How to Brew Kopi Luwak? How Much Does a Cup of Kopi Luwak Cost? How Was Kopi Luwak Discovered?

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The Natural Diet of Civets

Captive civets are sometimes only fed coffee fruits, but in the wild, they also eat fruits, insects, and reptiles.

The World's Most Expensive Coffee

The world's most expensive coffee is made from feces—more precisely, from coffee beans that have been eaten by civets, partially digested, and then excreted. This civet coffee is not cheap, costing up to $80 per cup in the United States.

The Asian Palm Civet

The Asian palm civet is distributed in southern India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, and southern China. In Sri Lanka, they are considered a nuisance to locals because they defecate on ceilings and indoors, often making noise and disturbing people's sleep.

The Fermentation Process

Indonesian palm civets primarily feed on coffee beans. After fermentation in their stomachs, they break down proteins, producing short peptides and more free amino acids, which reduces the bitterness of the coffee. The excreted feces become the main ingredient.

Civets in the Ecosystem

Civets inhabit Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. They have monkey-like long tails, raccoon-like facial markings, and striped or spotted bodies. They play an important role in the food chain, eating not only coffee fruits and mangoes but also insects and small reptiles, while being preyed upon by cheetahs, large snakes, and crocodiles.

From Nuisance to Commodity

Originally, the civet coffee trade was not harmful to these animals: the Asian palm civet (a species unique to Southeast Asia) would raid commercial orchards in Indonesia and was often considered a pest by locals. Therefore, the booming civet coffee industry actually encouraged locals to protect civets to obtain their precious feces. The digestive enzymes in civets' bodies change the structure of proteins in coffee beans, removing some of the acidity and making the coffee smoother.

The Dark Side of Civet Coffee

However, as civet coffee gradually became popular and Indonesia became a tourist destination for wildlife encounters, more and more wild civets were confined to cages in coffee plantations. This was partly for coffee production but also to profit from civet tourism.

The Production Process

Since coffee beans cannot be digested, they are excreted, and after washing and roasting, they become civet coffee. One kilogram costs approximately $400.

Diet and Authenticity

Palm civets are omnivorous animals. Besides seeds, they also eat insects, snakes, birds, and amphibians. Therefore, the feces of truly wild palm civets are mixed with various substances.

Farmed vs. Wild

Local Indonesian farmers capture and raise palm civets, feeding them coffee beans to produce civet coffee. However, it is said that there is a difference between farmed and natural varieties.

The Selection Factor

The special quality of civet coffee lies in the fact that wild civets carefully select coffee fruits; but when they are confined to cages and fed random coffee fruits, the resulting product is not exceptionally good.

Rarity and Authenticity

Civet coffee production is extremely limited and particularly expensive, with very few places selling it. Even in its country of origin, Indonesia, it is rarely seen. Therefore, most civet coffee sold on the market comes from farmed civets, and the flavor naturally differs from the most original and natural wild civet coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Recommendations for Civet Coffee:

V60/1:15/90°C/time: one minute and fifty seconds

Important Notice :

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