Brazil Jacu Bird Coffee

I'd really like to know who first thought of the idea of using the coffee beans that animals ingested and then pooped out. The guy (I am pretty sure it must have been a guy) is either an idiot or a genius. Actually, likely the latter given what these coffees go for. You may be familiar with kopi luwak (easily googleable, if that is a word), the product of an Indonesian rodent with a taste for coffee cherries. This stuff goes for >$100 per pound in places. The theory is that the animal only eats the ripest coffee cherry, thereby "sorting" the best from the worst. In reality, however, the rodent eats low-grade robusta beans similar to what you get in a can of Folgers, so hang onto your wallet.

Last year a different product began to emerge, this time from Brazil. The coffee consumer is the Jacu bird, a cute creature that lives on coffee farms in Brazil:

In principle, this avian aficionado eats high quality arabica beans from the same farms that already produce great coffee. It is still pricey, ~$17 per pound, but it is being offered by some purveyors who I trust for quality, so I decided to try a pound out.

This being a Brazilian coffee, I decided to take it into second crack a bit:

It looks and roasts like any other dry processed coffee. And the cup? Let me tell you - this coffee got more rave reviews than any other coffee I bring into work, and this is without telling them what it was. My wife, also slipped a cup without telling her, also waxed philosophic about it. Of course, then I did the "you drank poopy coffee" dance around the kitchen in true infantile fashion....

It is a sweet, sweet cup with intense maple syrup tastes. Smooth and delicious, and no trace of the, er, unusual processing. I am looking forward to some espresso extractions with it as well.