best way to prepare kava kava

whats the best dose for kava i weight about 185 and whats the best way to prepare it

 

Well, I like to take some tea (I usually use Hazelnut), open up the tea bag and put a little bit of the Kava Kava in. Just put a little scoop or so, start with that and find a good dosage. Then just put it in a thing of hot water and let the tea bag sit it in for at least ten minutes. But take note that Kava Kava has recently been found to cause health problems with habitual usage. So try not to do it like every day or anything.

 

http://www.erowid.org/plants/kava/kava.shtml

 

Alright folks, I'm here to set things straight. I've been growing Kava for almost a decade in Hawaii. I own the Kava Kafe up in Hawi, Big Island.

http://www.kavakafe.com/

and I gotta tell you some of the stuff you guys are saying is a little off.

Kava Kava ('awa in Hawaii) has been used for 3000 years by people all over the Pacific without any problem. You know why? Because they use it a certain way. To take Kava get powdered or fresh root mix in water and strain. The kava to water ration we use at the kava bar is 1 cup or powder to 1 gallon of water. This allows for a social carefree atmosphere. The resulting brew is drank quickly in 8 to 16 oz containers (coconut shells). After the first shell of kava wait 15 minutes before the next. For a human weighing in at 185 lbs. 4 to 5, 8 oz. cups of kava will give you the desired effects. 6 to 9 for an amazing almost drunk time and more than that and you'll just act the fool and probably get nauseating.

When paintballer687 says
"But take note that Kava Kava has recently been found to cause health problems with habitual usage. So try not to do it like every day or anything."

That is not completely true. At large doses a gallon a day per person for months on end, kava can cause a scaliness to occur on the skin. The way to get rid of it is stop drinking kava for a couple of weeks. No harm done. Hawaiians use to do this on purpose to get rid of certain skin diseases and create a fresh new skin.

I would love to answer more questions and share what I know. Hit me up here or at KavaKafe@GMail.com.

Aloha.

 

^^Yeah, I think the liver thing was a bunch of BS personally.

My mom takes kava in small doses every day to help with relaxation. She read into this thoroughly.
What apparantly happened was this: some woman died of liver failure (probably an alcoholic), and she coincidentally also took kava supplements from the store. Just for the hell of it, somebody blamed the kava supplements, and apparantly went after a settlement or something (which I don't know anything about).

After this, some German study came out and said that a bunch of people had liver disease who took (it didn't say 'caused by') Kava. The news started linking the two together; after a google search, the german report had only 24 people in it - not to mention the fact that liver disease is caused by a wide range of things, including drinking, certain drugs (like excessive acetominophen aka tylenol), diseases, infections, hereditary things, etc etc... No mention was made to what else these people took either, just that they happened to take kava. After that, it was all on the bandwagon. Kind of like salvia and that kid's suicide... All the news was saying "salvia causes depression and suicide", lol give me a break. There's something with us westerners and plant-based medicines, it's like everything must be a synthetic in a pill for it to be accepted...

Rant aside, there could be some problems with misuse; I don't know about those really. I believe, quite strongly, that kava does not cause any liver disease when it is taken reasonably and by itself. I could be wrong, but I'd be willing to bet my own health on it if I took kava more often.

 

What I do is powder about an ounce of root (go for the Vanuatu, which kicks) in a coffee grinder, then pour the powder in a blender with a can of coconut milk and about a cup of water. Blend for about five minutes then filter through a cheesecloth. The resultant drink should get three or four people considerably fucked up. As far as health problems, I haven't noticed anything, but I don't use kava too often as the taste is less than desirable.

 

So when you mix kava with a fat (ie: coconut milk) more chemicals are released and thus the resulting beverage is stronger. Some people mix soy lecithin in because:
A. It doesn't really have a taste
B. It increases the kavalactone content

I like mine straight or with coconut water fresh from the coconut.

Check out the recipes we have under the menu at

http://www.kavakafe.com/

 

I grow my own kava, actually in Hawaiian it's called awa (w pronounced like v) and chew the roots.

Aloha fellow Hawaiian!

 

Chewing kava definitely produces some of the strongest effects.

 

Mouth feels like it's coked out.

 

aloha hawaiiankine

which island you live?

 

Oahu. You look like you're on the big island. :cheers2:

 

I started drinking Kava last month as an alcohol substitute with positive results.
After a few preparations I have come up with a good one. You need one heaping big as you can get tablespoon of kava root which is really anywhere from 3-5 tbsps per 8oz. Your best bet is to is to fill your blender with 4 cups (32oz). If you want to really feel it do 3 heaping tbsps per 2 cups. At this point you blend in the blender for 4 min. I still need to test experimenting with using soy lechtin and letting the batch soak in the fridge for 30min before filtering. Anyways blend for 4min in the blender. To maximize potency try letting the solution sit in the fridge for 30min then reblend for 4min. The next step is to pour the solution through a 6" x 10" muslin bag over a large bowl. The trick is to spin the top so nothing flow out the opening then gently massage the bag squeezing from the bottom up. once you get the bulk liquid out you can really press the rest of the moisture from the remaining root powder. Pour the filtered solution back into your blender and add pineapple juice and regular coconut milk found in the asian section of your local grocery. Blend for a few seconds to mix it up and pour in small glasses on ice. Whenever you need to refill simply blend the blender to remix before serving the next round. This recipe will serve 6-8 small glasses on ice. 2-3 blenders will serve 2 for a whole evening session.

For a tobacco alternative to match the Kava is a simple 1:1 Damania/passionflower herbal blend. Very smooth a slow burning. Produces a very strong relaxing feeling. NOTE: Does not curve the nicotine fit though. Mixing with tobacco might help.

 

I love the mixed kava drinks. At my kava bar we have two main mixed drinks.

http://www.kavakafe.com/menu.html

The hunnybear is the most popular. But on all you can drink night on fridays and during parties, the mayachocawa is what people get the most of because it is a such a good deal.

The regulars to the kava bar (daily customers) usually just get their kava straight up.

I would recommend trying a mixed drink at least one. Pineapple is good, and coconut milk is a must. I've had it with apple juice before. It was okay, but nothing too special. I prefer my kava straight up, but to each their own.