Kopi luwak, or civet coffee, or poop coffee refers to the coffee that includes part-digested coffee cherries eaten and defecated by the Asian palm civets (Wikipedia). The civets eat the cherries for the fleshy pulp, then in the digestive tract, fermentation occurs. The civet's digestive enzymes seep into the beans, improving the flavor profile of the coffee. Passing through a civet's intestines, the cherries are defecated with other fecal matter and later collected for processing and consumption. If you think that's disgusting, please remember that we are Asians. 2016: I went to a kopi luwak farm in Bali Indonesia, and was taken on a short tour around the compound. It was very small, so I doubt it was where they really produced all the coffee they sold. The farm's main purpose was to give tourists a basic introduction to the production process of the civet coffee, and a gimmick to get them to part with their dollars. It is after all, one of the most expensive coffees in the world.
They were also selling other drinks products like teas and cocoas, so all visitors were served with samples, which of course, I polished clean.
A cup of civet coffee was sold at Rp50,000 (USD3.75) at the farm. It was very cheap, compared to other places in the vicinity. It tasted like...coffee (surprise, surprise). Much the same way I could drink a Chardonnay and a Sauvignon Blanc, and a Riesling, a Semillon and a Pinot Grigio and think they all taste the same, the supposedly special taste of kopi luwak was lost on me. I would rather just stick to my Old Town White Coffee.
