A cup of Kopi Luwak

Although I rarely drink straight coffee, I am fascinated by the coffee known as Kopi Luwak. I've put this drink on my "must drink before I die" list. Unfortunately, the coffee is extremely rare and expensive... with good reason.

The above illustration can be found here in animated form and will give you some idea of how Kopi Luwak is created.

What is Kopi Luwak?

"In Indonesia, an animal called a palm civet or civet cat—locally, called a luwak—eats coffee (kopi) fruit, then excretes out the undigested beans. These beans are then picked from the droppings and washed off. Arguably, the greatest aspect of note to this coffee is its unusual origin, not its taste.

A recent study, Composition and properties of Indonesian palm civet coffee (Kopi Luwak) and Ethiopian civet coffee (Massimo F. Marcone, Food Research International, Volume 37, Issue 9, 2004, Pages 901-912), found that the beans undergo physical and chemical changes as a result of digestion.They become harder and more brittle, with an extremely finely perforated outer surface, and had a lower protein content, theoretically resulting in a less-bitter cup. Blind taste tests from professional cuppers, however, have not borne out the theory.

Yearly production figures are unreliable, and range anywhere from eighty to three hundred pounds. The price per pound ranges as high as US $300. The Food Reseach article found that "electronic nose analysis" was able to detect differences between kopi luwak and undigested coffees, which may help confirm a particular batch's authenticity."

source: the coffee faq

I know for some this coffee may sound entirely gross. I guess I'm interested because I live for trying new products and Kopi Luwak is considered one of the rarest of coffees in the world.

A regular at the coffee shop I work at informs me this method of processing coffee beans is being attempted using other animals. As long as no animals are harmed in the process, I see nothing wrong with experimentation.