Daily Shot Of Coffee Blog Your Coffee Blog | Coffee Reviews, Coffee Product Reviews, Coffee Tips And More
The Drink: Wild Thai Civet Coffee from Doi Chaang Coffee
Type: Whole Bean Kopi Luwak
Doi Chaang Coffee is known for being 50% farmer owned and selling high quality fair trade, organic and shade grown coffee. However, today we’re going to look at one of their other coffees, Wild Thai Civet Coffee that is different from the rest. These “rarest, most sought-after coffee in the world” made a celebrity appearance in the Daily Shot Of Coffee kitchen this week.
In case you’ve never heard of Civet Coffee, also known as Kopi Luwak, let me give you a real quick background. Civet Coffee is regular coffee beans with a unique processing method. In this case the processing method is civets (a cat like animal that kind of looks like a rat), they eat the coffee cherries, process it through their digestive system, then the discarded beans are harvested, cleaned and roasted. Because of the production method, the production levels are low, but the demand is high (especially in Japan) and the result is a very unique and expensive coffee.
In the last Kopi Luwak review, I mentioned some of my concerns with the expensive and hype filled niche of coffee. I’ll give you the short version: My largest concern is that on some farms the animals are kept in tiny cages to produce the coffee. As far as Doi Chaang, their Wild Thai Civet Coffee comes from cage free civets. The animals scavenge for food in the coffee farms surrounding the Doi Chaang community in Northern Thailand. The animals eat the coffee berries at their own free will and of course everything else is part of their own free will too.
Background
This roast produces an elegantly smooth cup with floral undertones that are quite pronounced in the aroma. There is a detectable macadamia nut presence, while the finish is clean with a hint of tanginess on the sides of the tongue. Doi Chaang Wild Civet Coffee beans receive a medium-light roast to maintain the unique, complex flavours that develop while the coffee cherries interact with the civet’s digestive system.
Certifications: Organic, Beyond Fair Trade 50% Grower Owned
Type: Arabica
Altitude: 1200-1600 meters
My Review
Doi Chaang’s Wild Thai Civet Coffee greeted my nose with a smooth, nutty aroma with of black pepper and lemon zest.
The coffee was thick and exceptionally smooth coffee, with just a tingle of bitterness around the edges. Did I mention that this coffee was thick? It was almost like a maple syrup.
In the taste department, the black pepper mixed with a chocolate and woody flavor. I picked up on the tiniest hints of a dark roast with smokiness as the flavor of the sip faded away.
A 50 gram (or about 1.76 ounces) tin of Wild Thai Civet Coffee is not cheap at $55. Unless you’re Bill Gates, this isn’t an every day kind of coffee.
Final Score:
Doi Chaang’s Wild Thai Civet Coffee earned a 3.75 on the Daily Shot Of Coffee, it was exceptional but still that Kopi Luwak price tag is hard to swallow. However, if you’re looking to cross Kopi Luwak off you’re bucket list anytime soon, their version of Kopi Luwak is definitely worth checking out.
—
Fine Print.
It stands to reason; So labor intensive. It’s one of those products that people feel, when they buy, that they are members of a rare, exclusive club. Interesting that it is highly prized in Japan. I’m inspired to now add it to my article on Coffee Trivia:
http://amplegrounds.com/coffee-trivia-fun-facts-on-coffee/
Thanks Mike
I like your coffee trivia article, I’m going to have to share a link with my readers in the weekly news round up.
Same Same Blog On
Yup, they will. Cute little critter though. I wonder how they thought to do it in the first place.
I read once that it’s a cultural tradition, however it was in a sales brochure. I haven’t found much info beyond that.
Blog on ! At $55 a bag, it’s right up there with printer ink cartridges as least bang for buck, but then it’s all a matter of taste.
But I guess someone’s got to pay for what they do with the do do.
Tommy Nick, I think you have a great point. It’s not exactly something I would shell out $55 for, but there are people out there who will.
wild or caged isn’t my main gripe.
try pooped out of a cats rear.
seriously Mike!
‘…My largest concern is that on some farms the animals are kept in tiny cages to produce the coffee. …’
how about a consideration as to how well the farmers can really clean the cat beans?
not high up on my list.
i’d give it a ewww-0 out of 5
sorry
lol howard. I can understand that. The roasting is a pretty heat intensive process, so anything that can’t be cleaned off is roasted clean away. That being said, I didn’t think I would every try it either, however I’ll try just about any coffee good, bad or unique.
So funny you should review this coffee Mike… I just posted a picture I took of a civet when I was at a kopi luwak farm recently. I agree with your tasting notes… it was very earthy and thick when I tried it, and the citrus notes were bordering on the vinegary.
Definitely glad I got to try it, but as you mentioned, it is getting more and more common for Indonesian farmers to cage and force feed the civets to get the most ‘produce’ from them.
So anyone looking to try some genuine Indonesian kopi luwak should look for ‘wild’ coffee, not the caged variety. Expensive, but worth the effort in my opinion!
Billy, thanks for stopping by. Where did you post the picture? I was looking around your site and couldn’t find it.
Just pinned it to the top of my page mate -
CoffeeMakers411 Facebook page.
Checking it out now, thanks!