Matakaro Balavu kava

Matakaro Balavu is a kava cultivar from Taveuni, Fiji. Legal class: Noble.

Origin

Island: Taveuni. Country: Fiji. Coordinates: -16.85, -179.9833. Taveuni on the kava map.

Legal standing

Noble, per Fiji Ministry of Agriculture / PHAMA Plus variety survey.

Chemotype

A chemotype ranks the six kavalactones from most to least abundant. It says nothing about how much kava is in the root, only about the order. Published readings for this cultivar disagree, so all of them are shown.

Code	Kavalactones, most to least abundant	Source
463251	Kavain > Methysticin > Yangonin > Dihydrokavain > Dihydromethysticin > Desmethoxyyangonin	Agriculture 2025, 15, 478 - HPLC of 88 Fijian plants
264531	Dihydrokavain > Methysticin > Kavain > Dihydromethysticin > Yangonin > Desmethoxyyangonin	Kava Library

Chemotype genuinely shifts with plant age, which part of the root was milled, soil and shade. Some of this spread is real variation and some of it is disagreement between laboratories. Treat any single code as a claim about one batch, not a property of the variety.

How it is described

No published account of how Matakaro Balavu is said to feel.

Taste and mouthfeel

No published tasting notes.

Background

“Dark purple lenticels on green stems with long internodes”, Fiji Ministry of Agriculture / PHAMA Plus variety survey