Taking it to the Extreme – Kopi Luwak

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To what lengths would a person go in the pursuit of some of the rarest coffee in the world? Would you climb a mountain, trudge through a rain forest, or shall we say… eat roasted coffee beans that have been Biologically preprocessed by a small Indonesian mammal?

Right about now, you are thinking option one and two don’t seem so unreasonable. But if you guessed option three, you would be talking about the rare and exotic Kopi Luwak coffee.

The Kopi Luwak, also known as the Asian Palm Civet (Paradoxus hermaphroditus) will selectively choose and consume coffee cherries as part of its diet. During its magical journey, the coffee cherry flesh is removed through digestion and the coffee beans are collected for processing (If that isn’t a Dirty Job candidate, I don’t know what is!).

“Holy Crap!”

At approximately $400 per pound, it had better be divine in nature. Its high cost is due to its unique processing, and limited supply (Approximately 300 kilograms produced each year). For those interested in trying a pot or two, 2 oz. packets are available for between $25-$35.

“Damn! That Crap is Good! “

All jokes aside (its impossible NOT to make jokes), the digestive process leaches out some of the proteins from the coffee beans which are normally responsible for its bitterness. The end result being sweeter, smoother coffee.

Keeping that in mind, I was very excited to receive a sample of Robusta and Arabica Kopi Luwak coffee from Troy Davis / Animal Coffee.com

Let me try to describe the smell of Luwak coffee beans — they have an earthy sweetness to them that is unlike any other coffee I have smelled to date. You can tell right away that these beans are different from anything that you have tried before.

Neither the Arabica or Robusta Luwak coffee is bitter, those claims are quite true. The Arabica Luwak coffee had a creamy and sweet, almost etherial taste with each sip. Cream and sugar is not needed with either of these coffees.

Buying coffee like this really does need to be commemorated… What better way to do that than with a piece of unprocessed Kopi Luwak coffee! Both natural and lucite encased samples are available.

Kopi Luwak coffee is an extreme gourmet coffee experience that I think every coffee aficionado should experience at least once in his/her lifetime. I would like to thank Animal Coffee for giving me the opportunity to review this truly unique and rare gourmet coffee. It has been a positive and unique experience that I will not soon forget.