Powdered Kava Review Starwest Botanicals - Fiji Kava Powder

[sɥɐʞɐs]

This is less of a review and more of a warning, this product is very weak. I bought this twice out of curiousity and convenience because they sell it at an herb store that's right across the street from me. The price wouldn't be too bad if it were more effective kava. About $8.00 for 1/4 lbs. bag. The first thing I notice is that the kava is very dark and smells like cinnamon. The bag has no recommended serving or prep. listed on it. The powder was was very finely ground, so I was wondering if I was even meant to strain it or not.
Upon prepping it my normal way, the cinnamon scent is even stronger. More like spicy cinnamon candy. The resulting brew also tastes like the scent and is the darkest brown kava beverage I've ever had.
The effects where about as mild as you could get on all fronts. I was happy that it was at least mildly effective...but 10 TBSP of this felt more like 2 or 3 TBSP of my usual Waka. Perhaps if I used the entire 1/4 pound for only 1 or 2 sessions, I could have really got something from it. My sleep, as with almost every kava I've ever had, still benefited from it.
So, not that I'd ever expect any of you to buy this, I will still suggest not to. Even if you just happen to run across it somewhere and you're curious. If you were in need of kava to treat an anxiety emergency, you might still attain some mild relief from it. But honestly, 2 shots of whisky would straighten you out better than a bag of this would.
I emailed the company asking if the product is intended to be strained the traditional way or just mixed straight into a beverage. Their answer was that I could 'sprinkle it on a smoothie'. I also asked if they knew what cultivar was used, being that there are many different kava plants....the response was 'we use the cultivar Piper Methysticum'. ...and I think that about sums this experience up.

 

[HeadHodge]

Thanks for the review. I actually like it when someone gives a less than 5 shell review. It lends some credibility, to the reviews overall (IMO).

 

[sɥɐʞɐs]

2 Shells may have still been generous but I figured, 1 for not being completely ineffective and 2 for still being beneficial to my sleep.

 

[sɥɐʞɐs]

Update: Shamefully, out of convenience and necessity, I purchased this stuff a couple times again...recently.
I have to give it some credit for getting me through a rough couple days following a visit with my friends a couple weeks ago. The stuff is weak, no doubt, but if I burn through the whole 1/4 lbs in 2 days I can actually get a fairly decent kava experience from it. One night even bordered on the beginnings of a good krunkin'. (with a higher than normal dosing)
Now that I've felt it at this level I can make an educated guess as to the chemotype. I'd say it dominant in kavain & dihydrokavain, but with a low overall kavalactone content. It definitely eases my mood and anxiety but stays mostly in my head and my perception of relaxation. It doesn't actually relax my body in a way that I can feel in my body, the way a DHM kava would. DHK seems too add sedation without affecting your whole body. At the higher range, it gets my head & neck loose and stops there. Floaty, happy, relaxed head...body, starkly unaffected.

I always debate whether I should change this review to a 1 shell rating, since 2 shells is very close to 3 shells. And there a lot of good kavas that I consider to be 3's. I'm still not sure if I should change it, but after these recent experiences, there's still a part of me that thinks it deserves the "2". It's just very weak and the increased dosage needed is not cost effective. But I was a pinch and this was all I could get my hands on immediately.

Also, I did a quick acetone test on it, without any reference kavas. It came out yellow, which isn't surprising for how weak it is. Definitely didn't lean toward the amber side of the spectrum. Without reference tests, I can't really tell if there's a small amount of tudei mixed with it. But I doubt it, with it's lack of body effects and lack of potency.

 

[HeadHodge]

Update: Shamefully, out of convenience and necessity, I purchased this stuff a couple times again...recently.
I have to give it some credit for getting me through a rough couple days following a visit with my friends a couple weeks ago. The stuff is weak, no doubt, but if I burn through the whole 1/4 lbs in 2 days I can actually get a fairly decent kava experience from it. One night even bordered on the beginnings of a good krunkin'. (with a higher than normal dosing)
Now that I've felt it at this level I can make an educated guess as to the chemotype. I'd say it dominant in kavain & dihydrokavain, but with a low overall kavalactone content. It definitely eases my mood and anxiety but stays mostly in my head and my perception of relaxation. It doesn't actually relax my body in a way that I can feel in my body, the way a DHM kava would. DHK seems too add sedation without affecting your whole body. At the higher range, it gets my head & neck loose and stops there. Floaty, happy, relaxed head...body, starkly unaffected.

I always debate whether I should change this review to a 1 shell rating, since 2 shells is very close to 3 shells. And there a lot of good kavas that I consider to be 3's. I'm still not sure if I should change it, but after these recent experiences, there's still a part of me that thinks it deserves the "2". It's just very weak and the increased dosage needed is not cost effective. But I was a pinch and this was all I could get my hands on immediately.

Also, I did a quick acetone test on it, without any reference kavas. It came out yellow, which isn't surprising for how weak it is. Definitely didn't lean toward the amber side of the spectrum. Without reference tests, I can't really tell if there's a small amount of tudei mixed with it. But I doubt it, with it's lack of body effects and lack of potency.

Thanks for the update Kava Snob!!! If you don't want to change the rating, I've added (since you did this review) a new field for potency. So if you edit your thread (this review), you could rate this very low (just a thought).

 

[sɥɐʞɐs]

more importantly, you reminded me that I forgot to insert my snob picture. *fixed* -----------------------------------^