Indonesia is the 3rd largest exporter of coffee. And Kopi Luwak is the most expensive coffee in the world. In Indonesian Kopi means coffee and Luwak is the name for the local civet, a small long bodied nocturnal mammal native to Southern Asia. The Luwak eat the red coffee berries, digest the fruit and pass the indigestible beans. During digestion enzymes enter the beans making them less bitter. The beans are collected, clean, dried and brewed like any other coffee.
The result is a coffee selling for $100 per kilo. $5 per cup is on par with Starbucks. The coffee has spun off an entire industry here in Bali with farms popping up bringing in top dollar for their beans as well as the tourist draw. The farms offer day trips that educate you on the production process as well as get you up close and personal with the all too cute creatures doing all the hard work.
