• Beans

  • Curious about the need to grind decaf so much finer than regular beans

DavecUK

So the beans are actually "cooked’ a bit during the process? I know decaf green beans are generally darker than regular beans.

    CoyoteOldMan

    That sounds reasonable to me. If fines are removed it would certainly explain the gushing.

      LMSC

      Yes, interesting thread. I wish there was a wider selection of decaf green beans. I’d like to try that sugarcane process.

          thusband Yes, interesting thread. I wish there was a wider selection of decaf green beans. I’d like to try that sugarcane process.

          Sugarcane decaffeination utilizes a naturally occurring compound, ethyl acetate (EA) to decaffeinate coffee. The EA used in this process is derived from molasses (a by-product of sugar production). Since  EA is naturally-occurring, the process is labelled as “naturally decaffeinated.” 

          The EA process is relatively simple. The coffee beans are moistened with water and EA is circulated throughout. The EA binds with the caffeine in the bean and extracts the caffeine while leaving most of the other flavour compounds. After the desired caffeine level is reached, the EA residue on the beans is removed by steaming them. 

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              DavecUK

              Very interesting. Do you know of any sugarcane decaf suppliers of green beans in the UK?

                  DavecUK Ethyl acetate isn’t actually naturally occurring, rather it is synthesised from sugarcane. You take the sugar from sugarcane, ferment it into ethanol, and then oxidise the ethanol with acid to form ethyl acetate.

                  For the grind size, as well as opening the pores more (which is why decaf beans after being roasted look oilier), it makes the bean more brittle. I think it’s this change in how brittle it is that impacts the required grind size.

                      DavecUK

                      Yes, I’ve Googled around but nobody, so far, has any greens.