The History of Coffee Luwak

Luwak Coffee comes from the Indonesian island of Java and Sumatra, an area well-known for its excellent coffee. Also native to the area is a small civet-like animal called a Paradoxurus. That’s the scientific name, the locals call them luwaks. These little mammals live in the trees and one of their favorite foods is the red, ripe coffee cherry.

They eat the cherries, bean and all. While the bean is in the little animal’s stomach, it undergoes chemical treatments and fermentations. The bean finishes its journey through the digestive system, and exits.

The still-intact beans are collected from the forest floor, and are cleaned, then roasted and ground just like any other coffee. Because of strange method of collecting, there is not much Kopi Luwak produced in the world.

The resulting coffee is said to be like no other. It is rich, heavy flavor with hints of caramel or chocolate. Other terms used to describe it as earthy, musty and exotic. The body is almost syrupy and it is very smooth.