Kopi Luwak - Cultivars, Blends, and Tastes

Cultivars, Blends, and Tastes

Kopi luwak is a name for many specific cultivars and blends of arabica, robusta, liberica or other beans eaten by civets, hence the taste can vary greatly. Nonetheless, kopi luwak coffees have a shared aroma profile and flavor characteristics, along with their lack of bitterness.

Kopi luwak has a thick texture, and tastes vary depending on roasting levels. Usually, levels range from cinnamon color to medium, with little or no caramelization of sugars within the beans as happens with heavy roasting. Moreover, kopi luwaks which have very smooth profiles are most often given a lighter roast, though at first taste it can seem a bit strong in flavor. Iced kopi luwak brews may bring out some flavors not found in other coffees. Other berries eaten by civets can give kopi luwak a pungent, sometimes bitter taste, though it varies depending on the diet of the civet.

Sumatra is the world's largest regional producer of kopi luwak. Sumatran civet coffee beans are mostly an early arabica variety cultivated in the Indonesian archipelago since the seventeenth century. The major Sumatran kopi luwak production area is in Lampung, Bengkulu and Aceh especially the Gayo region, Takengon. Tagalog kape alamid comes from civets fed on a mixture of coffee beans and is sold in the Batangas region along with gift shops near airports in the Philippines. In Iligan City, Mindanao, Philippines, Kape Melô Coffee Shop is serving the famous kape melô at anytime of the day.