Arabica Coffee Luwak

Also known as Indonesia Palm Civet Coffee, Animal Coffee, or Cat Coffee.

Kopi Luwak coffee comes from the Indonesian island of Sumatra, an area well known for its excellent coffee. Also native to this area is a small civit-like animal called Paradoxurus, the locals call them luwaks. These little mammals live in the trees and one of their favorite foods is the red ripe coffee cherry. These animals eat the cherries, bean and all. While the bean is in the little guy's stomach, it undergoes chemical treatments and fermentations. The bean finishes its journey through their digestive system, and exits. The still-intact beans are collected from the forest floor, cleaned, then roasted and ground just like any other coffee.

The result is this Kopi Luwak coffee that is said to be like no other. It has a rich, heavy flavor with hints of caramel & chocolate. Other terms used to describe it are earthy, musty, and exotic. The Kopi Luwak body is almost syrupy and it is very smooth. More about the secret behind Kopi Luwaks Superior Taste, please click here.


One must wonder about the circumstances that brought about the first cup of Kopi Luwak coffee. Who would think to (or even want to) collect and roast beans out of animal feces? Perhaps a native figured it was easier to collect the coffee beans from the ground this way, rather than having to work harder and pick them from the trees? We'll likely never know. But because of the strange method of collecting, there isn't much Kopi Luwak produced in the world. The average total annual production of Kopi Luwak coffee is only around 500 pounds of beans.

bucket list luwak coffee beans

Kopi Luwak is expensive coffee at $75 for 100 grams, is not something that people would spent on coffee. And at less than 250 kg of production annually, even with money you might not be able to get these expensive coffee beans.
Kopi is Malay for coffee and Luwak is the name for the Asian palm civet cat in Sumatra where the coffee comes from around the island of Java and Sulawesi.

And for those that are not in the know, the coffee actually comes from the dropping of this small marsupial (paradoxurus), that is the reason it is also known as civet cat coffee.

Yes, Asians are pretty amazing folks with Chinese paying thousands for bird's vomit call "bird nest" and now hundreds to buy coffee cat digested coffee.

These coffee bean cat climb the tress and eat only the ripest, reddest coffee cherries and when they excrete, it would be your kopi luwak. Somehow, the enzymes in the cat add some additional flavor to the coffee through fermentation.

Kopi Luwak - Good to the last dropping

Whenever you think coffee connoisseurs have come up with the strangest idea, just wait for this one. It will leave you holding your breath! What kind of coffee could possibly sell for prices ranging from $100 to $300 per pound? I present to you Kopi Luwak. An extremely rare coffee due to the fact that the beans are first processed through the intestinal track of a palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus). Once thought of as only an urban legend, I now present you with the honest truth. This raccoon like animal has a sickly-sweet odor reminiscent of a striped skunk and loves the cherry like fruit that covers the coffee bean. Yes, ingested and deposited shortly thereafter, the beans are ripe for the picking. Once thought as a pest to the crop, these critters are now welcomed friends. Coffee pickers comb the civet's droppings for the berries and remove the husk. These yummy, choice beans are thoroughly washed, in other words, decrappinated, then roasted and ready for the brew. Oh boy, an aromatic brew it would be.

As for the taste, some laud Kopi Luwak coffee for its incredible aroma due to the civet only eating the ripest berries. They can’t pass it up; describing it by saying, The aroma is rich and strong, and the coffee is incredibly full bodied, almost syrupy. It's thick with a hint of chocolate, and lingers on the tongue with a long, clean aftertaste. Although, others are of the opinion that it is gamey and tastes like crap. They used to believe that the civet’s digestion did not get through the husk; however, now they know that is not the case. A study by a Canadian University, U of Guelph, Ontario – and I am glad our tax dollars did not pay for this – reported that the civet's stomach acids and enzymes digest the beans' cherry-like covering and ferment the beans themselves, before they're excreted. The Kopi Luwak coffee beans were found to be lower in total protein, meaning that proteins were partially broken down and leached out during their travel. Could this make a real difference in taste? Yes. However, I am not going to verify any of this for myself, thank you. No matter how special it is, it remains to me as crap in a cup. There are all types of excellent, exotic coffees that haven’t been recycled through a small, furry animal. Feel free to enjoy this one for yourself. Hey, maybe buy some for your mother-in-law for her birthday!

Next time you are enjoying your brew, just think, you could be having a Crappaccino instead!

This is Stefanie reminding you to enjoy life, one cup at a time.