I'm hesitant with blends.
You know, the floor sweepings, oddments, hodge podge from processing combined into a blend and sold less expensively than single-cultivar/known-cultivar kava. Waste not want not, and a good deal to boot. But on the flipside, who knows what's in there? Where it came from? How it was grown?
This is not that.
I'm willing to bet Chris throws away kava that's better than a lot of overseas sources, anyways. This is a bunch of really good kava all mixed together into a whole that is undoubtedly much greater than the sum of its parts. I haven't been so whalloped by kava in a long time.
Preparation and Taste
It's the usual medium grind. Light colored. I prepared it 3 heaping Tbs of powder to 3 cups of hot tap water. In the usual 25 micron nylon monofilament mesh bag with about 5-10 minutes of squeezing. I lost track of time while putting the hurt on it. I could see clouds of kava oils and fine powder billowing out from the bag when I sqeezed it hard. Fresh and potent. Waxy sack means fresh. Thick opaque water means lots of oils getting displaced. The color is a very light tan. Almost like that coral-scrubbed Fijian white sands sort of light tan.
The flavor is not unlike any other of the GHK's: uniquely Hawaiian. It's the terroir, the cultivars, or something. It's milder than Vanuatu and Tongan even, and more like a Fijian lawena. Plus it has that "latex glove" overtone that I've only found in Hawaiian. Not a bad thing, just unique. Lacks the bitterness of Vanuatu laterals. I dunno what the soil's like on the islands of Vanuatu, but I picture sludgy dark silt-rich soil that stinks of organic matter.
This batch is strong. The 3 Tbsp were especially heaping and the water especially hot from the tap. I warmed the squeezing vessel as well to prolong, what I believe to be the softening of kavalactone rich waxes in the wood fibers of the root. Always experimenting. I also drank this on a very empty stomach (no lunch today) and consequently the effects (good and bad) are definitely amped up.
Onset..
I was surprised to see my outlook starting to soften at less than 30 minutes into my session. Onset was very fast for me. A few minutes after my second shell. After five small (4oz) shells, and an hour of clock time, the kava was fully present. The mood shift was remarkable.
I got some nervous energy from this. That suggests a lot of Yangonin (3 in the chemotype) in this blend. It was strongest at one hour after my last shell, and wasn't entirely pleasant. I'm someone who tends to love heady kava and I was surprised by this. I attribute it to my very strong batch and my very empty stomach. The other effects have have come later are also out in full force so it's not a yangonin thing.
I got some nausea from this. I always get a little nauseated when drinking kava. It's just the way my enteric nervous system deals with numbness, I think. I use the nausea to gauge my pacing of shells. I always know when I'm ready for another shell. It subsided about 30 minutes after it set in. Not horrible, but uncomfortable.
...and Effects
Hoo boy! I'm getting all barrels here. This is both intensely heady and intensely heavy and some other stuff in between.
(Heady) Nervous energy and sighing.
(Heady) Pink cheeks and tingly scalp.
(Heady) Eye lag.
(Heady) Lower barrier to social interaction / gregariousness.
(Heady) Feeling loose and off-balance when getting up and moving around.
(Heavy) Sensation of moving underwater.
(Heavy) Deep relaxation in my muscles.
(Heavy) General sense of peace and well-being.
(Heavy) Joints feeling disconnected and loose.
(Heavy) Greater sense of presence and being connected to the ground/earth.
As I write this, I'm fighting off the urge to post an embarassingly mushy love letter in the GHK Forum on this site. I know that's part deep appreciation for Chris Allen and his lifetime of work, and part kava-inspired verbal and social promiscuity on my part.
Overall Impressions and Thoughts
This is not the weak floor sweepings and processing detritus of kava production. It's a meritage.
Like BKH Nambawan with flexing pecs. Like a Boroguru with buns of steel. Both. Together, and their friend Larry.
Would this be my go-to kava for weeknights? Probably not. It's wide enough spectrum that I might save it for the weekends. For weeknight sessions I will probably stick with Hiwa and Hanakapi'ai for now.
This absolutely exceeded my already high expectations. Get this stuff while it's available.
Screen too bright. Must go do something analog for a while. (That's the Heavy side talking.)
Second Day Effects
This morning I'm up 10 minutes after my alarm. Still feel nice. Not feeling too palsied as I sometimes do the next day after a strong kava session. I still feel calm and peaceful. Not too tired, even though I just rolled out of bed. Great second day effects for me. Not at all the ass-dragging second day I've felt with some kava.
You know, the floor sweepings, oddments, hodge podge from processing combined into a blend and sold less expensively than single-cultivar/known-cultivar kava. Waste not want not, and a good deal to boot. But on the flipside, who knows what's in there? Where it came from? How it was grown?
This is not that.
I'm willing to bet Chris throws away kava that's better than a lot of overseas sources, anyways. This is a bunch of really good kava all mixed together into a whole that is undoubtedly much greater than the sum of its parts. I haven't been so whalloped by kava in a long time.
Preparation and Taste
It's the usual medium grind. Light colored. I prepared it 3 heaping Tbs of powder to 3 cups of hot tap water. In the usual 25 micron nylon monofilament mesh bag with about 5-10 minutes of squeezing. I lost track of time while putting the hurt on it. I could see clouds of kava oils and fine powder billowing out from the bag when I sqeezed it hard. Fresh and potent. Waxy sack means fresh. Thick opaque water means lots of oils getting displaced. The color is a very light tan. Almost like that coral-scrubbed Fijian white sands sort of light tan.
The flavor is not unlike any other of the GHK's: uniquely Hawaiian. It's the terroir, the cultivars, or something. It's milder than Vanuatu and Tongan even, and more like a Fijian lawena. Plus it has that "latex glove" overtone that I've only found in Hawaiian. Not a bad thing, just unique. Lacks the bitterness of Vanuatu laterals. I dunno what the soil's like on the islands of Vanuatu, but I picture sludgy dark silt-rich soil that stinks of organic matter.
This batch is strong. The 3 Tbsp were especially heaping and the water especially hot from the tap. I warmed the squeezing vessel as well to prolong, what I believe to be the softening of kavalactone rich waxes in the wood fibers of the root. Always experimenting. I also drank this on a very empty stomach (no lunch today) and consequently the effects (good and bad) are definitely amped up.
Onset..
I was surprised to see my outlook starting to soften at less than 30 minutes into my session. Onset was very fast for me. A few minutes after my second shell. After five small (4oz) shells, and an hour of clock time, the kava was fully present. The mood shift was remarkable.
I got some nervous energy from this. That suggests a lot of Yangonin (3 in the chemotype) in this blend. It was strongest at one hour after my last shell, and wasn't entirely pleasant. I'm someone who tends to love heady kava and I was surprised by this. I attribute it to my very strong batch and my very empty stomach. The other effects have have come later are also out in full force so it's not a yangonin thing.
I got some nausea from this. I always get a little nauseated when drinking kava. It's just the way my enteric nervous system deals with numbness, I think. I use the nausea to gauge my pacing of shells. I always know when I'm ready for another shell. It subsided about 30 minutes after it set in. Not horrible, but uncomfortable.
...and Effects
Hoo boy! I'm getting all barrels here. This is both intensely heady and intensely heavy and some other stuff in between.
(Heady) Nervous energy and sighing.
(Heady) Pink cheeks and tingly scalp.
(Heady) Eye lag.
(Heady) Lower barrier to social interaction / gregariousness.
(Heady) Feeling loose and off-balance when getting up and moving around.
(Heavy) Sensation of moving underwater.
(Heavy) Deep relaxation in my muscles.
(Heavy) General sense of peace and well-being.
(Heavy) Joints feeling disconnected and loose.
(Heavy) Greater sense of presence and being connected to the ground/earth.
As I write this, I'm fighting off the urge to post an embarassingly mushy love letter in the GHK Forum on this site. I know that's part deep appreciation for Chris Allen and his lifetime of work, and part kava-inspired verbal and social promiscuity on my part.
Overall Impressions and Thoughts
This is not the weak floor sweepings and processing detritus of kava production. It's a meritage.
Like BKH Nambawan with flexing pecs. Like a Boroguru with buns of steel. Both. Together, and their friend Larry.
Would this be my go-to kava for weeknights? Probably not. It's wide enough spectrum that I might save it for the weekends. For weeknight sessions I will probably stick with Hiwa and Hanakapi'ai for now.
This absolutely exceeded my already high expectations. Get this stuff while it's available.
Screen too bright. Must go do something analog for a while. (That's the Heavy side talking.)
Second Day Effects
This morning I'm up 10 minutes after my alarm. Still feel nice. Not feeling too palsied as I sometimes do the next day after a strong kava session. I still feel calm and peaceful. Not too tired, even though I just rolled out of bed. Great second day effects for me. Not at all the ass-dragging second day I've felt with some kava.
