357280 Fri Jan 05 16:32:12 -0800 2007 29 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 2156163 When one of my friends told me this, I was sure it was a hoax. But I went to the Forbes website and did a search and apparently it's true. http://www.forbes.com/wineandfood/2006/07/19/priciest-coffee-beans_cx_hl_0720featA_ls.html It's called kopi luwak and it is made from coffee beans eaten by an animal related to the civet, then collected from the jungle floor after passing through its digestive tract. Perhaps not the best coffee, but the most expensive. The article also lists other pricy coffees. Has anyone here tried it? I think it made a cameo appearance on an "obscure foods" thread a while back. (And what about those other expensive coffees? Anyone tried them? I once bought one bean of Blue Mountain and chewed it, just to say I'd tried it.) Fri Jan 05 16:32:12 -0800 2007 11362 Brian S 1 2156168 I've not tried this, but we were discussing this very subject over the holidays - my mother had heard of it. I'll try to find the name of what she found as "the" most expensive coffee - she loves Blue Mountain but has rarely had it. I think the most expensive may have been Hawaiian. Fri Jan 05 16:33:36 -0800 2007 2156163 10985 MMRuth 2 2158790 Beware of Blue Mountain claims. I've heard that four times as much "Blue Mountain" is sold in North American than is grown in Jamaica. And 80% of the Jamaican crop is under contract to Japan. Know your supplier for that kind of thing. Sat Jan 06 03:06:48 -0800 2007 2156168 22463 HenryT 1 2156296 It was also featured on a CSI episode (not in a bad way; the cast was drinking it and giving props), but I've not tried it. Fri Jan 05 17:09:39 -0800 2007 2156163 49959 thegolferbitch 2 2157318 That episode is the only reason I know about this stuff. Fri Jan 05 20:30:35 -0800 2007 2156296 49957 annimal 1 2156319 ...and it's harvested HOW?????? Fri Jan 05 17:14:57 -0800 2007 2156163 49600 CindyJ 1 2156354 Hand-harvested from the feces of palm civets. Most comes from Indonesia. Have never tired it but people I know who have were underwhelmed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kopi_Luwak Fri Jan 05 17:22:12 -0800 2007 2156163 10520 carswell 2 2158545 Never tried it either, but I've heard it tastes like crap. ;-) Sat Jan 06 01:37:34 -0800 2007 2156354 23835 mclaugh 1 2156394 Yes, I've had the Kopi Luwack. is it worth $200/pound? No, not really. I found it a bit on the grassy side (no direct pun intended). The price, I believe, is pretty much completely dictated by the fact that it can only be harvested by intense manual labor, and in fairly small amount. But, if you get a bunch of coffee-loving friends together and all chip in on the cost of a half pound (more or less, depending on how many people you have, and how many pots of it you wish to brew), it makes for a fun and memorable evening. Jamaica Blue Mountain is ok, but I think it has been riding on its laurels for a long time now so probably is no longer worth the $40/pound that it commands (and probably hasn't for about the last 10 years). Fri Jan 05 17:30:33 -0800 2007 2156163 15747 djohnson22 1 2156439 I really enjoy the Jamaican Blue Mountain 'blend' that I get every spring at Costco, $6/lb. I shrink wraP a few pounds and it usually lasts until December. The coffee geeks laugh at this, but refuse to try it. Fri Jan 05 17:39:40 -0800 2007 2156163 56131 jayt90 2 2156452 Interesting - does the "blend" mean that the coffee is part Jamaica Blue Mountain and part something else ... how does it compare to the "real" thing ... Mom loves it so this might be an alternative. TIA Fri Jan 05 17:41:13 -0800 2007 2156439 10985 MMRuth 2 3279067 I haven't had the Costco JBM blend, but I'd be dubious that there's more than 1% true JBM in that blend if it's going for $6/lb. That's an msrp near what most commodity beans are resold for after roasting. The cost of commodity beans like what you'd find in Eight O'Clock coffee is at or under ~$1.30. The cost of true JBM green is generally 20x that or more. So $6/lb would be out of the question if there was any significant amount of JBM. I'd be surprised if Magnum is promoting it that way. If they are, that changes my opinion of their operation. Have to think Costco is the one making this stuff up. For those who really do enjoy true JBM, probably the closest you can get to it at a reasonable price is bying a good Papua New Guinea from Intelligentsia or Stumptown or similar quality roasters. Many PNG coffees are from plants that grew from the seedlings of JBM that were brought to New Guinea awhile back. Wed Jan 09 16:45:47 -0800 2008 2156439 24421 Panini Guy 1 2156513 No, the bag says it all Jamaican, so some beans will be from lower slopes. The source is Magnum, in MI, and it may be on their website. Fri Jan 05 17:51:17 -0800 2007 2156163 56131 jayt90 2 2156529 Thanks for the information - I'll check it out. Fri Jan 05 17:53:41 -0800 2007 2156513 10985 MMRuth 1 2158794 Dave Barry wrote a memorable piece on this. Quotable quote "what kind of world is it where I'm worried I might be ripped off by being sold coffee that was not pooped out by a weasel?" Sat Jan 06 03:08:11 -0800 2007 2156163 22463 HenryT 1 2161156 eeew, its true? My friend told me that a long time ago, i thought she was kidding! Sun Jan 07 02:27:32 -0800 2007 2156163 52894 RiJaAr 2 2162824 As my Irish Grandmother used to say: "You've a dark brown taste in your mouth!" (I swear,true story) Sun Jan 07 21:02:57 -0800 2007 2161156 45436 Harp00n 1 3271413 Yes, I heard about this coffee a while back, never tried. Apparently, the civets eat the coffee berries and enzymes in their digestive tract, make the coffee beans edible by humans(cleaned and roasted of course). The bean goes right through them. Mon Jan 07 16:55:02 -0800 2008 2156163 147459 b0ardkn0t 1 3272601 When I was a kid, I used to read westerns and assumed that since the settlers on the wagon trail went to gather buffalo chips to make coffee, that they made coffee with percolated buffalo chips.Apparently, they use the dried dung for firewood. Yum, that fresh aroma ... Tue Jan 08 00:27:40 -0800 2008 2156163 103007 writesonwater 1 3276284 Nice story, to wow the tourists. BTW, don't waste your money on Jamaica Blue Mountain or Kona coffee, either. Tue Jan 08 23:55:04 -0800 2008 2156163 55316 mpalmer6c 2 3278402 Some folks just like to overspend. OTOH, compare even 40 bucks a pound on what Starbucks charges for brewed coffee. Wed Jan 09 13:54:22 -0800 2008 3276284 89849 Akitist 3 3279130 I agree with PaniniGuy, the Papua New Guinea I had recently tasted a lot like Jamaican Blue Mountain at a fraction of the cost. Wed Jan 09 17:03:47 -0800 2008 3278402 15507 Rick 1 3308068 I saw the movie "The BUCKET LIST" recently and the Jack Nicholson character had a passion for kopi luwak which he brewed in something called a siphant ?(sp) I believe. He was infatuated with it and was always pushing it on others or under their noses to inhale. It was stated that the beans+ came from Sumatra. I don't know if I'd like the brew, however, the movie was very memorable and I highly recommend it. NOTE: at the :30 sec mark you can view the 'siphant' used for brewing the kopi luwak, in the backround. Fri Jan 18 08:24:28 -0800 2008 2156163 151625 fruglescot 2 3308651 Didn't see the movie yet, but guessing that "siphant" = siphon (a.k.a. vacuum brewer/vac pot). Fri Jan 18 10:24:40 -0800 2008 3308068 24421 Panini Guy 1 3309942 I bought real and fake kopi luwak in Vietnam. Hands down the best coffee I've ever tried. Better than the Clover machine coffee, better then the JBM. The real stuff isn't worth the price considering the fake tastes so good (it's not pooped out by civits, they reproduce the digestive process in a laboratory) and is soooo much cheaper. If anyone knows where to buy the fake kopi luwak, PLEASE post it here - I've ben searching for this for weeks. Fri Jan 18 15:24:32 -0800 2008 2156163 67836 pupster911 1 3312210 Never mind all this hedging and circling - let's jab the nub. What does this "weasle's" stock taste like? Sat Jan 19 13:13:16 -0800 2008 2156163 55318 DockPotato 2 3313917 Is it really possible to accurately describe a taste? Sun Jan 20 08:40:18 -0800 2008 3312210 151625 fruglescot 1 3312816 I read stories about this all the time. I think it must be a perennial slow news day filler item. Sat Jan 19 17:38:35 -0800 2008 2156163 13564 Snackish 1 3314013 A local small scale roaster here in Baltimore recently had a kopi luwak tasting for $10 per head. I found the coffee very smooth and a little musty. I'm not much a flavor describer but I liked it. Worth a $10 taste but i could have lived without it. Sun Jan 20 09:12:41 -0800 2008 2156163 22276 jfish 1 3314076 I don't care how good it might taste, or how much it costs. I'd rather drink Starbucks than poopy-joe. Old Starbucks. In a dirty cup. Sun Jan 20 09:36:57 -0800 2008 2156163 19113 Pylon