This month’s International Coffee Hour featured an exceptional refreshment. Kopi Luwak, the famous Indonesian coffee, was served by representatives of the Association of Indonesian Students. But what is this legendary Kopi Luwak, and what makes it such a delicacy?
The sprawling coffee plantations of islands in the Indonesian archipelago like Java, Sumatra, and Sulawesi are home to a little creature known locally as the luwak, or in English as the “Asian palm civet”. The luwak adores coffee beans, but is not capable of fully digesting the beans after consuming them. The result is one of the most valuable droppings known to mankind.
Despite the fact that drinking coffee made from a civet cat’s excrement is not everyone’s cup of tea (no pun intended), the one and a half days the coffee beans spend in the luwak’s digestive tract perform wonders for the end product’s flavor and quality. Stomach acid and enzymes spring into action, processing regular coffee beans into the world’s most expensive coffee. The bitterness of conventional coffee is replaced by a smooth yet complex flavor profile, while the aroma is greatly enhanced thanks to the luwak’s personal selection of only the ripest coffee beans. People from around the world are willing to spend exorbitant amounts of money for the best Kopi Luwak on the market.
So, if you are ever offered a cup of kopi luwak, don’t be shy! Say yes to the golden droppings, and have one of the most exclusive coffee experiences of your life!
