Wild Kopi Luwak

Description

When our partner discovered Munduk Moding Plantation in 2007, it was wildly overgrown after years of neglect. Many indigenous creatures and a burgeoning bird population could be found on the mountainside, making it a haven for hunters. Hunting was immediately banned and the transformation began. By exercising patience and maintaining utmost respect for nature, the revitalization of the plantation was realized without disturbing the fragile ecosystem. Consequently, those creatures still feel at home and wild Luwak roam the property, undisturbed.
We don’t mind if they eat the best and ripest coffee cherries! The luwak return these to us, “new and improved”, with their own added contribution to the flavor. While Ketut or Nyoman Dana are managing the plantation, they collect the “special parcels” of coffee the luwak have left behind.

There is absolutely no farmed luwak at Munduk Moding Plantation!

Tasting notes Kopi Luwak:

Dry coffee grounds: In the ground coffee you will notice a dominant sweet aroma of cognac and earthy herbs/moss which rolls over to dark chocolate.

In the cup: First impression comes from the body. The coffee is thick and syrupy and coats the inside of the mouth. The typical Indonesian earthiness rolls over to aromatic cognac and dark chocolate.

Body: Smooth and heavy, thick and mouth coating.

Acidity: Very low

Aftertaste: The cognac and dark chocolate elements remain present in the long finish.

For those who don’t know what Kopi Luwak is, following is a short description.

“Kopi” is the Indonesian word for “Coffee”.
“Luwak” is the Indonesian name of the “Palm Civet” or “Civet Cat”. This very picky catlike mammal eats only the ripest and best quality coffee cherries right off the tree: you are guaranteed the best of the crop.
The flesh of the cherries is digested while passing through the digestive system and the beans remain intact after they are “passed”. In other words: they are found in the animals’ feces.(see photo) Our farmers keep a sharp eye out for feces, which they collect while travelling through the plantation.

One would think “disgusting”. However, the beans undergo fermentation during this process which transforms the proteins, which are responsible for bitterness in (some) coffee, Coffee connoisseurs over the world tout the unique and refined flavor of luwak coffee, calling it “The caviar of coffee”, which creates an enormous demand for this rarity. Also the processing of the luwak is a bit more “involved” than for freshly picked cherries. But for the connoiseur of a refined cup of coffee, the luwak coffee is the summum.