Kava is a popular, chilled beverage from the Pacific Islands that’s becoming increasingly popular in the United States. Kava is made from the roots of Piper methysticum (also known as Kava Kava), a tall tropical evergreen shrub from the pepper family that grows in the Pacific islands of Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji, Hawaii and surrounding islands.
For thousands of years, Pacific Islanders have used kava in ceremonial rituals and social gatherings to bring about a state of relaxation. Today, people around the world use it even more extensively for it’s extensive health benefits from reducing anxiety, increasing mood and sociability, and alleviating headaches and muscular pain.
Where To Get Kava
Kava can be purchased online to be made at home, in extract or capsule form to swallow, or our favorite way — purchased and consumed sociability at one of the hundreds of Kava Bars around the US.
Kava Bars are what some describe as the perfect mix between a coffee shop and an alcohol bar, drawing from the best of both crowds. They typically open from noon until the late hours of the night, and draw people from all spectrums of life, from students and professionals working on their laptops, to groups of friends socializing it up — and everything in between. Kava’s most popular benefit of reducing anxiety and stress, while being 100% non-alcoholic, make it a perfect drink for many.
While every Kava Bar is different, most Kava bars serve and drink Kava in it’s traditional manner; served in a coconut shell (or shell-shaped cup) and consumed with other patrons that all shout BULA in unison before chugging the chilled Kava in one fell swoop, and a drink or fruit chaser.
