# Decaf process - which is best?



## glaut (Jan 9, 2016)

Hi guys,

I mainly drink decaf in the afternoon and have been having trouble in finding good tasting beans. Does anyone have recommendations on which type of processing is best?


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## NickdeBug (Jan 18, 2015)

CO2 process probably gives the beans the best chance of achieving their potential. Still need a decent roaster to get them there.

Sparkling Water/Swiss water are more common and tend to be a bit cheaper. The beans are soaked until the water is saturated with all non-caffeine solubles. Subsequent batches will, in theory, only lose the caffeine which is highly soluble and therefore has a greater saturation point. I think some heat is required to achieve this. Many would say that this results in loss of flavour from the bean and you often find that they are then roasted very dark to compensate.

There are some good decafs out there. Based on a recommendation on here I bought some avenue decaf which I cracked open this evening. Surprisingly light roast. Very delicate in a flat white. Hazelnuts being the dominant flavour. Very tasty! Smokey Barn's decaf is really dark and tastes like molasses and dark chocolate.

I don't think you see much of the old style of solvent extraction any more. Certainly not from the good roasters. That used to leave a really nasty taste.


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## glaut (Jan 9, 2016)

I have only recently come across the CO2 process recently. From what I have read it is a sound principle, however, it would still depend on the solubility of the other compounds which I can imagine would change from type to type and bean to bean.

Most of the information I could see online was regarding water processes which in my mind got me thinking straight away that the majority of the oils and aroma compounds. Coffee is after all made with water + coffee ground. If they add heat as you say no wonder it does not taste as good. My job currently involves carrying out extractions on various materials to assess changing levels of chemicals. Surprise surprise, water has the best extraction efficiency, it's not called the universal solvent for nothing!

Have you tried any other roasters for decaf that you could recommend?


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## JKK (Feb 19, 2014)

Hello

Currently the best decaf I have tasted recently are:

LOMA ANCHA DECAFFEINATED ESPRESSO From Workshop

which is exceptionally good.

- Sugar Cane Process ( technically I think they can is used as ethanol once brewed )

Fraijanes, Guatemala Decaf From Climpson & Sons.

- Swiss Water Process

-JKK


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