In a world of ever-evolving industrialization, there are a select few commodities that require a human touch to be transformed into the product we are familiar with. While coffee, tea, and cacao are mass planted, vanilla, saffron, and of course, kava are impossible to industrialize.
What Is Kava and Why Do People Drink It?
Kava is a plant-based root drink that promotes feelings of relaxation and zen. Kava contains kavalactones that reduce stress signals in your nervous system and relax your muscles. There is no alcohol in kava drinks, which means that you can feel loose and social while maintaining a clear mind and avoiding the hangover the next day.
Kava roots are tied to the climate in the South Pacific and there are few farmers who fully understand the fragile and time-consuming process that goes into planting and caring for kava. Kava cannot be grown anywhere else in the world because it needs very specific conditions to thrive. Temperature, soil, humidity, and shade all must be exact. Because of this, kava must be shipped internationally to reach the rest of the world, including our own kava nectar bar right here in Santa Monica, California. (📍306 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90405)
Processing kava into the premium product that we sell is a labor-intensive process. First, farmers will dig up the roots by hand, then they are cleaned and peeled. Stems from the root need to be removed along with any other fibrous parts. With traditional kava powder, the roots need to be washed, dried, milled, ground, and stored. As you can imagine, all of this is a pretty lengthy and pricey process.
Why Kava Can’t Be Mass-Produced Like Coffee or Tea?
Kava Nectar is a product unique to us which takes the process one step further. The nectar of the kava root is cold-pressed and dried into a fine powder. This powder is consistent in its natural quality and contains no root fibers. There’s no straining required, just relaxing.
Chamomile tea has a seed to cup life cycle of 2 to 4 months. Matcha leaves regrow every 4 to 6 weeks and mint tea is around the same. While coffee takes 3 to 5 years to grow from the ground to your mug, premium kava can take 5 to 10 years before farmers can harvest the root. The price difference between coffee and kava stems from the fact that coffee is mass-produced and kava is not.
When you put those extra shots of espresso in your latte for $4 each, you probably don’t think about the jitters you’re paying more to feel, you just want to get through the day. When you pay for an extra shot of kava, you are paying for the health benefits kava has to offer like reducing anxiety and helping with sleep. Kava is also not habit-forming, you can drink it because you want to, not because of necessity.
What You’re Really Paying For When You Buy Kava
Kava is not a fad or trend, it’s a centuries-old product in high demand without the capacity to be scaled. There is lower quality kava that is out there, harvested early with a rushed labor process, but that is not us. Our kava is of the highest quality that exists in the world and comes to us from family farms in the South Pacific.
People drink kava to foster a healthier relationship with stress, often citing positive effects like increased sociability and mood lifts even after just one drink. When you drink kava consistently, you might find improved sleep quality due to a decrease in situational and stress-related anxiety. When you pay for kava, you are paying real farmers, keeping alive real tradition, and drinking something made by people who really care.
