Our sole purpose is to source and roast coffee for the best independent cafés in the world. The best cafés deserve the best flavour possible and although many may be shocked to hear it, that includes decaffeinated coffee.
What’s the point of having decaf coffee?
Believe it or not, when decaf is done right, its flavour can be indistinguishable from regular coffee. With certain decaf methods, we can preserve the unique flavour of the specialty coffee we source and allow it to truly shine — with none of the caffeine.
Decaf coffee has a bad name thanks to years of chemical decaffeination methods butchering coffee flavour, ruining coffee drinkers’ perception of decaf.
Although chemical decaf methods are quick and easy, you lose so much of the delicate aroma and flavours that regular caffeinated coffee provides (the good stuff we all love about coffee). Methods using chemical solvents and Co2 impart their own tastes on coffee; these methods make up most of the decaf processing that people are familiar with.
We take a lot of time to source the best specialty coffee in the world, so our decaf coffee isn’t treated like this.
Not all decaf coffees are made the same.
At Allpress we use two of the gentlest methods of decaffeinating coffee that use absolutely no chemicals; Swiss Water and Mountain Water Decaf. These two processes are remarkably similar to one another and allow our specialty coffee to retain its unique flavour while being 99.9% caffeine-free.
These methods involve steaming and soaking batches of green coffee in hot water to extract its caffeine. This process also extracts other elements we want to keep in the final coffee; fruity acids, sugars, fats and oils.
This extract is then passed through a charcoal (or sometimes carbon) filter. These filters collect the larger caffeine molecules, allowing the water and other elements to pass through unrestricted. After multiple passes, the water extract is 99.9% caffeine-free; a decaf coffee extract with the least amount of caffeine possible.
The main difference between the two methods we use at Allpress is where the coffee is decaffeinated. Mountain Water Decaf is processed in Mexico using water from their highest mountain — Pico de Orizaba. Whereas Swiss Water Decaf, which did originate in Switzerland in the 1930s, is now processed near Vancouver in British Colombia, Canada.
Once green coffee has been decaffeinated, it’s sent to our roasteries to be blended and roasted. We blend for flavour and consistency; decaf is no exception.
Our Haus Decaf is a well-balanced cup of chocolate, caramel, toffee and citrus notes. Roasted to a similar degree as our Allpress Espresso Blend, our decaf coffee has been blended and roasted as a delicious alternative to your regular brew.
With the proper care and attention to detail, decaffeinated coffee can taste remarkable. With our A.R.T. Roaster doing the work, know you’ll be getting the same sweeter, cleaner flavour that we’re known for.
