Kopi Luwak - Coffee From the Civet

Asian Palm Civet

     Kopi luwak translates roughly from Indonesian into civet coffee, and is used as an umbrella term to distinguish any type of coffee bean gathered from the droppings of a civet, weather that bean be aribica, robusta, liberica, or excelsa. This wide spectrum of beans, while all being kopi luwak, will have a wide array of tastes that are associated with them. Nevertheless, kopi luwak coffees have a few common characteristics, most notably their aromas, their flavor, and their overall lack of bitterness.

      This rare coffee is made from the beans of coffee berries that have been eaten and digested by the Asian Palm Civet. Once the berries are fully digested, the civet leaves behind enzyme enhanced, delicious, coffee beans. The coffee farmers then go along behind the civets and gather their droppings, which, after washing, and light roasting, brew some of the most delicious cups of coffee on earth. While the coffee was traditionally harvested spontaneously in the wild, most kopi luwak comes from farms where the civets are fed ripe coffee berries, and kept in pens.

       Kopi luwak is the most expensive coffee in the world, and often sells for well in excess of $100 per pound. Despite the high premium this coffee commands, it continues to remain in surprisingly high demand, and can be found in many high end coffee shops the world over.