or kava kava Nonalcoholic, yellow-green, somewhat bitter beverage made from the root of the pepper plant (mainly Piper methysticum) in most South Pacific islands. It is traditionally consumed in the kava ceremony, which includes the ritual making and drinking of kava and a ceremonial feast. It is taken to relieve stress and anxiety and as a mood elevator
methysticum, the long pepper, from the root of which an intoxicating beverage is made by the Polynesians, by a process of mastication; also, the beverage itself