We all love to try new and exciting coffees, but do you have the stomach and budget to try some of the world’s rarest and most expensive coffees?
Fermented in the stomach of exotic animals, grown in the most difficult-to-reach terrain, or pampered more than your rich aunties poodle in fields guarded more fiercely than most bank vaults, these are the list of elite and exclusive coffees:
1. Black Ivory Coffee
Black Ivory coffee is without a doubt the rarest and most expensive Coffee in the world. At today’s date, in 2022, one kilogram of this Coffee in bean form is $2,200 US dollars, which is more than $500 per pound.
Black Ivory Coffee is, as you might guess, associated with elephants. But not the way you might think.
The Black Ivory Coffee Company produces black Ivory Coffee in Thailand. With only 215 kg (474 LBS) harvested per year, it quickly takes the title as the rarest Coffee globally, and with limited production and demand comes a hefty price. This limited supply is reserved for primarily high-end five-star hotels. However, a small amount is put aside for the affluent or the once-in-a-lifetime purchases of single customers.
Described as tasting of chocolate, with malt, and a grassy aroma. There is no bitter or burnt taste like regular coffee, stated as the most distinctive cup of coffee that you will ever try.
Harvesting and Production Process
To keep the harvesting and production process simple but very hands-on and labor-intensive. The first step is to gather only the best 100% Arabica coffee cherries. These are harvested from the most exclusive crops at an altitude as high as 1500 feet.
They are then carefully transported to Surin in Thailand and distributed to the Families that care for the Elephants selected for the fermenting process. The elephants are fed the Coffee Cherries in their meals, from Banana mash to rice and tamarind, depending on each individual’s elephant appetite.
Once the Elephant has eaten the Coffee Cherries, it can take 12 to 72 hours for the coffee cherries to pass through the stomach and be expelled from the Elephant.
The caretakers and families then handpick the coffee cherries contained in the deposits. From there, they are taken to a local high school where they are paid to conduct the final step of washing, sun drying, and raking the coffee beans. All steps are performed by hand, and only the finest beans are chosen to be hulled and roasted. No small or defective coffee beans are used or resold, another reason that they are so expensive.
Generally, 33 kilograms of raw coffee cherries carefully chosen to be fed to the elephants only result in one kilogram of saleable coffee beans.
One cup of Black Ivory Coffee is about $50 US and only available by the cup at selected First class five star hotels.
2. Finca El Injerto Coffee
$500 per pound.
Grown in Guatemala, the second most expensive Coffee in the world is Finca El Injerto Coffee.
El Injerto is high up in the highlands of Huehuetenango and starts at 1500 meters above sea level, to the grand height of 1920 meters above sea level. The most pampered, delicate, and exotic varieties are planted in the rich organic soil and the perfect temperature of 22 degrees Celsius, which brings the perfect conditions for the most precious and specialty, rare Coffee.
No coffee beans are bought in to be processed. All are grown on the farm and tended by the families and teams employed there. A variety of beans are grown to produce a variety of high-quality roasts.
The beans currently being grown and trialed to create the most refined Coffee are:
- Bourbon.
- Rojo.
- Red Catuai.
- Pacamara.
- Catuai Amarelo.
- Maragogype
- Geishas Panama.
- Geisha Malawi.
- SL 28.
- Mocca.
The entire process from growth, handpicking the perfect beans, cleaning, roasting, and packing is done entirely on the farm by people and the eye. So, if attention to detail and organic produce is essential to you, along with socially responsible and sustainable farming, then indeed, this is a cup of Coffee for you.
3. Hacienda La Esmeralda
More than $500 per pound.
The perfectly ripe coffee cherries are handpicked at harvest time, being careful to leave the unripe and smaller cherries still on the tree to ripen. This process ensures only the purest and fully mature cherries are picked, cleaned, and roasted.
The drying process is entirely natural. The washed cherries are laid out on a natural surface to sun and wind dry. They must be completely dried. Once they are completely dried (after a short 72 hours in a dryer to ensure complete dryness and prevent the cherry hull from fermenting ), they are placed in nylon bags and left to rest for 35 to 40 days. This allows the flavors of the cherries that encase the bean to slowly seep into the bean and infuse it with the sweet fruity flavors that can be missed in a faster, factory clean, and dry process.
The beans are then hulled, mechanically sorted for size, and then by color by man and the eye. This gentle combination of traditional process and the mechanical process produces various roasts, tastes, and species of coffee bean that are fruity, full of flavor, and made with the hands that grow the trees.
4. Kopi Luwak Coffee
$160 per pound.
Kopi Luwak Coffee is produced once again by being eaten, partially digested, and deposited by an animal. The animal this time is much smaller, the Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus Hermaphroditus).
You may have also heard of it called by the name Civet Coffee. These cute coffee cherry-eating mammals live in Indonesia. And the coffee gathering happens in Indonesia Islands, Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sulawesi, and East Timor.
The belief is that Coffee is a specialty due to two processes: choosing only the tastiest coffee cherries by the Civet and the digestive process that partially digests the coffee bean adding flavor.
Once a tradition of collecting the beans from the wild Asian Palm Civet deposits, sadly, there is now a trade-in which some are caught, kept in captivity, and force-fed the coffee cherries. It is the form of processing, rather than the actual coffee bean, that makes this Coffee expensive. However, there is an easy way to differentiate between the cruel and the ethically harvested beans.
There is a wide gap in the price between the farmed Coffee and the ethically collected beans from the wild. 1kg of farmed Kopi Luwak coffee is $100 US, while the ethically collected beans sell for $1300 US. So, apply your conscience when you purchase this Coffee.
The Civets choice of Coffee Cherry that it eats, the other components of its diet, its general health, and stress levels can all affect the taste of the Coffee. Still, generally, it is said to be thinner and smoother than other coffees. So, if you prefer a full-bodied, robust-tasting coffee, this may not be your choice. Still, many appreciate the story behind the Coffee. As long as you buy the authentically harvested beans, you should have a good and tasty coffee.
5. Saint Helena
$79 per pound.
Napoleon Bonaparte was a huge fan of Saint Helena Coffee, which is grown on St Helena Island.
The Arabica Coffee tree that grows on the Island was declared an endangered species in 2019. As a result, the crops grown and pampered on the Island are desired and hard to come by elsewhere. This is another reason why the Saint Helena Coffee Beans and the resulting cup of Coffee made from them are so expensive.
While the trees were neglected at times and there was changing of hands over the years, the legend of the St Helena coffee has survived many downturns and today thrives.
The Island itself is 1200 miles off the coast of Africa, making transportation an expensive exercise, which of course, only drives the price up higher. This is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime cup of Coffee.
This Coffee has the unique flavors of caramel, and citrus makes it a sweet but refreshing tasting cup of deliciousness.
6. Fazenda Santa Ines
$50 per pound.
Fazenda Santa Ines is located at the feet of the Mantiqueira mountains. Because of the high terrain, they are grown in, harvesting at Fazenda Santa Ines has always been done by hand, with the cherries collected by the families on a cloth.
The cloth is used to protect the fragile coffee beans and ensure they are not contaminated. The beans are then transported to Fazensa So Sertao, where the beans are washed, pulped, and spread out to dry.
The dry is stopped before the bean cracks for the second time to keep the taste citrus and bright. Roasting it too dark means it would have the more robust burnt flavor, and the subtle undertones would be overpowered.
Fazenda Santa Ines is a delightful, bright coffee with hints of lemon and clove. Excellent fruit penetration, more than most naturals from Brazil. The citrusy character is very striking, but it possesses a delicate texture and a layered, complex taste. Very aromatic, with a chocolaty body, a creamy mouthfeel, and a long, sweet finish. Clean, sweet, and well processed. A great cup and excellent value.
7. Starbucks Quadriginoctuple Frap
$47.30 per cup.
If you’re feeling sluggish today, just head over to Starbucks and get yourself a Quadriginoctuple Frap. It’ll give you 48 shots of pure caffeine and will only cost you $47.50. A now, what we imagine, very buzzed Beau Chevassus created the drink at a Washington branch of the shop to set the world record for the most expensive coffee concoction. Chevassus blew the last contender – who last year created a $23.60 drink with 16 shots of espresso – out of the caffeinated water.
He arrived with a 52-ounce coffee mug, a Washington state man headed to his local Starbucks to make history. There were forty-eight shots of espresso, two scoops of protein powder, bananas, a great shot of caramel syrup, some Frappuccino chips, vanilla bean, and a touch of soy. He ordered the most expensive Starbucks drink ever on Feb. 9. He dubbed the $47.30 monstrosity the “Quadriginoctuple Frap”. It is believed it took him a few days to drink it because the intense sweetness made his gums hurt.
8. Hawaiian Kona Coffee
$34 per pound.
Original Kona coffee is highly sought after worldwide because of its full-bodied flavor and a pleasant aroma.
Its superiority cannot be disputed, Forbes voting Kona coffee as the Best Coffee in America.
Kona coffee is only genuine if it is grown in Kona’s North and South districts on the islands of Hawaii. Other beans are grown on the Island. But it’s the rich and smooth taste of the Authentic Kona Beans that make them so sought after and unique.
Due to its high quality, expect to pay a premium as the true Kona Coffee is unsurprisingly expensive. Keep it authentic and avoid the Kona blends. They only have roughly 10% of the actual Kona bean, and you will lose the flavor and aroma the Coffee is famous for. Stick to the 100% product for the actual experience and vibrant acidity it is known for.
This Coffee is an international treasure and is among the best single-origin, high volcanic mountain-grown coffee beans. These beans are roasted perfectly to maximize the flavor of the Hawaiian Kona coffee beans.