The most expensive coffee in the world

When we heard that the most expensive coffee in the world, kopi luwak (a.k.a. civet coffee or cat poop coffee), was being produced down the road, we figured we'd better give it a try. To clarify, civet coffee involves civets (similar to weasels) eating coffee berries, which then pass through their digestive systems and the beans are expelled whole. The beans are then collected, washed and roasted (the worst job in the world?), and then sold for crazy amounts of money, up to £50 per cup in London.

The BAS Bali Coffee Plantation is an easy half hour ride north of Ubud and is set in lovely countryside. A cup of kopi luwak here costs a much more reasonable 60,000 rupiah (£3).

All visitors get a complimentary tray of twelve of their teas, coffees and chocolate drinks to try. Lemon tea, mocha, arabica and cocoa were favourites of ours, although they all came with sugar so were sweeter than we would have liked.

After sampling these, the kopi luwak came out in a vacuum coffee maker. It looks like something out of a science experiment, but it seems to be a popular way to brew coffee here, we've seen them in cafes a few times since.

The verdict

Turns out, it was totally delicious! Most Bali coffee we've had is very gritty (it's how the locals like it), but this was strong and smooth, with a great flavour. One of the best coffees we had during our 6 weeks in Indonesia (and we had a lot!).

For more tasty treats, check out my post on Indonesian food.