It’s all the rage in coffee snobbery to spend an unseemly amount of money on coffee beans that have passed through the digestive system of an animal. Civets, elephants — their poo supposedly produces a superior result. So of course some entrepreneurial human living in Portland (naturally) decided to get in on the game:
I’m a home roaster and I’m noticing in the newpapers that animal poop coffee is really popular and expensive. I’ve been growing yellow bourbon arabica in my greenhouse for a couple of years and it’s finally starting to produce quality cherry. I will personally ingest this cherry and mimic the “kopi luwak” process. I will roast this coffee so that it’s ready to brew, in time for the holidays. I will be able to harvest only a couple of pounds of this special kind of coffee so act now before it’s too late.
I’m 47, healthy, and will guarantee you’ll like my kopi luwak style coffees. Fecal specimens available for inspection upon request.
How much would you pay for this delicacy?
This person (who I sort of assume is a dude, rather than a woman) is asking $30 a pound. Joke? Not a joke? What avid, Portland-dwelling Grist List reader wants to respond to this ad and find out?