One of our stops in Bali was a coffee plantation that serves Civet coffee, or Kopi Luwak coffee.
The coffee is made from coffee berries that have been eaten by the Asian Palm Civet, excreted and processed.
Producers of the coffee beans argue that the process may improve coffee through two mechanisms, selection and digestion. Selection occurs if the civets choose to eat coffee cherries containing better beans. Digestive mechanisms may improve the flavour profile of the coffee beans that have been eaten. The civet eats the berries for the beans’ fleshy pulp, then in the digestive tract, fermentation occurs. The civet’s proteolytic enzymes seep into the beans, making shorter peptides and more free amino acids.[2] Passing through a civet’s intestines the beans are then defecated with other fecal matter and collected.
I love coffee. I am on my 2nd Jura and I start each day by making cappuccinos for myself and Narda. On Saturday and Sundays I usually follow that up with an espresso.
We arrived at Luwak Civet Coffee Farm in the rain. It really isn’t a farm, it is retail establishment with a tour, coffee tasting and the opportunity to buy Civet coffee. I had my Canon 5D Mark III with the 28-70mm for the tour.
The grounds are beautiful. Coffee berries enjoying the rain.
Oh durian, you sweet smelling fruit … and acquired taste. They clearly enjoy it on the plantation.
There were a couple of these around the farm; they are bee hives made of animal hair.
Looking out on the jungle, I was amazed at how thick it is. My son hypothesized that the lack of farmable land was a key contributor to the economic differentiation between Europe/NA and countries such as Bali … The AP history class is going well.
The plantation had displays of the coffee as it progresses through the processing stages. I did not see the Civet excrement separation stage.
Is it the world’s best coffee? Next post …. And thanks for dropping by!
Michael Weening: a few pictures 
Initially civet coffee beans were picked from wild civet excrement that was to be found around coffee plantations. This unusual process contributed to its rarity and subsequently, its high price. More recently, growing numbers of intensive civet “farms” have been established and operated across Southeast Asia, confining tens of thousands of animals to live in tiny cages and be force-fed.
I was wondering about that. There were two in a cage (a large cage) but obviously tramping through the jungle doesn’t scale. A mink farm type of scenario comes to mind.