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46 Tea & Coffee Trade Journal | www.teaandcoffee.net Known as the world's most expensive coffee, Kopi Luwak has been collected in tiny batches across the Indonesian coffee islands for centuries and sold as the ultimate exclusive luxury in the con- suming world for decades. From legendary sto- ries of the skills applied by the Asian Palm Civet in electing only perfect ripe cherries to mythical tales of just how good the quality is, Luwak cof- fee, in recent years, increasingly has been at the center of debate about the ethics surrounding how these rare beans are produced. In Part III of our series on Indonesia, we join local growers hunting for Luwak beans across coffee regions, from the wild forests highlands of northern Sumatra to the spir- itual island of Bali in the search for the perfect Luwak cup. We discover, in what is wel- come news to the industry, that the vast majority of these legendary beans, originate from wild civets and when done properly, Kopi Luwak is not only ethically responsible but a truly awesome cup, fully worth both the praise and price. By Maja Wallengren All photos courtesy of Maja Wallengren Sacred Beans: Hunting for Kopi Luwak Coffee special report: indonesia part iii The majority of these rare, unique beans comes from wild civets.