Some people are paying $50 plus for a cup of coffee where the beans have been gathered from Cat Poo.
It's true. Kopi luwak comes from Asian palm civet droppings. The cat-sized mammals, a native of Indonesia, eat ripe coffee berries, which pass through their digestive tract relatively unchanged in shape. What has changed, some say, is the action of the civet's digestive enzymes on the fleshy pulp of the coffee berry, changing the proteins, reducing its bitterness and partially germinating the bean through a malting process.
The beans are washed, dried and lightly roasted - its flavour is said to be smoother and less bitter.
For nine dollars, there's an impressive sense of ceremony that comes with your espresso shot of kopi luwak, a slate grey rectangular tile offering caffeine worshippers a palate cleanser, petit four and brown sugar cube.
Some Indonesians are catching and breeding these cats then feeding them the coffee beans in order to capitilise on this trend.
