312883 Thu Jul 27 18:55:11 -0700 2006 14 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1771425 Have you guys heard of this? http://www.animalcoffee.com/ it's coffee that is passed through a luwak (like a mongoose) before being roasted. It's coffee poop and it costs $400/pound! Who buys this stuff? And the worst part is, I heard about it on the radio, and they were extolling the subtle delicate flavors, it's supposed to be the best coffee in the world. I am at once repulsed and intrigued. Thu Jul 27 18:55:11 -0700 2006 13085 OCElizabeth 1 1771531 OK, I totally thought this was a hoax. Then I found an AP article about it -- but remembered that not everyone at AP has their head on straight all the time (I work at a large newspaper) and even THEY say it's probably fake: http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2004-01-20-civet-coffee_x.htm Thu Jul 27 19:25:28 -0700 2006 1771425 12858 Covert Ops 2 1771593 I thought it was a hoax too, and maybe I'm totally naive, but the interview on the radio this morning with the owner of the business sounded very legit. I also looked it up on snopes.com...nothing there. I hope it's not real...but I just can't help but wondering. I did pretend like I was going to order some online, and it made it all the way to the payment page. Of course I wasnt going to waste $100 just to see if it was for real, so I'll never know for sure, but it seems like they are really set up to take payments. If so, and this coffee doesnt exist, it is not just a hoax, but out and out fraud. Anyways, I know this got off the chow topic, so to bring it back, if anyone has ever tasted this, or has seen it, I would be very interested to hear about it. Thu Jul 27 19:43:34 -0700 2006 1771531 13085 OCElizabeth 3 1771626 There's tons, if you Google the topic. Sounds legit to me. Thu Jul 27 19:51:35 -0700 2006 1771593 10087 Pat Hammond 1 1771636 It is real. Thu Jul 27 19:55:28 -0700 2006 1771425 12484 MVNYC 1 1771727 See this post from deependdining: http://deependdining.blogspot.com/2006/02/crap-food-pan-fried-duck-breast-with.html Thu Jul 27 20:25:45 -0700 2006 1771425 10736 Peter Cherches 1 1771995 Yes this is a real coffee. I have read some research papers on this in college years ago. Thu Jul 27 22:30:41 -0700 2006 1771425 10732 JMF 2 1772534 I suppose that it is really no different than African bird peppers. They're cultivated the same way. Fri Jul 28 02:51:17 -0700 2006 1771995 15489 kimmer1850 1 1772834 What do you mean by cultivated? I know that in the wild, peppers, like many fruits, have their seeds spread by birds. Is that what you mean? Fri Jul 28 11:26:48 -0700 2006 1771425 10732 JMF 1 1773007 Definitely real, unless restaurants are pulling the hoax, too. My mom told me of the phenomenon/sudden popularity of this coffee -- three restaurants in one week were making a big deal about it. She said the servers explaining what makes the coffee "special" was priceless. Fri Jul 28 13:56:15 -0700 2006 1771425 12778 Jeda 1 1773098 That's exactly what I mean Fri Jul 28 14:32:04 -0700 2006 1771425 15489 kimmer1850 1 1773157 i don't see why this would be a hoax.... the idea is that the digestive enzymes in a particular animal help to ferment the beans/seeds. but unless you're going to go around the world cutting these cats open, the easiest is just for them to poop it out. there are a number of people who forage in the jungle for the areas the cats live in to find their droppings and then search for the seeds, which is why it's so expensive. Fri Jul 28 15:01:52 -0700 2006 1771425 10634 pinstripeprincess 2 1773984 And I thought MY job sucked. . .:-P Fri Jul 28 19:48:02 -0700 2006 1773157 12858 Covert Ops 1 1777324 This was on an old CSI episode from a couple of years ago where the killer drinks this coffee and that's how they identify who the killer is. Mon Jul 31 05:35:26 -0700 2006 1771425 20134 grubn 1 1777662 I've had it in Indonesia. It was nice although I didn't think it was worth the price. I quickly returned to my old espresso coffee and pai mu tan tea. Mon Jul 31 14:51:54 -0700 2006 1771425 20212 PicklingJessica