I’ve been hearing a lot of questions lately about decaf coffee and the differences in decaffeination processes. So, I figured I would take the time to clear a few things up. There is no such thing as a naturally caffeine free coffee bean. The beans used to make decaf coffee start out as normal beans, then they are decaffeinated through a variety of different methods. The decaffeination process does result in a slight loss of flavor, but most of the time it goes unnoticed. Here are the descriptions of the processes used on the beans roasted by us here at Coffee Bean Direct.

Most of the decafs we offer are decaffeinated using the Direct Method or Methylene Chloride Process. This process is almost like a visit to the spa… the coffee beans are sent to a steam room for half an hour. Then they are given a chemical treatment with a chemical known as methylene chloride (or dichloromethane or DCM) over a 10-hour period, then they are steamed again to get rid of any Methylene Chloride left on the coffee. Alright, maybe it’s a little more hard core than a day at the spa.

The second process used by CBD is the Carbon Dioxide Method or CO2 Process. In this process beans that have already been steamed (at the spa) are then exposed to carbon dioxide at EXTREMELY high pressure levels! At this time the carbon dioxide is at a stage somewhere between gas and liquid. Finally, the CO2 is run through filters made of charcoal or water to get rid of the caffeine!

We recently cupped decaf Colombian and CO2 decaf Colombian to compare the differences. We found that while, the decaf Colombian had a nice smooth flavor, the CO2 decaf Colombian had a much more intense Earthy flavor in comparison. So, if you are a big fan of decaf and are not expecting the blast of bold flavor, you may want to stick to the decaf. If you are a fan of regular coffees like Colombian and you are not looking to be fully caffeinated 24/7 you may want to look into CO2 decafs.

Alright, that’s all i have for now. Hope you enjoyed the post.

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Tags: Coffee Bean Direct, Decaf

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