HOLLAND, MI — Wondering if cat scat Indonesian coffee is worth $600 a pound?

It’s not, say the coffee experts after taking part in a blind taste of Kopi Luwak coffee beans, which are fermented in the digestive system of Indonesian tree cats, and other regional Sumatra coffees priced around $16 a pound.

"The Great Kopi Luwak Cupping Challenge” was held Thursday, Feb. 20, at JP's Coffee and Espresso Bar in downtown Holland.

One Kopi Luwak sample came in at the top of the taste test with 76 points out of 100, considered a good score but well below an excellent rating of 90 or an outstanding rating of 100, said Jack Groot, JP's owner and the event's organizer.

Two of the less pricey, non-cat poop coffees scored within a half point of Kopi Luwak and others were within five points of the top mark.

“It’s a very good coffee, but not worth $600 a pound. If you bought it in a coffee shop, it would cost you $50 a cup,” said Andy Helmkamp, coffee roaster with Anodyne Coffee Roasters in Milwaukee.

THE JUDGES

The judges for the Cupping were:



• Allen Leibowitz, Co-Managing Partner/Founder of Zingerman's Coffee in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Certified Q Grader, Roaster's Guild Executive Council Member 2013.

• Johni Medeiros, Magnum Coffee Roasters, Nunica - Green Coffee Buyer, Cupper and Quality Control

• Andy Helmkamp, Anodyne Coffee Roasters, Milwaukee - Head Roaster and Green Buyer

• John Gibbons, Uncommon Coffee Roasters, Saugatuck - Lead Roaster, Cupper and Coffee Buyer

• Sam Mirto, Ferris Coffee and Nut, Grand Rapids - Director of Coffee and Green Coffee Buyer

• Justin DeWaard, Rowsters Coffee, Grand Rapids - General Manager & Director of Coffee

• Nick Van Slett, JP's Coffee and Midwest Barista School (MBS), Holland - Director of Coffee & Tea, Head Trainer and Barista, green buyer, cupper

Source: JP's

Johni Medeiros, a coffee taster and quality control manager for Magnum Coffee Roasters in Nunica called the coffee fool's gold.

"You are paying for the novelty of the coffee not the flavors," he said.

The special “earthy” flavor of Kopi Luwak that makes it so special comes from its unusual production process that has the coffee berries eaten by Asian civet forest cats, partially digested and pooped out in the wild where it is collected from the scat.

The coffee, and its production method, was made famous in the film The Bucket List starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.

Groot contends that since the Jack Nicholson movie The Bucket List brought Kopi Luwak to public attention as the world’s most expensive coffee, the question of whether it is that good has been a hot topic on coffee forums and among coffee experts.

"There's all kinds of jokes about it," Groot said. "It has been called 'crappaccino' and 'crappy coffee.' There's another coffee called Black Ivory from Thailand that comes from elephant poop."



Groot, who also runs The Midwest Barista School and On Track Coffee Consulting, believes he is the first to hold a formal, controlled blind taste test to compare Kopi Luwak with other high quality coffee beans to determine if the Kopi Luwak deserves its reputation and exorbitant price.

He didn't have to pay that price since specialty coffee company, Kopi Luwak Nusantara of Indonesia provided $1,400 worth of its coffee for the test.

Judges sniffed and inhaled both dry and ground coffee before inhaling the liquid coffee aroma and “aspirating” or slurping the testing coffees from large spoons to experience the coffees fully.

“The tongue tastes about six things while your olfactory systems can sense 40,000 different individual nuances,” Groot said.

The Challenge Cupping followed established Specialty Coffee Association of America cupping protocol in comparing two Kopi Luwak coffee beans with other Northern Sumatra coffees.

Groot's assessment after the taste test: "You're not going to find Kopi Luwak on our coffee board any time soon."



Shandra Martinez covers business for MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. Email her or follow her on Twitter @shandramartinez.