True coffee connoisseurs, even if they have never tried the most expensive variety of this drink, have definitely heard about it. Kopi Luwak (Luwak) is the most common name for the presented coffee, it differs exquisite taste With delicate aroma vanilla and chocolate, and many gourmets claim that only it has every right to be called the “drink of the gods.”
Probably every coffee lover dreams of trying Kopi Luwak at least once in his life in order to see from his own experience how true the stories about this drink are. But there are two important factors that can influence their dream: drinking a cup or two of the legendary coffee.
1. Cost of the drink. In many restaurants you will have to pay about $100 for a serving of luwak.
2. Specific production method.
If you have never been interested in this topic, then this method will simply shock you. The most expensive coffee in the world comes from animal droppings! But let's analyze the presented topic in detail, and only then draw conclusions about this extreme drink.
Small “producers” of the most expensive coffee in the world
The animal without which it is impossible to obtain Kopi Luwak grains is the musang, which is also called the Malayan palm marten (the civet family). These are small mammals, the length of which does not exceed 60 cm, and the weight - 4 kg. They live in the tropical forests of South and South-East Asia (India, Philippines, China, etc.). Animals are nocturnal, many of them feel calm living next to people (in attics, sheds).
It would seem, how can this small animal attract a person? Being omnivores (they eat worms, bird eggs, etc.), musangs are very fond of fruits coffee trees. But when eating them, the animals do not digest all of them, but only part of the berries and their soft, top layer; the rest of the grains come out naturally.
Unique taste considered elite and expensive coffee from droppings is explained by the peculiarity of the animals’ gastric juice and some of their bacteria gastrointestinal tract, which interact with coffee berries to form unique product, which is in great demand among coffee lovers.
Interesting fact. One small animal can eat a kilogram of ripe coffee berries during the day! Living in the wild, he is able to find the highest quality and ripe fruits. Unfortunately, the percentage yield of grains from which you can get the most best drink, low – about 5%. That is, musangs need to eat 10 kg of selected coffee berries (necessarily ripe and of high quality) in order to obtain half a kilogram of expensive raw materials for preparing Kopi Luwak.
And a few more interesting facts about musangs and grains:
Exotic raw materials can be obtained only 6 months a year (this is how long the animals secrete the necessary enzyme).
Grains obtained from males are valued more than from females.
Coffee products from musangs, in order to be recognized as meeting all international standards, must pass more than ten degrees of selection.
The taste of coffee differs from each other, depending on the habitat of the animals (for example, in Ethiopia you will never get such a drink as on the island of Sumatra).
In captivity, musangs do not reproduce, but live up to 25 years.
Technology for making the most expensive coffee from Musangi litter
Today, in countries where musangs live, it is not uncommon to find special farms, where amazing animals are kept. At the same time, many farmers do not care at all about how their charges live. Musangs are kept from hand to mouth so that they eat as many berries as possible. But such a method, as a result, negatively affects the quality of beans and coffee. Animals should eat well; their diet should include not only coffee berries, but also meat food, bird eggs, etc. A true coffee specialist will immediately determine that the drink is made from beans from an animal that was kept in captivity and ate almost nothing but berries, not of the best quality.
The most the best grains given by musangs living in the wild. Many farm owners often collect beans from animal droppings right next to coffee trees, not at all regretting the losses caused by the “night guests.” After all, the cost of Luwak coffee in India or the Philippines rarely exceeds $100/kg, while in Europe it already rises to $400.
The process of obtaining expensive grains includes the following steps:
Complete feeding of animals;
dry the droppings in the sun;
grains are selected;
fry the resulting products (the intricacies of this procedure are not told to anyone);
Then the grains can be processed in the usual way for us, and an elite drink can be prepared.
The taste of elite and at the same time the most expensive coffee from dung depends on the conditions of keeping and feeding the animals, the quality of the berries that the musangs ate and compliance with the processing technology of the resulting raw materials.
Pay attention to one important point. If you travel to tourist countries where luxury grains are produced, you are unlikely to be able to try real coffee luwak. Locals will most likely give you a fake.
Who invented exotic coffee
In the near future, we are unlikely to find out who managed to come up with such an exotic way of processing coffee berries. There are various legends, dubious stories and common tales associated with this issue.The most plausible version is the following story. Colonizers on the island of Sumatra, after the musang population increased greatly and the animals began to rapidly eat the berries, introduced a tax on coffee. But someone noticed grains in the animal droppings and decided to dry them and then fry them. This discoverer succeeded great drink, which they soon learned about, but the excrement tax was not introduced. From this moment begins the story of this amazing drink, which, despite the title of the most expensive coffee in the world from the litter, not everyone agrees to try.
Incredible facts
The most expensive coffee in the world, called "Black Tusk", is made from coffee beans eaten and digested by Thai elephants, and costs 1100 dollars per kilogram.
According to those who have tried coffee, the exotic drink made from elephant excrement has rich, mild taste precisely thanks to the digestion process in the elephant's intestines.
“When an elephant eats coffee beans, the acid in its stomach breaks down the proteins in the coffee, which gives the drink a bitter taste,” the experts explained. "The result is coffee with a very mild taste without bitterness regular drink."
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The most expensive and delicious coffee in the world
It is very similar to another variety of coffee, Kopi Luwak, which is obtained from the excrement of musang animals. However, the elephant's stomach has a slight advantage in this regard.
On average an animal It takes about 15-30 hours to digest the coffee fruit, which are "simmered" along with bananas, sugar cane and other ingredients of a typical elephant's vegetarian diet to create a uniquely rich and fruity flavour.
A rare variety of coffee can be tasted only at four resorts in the world: three in the Maldives and one in Thailand and A cup of this drink is not cheap - $50.
Why is it so expensive, you say? Firstly, keeping elephants in a reserve is expensive. Secondly, elephants are only fed Thai coffee Arabica grown at an altitude of 1500 meters. In addition, elephants need eat about 32 kg of coffee fruit to produce 1 kg of coffee beans.
Coffee varieties
There are two main types of coffee: Arabica coffee And Robusta coffee. The most common Arabica variety is obtained from the fruit of the tree. Coffee Arabica, and robusta from the fruits of Coffea canephora.
Arabica has a more refined taste and contains less caffeine. Robusta is a cheaper variety of coffee with high content caffeine, more bitterness and sourness.
The most expensive types of coffee:
Kopi Luwak coffee: from 115 to 590 dollars per 500 grams
Kopi Luwak is made from coffee cherries that are digested by musang animals, which use their keen sense of smell to select the ripest and best fruits. The digestion process removes the pulp and leaves behind the sweeter grain, which is harvested by hand.
Coffee Esmeralda "La Esmeralda": 100 dollars for 500 grams
Also known as Esmeralda Special, this coffee is produced in the mountains of western Panama. The intense flavor of the coffee is a result of the cool climate and careful harvesting of the fruit.
St. Helena Coffee: $80 per 500 grams
This type of coffee is produced on the island of St. Helena, where Napoleon Bonaparte was in exile. It is made from the fruits of "Green Tipped Bourbon Arabic", which grows only on this island. He has a pleasant fruity taste.
Coffee "Fazenda Santa Ines": 50 dollars per 500 grams
This type of coffee is produced in the state of Minas Gerais in Brazil. traditional way manually. It has a sweetish taste of caramel and berries.
Blue Mountain coffee: $45 per 500 grams
This coffee is produced in Jamaica and is known for its very smooth taste without bitterness. Coffee beans are also used as a base for Tia Maria liqueur.
More than 2 billion cups of coffee are consumed around the world every day, making it one of the top-selling beverages. This popularity is explained not only by its noble aroma and taste, but also by the many existing ones. The most devoted fans of the drink are ready to spend a lot of money for elite varieties of coffee, not even stopping at spending hundreds of dollars for a few tens of grams of their favorite drink. Below we present the top 10 most expensive coffee varieties.
Top 10 most expensive coffees
Black Ivory Coffee or Black Tusk
A kilogram of Black Ivory coffee costs up to $1,000, and the cost of one serving of a drink made from this type of grain can reach up to $50. “Black Tusk” is produced only in Thailand, and its high price is due to the small amount of coffee produced and the cost of maintaining elephants, with the participation of which the coffee beans are processed. Fruits with their contents coffee beans fed to elephants, in their digestive tract the grains are exposed to enzymes, due to which coffee from such grains gets a soft taste, with light fruity shades.
After entering the elephant's stomach, the grains are digested along with the food that the animal is fed - bananas, sugar cane, fruits. Undigested grains come out naturally, they are collected and sent for further processing. To obtain 1 kg of Black Ivory variety, an elephant must eat almost 35 kg of coffee beans mixed with fruit.
Kopi luwak coffee
Kopi Luwak is the second most expensive, and also because of small quantity of the product produced (approximately 500 kg per year) and the participation of animals in the processing process. Only here is not present thai elephant, and the animal is a musang, which is also called luwak. The habitat of the musang is Indonesia, the Philippines and southern India. Accordingly, kopi luwak is produced in these regions. The eaten grains are fermented by the gastric secretions of the animals, thereby obtaining unusual taste.
Coffee connoisseurs justifiably consider the taste to be incomparable, thanks to its softness and chocolate notes, with the presence of an elusive aroma of the jungle. The cost of 50 grams of this variety reaches $70.
Blue Mountain Coffee
The top three is closed by Jamaican Arabica Blue Mountain, priced at $200 per 450 grams. This variety is grown on plantations located high in the mountains. The grains have an unusual blue-green color, which is due to the special composition of the soil and the unique climate. Thanks to such factors, this elite variety has a soft, slightly tart nutty taste, with a slight sourness.
A distinctive feature of Blue Mountain coffee is that even with its strong taste qualities practically never get lost. This variety enjoys a well-deserved reputation among gourmets, which is confirmed by its second name – “Royal”.
Coffee Hacienda La Esmeralda
The fourth place is rightfully occupied by the elite coffee variety Gacianda la Esmeralda, which has noble taste and aromatic qualities. The extraordinary taste of Hacienda La Esmeralda coffee comes from the volcanic soils near Mount Buru in Panama and special conditions growing when the coffee tree is always in the shade of other trees. The cost of a pound of coffee (453 grams) of this variety is about $100.
As the name implies, this variety grows on the island of the same name, which is considered the most environmentally friendly corner of the planet. Volcanic, rich minerals soil and environmental conditions have the most favorable effect on the quality of coffee beans.
Coffee from St. Helena is grown at altitudes of 3,000 meters or more, i.e. in practice ideal conditions required for Arabica trees. The price of 1 pound (453 grams) of coffee from St. Helena is $80.
Coffee El Injerto
High-quality Guatemalan coffee variety, the original taste of which is determined by the humid climate of the region. The El Injerto variety has received many awards from various exhibitions and is recognized as one of best products in the coffee industry. One pound of coffee beans costs about $50.
Coffee Fazenda Santa Ines
Fazenda Santa Ines is an elite coffee variety grown in Brazil. High quality facilitates manual picking and sorting during harvesting. Coffee lovers praise Fazenda Santa Ines for its chocolate flavor with a slight citrus aftertaste.
Fazenda Santa Ines coffee reveals its entire bouquet in combination with milk and cream. For those who love and are willing to pay for quality, Fazenda Santa Ines will best choice. The cost of 1 pound (453 g) of this variety is $50.
Los Planes Coffee
Los Plains coffee is an internationally recognized variety grown in El Salvador and prized for its original cocoa flavor and light floral aroma. Los Planes coffee costs $40 per pound.
Kona Coffee
Kona Coffee is a little-known, but nevertheless very high-quality variety of Hawaiian coffee. Thanks to the mineral-rich volcanic soil and favorable conditions for growing Arabica coffee, has original taste and rich aroma. 450 grams of Kona Coffee costs $35.
Coffee Blue Bourbon
Blue Bourbon closes the list of the most expensive coffee varieties. Experts rate the taste of coffee as very soft, with slight sourness and a vanilla aftertaste. The aroma contains well-recognized floral motifs. Produced in Rwanda and costs $35 per pound of grain.
Coffee is the favorite drink of the inhabitants of the Earth. This is where the morning of many Russians begins. Some people like instant, others - Brewed coffee. Some people prefer to grind the grains themselves and cook them in a Turk. What can I say, it's a matter of taste. And true connoisseurs of this drink prefer to drink the most expensive coffee in the world, paying tribute to fashion and the established image of a coffee lover. What varieties are most popular among those who are interested in this issue?
Top five
Actually, there are only two main coffee varieties- Arabica and Robusta. The former is considered to have a more subtle taste and contains less caffeine compared to Robusta. The second, cheaper, bitter and sour, contains more caffeine. The most common in the world is Arabica. How much does coffee cost? How is its price determined? Let's give just some data, a kind of hit parade of expensive coffee.
Fifth place
Fifth place on this list is occupied by Blue Mountain, a coffee whose price per kilogram reaches up to $90. It is produced in Jamaica and is famous for its mild taste without hints of bitterness. It is used as a base to make the famous Tia Maria liqueur.
Fourth place
Fourth - "Fazenda Santa Ines". It reaches up to 100 dollars per kilo. It is produced in Brazil (Minas Gerais) by hand. It differs from others in the sweet taste of berries and caramel.
Third place
The third is Saint Helena coffee (there is an island famous for the fact that Napoleon was in exile there). It is made from the same Arabica fruits, which, however, grow only in this place. Coffee is famous for its subtle fruity aftertaste.
Second place
The second place in our hit parade is “Esmeralda”, the most expensive type of coffee obtained through traditional, we emphasize, processing. The price per kilogram reaches 200 dollars! It is produced in the mountains of Panama, its western part. It has an original flavor that is believed to be the result of careful harvesting and a cool climate.
Is the most expensive coffee made from excrement?
And finally, the most “valuable” is “Kopi Luwak”. You can translate the first word as, in fact, coffee. The second word is the name of the animal, thanks to which the most expensive coffee in the world appears. The fact is that it is “produced” using the African palm civet in a very unusual way. Animals ( appearance resembling squirrels) eat the berries of the coffee tree. Next, everything passes through the intestines of the civet, while coffee beans remain undigested.
The most expensive coffee in the world comes from Indonesia. His plantations are located on the islands of Java and Sumatra. Farmers of these plantations collect the ripe fruits in a traditional manner. After that, they are fed to civet cats, which are kept in special enclosures. Animals eat them with pleasure. Then, when the coffee beans themselves come out along with excrement, they are cleaned, washed, and dried. Later, lightly fried.
The most expensive coffee in the world, obtained as a result of the life of Indonesian civet cats, is very famous subtle aroma. Natural enzymes give it a particularly soft taste. The retail price for a cup of this drink can reach up to $50. And the cost of a kilogram is up to a thousand.
Limited supply
Every year, only about five hundred kilograms of Kopi Luwak beans reach the coffee markets. That's why he is so valued. It's all about rarity and elitism, and, of course, taste. What epithets do sellers and producers extol the merits of this coffee with: caramel, cherry flavor, drink of the gods, with the aroma of vanilla and chocolate. In any case, this is a premium drink, which is certainly in high demand among the most ardent coffee drinkers, like everything elite and rare.
Historical perspective
There is even a legend about the origin of this “drink of the gods.” It is said that during colonial times, planters prohibited workers from taking coffee beans from the plantations due to its high cost. Then people began to pick up coffee from the ground, specifically processed by civets (it was no longer possible to sell it). The grains were washed, dried, and ground. We brewed this coffee and drank it. Then one of the white planters tried this drink for the poor. Amazed by the delicate taste, he began to promote the product to the market. Since then, “Kopi Luwak” has delighted drink lovers with its unique taste.
By the way, in Vietnam, for example, there is an analogue to the famous “Luwak” - coffee called “Chon”. It is cheaper and made in a similar way. This type of coffee is said to have an even more pronounced flavor from beans treated with enzymes from a local variety of the animal.
African civet
Thus, the main producer expensive product is the civet itself. The animal belongs to the same family as the mongoose and even resembles it in appearance. Although in its habits it is more cat-like. The civet spends most of its life in trees. Like a cat, she knows how to tuck her claws into her pads. Local residents often tame civets, and they get along well with people: they drink milk, live in houses, respond to nicknames, regularly catch rodents, sleep at the feet of their owner, in general, they turn into pets. This animal is also used as a source of musk, used in the perfume industry. And, of course, for the production of elite coffee.
They say the best comes from the wild civets that sneak into the plantations at night. And in the morning, farmers, as gratitude from the animals, collect excrement under the coffee bushes as raw material for the production of the “drink of the gods.” Each civet can eat up to one kilogram of coffee berries per day. “At the exit” this can only give up to fifty grams of processed grains. It must be said that civets also eat animal food, and not just berries. The diet of domesticated civets includes, for example, chicken meat. These are nocturnal animals. And they generally do not breed in captivity. Among other things, animals can only produce the enzyme that coffee lovers like so much for six months. The rest of the time they are kept “wasted” or even released into the wild so as not to feed in vain. And then they are caught again.
A new word in coffee production
At the moment, according to some reports, civets have lost the palm to elephants, from whose excrement, it turns out, elite coffee is also produced in Thailand. The technology is similar, but this type of coffee is called “Black Tusk”! Bon appetit everyone!
There are many products in the world that are available only to a select number of buyers. These are rare, unusual goods that, due to their exclusivity, are expensive. These include coffee.
Unusual coffee
There are such exotic varieties of coffee that not everyone dares to try them. These include the most expensive Kopi Luwak coffee and the no less precious Black Tusk. Both are extracted from animal feces. It is difficult to answer the question of who came up with the idea of extracting grains from the droppings of wild representatives of exotic fauna, but this business quickly began to generate enormous income.
Today, small coffee plantations in Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and other countries that specialize in producing the most expensive coffee in the world generate the same income as large plantations in Brazil. There is nothing complicated in the production technology; you just need to feed the animals whole coffee berries and remove them from the excrement in time.
On the world market, the most expensive coffee in the world can reach a price of 1200–1500 euros per kilogram, and a cup of the drink made from it can cost 50–90 euros. Not everyone can afford to start their morning with such an expensive product. What is special about coffee made from excrement?
When whole berries, collected from the coffee tree, pass through digestive tract animal, under the influence of its digestive enzymes, the breakdown of proteins, fats and carbohydrates contained in the grain occurs. Due to this, the component composition changes, bitterness disappears, and transformations of some substances into others occur. This is a kind of fermentation that changes the quality of the product and directly affects the taste of the future drink.
Gourmets claim that these types of coffee are distinguished by an amazing softness of taste and many shades of aroma. They are worth trying at least once in your life.
Kopi Luwak
In most rankings, the most expensive coffee in the world is Kopi Luwak. Its main producers are Indonesia, Vietnam, South India and the Philippines. There are small Arabica plantations growing at an altitude of at least 1500 m above sea level.
A small rodent also lives here - the civet or luwak, as it is called local residents. He is the main person in the chain of turning ordinary coffee berries into elite and expensive coffee.
A wild civet eats about 1,500 kg of fruit per night
The animal is kept in a zoo and processes several kilograms of ripe and other coffee berries every day. Its maintenance is not so cheap for farmers, because for normal life it needs meat. The rodent is nocturnal, so feeding occurs late in the evening and early in the morning. To get 50 g of coffee beans ready for processing after an animal, you need to feed it about 1 kg of berries.
In addition, the luwak must be released into freedom, since it does not reproduce in captivity. They are later recaptured and placed in a zoo.
How is coffee processed from animal feces obtained?
- Plantation workers collect animal excrement every day and send it for drying.
- After this, the grains are washed under running water and separated from the excrement.
- Next comes the process of drying the grains.
- The final stage is roasting.
As a rule, coffee beans are roasted to a medium degree, because the taste of the future drink should be soft with an almost imperceptible bitterness. Prepared from fried coffee beans It has a chocolate-caramel flavor and vanilla aroma. Today, a lot of Kopi Luwak comes from Vietnam. In recent years, this country has become one of the world leaders in coffee sales in general.
What explains such a high price for Luwak coffee? In addition to the costs of caring for plantations and paying workers, farmers need to maintain wild animals that require care, and this is a lot of money. In addition, the resulting quantity of good coffee beans is much smaller than if they were simply collected and dried. Advertising praising the unusual taste of the drink also adds weight to the price.
Black tusk
Another product that can challenge the title of the most expensive coffee in the world is Black Tusk. It is produced in Thailand and three regions in the Maldives. Already from the name it is clear which animal is an important link in the coffee production chain. This is an elephant. He is also not averse to eating coffee berries.
The coffee production technology is similar to the Indonesian Kopi Luwak. The elephant eats grains, or rather berries, which, passing through the digestive tract, undergo a kind of fermentation. Next, they are extracted from the feces, washed, dried and fried. Digested grain in a volume of 1 kg is obtained from more than 30 kg of berries.
The elephant loves fruits and berries, so Black Ivory has a mixture of their tastes and aromas
Made from taki grain drink It has a rich fruity taste and aroma, containing floral, chocolate and nutty notes at the same time. There is no bitterness, but no sourness either. It is gentle and soft, as a good Arabica should be. This variety of coffee is known throughout the world as Black Ivory; its price reaches $500–600 per 500 grams.
Other expensive coffees
In addition to those varieties of coffee that are obtained thanks to animals, there are no less valuable ones produced in a less exotic way. Expensive varieties of coffee grown in the traditional way are distinguished by their exquisite taste only due to the peculiarities of climatic conditions and the varieties of the coffee trees themselves. Below is a rating of especially valuable ones.
- Hacienda La Esmeralda ($100–125 per 1 kg), produced in Panama, Arabica plantations are located high in the mountains in the shade of spreading Guavas. The drink has a mild but rich taste and is considered the purest in the world.
- St. Helena Coffee ($80 for 500g), grown on St. Helena Island. Features citrus, floral and caramel notes in the finished drink.
- El Injerto from Guatemala ($50 for 500g). Ready drink has taste and aroma exotic berries, chocolate and fruit with a nutty aftertaste.
- Fazenda Santa Ines from Brazil ($50 for 500g). Winner of many world awards at coffee exhibitions. Has a taste of citrus and chocolate.
- Blue Mountain from Jamaica ($50 for 500g). It is grown in the mountains at an altitude of over 1500 meters. Gives rich taste chocolate and fruit with refined notes of red pepper.
Traditionally expensive varieties coffee is sold in beans. Instant is not included in the list of elite products. It’s also difficult to say which one will suit your taste. One thing is known: products marked as elite, as a rule, confirm their special position, so it’s worth allowing yourself to eat them at least occasionally.
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