especially from places like Epi or tongoa, is a logistical challenge, which increases the costs for overseas consumers. Many farmers only some of these cultivars "green" for fresh consumption. By contrast, many growers of Borogu on Pentacost have set up solar dryers and have a longer history of selling dried roots for export.
Most people outside of Vanuatu have never heard of "Kelai" or "Palarasul", but have heard of Borogu or Melomelo, so they are more likely to ask for those. Coupled with better logistics and a greater availbility of already dried roots, Borogu and Melomelo dominate the export market.
in general though, the idea of selling kava overseas as "single cultivar" is relatively new. People have just been asking for "noble" dried roots or chips and these tend to happen to be Borogu or Melo.

 

[Forretressqt]

I’m reviving this thread (sorry) to Report that KS has it for limited sale, I’m absolutely stoked mine just arrived today- I’ll edit this comment later with a short review