Coffee Kopi Luwak Production
Kopi Luwak coffee is a special type of coffee. The production process is unlike any other type of coffee.
Specifically, coffee berries need to interact with the enzymes of the Luwak cat. During this process, coffee beans reach their desired flavors and aroma. To be more rpecise, coffee obtains sweet chocolate flavors, and no added sugar is typically needed.
In order for the Luwak cats enzymes to interact with the berries, Luwak cats eat the berries. After they excrete the berries, coffee producers collect and wash, while seeds are removed and dried.
A Little Bit Of History
The story of ‘cat poop coffee’ begins in 19-century colonial Indonesia. Forbidden by the Dutch to harvest their own coffee, local farm workers discovered a native animal was leaving partially digested beans on the floor of surrounding coffee plantations and forests. After these coffee beans had been cleaned, processed and roasted, the locals made an exciting discovery. They realised that the beans which had been excreted by these small creatures, were superior in taste when compared to regular coffee.
Originally this type of coffee was produced in Indonesia . However, to meet growing international demand, on todays market youll also find roasts originating from Vietnam, The Philippines, Thailand and Ethiopia.
How Much Does Kopi Luwak Aka Poop Coffee Cost
Kopi luwak is one of the most expensive coffees in the world with a retail price as high as $700 per kilo/$300+ per pound. However, farmed Kopi luwak coffee can be purchased in Indonesia at large grocery stores for about $100 kilo.
Genuine kopi luwak from actual wild civets is insanely hard to purchase and hard to prove if the poop coffee is real or fake. There are kopi luwak roasters in Bali that sell the coffee by the cup so you can sample it, and decide for yourself if you like animal poop coffee. A cup sells for over $5 a cup in Indonesia.
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Introduction Pack: Kopi Luwak Gold + Black Labels
The GOLD LABELOrange winey with a hint of roasted truffles, bright acidity, strong body with a soft sweet lychee finishREGION:BENGKULU | SOUTHWEST SUMATRA | INDONESIA
The BLACK LABELWonderful exotic spice and deep ripe berry with a mild roasted chestnut aromas, full body and haute acidity followed by a black fruity pastilles aftertasteREGION:GAYO | NORTHERN SUMATRA | INDONESIA
The wild berries are meticulously selected to produce these unique and naturally flavored coffee beans. The beans undergo stringent quality control prior to being processed in our roaster.Ingredients: 100% Authentic Wild Roasted Arabica Kopi Luwak beans Packaging: 1 x 100g Black Label pouch & 1 x 100g Gold Label pouch
Why The Coffee Bean Shop
All our single origin coffees are freshly roasted by us at our traditional family-run coffee roastery in rural Kent. Following your order, you will receive a bag of coffee that is very much a premium product, where the aromas and flavours will be exceptionally delicious, and remarkably better than what you may be used to from the supermarket.
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Does The Craziness Stop Here
The hype about Kopi Luwak went beyond any reasonable limit. Even Jack Nicholson appeared in a hilarious promotion video, published in 2010. Sure, kopi luwak has a novelty factor working for it along with a hint of disgust at the production process. But is it really worth the money? Thats entirely your own decision. If you have money to burn, go ahead. But keep in mind that there are animals suffering for your pleasure.
The craziness does not stop here, more creative minds are jumping on the poop bandwagon. Coffee extracted from the poop of monkeys and elephants is already available. What would you think of a human version? If you enjoyed this article, share it with your friends on your favorite social network and feel free to leave your comments below. We would love to hear your opinion.
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What Is Kopi Luwak
If youre well-versed in the worlds strangest and most specialized coffees, youve probably already heard of Kopi Luwak, sometimes called civet coffee. Some people believe that this specialty coffee is the best in the world, but theres one big reason you may want to give it a pass and its not the impressive price. Keep reading to learn what Kopi Luwak coffee is and why you probably shouldnt drink it.
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How We Make Our Coffee
Members of the Blaan tribe leave their houses early each morning, to search the forest and collect the droppings of the wild civets.
They dry the beans and then remove the outer layer, so that only the clean coffee beans remain.
After cleaning and the drying, the coffee is sorted by hand. Only the very finest coffee beans are chosen.
Then the product is roasted and prepared for shipping.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. You can reach us by email at or call us on +1 503 616 3155
At kopiluwakdirect.com we really value our customers. Our mission is to make the best possible coffee available for everybody and to surpass expectations by delivering the freshest, highest-quality product possible.
Where Can You Buy It
Kopi Luwak is available to purchase all over South East Asia, and no doubt many who travel there will have tried it. Famous for its quirky production story and the image of farmers quietly following the trail of cat poop through coffee plantations in order to produce the famous coffee, its hard not to be taken in and want to try it for yourself, so you can say youve tried the most expensive coffee in the world and its made out of feces maybe even take a bag home.
Asian Palm Civet. Photo credit: catpoopcoffeeinc.com
Being somewhat of a novelty, Kopi Luwak has increased in demand. Now available to buy online and in commercial coffee shops, it has almost certainly become a popular coffee in its own right, partly due to its unique flavor, most likely due to its unique production. Twenty years ago, Kopi Luwak was only known to those who had been to the much less traveled Indonesia, and to those who were perhaps coffee connoisseurs.
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What Are The Health Benefits Of Kopi Luwak
Though we have a full post on the health benefits of kopi luwak, its worth noting the three primary benefits that get overlooked in most discussions of the coffee. These come from a 2013 study involving researchers from Osaka University and the Indonesian Coffee and Cocoa Research Institute. The researchers took samples of 21 different coffee beans, and what they discovered was quite exceptional: the health benefits of kopi luwak far exceed those of any other type of coffee.
Kopi Luwak Benefit : Citric Acid
Just like malic acid, citric acid also plays a major role in the Krebs cycle, which means boosted levels of citric acid give you more energy. When citric acid is metabolized by the body, it actually increases the bodys pH levels, making it more alkaline. Thats exactly why many people on an alkaline dietadamantly supported by people like Tony Robbinsadd lemon to their water in the mornings contrary to what you may think, adding citric acid to your diet makes your body more alkaline, and thus stronger and more capable overall. Kopi luwak has much more citric acid than other types of coffee.
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The History Of Kopi Luwak
The islands of Sumatra and Java are where this coffee first appeared at the beginning of the 18th century when Indonesia was under Dutch colonial rule.
The Dutch did not allow the native, Indonesian plantation workers to collect the coffee cherries for their own use.
It wasnt long before they realised that the wild civets droppings contained undigested coffee beans. Not being allowed to drink the coffee that they were working so hard to produce, the natives decided to collect the coffee beans from the droppings.
After cleaning, drying and roasting, they managed to brew their own coffee. They were amazed when they discovered that this drink was better than anything they had tasted before.
This new and original coffee beverage could not be kept a secret. When the Dutch plantation owners heard about it and tried it for themselves, they too preferred it to traditionally processed coffee.
It quickly became a sought after product, which caused the price to rise dramatically. Its popularity grew and grew, and the coffee began being exported to Europe. The European demand for this novelty product further increased its price. But what was so special about it?
The reason that the coffee that had passed through the Asian palm civet was more delicious than the coffee that they were used to was down to poor production methods commonly found in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Where Can You Buy Kopi Luwak Coffee
Getting Kopi Luwak is not so easy. Products are often out of stock. However, here are three of the best Kopi Luwak coffees.
Keep in mind that there is no official certification yet for any civet coffee that can 100% guarantee you that the civets are living in the wild and without any forced treatment.
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Buy Kopi Luwak Coffee
Kopi Luwak, Civet Coffee, Coffee Alamid and Weasel coffee are different names for the same product. The name varies with the origin of the coffee. We call our coffee Kopi Luwak, since this is its most popular name.
All our Kopi Luwak Coffee is produced in the highlands of the Philippines.
We work in partnership with the Blaan hill tribe to produce our unique premium coffee. As an ethical company we recognise that the collection and processing of the coffee beans involves a great deal of hard work and effort, and accordingly we pay wages far in excess of fair trade standards.
The lush forest habit surrounding the Blaan tribes home houses a large natural population of Asian Palm Civets. There are believed to be in excess of 2800 wild civets living free in this area and we do not interfere with their lifestyle in any way. All our coffee is produced by these wild civets in their natural environment.
Since they are free ranging, the wild civets eat whatever they want. They choose to eat the ripest and juiciest best coffee berries, because they are sweet and taste delicious. They supplement their diet with the rich forest vegetation, bringing additional depth to the flavour of our coffee. The enzymes involved in the digestion of the coffee fruit remove all traces of bitterness, creating the smoothness for which our coffee is so highly prized.
How Much Does Kopi Luwak Cost
If you love coffee or just really need to try this cat poop coffee first hand, it may leave a pretty large dent in your wallet. Kopi Luwak is the most expensive coffee in the world and can sell for some very ridiculous prices. For a pound of kopi luwak, it would cost somewhere between $150-$600. This typically comes from civets that have been captured and farmed. Now if you just want to buy the specialty version that comes from wild civets, it will cost somewhere around $1,400 a pound.
You can buy cups of kopi luwak from specialty coffee shops for around $40-$75 a cup.
If you love coffee and have the money to splurge on a bag of Kopi Luwak, below you will discover a list of all the places where to buy cat poop coffee.
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What Is So Special About Kopi Luwak Coffee
The reason why kopi luwak is so good is because the luwak only goes after the best and ripest coffee fruit, Balik said. The other reason is because, in the luwak stomach, fermentation happens, and the coffee beans get a different flavor. After roasting, the beans are ground for 20 minutes with a mortar and pestle.
Kopi Luwak Style Coffee Without Animal Involvement
A group of researchers from the University of Florida has found a way to imitate the civets digestive process to create a kopi luwak style coffee without torturing animals, and they have been issued with a patent for it.
The patented fermentation technology developed by Afineur, a start-up based in Brooklyn, is said to improve the taste and nutritional value of coffee beans, imitating the taste of kopi luwak.
Moving closer to how kopi luwak was produced originally, there have been efforts made by various Vietnamese companies to make kopi luwak style coffee without the actual involvement of civets.
They produce their coffee with the use of an enzyme soak that, as they claim, has exactly the same effect on the coffee beans as the digestive process of civets.
The reasons for this initiative of creating kopi luwak without animal involvement are straightforward. On the one hand, it stops cruelty towards civets while still providing all the fans of this type of coffee with their favourite beverage.
On the other hand, it also increases the production of an imitation kopi luwak as this new process does not require as much time or effort, which in turn lowers the price.
This leads to a kopi luwak style coffee becoming more affordable and more attractive for those who didnt want to buy it because of how unethical it is.
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How Is Kopi Luwak Coffee Made
The reason civet coffee is so notorious is due to the way its beans are produced and the role of the cherry-eating civet in this process.
With regular coffee, cherries are hand or machine picked then processed, with producers using either natural, washed or hybrid methods to separate coffee beans from their flesh. Beans are then dried, rested and roasted.
Kopi coffee follows a very different journey, beginning with the Asian palm civet. These small nocturnal animals are mainly frugivores, with a diet consisting mostly of fruit, including coffee cherries. The animals eat the berries, which are then digested, fermented and excreted. The inner red coffee beans cannot be digested, so local farmers forage for these and once collected, thoroughly clean them before roasting at high temperatures.
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How Our Kopi Luwak Is Processed
In the early morning hours, members of the local Blaan tribe search for the droppings of the Civets. Once they have collected them, they pass them on to us, and we process them at our coffee farm. First, we carefully wash the beans, and then remove the outer layer of the coffee cherries this ensures all bacteria is removed. Next, our beans are sun-dried for about three days, until they reach the perfect dryness.
Once they have dried sufficiently the Kopi Luwak beans are sorted, with any incomplete beans removed and discarded, thus ensuring only the very best beans are used in the roasting process. Our beans are roasted to a medium degree, as we have found a medium roast both guarantees the highest possible quality and nurtures the natural taste of the coffee.
Watch the Video below to see How Our Wild Kopi Luwak is Produced
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What Is Kopi Luwak Coffee Anyway
Kopi Luwak is an Indonesian coffee that has been processed by an animal called an Asian palm civet. The civet is a feline-like Luwak Animal that wanders the woodlands of Bali around evening time, eating ready coffee cherries and discharging the coffee beans. The beans are then accumulated, cleaned, and broiled. The outcome? Kopi Lueak, likewise called civet feline coffee or feline poop coffee.
More recently, this specialty coffee started showing up on the gourmet coffee scene in America in the 1990s. This was thanks to Anthony Wild, author of the famous coffee book, Coffee: A Dark History. These specialty beans soon appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and in the Jack Nicholson movie, The Bucket List.
Four Brewing Tips For Luwak Coffee
![The Curious Case of Kopi Luwak [with PHOTOS]](https://www.ahcoffee.net/wp-content/uploads/the-curious-case-of-kopi-luwak-with-photos-indoneo.jpeg "The Curious Case of Kopi Luwak [with PHOTOS]")
Indonesian Kopi Luwak, such as our Sumatra roast, creates a robust and aromatic coffee with delicate flavours and a smooth aftertaste. This makes it an excellent choice for a range of brewing methods, for example, as a coffee for filter machine, coffee for cafetiere, or coffee for espresso maker.
Whatever your brewing method of choice, here are four tips for making the best cup of civet coffee.
Choose a quality bean from a reputable seller
Always order your coffee beans from a trusted supplier. Due to the high prices in this category, sadly there are a lot of cheap coffee beans fraudulently being passed off as authentic ones. Its also essential to do your research and always buy naturally sourced civet coffee. At all costs, stay away from companies that have any involvement with captive farm-breeding. If your beans are cheap, we can guarantee they haven’t been produced using civet-friendly measures. You’ll also find the taste of these cheap brands to be considerably poorer, as, in captivity, the civet cat is unable to search for the best coffee cherries.
Get your ratios right
Measuring the exact amount of recommended coffee grounds and water is one of the easiest ways to ensure a consistent, high-quality brew. We recommend placing your coffee making device on some scales so you can measure precisely how much boiling water youre adding to your grounds.
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Is Kopi Luwak Safe To Drink
Even though the coffee beans come in close contact with pathogenic organisms associated with faeces, they do not contain significant amounts of these organisms and is therefore safe to drink.
Most of the bacteria are on the endocarp that surrounds the bean, and the endocarp is removed when the farmer washes the beans.
In addition, when the beans are roasted, all the remaining bacteria are eliminated completely. Therefore, drinking kopi luwak is just as safe as drinking any other type of coffee.