Decaffeinated Coffee

The demand for decaffeinated coffee has grown world wide because of growing concerns about the negative affects of caffeine but it has also gotten a bad reputation as a watery, tasteless and even bitter brew because of the careless and inconsistent brewing and holding methods employed by those who serve it.

Many service establishments have not yet acknowledged the growing market for the product and if they offer it leave the decaf pot on the burner for longer than the regular pot instead of making smaller batches more frequently.

According to leading experts the beverage has the same robust flavor with or without the caffeine if the caffeine is properly removed without affecting the flavor influencing substances and it is brewed correctly. However, many consumers insist they can tell the difference between well brewed cups of decaf and regular despite the scientific data, but it's probably psychological resistance. Good brewing methods start with the freshest cold water, the correct amount of grounds and a clean brewing machine to provide a perfect cup.

People avoid caffeine for a variety of reasons including health concerns, general reduction of caffeine intake and in order to enjoy a cup late at night without being kept awake. In some cases caffeine can trigger heart palpitations, increase blood pressure and disrupt sleep in sensitive people. However, consumers should be aware that a cup of decaf is only 96%-98% caffeine free.

Most of the decaffeinated beans sold in the United States originate from Canadian processing plants. Although several methods may be employed, the two preferred processes are through solvents or water. Many people shun chemical removal for health concerns though little evidence exists to show that methylene chloride is harmful. It should be further noted that water processed beans generally lack the flavor of chemically treated beans.

One chemical process opens the pores of green beans with hot water or steam. The beans are then rinsed in a solution of methylene chloride to extract the caffeine without removing the natural flavor enhancers. The other chemical removal process involves soaking the beans in extremely hot water for several hours allowing the caffeine to seep into the water. The beans are then taken out of the water and methylene chloride is injected into the water to bond with the caffeine particles while leaving the flavor enhancers. The water is reintroduced to the beans which reabsorb only the flavor enhancers.

Most experts agree that these two chemical removal methods offer the greatest coffee aroma and flavor. The chemical process also enjoys a price advantage over the water caffeine removal method in that the by-product can be sold for beverages and medicines.

In the Swiss method (SWP) which was developed by a firm in Switzerland no chemicals are used. The green beans are soaked for a few hours in very hot water but the caffeine is removed by filtering the bean soaked water through activated charcoal. The beans are then returned to this water now minus the caffeine to reabsorb the flavor enhancers.

Very recently researchers at the Nara Institute of Science and Technology in Japan have genetically modified coffee seedlings to produce up to seventy percent less caffeine. They used a tool called RNA interference to genetically engineer the plants. This technique silences an enzyme produced in the second step of the three step process that coffee plant cells use to make caffeine.

The hope is that these plants could more economically produce a better tasting brew but they won't know until the plants mature in three to four years. The Japanese team used the robusta plant (Coffea canephora) variety but another team is working on the slower growing Arabica (Coffea Arabica) variety.