“Death before decaf.” Or: “Decaf coffee is like beer without alcohol – it’s pointless.”

We’ve been hearing these phrases in the coffee world for years. And honestly? We’ve understood them for a long time. Decaffeinated coffee has had a decades-long reputation as a drink you only drink out of necessity. It tasted flat, papery, sometimes even chemical, and it had nothing to do with the joy of drinking specialty coffee.

But the world of specialty coffee has shifted, and technology with it. Today, I dare say that if we gave you a blind test, you probably wouldn’t know you were drinking decaffeinated coffee.

How is this possible? It all depends on how gently (or ungently) the caffeine gets out of the bean.

Chemistry vs. Nature: why decaf had a bad reputation

Most cheap commodity coffees are decaffeinated in the cheapest way – with aggressive chemical solvents (methylene chloride, for example, was often used).

The process is simple: the bean is soaked, the chemistry binds the caffeine to itself, and then the bean is washed. The problem is that these solvents are aggressive. Along with the caffeine, they ‘suck’ the oils, sugars and aromatics that make up the bean’s character. The result is an empty bean, which is then roasted on charcoal to give it at least some taste.

For us at Goriffee, this was not the way to go. If we are to sell decaf under our brand, it has to be first and foremost a great Specialty coffee.

The power of sugar cane

The coffee you find here has gone through a process called Sugarcane process (or E.A. decaffeination). It’s a method that takes advantage of what nature has to offer right in the coffee’s country of origin – in our case, often Colombia.

Instead of synthetic chemistry, ethyl acetate is used. It sounds scary, but it is actually a natural substance that is produced by fermenting molasses from sugar cane. The genius of this process is that it is selective. Ethyl acetate has the natural property of binding to caffeine molecules, but leaves the other important components of the bean almost untouched.

The whole process looks simplified as follows:

1. Steaming: the green grain is gently steamed with water steam to open its pores and increase its volume.
2. Bath: the grain is immersed in a solution of water and natural sugarcane ethyl acetate.
3. Extraction: the solution flows over the beans and “extracts” the caffeine from them. This step is repeated until at least 97% of the caffeine has been removed.
4. Cleaning: after the caffeine is removed, the beans are re-steamed to remove any ethyl acetate residue.
5. Drying: the coffee is dried to its original moisture and a protective wax (such as beeswax or vegetable wax) is applied to keep it stable.

The result? Preserved flavour profile

Since we did not “torture” the grain with aggressive chemistry and high temperatures, the essentials remained in the grain. The cellular structure of the grain is a bit more fragile (which is why decaf roasts a bit more delicately), but the taste is there.

When you taste our decaf, you won’t smell the paper. You will feel the sweetness, the mild acidity and the full body. Whether it’s a hint of milk chocolate, nuts or dried fruit, the flavor profile stays true to the region from which the coffee comes.

Who is this coffee for?

It’s not just coffee for pregnant women or people with high blood pressure. It’s a coffee for anyone who loves the taste of specialty coffee but wants to get a good night’s sleep.

It is the ideal choice if:

• You have the taste for an espresso at six in the evening.
• You want to indulge in your third or fourth cup of the day, but you don’t want to be distracted.
• You’re trying to limit your caffeine intake, but you don’t want to give up your ritual.

If you’ve turned up your nose at decaf so far, I urge you – give it a chance. You may find that what you loved most about coffee wasn’t the caffeine, but the taste.