How to Identify Authentic Kopi Luwak - Distinguishing Fake Vietnamese G7 Coffee

Originally known as Kopi Luwak, civet coffee originates from Indonesia. Its flavor is somewhat similar to Indonesian Mandheling coffee but with an additional special fermented note. Compared to Mandheling coffee, it is smoother and lacks the earthy taste of Mandheling. True civet coffee is one of the most expensive coffees in the world - truly the finest among specialty coffees.

You may have heard about civet coffee in other places, but what's available isn't genuine civet coffee - perhaps just coffee flavored to resemble it. True civet coffee (Kopi Luwak) is acclaimed as one of the world's ten most expensive coffees, originating from the civet cat, an animal native to Indonesia's Sumatra island. The civet cat is a wild omnivorous animal that locals call Luwak. With its pointed snout and dark gray fur, it's an omnivorous nocturnal creature that uses its keen sense of smell to identify the sweetest, fullest coffee cherries on coffee trees. Occasionally, it selects some coffee cherries as snacks, preferring to climb coffee trees to pick mature, sweet, and fully red coffee fruits to eat.

The civet cat consumes the ripest coffee cherries, removing the outer skin before swallowing and sucking the minimal sweet pulp. As the coffee fruit pulp passes through the civet cat's digestive system, it naturally ferments within its body. Due to the exceptionally hard texture of coffee beans, they are difficult to digest and pass through the digestive tract, eventually being excreted with the feces. The feces containing coffee beans pass near the reproductive organs, allowing the beans to pick up secreted musk oil, adding special flavor layers. Experienced workers then manually select and collect these beans from the forest for processing. It's said that about 1,300 beans must be collected to yield 100 beans that can become genuine civet coffee.

Unique Processing and Flavor Profile

This marvelous processing process replaces traditional washed, natural, and other coffee bean processing methods, reducing the acidity and bitterness in the original coffee beans while imparting unique flavors. The taste is exceptionally fragrant and mellow. Civet coffee has a consistency close to syrup, leaving a light minty cool sensation in the mouth after drinking - a characteristic not found in regular coffee. The rich, rounded sweet flavor is also unparalleled by other coffee beans.

Civet cats themselves are relatively rare animals with small populations, and they are nearly impossible to domesticate. Their appetite isn't large, so natural excretion is minimal. Furthermore, only about 30% of usable coffee beans can be found in their excrement. Accounting for cleaning, grinding losses, and other factors, the annual production of genuine "civet coffee" does not exceed 400 kilograms, making it extremely scarce in the market and thus quite precious. Some people exaggerate that after drinking civet coffee, they wouldn't brush their teeth for days, hoping to repeatedly savor its unique flavor - showing how captivating it truly is. These coffee beans pass through the civet cat's body and are excreted unchanged - this is the most primitive "natural fermentation method" within a living body, which creates the civet cat's distinctive flavor.

The Reality Behind Commercial Civet Coffee

However, some coffees marketed as civet coffee may not be genuine civet coffee or might just be coffee flavored to resemble it. Seeing the business opportunity in civet coffee, some merchants have turned to captive breeding to produce it. The current production process of "civet coffee" has become cruel. Initially, "civet coffee" was discovered when people occasionally collected civet cat excrement, but now, these animals are confined by humans, losing their freedom and beginning a tragic life of being artificially fed coffee fruits to produce coffee beans.

In reality, "civet coffee" produced through this artificial breeding method has little more than gimmick value, because those coffee beans weren't selected by the civet cats themselves but were forced upon them by humans. Moreover, these animals are naturally very shy, timid, and difficult to domesticate. After losing their freedom and living in small cages, constantly forced to eat coffee fruits and excrete, they become ill and start exhibiting crazy behaviors such as biting companions and themselves, eventually potentially dying from this cruel coffee production method.

How Does Civet Coffee Taste Different?

FrontStreet Coffee believes that civet coffee is no different from regular coffee - it's all coffee, and the effects and functions are the same. Coffee can increase our metabolism, thereby enhancing muscle performance during exercise. Additionally, the caffeine in coffee can make us more alert and improve exercise endurance. Coffee also has diuretic properties - if you have facial swelling, drinking Americano coffee can help reduce it. Many celebrities enjoy drinking a cup of Americano to maintain their facial condition. However, drinking too much can cause palpitations, and it's not recommended for elderly people and those with high blood pressure to drink excessive amounts of coffee.

However, FrontStreet Coffee doesn't recommend drinking civet coffee. As FrontStreet Coffee mentioned earlier, genuine civet coffee might be acceptable, but there are many so-called civet coffees on the market. Coffee has the same effects regardless, and coffees from other producing regions also taste excellent, such as: Panama's Geisha coffee with citrus notes, Ethiopian coffee with floral and fruit flavors, Brazilian coffee with nutty peanut flavors - all are exceptionally good coffees. FrontStreet Coffee offers over fifty different coffee beans from various producing regions that everyone can try. Civet coffee comes from Indonesia, and Indonesian Mandheling coffee is also one of the most popular coffees at FrontStreet Coffee. FrontStreet Coffee has two Mandheling coffees: one is the daily-drinker Indonesian Lindong Mandheling, and the other is the single-origin Golden Mandheling. Both have excellent flavors, especially the Golden Mandheling with its clean, mellow nutty chocolate notes, deeply loved by coffee enthusiasts.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Parameters for Civet Coffee

To better express the herbal flavors and rich mouthfeel of civet coffee, FrontStreet Coffee roasters use medium-dark roasting for civet coffee beans. Medium-dark roasted beans generally have higher moisture loss rates, making them lighter in weight. During brewing, the grounds don't completely settle at the bottom - water is immediately absorbed upon initial contact. Due to vigorous degassing, bubbles form around the grounds, creating channels. These channels persist longer with fresher beans, causing the water level to drop quickly.

KONO dripper, 88°C water temperature, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee grounds, grind size (75% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve), three-stage extraction.

Using segmented extraction, bloom with twice the amount of water as the coffee grounds - that is, 30 grams of water for 30 seconds. The blooming process is necessary to allow the coffee grounds to release internal carbon dioxide, making the subsequent extraction more stable. With a small water flow, pour in circles until reaching 125 grams, then continue pouring until 225 grams, then stop. Remove the dripper once all water has passed through. Time from the beginning of pouring, with an extraction time of 2'00". Next, take the entire cup of coffee and shake it well, then pour into a tasting cup.

Flavor description of civet coffee: Herbal, nutty, smooth mouthfeel, rich and mellow.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Recommendations

To brew a delicious cup of coffee, FrontStreet Coffee believes that the freshness of coffee beans is a crucial part of the brewing process. Coffee beans shipped by FrontStreet Coffee are all roasted within 5 days. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted quality coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee possible. The bean maturation period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive their coffee, it's at its peak flavor.

For friends who need ground coffee, FrontStreet Coffee kindly reminds you: once coffee beans are pre-ground, there's no need for further bean maturation. During transportation, the pressure from carbon dioxide buildup in the packaging also helps mellow the coffee flavor, so you can brew a cup immediately upon receiving ground coffee. However, ground coffee needs to be brewed promptly, as it oxidizes quickly when exposed to air, meaning its flavor will dissipate rapidly, diminishing the taste. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends purchasing whole beans and grinding fresh for each brew to better experience the coffee's flavor.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473