The Grand Instant Green Review Thread

[Vekta]

I thought about doing a review for VG (Vanuatu instant Green) and then it occurred to me...why  not have a thread where everyone that tries it posts a mini review of there point of view. As we all know, different kinds of kava effect different people...differently. I for one would like many different points of view on one kind of kava. I find that interesting. For those of you who have bought some VG from Judd and Co. lets all share a few words about it when you get around to experiencing the latest instant offering to hit the Kava Lounge. I'll start...
The Packaging. Just like with the Boroguru, I like it. It looks good. It's simple but elegant with that familiar black and green logo. Call me crazy but I just like the BKH color scheme and style. *shrugs*
The smell. This was really different for me. To my nose it didn't have that typical kava smell. It was very nutty, woody, almost savory. Like a savory delicious bowl of soul food...mmm. (smiley: laugh) (yes, I'm having fun)
The taste. Again this was pretty different. Yes, there is a little grassy taste in there, but for me it was mostly a mellow woody taste.That's pretty much it. For people just starting out that are worried about that legendary awful taste kava is known for...this is for you.(at least in my opinion) At the same time you are still getting a quality kava experience.
The good stuff. Ah yes, so what is VG about? Good question...who you asking? For me that first time was very good. Oh, VG you are a kind mistress indeed. The first 5 minutes were pretty intense. It was like having my head shoved in an Asgard(little gray aliens) Time Dilation Device and set to slooooooow. Then it quickly tapered off into a mellow up and down buzz that made me feel like I was floating down a gently flowing river then coming to rest on warm sandy patch of shore miles and miles from where I started. I've only tried two other instants and just like with those I generally got about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours and some change. I would say though that BKH VG definitively out performs the other instants I've tried so far. I've had the VG a few times now and that warm floating river journey feeling was present every time. Just close your eyes and you'll be there.(smiley: pimp)
Ok...your turn...(smiley: grin)

 

[kl.CarolinaBC]

This is kinda cheating because I'm mixing BHK instant with Paradise fresh frozen but I canna lie-I'm feeling pretty darn good.  I had about 2 shells worth of the fresh so far and 1 shells worth of the instant and though no where near krunked I am at peace with my little world.

I'll report back in a couple of hours with a full report.

 

[kavalover]

Wow! Nice description. As most of you know I've always been real critical even cynical about instants... I have a feeling this stuff might change my mind on them. I'll be ordering the 38 bucks worth either tonight or tomorrow morning. I'm really excited. Will write my experience with it here when it comes in!

 

[Dan]

I'm not sure I've used it enough to qualify for having any sort of opinion, but here goes.

Last night was my first time spent with BKH instant, or any instant.  I used two teaspoons' worth.  The effects were pronounced but gentle, and not quite enough for me; I think three teaspoons will be my go-to amount. 

The taste, though: it just completely floored me.  With all kava root, even the mildest, for me it's always been a matter of getting past the taste and getting it down fast.  This brew was almost tasty - so light and innocuous, almost like some herbal teas.  Anyway, because of its extreme mildness and ease, you're not expecting it to do anything, but it really does work.  I can see this would be an easy one to drink too much of.

 

[Vekta]

I'm not sure I've used it enough to qualify for having any sort of opinion, but here goes.

Last night was my first time spent with BKH instant, or any instant.  I used two teaspoons' worth.  The effects were pronounced but gentle, and not quite enough for me; I think three teaspoons will be my go-to amount. 

The taste, though: it just completely floored me.  With all kava root, even the mildest, for me it's always been a matter of getting past the taste and getting it down fast.  This brew was almost tasty - so light and innocuous, almost like some herbal teas.  Anyway, because of its extreme mildness and ease, you're not expecting it to do anything, but it really does work.  I can see this would be an easy one to drink too much of.

All kinds of reviews are good, be they from new or experienced drinkers. I think it'd be helpful to other new people to see what a new  kava drinker thinks of a particular variety.

 

[kl.new2kava]

I've been having pretty good results with around a tablespoon, I'm kind of a hardhead and go for more strong experiences. I have mixed it thus far with chiefs jungle and that was a pretty chronic combo and it will soon be comboed with stone and likely some type of trinity of the three. One thing I have just tried is using it sublingually, that has really cool mouth numbing effects and very stong instant effects. I just put a big chunk of the powder about the size of mabye 1/2 tsp under my tongue as I have eaten within the last few hours and didn't want to drink any kava. I really like the taste and considering the only other kava I have to drink is chiefs and stone it will be a good vacation for my taste buds. I had the van3 before this and it almost reminds me of an instant van3, which is a compliment for sure.

 

[kl.KarmaG]

I had 4 glasses over the course of 1.5 hrs this evening at 1 tsp each. Didn't notice much the first glass but by the second one I was feeling a bit more relaxed. I had a third shortly after which left me feeling very nice and mellow, with the nice tingles I get in my extremities with kava as well as a bit of the floating feeling that Vekta mentioned. I went for a fourth cup because, what the hell, it's Friday. After this one I felt very nicely buzzed, very mellow with a slight loss of coordination with balance more to the sides than centered. After that I got the munchies and ate a whole bunch so I guess that's it for the night. The taste is pretty nice, though, so I'm tempted to go for one more. Both plain and in pineapple juice, it tastes pretty good, not nearly as strong as traditionally made kava, but a bit grassy and a bit woody with a nice numbing effect. Overall, this stuff is really nice and made for an enjoyable start to my evening.

 

[Vekta]

I drank a serving of VG before going to the mall today. It provides very good "shields" which was surprising because it tapers so quickly off into a very mellow buzz. It really warps my sense of space. Even in a crowded mall I felt like everyone was 100's of yards away, way outside my "bubble". I've never gotten that kind of "shield"ing from something with such a light touch. Very nice.

 

[Kojo Douglas]

Alternatively, you guys could email me pics and reviews and I could post them on Kavasseur (and credit them to the authors as contributions). I only have so much time and so much Kava to review!

 

[Kojo Douglas]

kavasseur at gmail.com

 

[endwatcher]

So heres my review.
Prep was a few cups of coffee in the morning, nothing to eat, then I started to drink around noon.
I mixed it the way its rec. 2 tsp per 8 oz.
Lets tackle the taste, it doesnt go well with my taste buds. It has hints of grassy moss, with a chalk/dirt.
That being said, its effects are great!
It felt like a mix between a white high kavian variety with a hint of the Tuday sedation.
I drank about 12-16 oz's then whent to lowes to pick up some veggie plants.
While at Lowes, I experienced slight nausea, but nothing to bad.
Gave me a super awsome talkative side, that probably seemed too much to observers, lol
I am a non talkative kind of person so everyone knows.
I also got the Bob Marley chill funky-ness while driving around, probably the closest to some ganja Ive gotton from Kava.
Got home and ate some hot sauce and chips, and went SPLENDID!
Too bad I had/have a cold so I couldnt feel the total effects.
On taste I give it a 5 out of 10
On effect, I give it 8 out of 10
I am going to mix it with Fu'u next to see what happens.........Which I have ran out of.....AHHHHHHhhhhHHHH, LOL
Good stuff, give it a try!

 

[Vekta]

So heres my review.
Prep was a few cups of coffee in the morning, nothing to eat, then I started to drink around noon.
I mixed it the way its rec. 2 tsp per 8 oz.
Lets tackle the taste, it doesnt go well with my taste buds. It has hints of grassy moss, with a chalk/dirt.
That being said, its effects are great!
It felt like a mix between a white high kavian variety with a hint of the Tuday sedation.
I drank about 12-16 oz's then whent to lowes to pick up some veggie plants.
While at Lowes, I experienced slight nausea, but nothing to bad.
Gave me a super awsome talkative side, that probably seemed too much to observers, lol
I am a non talkative kind of person so everyone knows.
I also got the Bob Marley chill funky-ness while driving around, probably the closest to some ganja Ive gotton from Kava.
Got home and ate some hot sauce and chips, and went SPLENDID!
Too bad I had/have a cold so I couldnt feel the total effects.
On taste I give it a 5 out of 10
On effect, I give it 8 out of 10
I am going to mix it with Fu'u next to see what happens.........Which I have ran out of.....AHHHHHHhhhhHHHH, LOL
Good stuff, give it a try!

Man that sucks endwatcher. I went up to the mountains for Mother's Day and the pollen allergy was so bad my eyes were puffed shut even after the allergy pill. Did not go well with kava. At night it wasn't too bad and I got to hand out a sample or two while I was up there. Gave our host the best sleep she's had in a long time. VG ftw!

 

[kavalover]

So my instant green just came in, me and my girlfriend have been super excited to try this stuff. First off, like always with Bula Kava House, I absolutely love the little tin this comes in. Just like Nakamal at Home's instant tins, and packed to the brim with kava - powder. Judd cares a lot about his products and customers, that much I can definitely tell.

My first instinct was to get a whiff of this stuff, and it smells surprisingly earthy, and peppery. Very kava-ey but much different than typical dried root powder. It actually smells a lot like the fresh frozen kava from Paradise kava. What I'm trying to say is that is smells "fresh" and "alive" in a kava kind of way, the way that isn't there with dried root powders.

Next comes taste, and man, this stuff DOES taste very similar to the "fresh frozen kava"  fresh taste - I guess that speaks for it's freshness. Perhaps I should clarify what I mean by "fresh kava taste" - What I mean is that there's vegetative taste to it. Leafy almost. As opposed to the dry 'still' taste of dry root powder. When you taste it, if you're a seasoned kava drinker, you'll think "fresh". Also, this kava numbed the hell out of my mouth, which I don't usually notice that often anymore. I used 2 rounded tbsp to one cup of water (8oz) It tastes very much as it smells, earthy and peppery and kava-ey with a hint of that grassy aftertaste that seems to be common with Vanuatu kava. It also has a bit of that "plastic-like" taste that every instant I've ever tasted has had. I don't really know how to explain it, but there's an odd taste that seems to follow instant kavas around. I'd like to know what that is, what produces it, but I'm sure it's just the method of preparing an instant kava vs. say, a dried root kava or a fresh out of the ground frozen kava. Overall, this stuff tastes great. It's also worth it to note that I found it almost sweet while chugging the glass, it's the only kava so far that just genuinely tastes alright. My girlfriend (who gags after 2 shells of Fu'u) says she really enjoys it. So I'd definitely recommend this to newbies. It's mild, but just potent enough to let people know what kava has in store, taste wise. Awesome.

Now for the effects. They're very much immediate. Maybe a minute after I chugged the glass of Vanuatu Instant Green, I felt that nice "lift" that kava drinkers will understand. The air got light, my body got heavy, my shoulders warmed up and here I am writing a review. This stuff feels more social than sedating, as if I'd like to carry this stuff in my breast pocket substituting for a flask of alcohol. It's nice, I'm happy. It's also very potent. 2 tbsp felt like too little, but now I'm questioning if it was too much, because now I can't stop smiling. Just 20 minutes ago I was stressing about my calculus 3 finals, now I'm totally content. My body is buzzing a nice mellow warmth that almost mimics the feeling of getting off a roller-coaster. Refreshed by the wind and relaxing after being tense during the ride. It's like the perfect "chill-out kava" for after a long and stressful day. Mentally I'm clear, I'm alright. The main mental effect from kava that I get is a nice positive vibe, and this stuff offers just that, though it is more bodily than cerebral, so far at least. My eyes have a soft, sinking feeling. My muscles feel massaged. My lungs feel like rubber bands with a lot of slack, free to take deep breaths whenever I please. These effects usually come on after 2 or 3 shells of dried root powder, but all the Vanuatu Green took was 2 tbsp in one cup of water. That is amazingly strong stuff, very much worth my money. I am very pleased with this purchase. We've got another fantastic kava to add to Doug's list.

Well, my faith in instant kava is for the most part restored. I may have to explore this area of kava more fully in the future. I've only experienced it for about 15 minutes now, but I've already decided it's one of my favorites. I just haven't been this pleasantly surprised by a kava in a while now. The last time was when I first tried the Vanuatu3 from kava by rex. This stuff is just good.

 

[Kojo Douglas]

Wow, that stuff looks and sounds great. I wonder if they'll ship to Ghana?

 

[Vekta]

Now you see why I think it'll start selling out faster than V3 huh Kava Lover...(smiley: grin)

 

[kl.KarmaG]

Yeah, this stuff will fly off the shelves. It is nothing short of fantastic. It gets better and better each time I try it. Last night I had 2 tsp on top of 1.5 tsp of Island Kava's Hawaiian (wasn't feeling much at that point) and it was instant buzz. Very nice feeling in my head and body. Overall, it's pretty euphoric stuff. I got into kava to curb what was quickly becoming a problem with alcohol. This hits the spot and is so much better than booze. Puts a smile on my face and relaxes me without feeling like crap later. The Hawaiian that I was trying earlier really lacked the numbing part. This has a great numbing effect which to me is a real important part of the whole kava experience! The only downside is that this is so easy to make and has such great effects, that I see my dried root sitting neglected in the pantry for a while now!

 

[kavalover]

Definitely vekta. I had three glasses of the stuff last night, absolutely awesome.

 

[Vekta]

So I made some Boroguru today...



and I said to myself "Hmm...lets super charge it with 2 tsp of VG"



Well...what a trip. It's building as I type. When I move I feel slight dizzyness...like when you look down from a really high place. I feel really warm all over and I feel like I took a tiny hit of laughing gas.



Very strange...but good. Weeeeee....



Pizza time! (smiley: roll)
Try this: 2 tbsp of Boroguru in 10 oz.water- Let soak for at least 1 hour-squeeze and need rough for at least 20 minutes2 tsp of Vanuatu Green-stir it in well for 1-2 minutes
(smiley: eek)

 

[kavalover]

I might have to try that tonight! I almost want to mix some Fiji waka with Fu'u and then spike that with vanuatu instant green. Actually, I enjoy being able to move, so nevermind. lol.

 

[Vekta]

I might have to try that tonight! I almost want to mix some Fiji waka with Fu'u and then spike that with vanuatu instant green. Actually, I enjoy being able to move, so nevermind. lol.

This is hitting me way harder than Chief's Jungle kavalover. For the first time since I started using kava only know can I say I am actually Krunk.