Production Of The World's Most Expensive Coffee Thrives In Indonesia

BONDOWOSO, EAST JAVA, INDONESIA - AUGUST 11: Civets is eating coffee during the production of Civet coffee, the world's most expensive coffee in Bondowoso on August 11, 2009 in East Java, near Surabaya, Indonesia. The coffee, also known as Kopi Luwak, is produced by the civet (a small squirrel-like arboreal mammal) which eats the coffee berries or red coffee cherries, the beans inside which pass through its digestive tract, expelling them undigested as faeces. The faeces are then cleaned, dried and lightly roasted to make the coffee. Coffee from Indonesian civets is considered to have the best aroma, and it is the unique enzymes in the civet's stomach which give coffee its bitter taste. It retails for USD100 to USD600 per pound but only around 1000 pounds make it to market each year and supply is very limited. A small coffee house (Heritage Tea Rooms) near Townsville sells the coffee for AUD50 per cup, alongside limited international stores such as Selfridges in London. (Photo by Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images)