Civet Coffee Love
Are you curious enough to try out a cup of civet cat coffee from beans extracted from the animal’s poop? If you pride yourself on being a coffee connoisseur, then it is likely that your answer to that question is yes. For less adventurous people however, the mere thought of drinking anything that came in contact with poop is disgusting. But don’t reject it until you’ve tried it, civet coffee enthusiasts say.
Civet coffee is one of the world’s rarest and most expensive coffees, and it is produced in Southeast Asia and some parts of China. You may know it by another name, such as kopi luwak in Indonesia, and kape alamid in the Philippines. The name civet coffee comes from the fact that the beans are harvested from the dung of a member of the mongoose family called the civet cat, also known as the Asian Palm Civet. The ripest coffee cherries are eaten by the civet cat, and the seeds are partially digested in its digestive tract before coming out whole in the animal’s poop. Coffee farmers then watch out for the areas in the farm or forest that the civet cat chooses to use as their litter box, and gathers the manure covered beans. These defecated beans are then subjected to a good cleaning, and are sun-dried. This process is said to get rid of any germs on the coffee beans.
It is not unusual to find an assortment of Liberica, Exelsa, Robusta and Arabica coffee varieties blended in each batch of civet coffee, depending on what the animal ate. According to one study, the enzymes in the civet cat’s digestive tract augment the flavors of the different coffee varieties. Those who have tasted this coffee have praised it as smooth, sweet, slightly dark and chocolatey, with a distinct aroma. Unlike other coffees, civet coffee is does not have that bitter aftertaste.
Civet coffee is harvested by hand, and taken from excretions found in the wild, so only about 2000 kilos are produced annually. There are some tales of civet cat farms that purposely offer the animals the coffee beans, but allegedly these animals produce less under duress. Thus, the supply will always remain low.
Civet coffee has found a loyal following among coffee connoisseurs in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, and other parts of the world. Because it is only found in limited amounts, and production can be very labor intensive, civet coffee prices can go as expensive as 100 dollars for 100 grams, or about $30 per cup. If you are interested in trying out some civet coffee, you can find both ground or whole roasted beans in selected stores, in some Asian markets, or in online stores. However, the greater demand and short supply of this hard to find food item has also led to an increase in fake or adulterated civet coffee beans in the market today, so buyer beware!
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