In discussing decaffeinated coffee, we should first bring awareness of the fact that arabic beans are 50% lower in caffeine that robusta beans to start -- lower priced "canned coffees" are actually higher in caffeine than high grown arabica specialty brews! AND, dark roasting actually reduces the level of caffeine!
We haven't been able to "grow" decaf trees YET, although, they're working on it. After beans are harvested, they are taken to decaffeination plants for processing. Decaffeination processes generally remove 50% of the caffeine and with that goes 50% of the aroma and taste. We try to find coffees that are rich enough and flavorful enough that the effect will be minimized.
Seatlle Express Decaf
A rich blend of decafs produced an absoluetly awesome decaf. Decafs French Roast, Sumatra and Colombian combine well and offer a very hard to detect decaf. This coffee has a "west coast" flair, and offers the "I have to drink decaf" coffee lover a real alternative.
