What is this "Kopi Luwak" legend?

Kopi Luwak, also known as the world's most expensive coffee... What makes this coffee bean so popular and expensive? In this article, we will explore the story of Kopi Luwak, a coffee that those seeking unique aroma and texture can't get enough of, examining both known and unknown aspects of its quality.

“Kopi” means coffee in Indonesian, and “Luwak” means civet. As you can see, “Kopi Luwak” translates to “civet coffee.” Civets are very similar to cats in many ways, especially in their head structure and body anatomy. Their faces and bodies are longer than a cat's, while their legs are shorter. The main known types of civets include African, Asian, Black Palm, and Mongoose civets, etc. The relevant species in the production process of this coffee is the Asian civet. This type of coffee, which costs around $350-500 per kilogram, is mostly produced in Sumatra, Java, and Bali.

Before discussing the production process of Kopi Luwak coffee, it's necessary to talk about the production process of a normal coffee bean. The story of a coffee bean begins with the harvesting of the coffee fruit from the garden and its subsequent shipment to factories or coffee processing workshops for processing. First, to turn the fruit into a bean, several layers surrounding the bean must be peeled away, revealing the raw bean. After this step, coffee bean types deemed suitable are blended to create different blends. Then, they are roasted to the specified degree for the respective type of coffee, and after a while, following carbon emissions, they are packaged in airtight containers and reach markets, coffee shops, and from there, our tables.

At a certain point in this processing stage, civet cats from the Asian region come into play, revealing the characteristics that give coffee its name. By nature, these civet cats feed on coffee cherries found in coffee plantations. They grind the outer layers of the fruit in their stomachs, digesting the coffee beans (which are normally produced using factory methods) through their digestive secretions. During this process, two important elements occur in the cat's stomach. The outer pulp of the coffee fruit is removed, and the beans remain in stomach acid for a while, undergoing fermentation. After the process is complete, any coffee beans that cannot be ground in the stomach are expelled through feces.

Coffee beans collected from feces are washed, dried, and prepared for roasting.

It is being transformed. As those who have been to Bali know, the production points of this coffee face intense tourist interest… Kopi Luwak's popularity is increasing thanks to its appearance in the movie Bucket List. As you can imagine, to meet the increased demand, civet cats are taken from their natural habitat and used in coffee production. The caged cats are fed only coffee beans, and their feces are collected and used to meet the increased demand for Kopi Luwak. I think the same question arises in the minds of gourmets seeking the real taste… So, what happened to the civet cats raised in their wild and the coffee beans obtained from them? They still exist and are sold as Wild Kopi Luwak. For both respect for animal rights and the authentic taste obtained from a civet cat raised in its wild, we recommend Wild Kopi Luwak…