World's Costliest Coffee

Most of us cannot imagine starting our day without a cup of coffee. A steaming cup of freshly brewed coffee is certainly the best possible way to start the day. Sipping coffee with your friends is considered one of the best ways to start a conversation. An enthusiast might also know that Brazil is the world's largest producer of Coffee (at 34% of total produce) and that India is among the Top 5 coffee producers in the world.

But, have you ever spared a thought as to which might be the costliest coffee in the world?

Forget the rich Arabica (believed to be the first species of coffee to be cultivated in Yemeni mountains) and Robusta (another variety grown in Central and Western Sahara) or even the Kopi Luwak (Civet Coffee described in detail below) – the Costliest Coffee Bean on the stands is.. believe it or not.. the elephant dung variety produced and marketed by a resort in Thailand.

Yes.. you read it right.. :)
This animal.. 

is fed with this..

and poops out this...

from which the digested coffee beans are processed.. :)

Arguably, Black Ivory Coffee or the elephant dung coffee offered by a Resort/Group of Hotels in Thailand is the Costliest Coffee in the world. It is made from beans eaten and digested by elephants living on a reserve in Thailand. When animals pass the beans in their excrement, they are harvested, cleaned up and processed into coffee grinds. The resulting brew is said to be floral and chocolaty, the taste containing notes of 'milk chocolate, nutty, earthy with hints of spice and red berries.'

Research indicates that during digestion, the enzymes of the elephant break down coffee protein. Since protein is one of the main factors responsible for bitterness in coffee - Lesser protein means  lesser bitterness.

This exquisite coffee costs the adventurous drinker a good  $1,100 per kilogram. That's roughly about 50$ for a cup of coffee. For the sake of comparison Kopi Luwak (or Civet Coffee) is priced about $750 per kilogram in a New York shop.

History of Coffee from Animal Poop
Of course, the notion of roasting pooped-out beans isn't a new one. Kopi Luwak (or Civet Coffee), a Southeast Asian brew made from coffee berries passed through the digestive tract of an Asian palm civet was the first of its kind and was crowned as the costliest coffee in the world till the elephant poop variety was introduced.

Origin of Kopi Luwak is an interesting story in itself. In the early 18th century the Dutch introduced the coffee plantations in Java and Sumatra (Indonesia) which was their colony then. Coffee was an expensive drink then, only for the elite and naturally the plantation workers and natives were prohibited from picking coffee fruits for their own use by their Dutch masters. Natives desparately wanted to taste the famed coffee beverage. 

As the saying "Necessity is the mother of inventions" - the natives learned that certain species of Civets (known as Chirathe Bekku in Kannada)

consumed the coffee fruits and  they left the coffee seeds undigested in their droppings. 

The natives collected these Civets' coffee seed droppings, then cleaned, roasted and ground them to make their own coffee beverage. The fame of aromatic civet coffee spread from locals to Dutch plantation owners and soon became their favorite, yet because of its rarity and unusual process, the civet coffee was expensive even in colonial times. 

This is because the Civet is likely to look for Coffee berries that has a quite good quality, naturally riped and sweet as their food. With a sensitive sense of smell, the civet will pick truly riped optimal cherries as food, and thereafter, the beans those are still hard skin protected will come out with undigested civet droppings. This happens because the civet has a simple digestive system, so hard foods like coffee beans is not digested.

 

Science behind it

A Civet eats the berries for their fleshy pulp. In the digestive tract, the civets' proteolytic enzymes seep into the beans, making shorter peptides and more free amino acids. Passing through a civet's intestines the beans are then defecated, keeping their shape. After gathering, thorough washing, sun drying, light roasting and brewing, these beans yield an aromatic coffee with much less bitterness.
 

Poop Tea is not far behind

In fact, Coffee isn't the only beverage to get into the dung business. Earlier this year, there were reports that a Chinese businessman announced that he planning to sell organic green tea grown with panda dung for more than $200 a cup. (though there are no confirmed buyers till now)

Next time when you are offered this exquisite coffee in Thailand or Indonesia...you know what to expect !!!