Kopi luwak is produced mainly on the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali and Sulawesi in the Indonesian Archipelago, and also in the Philippines (where the product is called motit coffee in the Cordillera and kape alamid in Tagalog areas) and also in East Timor (where it is called kafé-laku). Weasel coffee is a loose English translation of its name cà phê Chồn in Vietnam, where popular, chemically simulated versions are also produced.
The origin of Kopi Luwak is closely connected with the history of Coffee production in Indonesia. In early 18th century The Dutch established the cash-crop plantations in their colony in Dutch East Indies islands of Java and Sumatra, including Arabica coffee introduced from Yemen. During the era of Cultuurstelsel (1830—1870),
the Dutch prohibited the native farmers and native plantation workers to pick coffee fruits for their own use. Yet the native farmers desired to have a taste of the famed coffee beverage.
Soon the natives learned that certain species of musang or luwak (Asian Palm Civet) consumed these coffee fruits, yet they left the coffee seeds undigested in their droppings. The natives collect these Luwak's dropping coffee seeds; clean, roast and grind it to make coffee beverage. The fame of aromatic civet coffee spread from locals to Dutch plantation owners and soon become their favorites, yet because of its rarity and unusual process, the civet coffee was expensive even in colonial times.
In the coffee industry, wet processed or fermented coffees are known to have superior flavour to dry-processed coffee, he said. Lactic acid bacteria are preferred in wet processing systems. Lactic acid bacteria happen to be major colonizing bacteria in the civet’s digestive track.” The unique Kopi Luwak flavour could be due to the type of wet process the beans undergo in the animal’s digestive tracks, he said.
Although certified blinded human tasters could find little difference in the overall flavour and aroma of the beans, an electronic nose machine could detect that the aroma of the civet coffee beans is also affected.
So it tastes good, but is the coffee, having travelled trough an animal’s digestive track, safe to drink? Marcone found that although civet coffee beans are significantly more contaminated than regular beans, the civet beans on the market are actually quite clean.
source : Wikipedia.org
In the coffee industry, wet processed or fermented coffees are known to have superior flavour to dry-processed coffee, he said. Lactic acid bacteria are preferred in wet processing systems. Lactic acid bacteria happen to be major colonizing bacteria in the civet’s digestive track.” The unique Kopi Luwak flavour could be due to the type of wet process the beans undergo in the animal’s digestive tracks, he said.
Although certified blinded human tasters could find little difference in the overall flavour and aroma of the beans, an electronic nose machine could detect that the aroma of the civet coffee beans is also affected.
So it tastes good, but is the coffee, having travelled trough an animal’s digestive track, safe to drink? Marcone found that although civet coffee beans are significantly more contaminated than regular beans, the civet beans on the market are actually quite clean.
source : Wikipedia.org
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