From Poop to Gourmet in Bali Indonesia

In late 2012, fortune found me in Asia and subsequently led me to Bali, Indonesia. I experienced what can only be called an interesting “taste bud encounter”.  Balinese coffee, specifically Kopi Luwak, is known as the world’s most expensive coffee.  In the U.S., Kopi Luwak can go for as much as $1000 per kg. What is so special about this coffee you ask?  I will spare you the lengthy details, but, if you consider that this coffee passes through the digestive tract, then out the rear end of a cat-like mongoose animal  it is not only “special,” it is considered “gourmet.”

According to baliorchidgardens.com, “Coffee Luwak is a rich, smooth, coffee with an earthy syrupy texture and a hint of chocolate undertones”.  Yep, poop coffee taste like chocolate. I was brave enough to try it and found the taste was good but I am by no means a coffee Connoisseur.

What was I really thinking when I was drinking it? I wonder who first came up with the concept? Flashback…. Java Indonesia 18th century: guy walking through forest, sees pile of poop, picks up poop saying, “hey I wonder If I can roast this and drink it, mmm, better yet I wonder if I can get those crazy tourists to buy this.”  The rest is Bali history.